Binga FC
{{Short description|Malian football club}}
{{Infobox football club
| clubname = Binga FC
| image =
| fullname = Binga Football Club
| nickname =
| founded =
| ground =
| capacity =
| chairman =
| manager =
| league = Malian Première Division
| season = 2023–24
| position = 8th
}}
Binga FC is a Malian football club based in Bamako. They play in the Malian Première Division as of the 2022–23 season, having been promoted from the second level at the end of the previous season.
History
Binga FC reached the final of the 2021 Malian Cup, losing 3–2 to Stade Malien;{{Cite web |title=Mali - List of Cup Winners |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesm/malicuphist.html |access-date=2021-10-26 |website=RSSSF}} in fact, Binga had been leading 2–0 as late as the 86th minute before Stade Malien scored the first of their three goals (all by Issaka Samaké).{{Cite web |title=Coupe du Mali : le Stade malien remporte la 60ème édition |url=http://news.abamako.com/h/253126.html |access-date=2023-06-16 |website=ABamako.com}} However, they qualified for the 2021–22 CAF Confederation Cup as Stade Malien won the league, thus qualifying for the 2021–22 CAF Champions League.
In their first season in African competition, they defeated MC Breweries of Liberia in the first round, and ASFA Yennenga Burkina Faso of Burkina Faso in the second round.{{Cite web |last=Maliweb |date=2021-10-26 |title=Coupe de la confédération : Le Stade malien et Binga FC fixés sur leur sort |url=http://mali-web.org/sports/coupe-de-la-confederation-le-stade-malien-et-binga-fc-fixes-sur-leur-sort |access-date=2021-10-26 |website=Maliweb |language=en-US}} The club could not afford to fly, so travelled over 1300 km by minibus to both countries.{{Cite web |title=The Incredible Underdog Story Of Malian Minnows Binga FC |url=https://www.sportbible.com/football/the-incredible-underdog-story-of-malian-minnows-binga-fc-20211025 |access-date=2021-10-26 |website=www.sportbible.com |language=en}}
They were drawn against Zambian club Zanaco in the 3rd round, with the fixture in doubt due to the logistical challenges resulting from Binga's lack of funds. With the 1st leg in Zambia scheduled for 28 November, and the 2nd leg in Mali on 5 December, travelling by road would entail a round trip of 15,000 km and would prove a challenging obstacle.{{Cite web |last=Phiri |first=Mutheliso |date=2021-10-26 |title=Zanaco paired with cash strapped Binga FC in CAF Confederation Cup |url=https://zambiansoccernet.com/zanaco-paired-with-cash-strapped-binga-fc-in-caf-confederation-cup/ |access-date=2021-10-26 |website=Zambian Soccer Network |language=en-US}} They would eventually lose to Zanaco 2–3 on aggregate (0–3 away, 2–0 at home).
In the 2021–22 season, Binga FC finished at the top of the Bamako regional championship (one of the many second-level feeder leagues to the Malian Première Division), qualifying for the promotion play-offs, before winning their group without dropping any points, thus being promoted to the Première Division alongside US Bougouni for the 2022–23 season.{{Cite web |title=Mali 2021/22 |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesm/mali2022.html |access-date=2023-06-16 |website=RSSSF}}
Honours
:: 2021 (finalist)
League and cup history
=Performance in CAF competitions=
{{updated|October 2021}}
{{See also|Malian clubs in African competitions}}
| class="wikitable" |
| Season
! Competition ! Round ! Country ! Club ! Home ! Away ! Aggregate |
|---|
| 2021-22
|1 |{{flagicon|Liberia}} | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|3–0 | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|0–2 | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|5–0 |
| 2021-22
|2 |{{flagicon|Burkina Faso}} |ASFA Yennenga | style="background:#fdd; text-align:center"|0–1 | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|1–0 | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|1–1(p) |
| 2021-22
|3 |{{flagicon|Zambia}} | style="background:#fdd; text-align:center"|0-3 | style="background:#dfd; text-align:center"|2-0 | style="background:#fdd; text-align:center"|2-3 |