- Source: Jaturamitr Samakkee
The Jaturamitr Samakkee (Thai: จตุรมิตรสามัคคี, RTGS: Chaturamit Samakkhi, pronounced [tɕàtùʔrámít sǎːmákkʰīː]) is a traditional secondary school football competition played by the four oldest boys' schools in Thailand: Suankularb Wittayalai School, Debsirin School, Assumption College, and Bangkok Christian College. It is held biennially, usually in November, at Suphachalasai Stadium in Bangkok, with the schools rotating as hosts.
Background
The first championship series was held from 16 October to 18 November 1964, with student unity as a central theme for the games. Subsequent competitions were held annually until 1985, except in 1966–1967, 1972, 1974–1977 and 1979–1980. From 1987, the competition continued on a biennial basis. It is a popular Thai football event, and outstanding players from the competition continue their careers by playing in the Thailand Premier League, including such figures as Thawatchai Damrong-Ongtrakul and Teerathep Winothai. The event is regularly broadcast on national television, and the three latest competitions have also been broadcast via live streaming video with live scores published on an official website. In addition to the matches themselves, great efforts are made to create elaborate displays and card stunts.
Although unity has always been the central theme of the competition (jaturamitr is derived from the Sanskrit catura + mitra, meaning 'four friends' and samakkee (from Pali sāmaggī) translates as 'harmony' or 'unity'). The word Jaturamitr is often used as a catch phrase to refer to students or alumni of the four participating schools. Strong rivalries have developed between the schools. Especially intense are the rivalries between Suankularb and Debsirin and Assumption versus Bangkok Christian. This has led to several cases of inter-school violence during the weeks of the competition. The extent of the issue is such that strict audience segregation and security enforcement is required during the matches.
The latest, 30th competition, was held on 11 to 18 November 2023, hosted by Debsirin School. Suankularb Wittayalai together with Bangkok Christian College won the championship. The 31st competition will be held in November 2025, hosted by Assumption College.
Tournaments
Jaturamitr Samakkee football match was founded in 1964 as the first year. The order of competition and host are as follows:
See also
Chula–Thammasat Traditional Football Match
Card stunt
References
External links
Jaturamitr Website Archived 2011-07-05 at the Wayback Machine
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Jaturamitr Samakkee
- Debsirin School
- Assumption College (Thailand)
- University and college rivalry
- Suankularb Wittayalai School
- Card stunt
- Football in Thailand
- 1999 FESPIC Games