Hankook Verdes
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Wikipedia - Verdes FC
Verdes F.C. (previously Hankook Verdes) is a Belizean association football club which competes in the Premier League of Belize. They are currently based in San Ignacio, Belize, a town situated in the district of Cayo, Belize. The club was established in 1976 as Real Verdes Football Club and changed their name to Hankook Verdes in 2004. They are now known only as Verdes F.C, locally being called only Verdes. The club is one of the oldest active professional football teams in Belize and has been in existence since the inception of the Football Federation of Belize. Their home games are played at Norman Broaster Stadium.
The club has established an excellent reputation for the development of many past and current members of the Belize national football team, despite not having won any club championships at the national level until 2008. Verdes F.C. had previously won the amateur Belize National Football Association championship in 1986. In 2004, Hankook Verdes F.C. announced that they would opt out of the Belize Premier Football League due to unprofessional conduct, including late arrivals by officials and the other team, prior to a match against Kulture Yabra. Verdes F.C.'s recent league championships include the opening season of the 2019–20 Premier League of Belize and both seasons of the 2021–22 FFB Top League, where they went undefeated. The club would later win the 2022–23 Closing season.
In 1985, Verdes F.C. was the first team to represent Belize in the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. They have appeared in eight editions of the competition and twice in its successor, the CONCACAF Champions League. Throughout the history of Belizean football, Verdes F.C. has represented its country more than any other club in Belize. The list of CONCACAF opponents includes professional teams such as Cruz Azul, UNAM, Santos Laguna, Querétaro (Mexico); Real España, Platense, Pumas UNAH (Honduras); Xelajú, Municipal, Comunicaciones, (Guatemala);San Francisco (Panama); and Luis Ángel Firpo (El Salvador);Arcahaie (Haiti). Verdes F.C. has the most UNCAF Club Tournament appearances of any Belize football club.
Verdes F.C. appeared in three consecutive editions of the CONCACAF League from 2020 to 2022 and were the second Belizean club to participate in the tournament. Their first attempt in 2020 was halted by a COVID-19 outbreak among the players and the need to quarantine in Panama rather than being able to transit to the CONCACAF League venue in Santo Domingo. Their preliminary round match was cancelled and their opponents, Haitian side Arcahaie FC, was awarded a 3–0 walkover victory. In 2022, they became the first Belizean club to win a competitive series in the competition.
Hankook Verdes ble grunnlagt i 1986 under navnet "Verdes FC". I 1998 vant de sin første Premier League-tittel, og har siden vunnet ytterligere tre titler i 2006, 2010 og 2012. Laget har også vunnet Belizean Cup seks ganger, senest i 2022.
Hankook Verdes har deltatt i flere internasjonale turneringer, inkludert CONCACAF Champions League og CFU Club Championship. Deres beste resultat i en internasjonal turnering var andreplass i CFU Club Championship i 2012.
Lagets hjemmebane er Norman Broaster Stadion i San Ignacio, som har en kapasitet på 2000 tilskuere. Stadionet brukes også av det beliziske landslaget i fotball.
Hankook Verdes har en sterk rivalisering med byrivalen San Pedro Pirates FC. Kampene mellom disse to lagene er kjent for sin intense atmosfære og lidenskapelige supportere.
Lagets nåværende trener er Honduraneren Gilberto Yearwood, som har ledet laget siden 2021. Noen av Hankook verdes mest bemerkelsesverdige spillere inkluderer Tyrone Pandy, Vallan Symns og Woodrow West.