ATK Mohun Bagan to be called Mohun Bagan Super Giants from next season
Indian Super League champions ATK Mohun Bagan will be known as Mohun Bagan Super Giants from the next season, Sanjiv Goenka, chairman of the RPSG Group, announced on Saturday.
The RPSG Group owns a majority share in the club. Goenka made the announcement moments after his team had beaten Bengaluru FC on penalties to win the ISL 2022-23 crown.
“It’s a very simple but substantive announcement. That is from the next season, the club will be known as Mohun Bagan Super Giants. We are removing ATK. Well, it was something that was on the cards. I was waiting for the win to announce it,” Goenka said.
The club was originally called Atletico de Kolkata, and thereafter ATK, from 2014-2020. They were the most successful club in ISL at that point with three titles. In 2020, Mohun Bagan, which was in the I-League, entered into a merger with ATK.
The RPSG Group, which owned and ran ATK FC, acquired majority shares in Mohun Bagan Football Club (India) Private Limited. The merged club came into existence on June 1, 2020, with RPSG Group owing 80 per cent, while Mohun Bagan Football Club (India) Private Limited owned the remaining 20 per cent.
ATK Mohun Bagan finished runners-up in the ISL 2020-21 season and then represented India at the continental stage: at the AFC Cup Group stage. They lost in the semifinal of the inter-zone playoff.
In their second season, they finished third at the end of the League stage and lost to eventual champions, Hyderabad FC, in the semifinal. They once again qualified for the AFC Group Group stage and topped their pool, but yet again lost in the semifinal of the inter-zone playoffs.
Coached by Juan Ferrando this season, the club won their first major silverware since the merger as they clinched the ISL 2022-23 title.