The club was established in 1923, according to a passage in the football history books of Malaysia based on an interview with Austin Senevirathe, who was 93 years old when interviewed.[4] He stated that the Malaya Cup match between Negeri Sembilan and Singapore took place in that particular year.[4]
In 1927, PBNS started organising league matches. Among the trophies that were up for grabs at that time were the Annex Shield, the British Resident's Cup, and the Hose Cup. The earliest football clubs that existed and competed in the league were Negri Sembilan Chinese "A," Negri Sembilan Club, Port Dickson Recreation Club, Sungei Ujong Club, Negri Sembilan Chinese "B," and St. Paul's Old Boys Association.[5]
The club is considered one of the top competing teams in the history of football since its establishment. They have won many top competitions in Malaysia, starting in the early 1940s.
The year 1991 was the year of the revival of the Negeri Sembilan team, which in previous years had been an underdog. That was also the last year the Negeri Sembilan team used the Majlis Perbandaran Seremban Stadium before the Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium in Paroi was used as their home ground until now. On 18 August 1991, the team met Sarawak in the final match of the Division 2 League at the Majlis Perbandaran Seremban Stadium. Negeri Sembilan, who was in first place at the time, only needed a draw while Sarawak, who was in second place, needed a win to get the top spot in the league table. The match of that day went to Negeri Sembilan with a result of 2–2, and they managed to collect one point. It was the last year that led to the success of winning the Semi-Pro League Division 2, then qualifying for Division 1 in 1992. Among the star players at that time were the import trio, the Bozik Brothers (Miroslav and Robert), and the powerful striker Marian Vazquez. Local players include Richard Scully, Mansor Sulaiman, and Nazari Hussein.[8]
In 1992, the construction of Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium was completed and inaugurated to be used as a multipurpose stadium. The stadium initially held a capacity of 20,000 people, and since then, the Negeri Sembilan team has officially made the stadium their home ground for the Liga Semi-Pro Divisyen 1 tournament in that year.[9]
On 31 May 2003, Negeri Sembilan met Perlis in the FA Cup final. Played at Perak Stadium, the club was surprised by the opponent's early goal in the 11th minute. The club managed to close the gap in the 56th minute thanks to a goal by Effendi Malek. The game remained 1–1 until the 90th minute, and in extra time, victory was decided on a golden goal. In the 95th minute, the club managed to get the golden goal as a result of Everson Martinelli's goal, and the club was crowned FA Cup champion in 2003.[11]
Negeri Sembilan made its first appearance in the AFC Cup competition in the 2004 season. The club made its debut in the first match against Island FC with a big 6–0 win on 10 February 2004. However, the club had to settle for being 3rd in the group after losing all the group stage matches against Geylang United, East Bengal, and Island FC. All teams played at home and away for a total of six games.[12]
In March 2004, Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan was appointed as the president of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS). It's because he successfully held the position as the 10th Menteri Besar of Negeri Sembilan and replaced Isa Samad, who held that position the previous year. Mohamad Hasan was the first Menteri Besar who had ever been a local football player and then became the president of PBNS. He never represented the first team of Negeri Sembilan but played a lot with clubs in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.[13] He was banned from football for life after receiving a red card when NS Malays played against NS Indians in 1977. He was active in football in the 1970s.[14]
On 7 November 2009, the team ended their 61-year drought in the Malaysia Cup after posting a convincing 3–1 victory over Kelantan in the final at the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil. The team also won all the matches in the Malaysia Cup tournament, starting from the group stage until the final. That final match was a fantastic night.[16]
The repeat final of 2009 between the club and Kelantan happened again on 30 October 2010. However, this time, the club lost 1–2 to Kelantan despite having taken an early lead through a penalty by Shahurain Abu Samah.[17]
On April 10, 2010, Negeri Sembilan needed the luck of the penalty shootout to win the FA Cup championship again by beating Kedah 5–4 in the final of the 21st edition at the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil. This continues to confirm them as the new powerhouse of national football after winning the Malaysia Cup last season. Both teams were tied at 1–1 after the end of the 90 minutes of the actual game, even after the referee, R. Krishnan, dragged it into extra time in front of about 70,000 spectators, the majority of whom were "Hijau Kuning" supporters.[18]
In 2011, the club again qualified for the Malaysia Cup Final for the third consecutive time, this time with their new coach, Mohd Azraai Khor Abdullah. They won the trophy after defeating Terengganu FA with an epic comeback. The first goal was scored by Mohd Ashaari Shamsuddin for Terengganu in the 59th minute. PBNS used the last 10 minutes of the game to make a comeback. S. Kunanlan equalised the score in the 81st minute before Hairuddin Omar, the veteran striker, hit the winning goal for PBNS with a beautiful volley in the 85th minute.[19]
