Hyderabad FC renamed Sporting Club Delhi; Tomas Tchorz becomes new coach

Men’s top-flight football marked a return to the national capital after six years as Hyderabad FC on Saturday renamed itself Sporting Club Delhi ahead of the 2025-26 season.

The last time a top men’s team was based in the capital was Delhi Dynamos, which shifted its base to Bhubaneswar in 2019 and rebranded itself as Odisha FC.

This is the second time that Hyderabad FC has shifted bases. The club, initially branded as Pune City FC in 2014, was dissolved in 2019 and the new owners moved to the southern part of India.

As Hyderabad FC, the side won the Indian Super League (ISL) title in 2022, beating Kerala Blasters in the final, but could not sustain themselves financially, falling into a serious crisis where coaches and players had salaries deferred for months.

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Before the 2024-2025 season, Jindal Football Private Limited, part of Delhi-based BC Jindal Group, took over the club and planned to move north to reduce logistical challenges.

Although the transfer could not take place immediately, the club moved after the end of last season, with the name officially announced on Saturday.

«We had the Delhi Soccer Association (DSA) Executive Committee meeting today where one of the key agenda items was the status of Hyderabad FC. They wanted to know if there was an option for associate membership. The committee therefore decided to invite Hyderabad FC as an associate member,» DSA President Anuj Gupta said. Sports stars.

«They don’t have voting rights, but they can play as a registered club, as a registered club in DSA, starting in the C division, which is the lowest level. And then from there they can be promoted to the top. They can’t use the word Delhi in the beginning or middle.»

It is understood that Sporting Club Delhi had earlier written a letter to both the DSA and the All India Football Federation, requesting the name change. While it was given a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to play in Delhi, it could only do so as Hyderabad FC, which changed on Saturday.

It will now complete the paperwork and pay an associated fee of Rs. 10 lakh to complete the formalities.

“Our new identity shines a spotlight on Delhi rising from the ashes due to the lack of professional football in the city and the region,” said Dhruv Sood, CEO of the club.

Plans for next season

In the India Super League (ISL), a maximum of two teams can have one stadium as their home base. So far, Punjab FC – based in Mohali – has used the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in the capital for its home matches.

While Sporting Club Delhi will explore the possibility of sharing that venue with Punjab, it hopes to have the BR Ambedkar Stadium as its home base in the long term.

Amid the uncertainty of the 2025/26 season, the club has no plans to sign foreigners in the summer or winter period.

However, it will have Polish tactician Tomasz Tchorz as head coach, who joined the side after his contract with Kerala Blasters expired as head of youth development.

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Tchorz previously worked with Mohun Bagan as an assistant head coach in the I-League and had been with the Blasters since June 2020.

He won the I-League with the Mariners in 2020 and helped the Blasters reach the ISL Cup final in 2022 and the play-offs in successive editions since then.

Tchorz took charge of the Blasters as assistant coach in December 2024 after Mikael Stahre was shown the door following a poor run this season.

His first assignment at Sporting Club Delhi will be in the AIFF Super Cup, where the club will be drawn with Mumbai City FC and Kerala Blasters. The first match will be against the Islanders at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, Goa, on October 27.

Published on October 18, 2025