Union F.C.

Union Internacional Manila

Full name	Union Internacional Manila Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Blue Machine
Founded	1996
Chairman	Rafael Rodríguez
Manager	Dan Padernal
League	UFL Division 2
Home colours Away colours

The Union Football Club Manila or Union Internacional Manila F.C. is a Filipino football club based in Manila. It was established in 1996. The club currently plays for second division of the United Football League.^[1]

The club made its first appearance in the second season of the UFL playing in division two. The club ended their league campaign in fifth place behind division winner Manila Nomads.

History

Foundation and early years

The origin of Union FC is clearly associated to the Spanish company Union Fenosa (Soluziona).

In 1996 the company brought several consultants to lead the different projects it was engaging. Most of these consultants were from Spain, Uruguay, and also from Venezuela and Peru, countries with long history and great passion for football.

Immediately they organized regular informal games at the Jollye field inside the Meralco compound in Pasig City. This field was originally a baseball pitch, so it was reconditioned to suit football demand. Even the goals, in a country where it seemed that football did not exist, were specially made for the team by Meralco blacksmiths.

Union Fenosa's official debut was in 1997 against the Philippines National Women's Football Team. The girls were no match for the tough and dirty Union players. It was a milestone in Union’s history. By this time, the indisputable leader and coach was the Venezuelan Jose Lupo.

From there, every week, more and more people came to play to Jolly and joined the team. One of the most active recruiter was the Chilean Francisco “Trompeta” Devia, who did a great job recruiting players among the foreign diplomatic corps in the Philippines. The group grew in quality and quantity.

Through the years Union joined almost all football tournaments or events where there was a round ball to be kicked: futsal, 7 aside, beach soccer and of course, 11 aside games. By September 2000, Union Fenosa became Union F.C. when it joined the Ateneo Football Tournament, losing the word “Fenosa” because most of the players were not related to the original company, and at the same time reflected better the spirit of the team, composed by people from all the corners of the world.

Through all these years, more than 33 nationalities (Argentina, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland, Uruguay, USA, and Venezuela) and hundred of litres of beers had passed through the club!

In 2003, after the return of Jose Lupo to Spain, the Uruguayan Esteban Alonso took control of the team as Manager and Coach. The last man standing, Esteban Alonso, returned to Uruguay in December 2005, and left the responsibility of coaching to Dominic Samson, the first Pinoy coach of Union. During Samson’s era, several top players of Philippines reinforced Union’s squad, helping bringing two UFL Championships (2006 and 2007). Rafa Rodriguez and Jorge took over in late 2007, and have carried the club to a successful finish in the LBC-UFL 2010, ending in the podium finish behind Air force and Kaya FC.

Present and future

After Dominic quit the management of Union for his family, Rafael Rodriguez took the responsibility of managing the team. During this period he put the whole team under his shoulders, kept it alive, and managed to keep the results within an acceptable level despite the lack of national players in the team. During 2010 more managerial help came through Ricky Pe and Jorge Müller. Since the semi-professionalization of the UFL under the administration of Football Alliance, the team also has been under pressure to professionalize its management and team. Negotiations during mid 2010 were carried out with Charlie Cojuangco, and it was agreed to form two teams: one on professional regime, and another on social-recreational regime.

Last known squad

As of 8 November 2013^[2]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 2 FW Juan Pablo Bertotto 3 MF Muhamed Hassan 4 DF Rory Mansbridge 5 MF Ben Uche 6 DF Majid Mahdavi 7 FW Shayan Jafari 8 MF Azos Dibeh 9 MF Petar Sajko 12 MF Jeremy Theuer 13 MF Ray Buensuceso 14 FW Carlos Aaron

No. Position Player 15 MF Wil Neubauer 17 MF Alejandro Baldo 19 DF Fidelis Nnabuife 20 GK Mark Mcmahon 21 DF Ivan Klaric 24 GK Jan Cedric Hodreal 25 MF Rafael Castro 26 GK Norman Delos Reyes 27 DF Everett Jacobs 45 MF Ivan Meilan 77 FW Mahmoud Ali

Records

Key

• Tms. = Number of teams
• Pos. = Position in league
• TBD = To be determined
• DNQ = Did not qualify

Note: Performances of the club indicated here was after the UFL Division 1 created (as a semi-pro league) in 2009.

Honors

• Terry Razon Copa Filipina

Winners (1): 2006

• UFL Division 1

Champions (2): 2006, 2007

Third Place (1): 2010

• UFL Division 2

Runners-up (1): 2013

References