# Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club

Departments of Persepolis :
| Football (Men's) | Football (Women's) | Handball |
| Taekwondo | Swimming | Weightlifting |
| Futsal (Men's) | Futsal (Women's) | Volleyball |
| Wheelchair basketball | Judo | Basketball |
| Wrestling | Goalball | Chess |
Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club (Persian:باشگاه فرهنگی ورزشی پرسپولیس) is an Iranian multisport club based in Tehran, Iran. It was established by Ali Abdo. The club is most known for its football team, Persepolis F.C. which competes in the Iran Pro League. It also fields teams in futsal, taekwondo, volleyball, wrestling, handball, swimming, weightlifting, wheelchair basketball, judo, athletics, goalball, and chess. Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club also owns and operates Persepolis University, Persepolis TV and Radio, Persepolis Energy Drink, and Persepolis Restaurants.

## History
### Shahin F.C. (1942–1967)

Shahin was established in 1942 by Dr. Abbas Ekrami, a teacher. Ekrami founded the club with help of some young students under the motto
   اول اخلاق، دوم درس، سوم ورزش First ethics, second education, third sports.
Shahin produced many talented players like Parviz Dehdari, Masoud Boroumand, Homayoun Behzadi, Jafar Kashani, Hossein Kalani, Hamid Shirzadegan, and many more that played for Team Melli. These talents made Shahin popular in the 1960s but its very popularity was viewed as a threat by the Iran Football Federation and the Keihan Varzeshi newspaper (Iran's most important sports publication at the time). The conflict between them became worse and on 9 July 1967, two days after Shahin's 3–0 win against Tehranjavan F.C., the Iran Sports Organization declared Shahin F.C. as dissolved. League attendance dropped and other clubs including Pas, Rah Ahan, and Oghab tried to sign Shahin players.

### Establishment early years (1963–1969)

Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club was established in 1963 by Ali Abdo. Abdo had returned to Iran from the United States and was a championship boxer.
Persepolis F.C. started the 1968 season with Parviz Dehdari as manager. Despite the efforts to sign and disperse Shahin players to various clubs, Parviz Dehdari and Masoud Boroumand transferred the popularity of Shahin to Persepolis F.C. by taking most Shahin Players to join Persepolis. The team was initially quite weak, and participated in the 2nd division of the country. The best player on the team then was Mahmoud Khordbin.
The club, using four Shahin players, had a friendly match with Jam Abadan, a respected team at the time. After the match the remainder of the Shahin players joined Persepolis. That year no league competition was held, as many teams had been dissolved, so a 44-team tournament was held, and Persepolis, along with Pas, Taj, and Oghab finished top of the group.
The next year they represented as the first Iranian club in the Asian Champion Club Tournament held in Thailand, but they were not successful and were eliminated in the group stage.

