South China AA

Early history

The Chinese Football Team was founded in 1904 by a group of Chinese students in Hong Kong, including Mok Hing (Bahasa Cina: 莫慶) and Tong Fuk Cheung (Bahasa Cina: 唐福祥, the captain of China national football team in the 1910s). In 1910, the team was renamed as South China Football Club.
In the 1917 Far Eastern Games and 1919 Far Eastern Games (also known as the Far East Olympics Tournament), the club represented the Republic of China and won the football championship. It is the only team in Hong Kong sports history to have accomplished this feat. China lost in the final to the Philippines in the first to be held, in 1913, but in the next nine it won every time, right through until the last FECG to be held in 1934. On that occasion China was a joint winner with Japan. Throughout these tournaments, the majority of the China team was composed of SCAA players.
On 1920, South China which began as a club called the South China Athletic Association founded by Mok Hing.
Around 1920–1922, the club formally adopted the present name of South China Athletic Association and diversified into other sports such as basketball.

1980s

Since its foundation, South China had an all-Chinese Policy that only fielded Chinese players. Even their foreign players were overseas Chinese players such as Edmund Wee, Chow Chee Keong, Chan Kwok Leung, etc. Up until the 1980s, the policy was very successful. But when professional football took off in Hong Kong, the club could not cope with the influx of foreign players and performed poorly at the beginning of the 1981–1982 season. On 2 November 1981, the club voted to end its over 60 years old All-Chinese policy.
Although the club was able to avoid relegation that season, it was not incident free. On 6 June 1982, after the club drew an all-important match with Caroline Hill FC, the fans rioted outside the stadium that spread onto Causeway Bay. The riot was the largest civil disorder in Hong Kong since the leftist riot in 1967.

2000s

As they failed to beat Citizen in the last game of the 2005–06 season, South China was to be relegated for the first time since 1983. However, on 14 June 2006, the Hong Kong Football Association approved a request from South China to remain in the first division with the promise of strengthening their squad. Staying true to their word, South China heavily strengthened their squad and coaching staff. As a result, South China successfully regained the First Division League title in the 2006–07 season, and also winning the Hong Kong FA Cup and the Hong Kong Senior Shield, achieving the famous treble.
The team has gone from strength to strength, while the team has had continued success on the domestic front, winning three consecutive league titles in the process, it has also had success in other international club competitions. The team has reached the semi-finals of the 2009–10 AFC Cup. South China's success has seen the team climb in world club rankings to their new high of 145th, even surpassing other Mainland Chinese clubs which are widely considered to be of a better standard than clubs in Hong Kong. In recent years the South China has taken part in several pre-season exhibition matches with European clubs, with the most notable being a 2–0 win against the English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur.
Much of the recent success has been attributed to the former chairman, Steven Lo, and with his shrewd business sense he rebuilt the team as a brand, and played a major role in reigniting interest in the Hong Kong Football League. South China has reinvented their image and have partnered with several organisations and brands. In 2007, South China has enter into a partnership with Hong Kong Red Cross. The partnership is a pioneer between a sports association and a humanitarian organisation in Hong Kong, and South China is the first football team to ever bear the Red Cross emblem on the official kit. The appointment of the fashion brand Giorgio Armani as the official tailor, has allowed South China to join some of the world's elite, with the brand being associated with Chelsea Football Club and the English national team. In celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the establishment of South China Football Team, world-renowned designer Philippe Starck produced a special edition of the "Peninsula Chair", with the faces of the team and the chairman printed on.
Nicky Butt and Mateja Kežman played for South China during the 2010–11 season of the Hong Kong First Division League.

Honours

Traditionally the most popular club in the city, SCAA is also the most successful football club in Hong Kong, winning the Hong Kong League 41 times (All-time ranking 1st), the Senior Shield 31 times (All-time ranking 1st), the now-defunct Viceroy Cup 8 times, the FA Cup 10 times (All-time ranking 1st) and the League Cup three times. The team had captured all the 4 main trophies in seasons 1987–88 and 1990–91. In November 2001, the team was awarded the AFC Team of the Month by the Asian Football Confederation.

Partnerships

On 3 November 2009, South China and Tottenham Hotspur jointly announced a club partnership in Hong Kong. South China became the first club partner of Spurs in Asia. The partnership is for 2 years with an option to extend further. Besides planning in sharing of best practice in any areas of the technical and business sides of football, Tottenham Hotspur has the first option on South China players at all age levels. Tottenham Hotspur will support South China's coaching development through the exchange of scientific data, coaching materials and visits of coaching staffs to and from both teams. The two clubs will explore the possibility of a joint youth Academy and training centre in Hong Kong or in mainland China.