In the early part of the 2011 season, one of the team's all-time best coaches, Wan Jamak Wan Hassan, resigned from the club. He sees no excuses for the team's disappointing run in the Malaysia Super League and Malaysia FA Cup competitions for that season.[20]
On 6 December 2014, the president of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association announced that the Negeri Sembilan team would be known as the Negeri Sembilan Matrix from the 2015 season. This has become the beginning of the process of privatising the Negeri Sembilan.[34]
On September 10, 2018, Tunku Besar of Tampin, Tunku Syed Razman Tunku Syed Idrus Al-Qadri, was elected as the new President of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS) for the period of 2018–2021 after winning unopposed at the 86th PBNS Congress, held at Klana Resort.[36]
On October 20, 2020, the club officially made its privatisation under a new entity as Negeri Sembilan Football Club after it was officially approved by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM).[37] The club has been registered under a private limited company named Negeri Sembilan Football Club Sdn. Bhd. (Negeri Sembilan Football Club Pvt. Ltd.). The club became a subsidiary of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS), which is also the owner of the club.[38][37]
In 2024, the Malaysia Super League will start in May and this is the first season to have a two-year schedule, since the 2007–08 season. This system has been changed from the old Malaysian league match schedule system, so it will coordinate the same scheduling with the AFC calendar.[39] Also, On 12 January 2024, Faliq Firdaus was appointed as the new chief executive officer of Negeri Sembilan. He became the youngest CEO in the Malaysia Super League competition for the 2024–25 season.[40][41][42]
The club had obtained the FAM Club License 2022 edition to play in the 2023 Malaysia Super League season and had obtained the AFC Club License and is eligible to play in the competition organised by the AFC; the 2023 AFC Champions League and 2023 AFC Cup if qualified on merit.[43]
Currently plays in the MFL Cup tournament. This reserve league dedicated to players under the age of 23. The MFL has also allowed a quota of 5 over-age players, including 3 foreign players in each team with only 2 players allowed to play for each match.[45]
In tournaments the Negeri Sembilan Football Association only used Negeri Sembilan or Negri Sembilan as the team name. Negeri Sembilan is the name of one of the states in Malaysia, and the Negeri Sembilan Football Association is the governing body of football, founded to represent the state. The team used it from 1923 through 2004 before it was rebranded in 2005.
2005–2008: Negeri Sembilan Naza
Negeri Sembilan was rebranded in 2005. The team, sponsored by a motor company from Malaysia named Naza, started in 2005. This has caused Negeri Sembilan to be given a new name: Negeri Sembilan Naza, or simply NS Naza, to represent the name of the sponsoring company.
2009–2014: Negeri Sembilan
In 2009, Naza withdrew from sponsoring the Negeri Sembilan football team. The team later cancelled the name Negeri Sembilan Naza and changed it back to Negeri Sembilan for the 2009 league season. They have used it until season 2014.
2015: Negeri Sembilan Matrix
On 6 December 2014 the president of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS) announced the team's new branding by changing it to Negeri Sembilan Matrix, or simply NS Matrix. With a larger amount of sponsorship from Matrix Concepts Holdings Berhad and a bigger investment for the team, they had a greater vision and mission to carry out. Unfortunately, on 25 August 2015, NS Matrix was disbanded for not meeting the expectations set by PBNS.[57]
2016–2020: Negeri Sembilan
Due to the disbandment of NS Matrix in the previous year, the team used the Negeri Sembilan name again starting in 2016. The team used it for 5 years until 2020, when they started using the new name because they had registered as a private football club.[58]
2020–present: Negeri Sembilan F.C.
To achieve the targeted standards and the campaign implemented by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM), the Negeri Sembilan team has privatised their team to become a football club. Previously operating as a football association, the team has started a new chapter with the privatisation of their football team.[59]
Negeri Sembilan previously used the crest of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS). After being privatised in 2020, the Negeri Sembilan FC team started using the new crest after PBNS organised a competition to create a logo for Negeri Sembilan FC. The competition was won by the logo designed by Azral Ramlay, which has been used by the team since 2020.[60]
Rice Stalks: The main crest displays nine white rice stalks tied with red rope into one in the middle, symbolising the nine states in the old Negeri Sembilan:[61]Jelai, Jelebu, Johol, Kelang (now part of Selangor), Naning (now part of Malacca), Rembau, Segamat-Pasir Besar, Sungei Ujong, and Ulu Pahang. This logo also maintains the use of rice stalks as in the logo of the Negeri Sembilan Football Association (PBNS), which was established in 1923, but improvises by tying all the rice stalks into a symbol of unity. Moreover, it is designed to resemble the crest on the state's coat of arms, which is the Changgai Puteri fronted by a sword and scabbard.