## Chairpersons

| # | Chairperson | Tenure | Honours |
| 1 | Ali Abdo | December 1963–January 1975 | Iranian Football League Winner:71–72, 73-74 Runner-up: 74-75 |
| 2 | Mostafa Makri | January 1975–February 1979 | Iranian Football League Winner:75-76 Runner-up: 76-77, 77-78 Espandi Cup Winner:1979 Tehran Hazfi Cup Winner:1979 |
| 3 | Firouz Aminiyan | April 1979–October 1980 | |
| 4 | Heydar Boustani | October 1980–September 1981 | Tehran Provincial League Runner-up:1981 |
| – | Akbar Diyani | September 1981–December 1981 | |
| 5 | Mohammad Reza Rezayian | December 1981–December 1986 | Tehran Provincial League Winner:1982 Tehran Hazfi Cup Winner:1982 Runner-up:1981, 1983 Tehran Provincial League Winner:1986 |
| – | Mohammad Ali Deghatpour | December 1986–February 1987 | |
| 6 | Abbas Vakil | February 1987–June 1988 | Hazfi Cup Winner: 87-88 17th of Shahrivar league Winner:1988 Tehran Provincial League Winner: 1987, 1988 Tehran Hazfi Cup Winner: 1987 |
| – | Mohammad Hossein Eslami | June 1988–April 1989 | |
| – | Kazem Rahimi | April 1989–June 1990 | Iranian Football League Runner-up: 89-90 |
| 7 | Abbas Ansarifard | June 1990–November 1993 | Iranian Football League Runner-up: 92-93 Hazfi Cup Winner:90-91 Asian Cup Winners' Cup Winner: 1991 Runner-up:1993 Tehran Super Cup Winner: 1992 |
| 8 | Amir Abedini | November 1993–January 2001 | Iranian Football League Winner: 95-96, 96-97, 98-99, 99-00 Runner-up: 93-94, 2000–01 Hazfi Cup Winner: 98-99 |
| 9 | Abbas Ansarifard | January–May 2001 | |
| – | Ali Parvin | May–October 2001* | |
| 10 | Ali Mirzaei | October 2001–June 2002 | Iranian Football League Winner:01-02 |
| 11 | Akbar Ghamkhar | June 2002–June 2004 | |
| – | Hojatollah Khatib | June 2004–December 2005* | |
| 12 | Mohammad Hassan Ansarifard | December 2005–June 2007 | Hazfi Cup Runner-up:05-06 |
| 13 | Habib Kashani | June 2007–June 2008 | Iranian Football League Winner:07-08 |
| 14 | Dariush Mostafavi | June 2008–January 2009 | |
| 15 | Abbas Ansarifard | January 2009–October 2009 | |
| – | Habib Kashani | October 2009–September 2011* | Hazfi Cup Winner:09-10, 10-11 |
| 16 | Mohammad Rouyanian | September 2011–January 2014 | Hazfi Cup Runner-up:12–13 |
| 17 | Ali Parvin | January 2014–April 2014 | Iranian Football League Runner-up:13–14 |
| 18 | Alireza Rahimi | April 2014–September 2014 | |
| – | Behrouz Montaghami | September 2014–November 2014* | |
| 19 | Hamid Reza Siasi | November 2014–December 2014 | |
| – | Ali Akbar Taheri | December 2014–February 2015* | |
| – | Mohammad Hossein Nejad-Fallah | February 2015–June 2015** | |
| 20 | Ali Akbar Taheri | June 2015–November 2017 | Iranian Football League Winner: 2016–17 Runner-up:2015–16 Iranian Super Cup Winner: 2017 |
| 21 | Hamidreza Garshasbi | November 2017–December 2018 | Iranian Football League Winner: 2017–18 Iranian Super Cup Winner: 2018 AFC Champions League Runner-up:2018 |
| 22 | Iraj Arab | December 2018–August 2019 | Iranian Football League Winner: 2018–19 Hazfi Cup Winner:2018-19 Iranian Super Cup Winner: 2019 |
| 23 | Mohammad Hassan Ansarifard | August 2019–March 2020 | |
| – | Mehdi Rasoul-Panah | March 2020–October 2020* | Iranian Football League Winner: 2019–20 |
| 24 | Jafar Samiei | October 2020–September 2021 | Iranian Football League Winner: 2020–21 Iranian Super Cup Winner: 2020 AFC Champions League Runner-up: 2020 |
| – | Majid Sadri | September 2021–January 2022* | |
| 25 | Reza Darvish | January 2022–Present | Iranian Football League Winner: 2022–23 Hazfi Cup Winner:2022–23 Iranian Super Cup Winner: 2023 |
$^*$as Interim Chairman.
$^{**}$as Deputy Chairman.

## Ownership

| Owner | Tenure |
| CRC Company | 1963–1979 |
| Physical Education Organization | 1980–1986 |
| Mostazafan Foundation | 1986–1989 |
| Physical Education Organization | 1989–1993 |
| Ministry of Industries and Mines | 1993–2002 |
| Physical Education Organization | 2002–2011 |
| Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports | 2011–2014 |
| Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance$^*$ Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports | 2014–2015 |
| Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports | 2015–2021 |
| Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance$^*$ Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports | 2021–2024 |
| Shahr Bank: 30% Bank Mellat: 20% Tejarat Bank: 20% Bank Saderat Iran: 5.175% Refah Bank: 5% EN Bank: 5% MSY: 5.158% Public Shareholders: 9.667% | 2024–present |
* $^*$Privatization Organization

## University
### Persepolis University

It is first Iranian sport university which opened in 2013. Dariuosh Soudi was appointed as the first president of the university and Mehdi Mahdavikia was the first student of this university. This university has 600 students and accepts students in thirteen different fields.
Some fields provided by the university:
* Football Coaching
* Futsal Coaching
* Fitness
* Sport Reporting
* Match Commentary

## Football
### Men's

Persepolis Football Club who play in the Iran Pro League. According to the AFC, Persepolis is Asia's number one supported club team. Only Dalian Shide and Al-Hilal have similar support in Asia. Persepolis is the most successful football club in Iran with the record of 15 titles in Iranian domestic football league as well as 7 domestic cup titles. Persepolis has also won an Asian Cup Winners' Cup. The current manager is Yahya Golmohammadi.

