Our History – FCFC since 2004

Forbidden City FC, 2004

Early days

Forbidden City FC (FCFC) was founded in 2004 and is a not-for profit social club. The Club’s colours are yellow and red, reflecting the colours of the Forbidden City, which features on our club crest.
Forbidden City FC initially came into being following discussions around creating a Beijing touring football side that would participate in games and tours around China and rest of Asia. The name Forbidden City was chosen to best represent our Beijing roots. Our first tour was to Shanghai in August 2004 for the Shanghai Shooters Sevens where we beat the HK Squadron 3-2 to win the plate!

Club Expansion

Following the club creation, City quickly became a football club of its own and rose to the top of the football scene in Beijing, expanding to include a second team, Summer Palace (Palace), in 2007. Only six years after being founded, FCFC claimed a historic double, winning the IFFC Premier Division and First Division in the same season.
Success for FCFC has continued in recent years with Forbidden City claiming another Premier Division title in 2014/15 and the Thomas Marechal Cup in both 2015/16 and 2016/17. The following year we went one better, completing the IFFC Double for the first time in our history. In 2018/19, City retained their league title and were well poised to make another serious challenge for the double before the league season was cancelled due to COVID-19.

The rapid growth of the club both on and off the pitch means that we have continued to welcome new players and members each season, with every single person playing their part in building FCFC into the Beijing footballing institution it is today.
Since 2004, more than 330 players representing all six continents and 30+ countries have played for Forbidden City Football Club.