Circle: The basic shape, which is a golden yellow circle in the royal color, symbolises the strong unity between the team, players, supporters, and the people of Negeri Sembilan who are together within the Negeri Sembilan Traditional Land under the auspices of D.Y.M.M. Yang Di-Pertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan Darul Khusus.
Escutcheon: The escutcheon of the arms is depicted as an Old Frenchshield outlined in black. The three basic colours of Negeri Sembilan on the shield symbolise all the people, players, and supporters coming together to protect and defend their beloved team from being damaged by the enemy, along with the lyrics of the Negeri Sembilan song, "Musuhnya Habis Binasa" (English: "His enemies perished").
Yellow, black and red: Negeri Sembilan uses three colours from the state flag of Negeri Sembilan as its official colours. The colours have been used on the crest and team kits since its establishment. Based on the flag, the yellow represents the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan, the black symbolises the four undangs (traditional chiefs), and the red denotes the citizens of the state. However, in the context of the football team, these three colours have their own meaning: yellow represents the team, black symbolises the players, and red denotes the supporters.[62]
Kits: Mostly, the team uses red as the dominant colour for the home kit with the addition of some yellow and black colors, while for the away kit, the dominant colour is yellow with the addition of some red and black colors. Sometimes the team reverses yellow as the home kit colour and red as the away kit colour; this depends on the agreement between the team and the kit manufacturer as well as the conditions of the competing league's management. As for the team's third kit, there are several dominant colour variations, such as white, blue, and black.
Negeri Sembilan has a big fanbase in every corner of Negeri Sembilan. These fans consist of local born in Negeri Sembilan, football fans who reside in Negeri Sembilan, and football fans from other states in Malaysia. It is no exception that there are a few fans from abroad who support and follow the progress of the Negeri Sembilan team. Negeri Sembilan fans have gone through a period of ups and downs with the Negeri Sembilan team when they were often relegated and promoted from the 1st-tier league to the 2nd-tier league. The loyalty of the fans was tested when the team was relegated to the 2nd-tier league and had a disappointing season, but that loyalty paid off when the team made it to the top flight and managed to win several trophies. In 2011, Negeri Sembilan once set a record for the average number of supporters attending the stadium, which was around 20,000 and above from the start of the Malaysia Cup campaign until the final round against Terengganu. In the semi-final against T-Team, more than 40,000 fans filled the Paroi Stadium at that time.[63]
Like other teams, Negeri Sembilan has several chants that are chanted by fans. The most popular chant is "Hobin jang hobin" (English:"Strike lad strike"), which is a trademark of Negeri Sembilan team. There are also a number of chants and banners use by Negeri Sembilan fans, including "Ini Paroi jangan main" (English: "This is Paroi don't underestimate"), "Akan berkati sekalian yang setia" (English: "Will bless all the devotees"), "Musuhnya habis binasa," (English:"His enemies perished"), "Buffalo souljah," and many more. In addition, there are also some mainstream songs that are made by popular Malaysian singers, especially for the Negeri Sembilan team, including "Hobin Jang Hobin by Poe" and "Lagu Bola by WARIS".[64]
There is a very popular chant created by the supporters of Negeri Sembilan, the Ultras Nogori. The chant is called "Sehati Sejiwa" and has been used by most ultras in Malaysia until it was brought to the international level to be used by Ultras Malaya. The lyrics of the chant are as follows:
"Kami turun ke stadium sehati sejiwa Kami turun ke stadium sehati sejiwa Ne..ge..ri Ne..ge..ri Sehati sejiwa"
There are several fan clubs that have been established since the early 2000s and still exist today. There are those who simply started as supporters at the stadium, and there are those who create fan pages on social media. This is the list of fan clubs and fan pages for the Negeri Sembilan team.[65]
Ultras Nogori 9 (UN9)
UltraJang
Kelab e-Penyokong Bola Sepak Negeri Sembilan (N9FUTBOL.COM)
Negeri Sembilan has used several football fields and stadiums as their home ground. Home ground is their own playing field, as opposed to that of other teams.
#
Stadium
Year
1
Seremban Municipal Council Field (Padang Stesyen)
1940s–1982
2
Kuala Pilah Stadium (interim)
1982
3
Seremban Municipal Council Stadium (Padang Stesyen)
Around the 1940s, Negeri Sembilan started playing at Seremban Municipal Council Field (Malay: Padang Majlis Perbandaran Seremban) since it was built by the British Resident of Negeri Sembilan, John Vincent Cowgill, in the early 1940. Seremban Municipal Council Field, or better known as Padang Stesyen (English: Station Field) because it was located next to the Seremban railway station, has a sweet history for Negeri Sembilan since it was the first venue where the HMS Malaya Cup was lifted by the team. In the beginning, this field did not have seating facilities, and spectators only sat on the sides of the field. In 1960, after Independence Day, this field was upgraded by building 500 seats that can accommodate about 5,000 people.
