Dire Dawa City S.C.


Dire Dawa City Sport Club, also known as Dire Dawa Kenema , is an Ethiopian football club based in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia. They are a member of the Ethiopian Football Federation and currently play in the top division of Ethiopian football, the Ethiopian Premier League.

History

Dire Dawa Kenema was originally founded in 1982 until the club went defunct. It was founded again in 2003 with the hopes of restoring Dire Dawa's historic place in Ethiopian football. The following year the club played in a regional league. In 2005–06 the club entered the second tier of Ethiopian football called the Ethiopian National League. The club entered the Ethiopian Premier League for the first time in 2007–08 season.

Premier League

Dire Dawa Kenema spent the first few season in the top division battling relegation. The club lost its best player from the 2009–10 season, Ashenafi Girma, to Meta Abo Beer F.C. during the 2010–11 season. Dire Dawa Kenema was relegated from the Premier League after the 2011-12 season.
Dire Dawa Kenema was promoted back to the Ethiopian Premier League after the 2014–15 season and managed to finish 11th in the 2015–16 season avoiding relegation. The club battled relegation in the two seasons since then and avoided relegation each time. The club signed Yosef Dengeto to a contract in March 2018. Former coach of the Ethiopian National team Yohannes Sahle signed on to coach the club on August 3, 2018.

Grounds

They play at the 18,000 capacity Dire Dawa Stadium.

Women's Team

Dire Dawa Women's Football Club plays in the first division of the Ethiopian Women's Premier League.

Academy

Dire Dawa Sport Club Academy consists of the U20 team. Players from the U20 team are often picked to fill a few roster spots at the senior level from time to time.

Other Sports

First-team squad

As of 12 January 2020

Club Officials

President: Abdulselam Mohammed
Vice President: Sultan Ali
General Manager: Fitsum Kinfishe

Coaching and Medical staff

Manager: Simon Abay
Assistant coach: Fisseha Tuomelsa