FC Yala is a professional football club from the southern Thai city of the same name. The club was formed in August 2018, as Jalor City FC, going on to win the Thailand Amateur League South at the first attempt to win promotion to the Thai League.
The new club sensed their opportunity following the demise of Yara United FC, a club formed in 2009, that played in Regional League Division 2 Southern Region. Yala Province Stadium was their initial home ground, where fifth place was achieved in 2013.
They moved to Jura Stadium, also known as Yala City Municipality Stadium the following year. Their best performance came in 2015 when they finished third, before being allocated a place in Thai League 4 in 2017 when they ended in seventh spot with Pithak Abdulraman topping the scoring.
United failed to meet the club licensing regulations and were banned from playing in the Thai League for two seasons. They didn’t reappear to take the opportunity to try and win promotion through the Amateur League when their suspension ended.
By this time, Jalor had finished their debut 2019 season at Jaru Stadium in fifth place with Suttichai Doungead and Muhammadsalfadee Jehteh finishing as joint top scorers. The Thai League was restructured ahead of the 2020-21 campaign with it reverting to a European playing calendar.
Ayu Lateh topped the scoring while Firhan Masae remained reliable in goal as the side finished seventh in the extended Thai League 3 South under head coach Muklis Tahetasae. Home games in the 2021-22 campaign were played at The Thai National Sports University Yala Campus, which can be viewed by clicking here.
The season ended again in midtable for Jalor with former United forward Pithak putting away the goals for the “Jigsaw”. They remained at the same venue which ended up in a disappointing finish third from the bottom of the table in 2022-23, as Sakeereen Teekasom played his part playing up front. Jalor City were renamed FC Yala before the 2023-24 season.
With the name change came a new coach, with Wirat Kaeyihwa appointed. Home games were played at Yala Rajabhat University in a new stadium devoid of a full-sized running track. Attendances grew enormously showing the potential of a successful club in the city.
This was despite the team only ending in eighth position, with Abdelaziz Said El Shaer and Jehhanafee Mamah sharing the goals. Nirun Assawapakdee was given the coaches role for 2024-25 before he was replaced by Adul Muensaman as Yala pushed for a place in the playoffs.
FC Yala will play in Thai League 3 South in the 2024-25 season.
My visits
Jaru Stadium
Friday 3rd January 2025
The dangers of visiting the southern provinces had been explained to me by my wife Taew as we journeyed with her cousin and his family, with our destination being Betong on the Malaysian border for the night.
We had made a compromise. While it looked unlikely that I’d be venturing alone to football when visiting relatives in Hat Yai we agreed the driver Q would stop if the venues were on our route. Fortunately, he was delivering coffee in Pattani and Yala so at least I’d get some photo opportunities.
The internet is only as good as those who update it. And if a person cannot find out the right information, then it will be prone to errors. This was certainly the case regarding Jaru Stadium, which according to Wikipedia had a capacity of 25,000.
It is fair to say that when we rolled into the car park, I was more than a little underwhelmed. The venue only had one raised stand with the rest open standing, with no access around three sides alongside the running track.
There was little wonder that Jalor City, as FC Yala were called when they used the venue, looked for somewhere else. Its location wasn’t very convenient for the city centre, and it was extremely basic.
There was a junior match just about to kick off on the artificial pitch when we arrived. Indeed, the gents outside thought that we had gone to watch. They were most welcoming as I wandered about to get my snaps.
Later research by checking social media showed that FC Yala still used it for training and some friendly matches. We headed off through the city, me slightly disappointed that we didn’t go to see the new stadium, but that would have to wait.
Rajabhat University Stadium
Saturday 4th January
The wait was just one day as we made our return towards Hat Yai. Q wanted to visit a shop in the city where he had ordered some sweets for us to try before we cut across in the direction of Rajabhat University.
Before that, we arrived outside the gates of The Thai National Sports University Yala Campus, which had been the home of FC Yala and more recently Yala City FC. A description and photos of the stadium can be seen by clicking here.
The new stadium was just across Tesaban Soi 5, in an area very much geared up for students, with lots of coffee shops, street food, and restaurants. There was plenty of signage on the back of the stand that ran the full length of the pitch, so nobody was in doubt as to who played there.
I thought that my luck was going to be out as the gates at the rear of the stand were locked, despite hearing activity inside on the pitch. Thankfully, a gate in another corner was open so I could pop inside while the team trained.
The stand was extremely impressive, while the rest of the ground had an enclosed feel with high fences, university buildings, and housing surrounding it. It was the perfect size for a Thai League 3 club.
Once done, I
met up with the rest of the carload who’d been shopping before we headed back
to our base in time for Q to take me downtown in Hat Yai which was another
excellent experience.