### Women's
## Sponsorship
### Shirt sponsors and manufacturers

Persepolis League Sponsors :
| Period | Kit Manufacturer | Kit Manufacturer | Shirt Sponsor | Shirt Sponsor | Shirt Sponsor | Shirt Sponsor |
| 1994–95 | Shekari | Shekari | Mobliran | Mobliran | Mobliran | Mobliran |
| 1995–97 | Shekari | Shekari | National Iranian Steel Co. | National Iranian Steel Co. | National Iranian Steel Co. | National Iranian Steel Co. |
| 1997–98 | Nahangi | Nahangi | Iran Insurance Company | Iran Insurance Company | LG | Sanam |
| 1998–99 | Nahangi | Nahangi | Aiwa | Aiwa | Aiwa | Aiwa |
| 1999–2000 | Jouraban | Jouraban | | Aiwa | Aiwa | Aiwa | Aiwa |
| 2000–01 | Jouraban | Jouraban | Samsung | Samsung | Samsung | Samsung |
| 2001–02 | Jouraban | Jouraban | NEC | NEC | Tidi | Tidi |
| 2002–03 | Jouraban | Jouraban | Samsung | Samsung | Samsung | Samsung |
| 2003–04 | Jouraban | Daei | Pars Television | Pars Television | Pars Television | Pars Television |
| 2004–05 | Nahangi | Nahangi | Perspower | Perspower | Jaguar Drink | Jaguar Drink |
| 2005–06 | Nahangi | Nahangi | Bomba | Dariush Hotel | Shahr Aftab | Giordano |
| 2006–07 | Hessari | Hessari | Irtoya | Ecut | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2007–08 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | City Credit Cooperative | City Credit Cooperative | City Credit Cooperative | Shahrvand |
| 2008–09 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | None | Marrybrown | Marrybrown | Marrybrown |
| 2009–10$^§$ | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Behgol | Behgol | Tehran Municipality | Tehran Municipality |
| 2010–11 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | City Bank | City Bank | City Bank | City Bank |
| 2011–12 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | City Bank | Opel | Opel | Persepolis Card |
| 2012–13 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Sadra System Pasargad | Sadra System Pasargad | Sadra System Pasargad | Sadra System Pasargad |
| 2013–14 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank |
| 2014–15 | Macron | Macron | EJS Co. | None | None | EJS Co. |
| 2015–16 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | T.T Bank | None | Hamrahe Aval | Hamrahe Aval |
| 2016–17$^¤$ | Joma | Joma | Hamrahe Aval | Hamrahe Aval | Hamrahe Aval | Hamrahe Aval |
| 2017–18 | Joma | Joma | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2018–19 | Li-Ning | Li-Ning | | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2019–20 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Irancell | Irancell | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank |
| 2020–21 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank |
| 2021–22 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Tourism Bank | Tourism Bank | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2022–23 | Uhlsport | Uhlsport | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2023–24 | Merooj | Merooj | | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell | Irancell |
| 2024–25 | Merooj | Merooj | Saba Battery | Saba Battery | Saba Battery | Saba Battery |
    $^§$ in 2009–10 Persepolis wear Hessari in first three matches.
    $^¤$ in 2016–17 Persepolis wear Givova in first ten matches.

## Futsal
### Men's

Persepolis Futsal Club is a futsal team that play's in the Iran Futsal's 1st Division, the second-tier league in Iran. The team formerly played in the Super League, but after it ceased operations for a year, it was given a placement in the 2013–14 1st Division season. In 2014 Persepolis Futsal Club was again promoted to the Iranian Futsal Super League.

### Women's

Persepolis WFSC is a women's futsal team the plays in the Iranian Women's Super League.

## Weightlifting

On 16 August 2012, under the approval of chairman Mohammad Rouyanian the Persepolis Weightlifting Team was established. Behdad Salimi the gold medallist at the 2012 Olympics became the team's first signing.

## Taekwondo

Persepolis' taekwondo team was founded recently, they have won one Iranian domestic championship.

## Swimming

The Persepolis Swimming Team was founded after the Iranian Revolution in 1979. The team has won the national competition once in its history.

## Track and Field

The Persepolis Track and Field team was founded in August 2012 with the permission of chairman Mohammad Rouyanian. Olympic bronze medallist Ehsan Hadadi became the team's first ever signing.

## Bowling

With the name of Abdo Bowling Club, it was one of Persepolis' first teams and was created by founder Ali Abdo. After the Iranian Revolution the team was dissolved.

## Volleyball

Persepolis VC is one of the oldest volleyball teams in Iran, it has currently ceased operations due to lack of funds.