Last Saturday saw Chonburi FC – a longtime feature in the Thai League 1 – suffering their first-ever relegation following a heavy 6-0 defeat away at Thailand Clasico rivals Muangthong United.
The Sharks, who were having a poor 2023/24 campaign, needed all three points to prolong their battle for survival, but instead saw themselves going down to 10 men after 29 minutes following Chalermpong Kerdkaew’s red card following a VAR review towards his foul on Poramet Arjvilai.
Chonburi never recovered from that setback as the red card set the way for Jaroensak Wonggorn to give Muangthong the lead in the 33rd minute, before Kakana Khamyok made it 2-0 after 47 minutes.
The Twin Qilins did not stop their onslaught there just yet, as Willian Popp bagged himself a brace with a 52nd minute penalty and a 72nd minute strike, before both Teeraphol Yoryoei (78th minute) and Lee Jae-sung (82nd minute) finished off a sorry Chonburi side.
“It was a disappointing match for our team. Before the match, we thought that if we won the last two matches we would still have a chance to stay in the Thai League 1 but we could not do it. We tried our best but with one player less, it really made it difficult for us and the team could not find a way to come back into the game,” said Chonburi manager Sasin Singtothong, as quoted from Bangkok Post, “We are relegated to the second division and now we have to focus on the next season. We know our fans and the players are disappointed but we promise that we will come back in one year.”
Chonburi’s close neighbors Trat FC were also relegated after the White Elephants could only drew 2-2 with Lamphun Warriors, and joining the two in the drop were Police Tero, coached by former Kedah FA, Malaysia national team, and Selangor FC gaffer Tan Cheng Hoe, with the Silver Shield Dragons going down despite beating second-placed True Bangkok United 3-0 on Friday.
Alongside Suphanburi FC, Chonburi were the first provincial teams to play in the Thai top-flight back in 2006, and subsequently became the first team from outside the Bangkok Metropolitan Area to have won the top-flight title in 2007.
From there on Chonburi established themselves as an elite force in Thai football, rarely finishing outside the top 10 until the 2020/21, where they finished 12th. The Sharks recovered somewhat, finishing 7th in 2021/22 and 6th in 2022/23, before their relegation this season that came as a culmination of Chonburi’s decline in recent years.
Throughout their years in the top-flight, Chonburi were well-known for being a producer of excellent local talents, with the likes of Worachit Kanitsribampen, Sittichok Paso, Chanin Sae-ear, Adul Lahso and Kritsada Kaman having gone through the Sharks’ academy ranks, while the likes of Therdsak Chaiman, Kroekrit Thaweekarn, Pipob On-Mo, and Sintaweechai Hathairattanakool had represented Chonburi for lengthy periods throughout their career.