In 1973, Padang Stesyen was upgraded to allow the field to be used for the Field Hockey World Cup in 1975, when Malaysia was chosen as the host country and Padang Stesyen became one of the competition venues. At this time the seats were increased to 5,000 uncovered seats, which made Padang Stesyen famous at the time due to the good pitch conditions for a world-class tournament.
1982: Kuala Pilah Stadium
Kuala Pilah Mini Stadium, or Kuala Pilah Stadium, was used as the temporary home ground of the Negeri Sembilan team in 1982. The stadium located in Kuala Pilah was used because Padang Stesyen was being upgraded at that time.
1982–1992: Seremban Municipal Council Stadium
In 1982, Padang Stesyen was upgraded by the Negeri Sembilan government due to Seremban being upgraded as a city. This also caused the name of the field to be changed to Seremban Municipal Council Stadium (Malay: Stadium Majlis Perbandaran Seremban). The Negeri Sembilan team reused this field as their home ground until 1992, when that was the last year the team used the stadium, and it became the starting point for the revival of the Negeri Sembilan team. This iconic stadium was later demolished to make way for the development of Seremban and construction of a shopping centre in 1993.
1992: Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium
The Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium (STAR) (Malay: Stadium Tuanku Abdul Rahman), also known by its informal name Stadium Paroi and nickname "The STAR of Paroi," is a multi-purpose stadium in Paroi, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Inaugurated in 1992, the stadium initially held a capacity of 20,000 people. Negeri Sembilan has been using the STAR as their home ground since 1992, and this stadium has been the place where various glorious histories of the Negeri Sembilan team were created. The stadium is named in honour of Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad, the eighth Yamtuan Besar of Seri Menanti, the second Yamtuan Besar of modern-day Negeri Sembilan, and the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia. In 2004, the capacity of the stadium had been upgraded to 45,000 people for the hosting of the 2004 Sukma Games.
As the largest shareholder of Negeri Sembilan Sdn. Bhd., Negeri Sembilan FA became the most important affiliate of Negeri Sembilan FC. Being the association responsible for forming and strategizing the marketing, management, and development aspects of football in Negeri Sembilan.
The NSFC–UiTM collaboration involves sharing information, expertise, and solution methods in football for the purpose of facilitating work and research processes through collaborative negotiation and consultancy activities. This collaboration also emphasises the importance of learning in the field of sports science to improve the quality of training, nutrition, and treatment of Negeri Sembilan players. In addition, being able to share infrastructure between the NSFC and the UiTMNegeri Sembilan Branch.[111]
Kolej Yayasan Negeri Sembilan
Kolej Yayasan Negeri Sembilan (KYNS) and Negeri Sembilan Football Club (NSFC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreement that aims to promote football in Negeri Sembilan. KYNS and NSFC will work together in the development of local talent, in addition to providing training and education programmes to players.[112]
SAINS FC is a professional football club that plays in the M3 League, the second tier of the Malaysian League. Based in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, SAINS FC is a football club for the Syarikat Air Negeri Sembilan (SAINS)(Literally meaning Negeri Sembilan Water Company). They have been collaborating with Negeri Sembilan since its establishment in 2016. The collaboration has raised the SAINS FC brand and the development of footballers born in Negeri Sembilan. They also signed and loaned some NSFC players several times.
NSFC collaborated with Maxim Event to organise a grassroots football tournament, the Suparimau League, for the under-8, 10, 12, 14, and 16 age groups. This tournament involves the participation of teams from around Negeri Sembilan. It is run by Maxim Events, which is recognized by FAM as the official grassroots development league.[113]
This list displays a line of current and former players who contributed a lot to the team and are considered prominent players. List of players who became the main pillar of success in the team, players who started to shine while with the team, players who were national players while with the team, players who got appearances for the national team while with the team, players who were loved by the fans and the team, players who contributed a lot of appearances, assists, and goals, players who have served for a long time to become legendary figures for the team, and players who are the primary reason for the team's revival.
^"NSFC U-23 (2024–25)". cms.fam.org.my. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^"Matlumat Am Bendera Negeri" (in Malay). Matlumat Am > Bendera Negeri (Portal Rasmi Kerajaan Negeri Sembilan Darul Khusus) (Official Portal of the Negeri Sembilan State Government). Archived from the original on 23 December 2008. Retrieved 12 August 2008.
^Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Rajanikandh Batumalai (Player)". www.national-football-teams.com. Archived from the original on 14 February 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2023.