Persebaya

Foundation and name change

Persebaya was founded by M Pamoedji and Paidjo on 18 June 1927 in Surabaya, under the original name Soerabajasche Indonesische Voetbal Bond (SIVB). Pamoedji, who also served as the Resident of Surabaya, established the club to provide indigenous football players with an opportunity to challenge the dominance of the Soerabajasche Voetbal Bond (SVB), a football association founded in 1901 whose owners and players were Dutch individuals residing in Surabaya at the time.

In 1938, during the club's annual meeting, SIVB changed its name to Persatoean Sepakraga Indonesia Soerabaja (Persibaja; pronounced Persibaya), an Indonesian translation of its former Dutch-language name, following an appeal by the PSSI for its member clubs to adopt Indonesian-language names. The club later adopted the name Persatuan Sepakbola Surabaya (Persebaya) in 1960s, with the word "Indonesia" removed as it was no longer considered necessary following Indonesian independence in 1945, as the club was already recognized as a Surabaya-based member of the PSSI.

Perserikatan era (1931–1994)

On April 19, 1930, M. Pamoedji, representing Soerabajasche Indonesische Voetbal Bond (SIVB), attended a meeting of officials from football clubs across the Dutch East Indies, held at the Societeit Hadiprojo in Yogyakarta (now known as Wisma Soeratin). Among the club representatives present were those from Voetbalbond Indonesische Jacatra (VIJ), Bandoeng Inlandsche Voetbal Bond (BIVB), Indonesische Voetbal Bond Magelang (IVBM), Madioensche Voetbal Bond (MVB), Vorstenlandsche Voetbal Bond (VVB), and PSIM Yogyakarta. During this meeting, the establishment of a football governing body named Persatoean Sepakraga Seloeroeh Indonesia (Football Association of Indonesia or PSSI) was declared. Later, at a PSSI congress held in Surakarta in 1950, the name was changed to Persatuan Sepak bola Seluruh Indonesia (PSSI).

In 1931, a year after the establishment of PSSI, the inaugural Indonesian inter-city association football championship, known as the Inlandsche Stedenwedstrijden (later Perserikatan), was held. After participating in several editions, SIVB was renamed Persibaja during the 1938 PSSI Stedenwedstrijden and reached the final round held in Surakarta, featuring several Tionghoa players who had previously played for Tiong Hoa Soerabaja. However, Persibaja finished as runners-up after losing to VIJ Jakarta. The presence of Tionghoa players at Persebaya continued until the 1970s.

In the 1941 PSSI Stedenwedstrijden competition, Persibaja once again failed to win the title, finishing as runners-up for the second time after losing to Persis Solo in the final round held in Bandung. After finishing as runners-up on two previous occasions, Persebaya won their first Perserikatan title in the 1951 PSSI National Championship, finishing top of the final-round standings ahead of runners-up PSM Makassar, and a year later they successfully defended their title in the 1952 PSSI National Championship, defeating Persija Jakarta 2–1 in their last match of the final-round held in Surabaya. After winning back-to-back Perserikatan titles in 1951 and 1952, Persebaya finished as runners-up in the 1964–65, 1971, and 1973 editions, before claiming their third championship in the 1978 PSSI National Championship. They defeated Persija Jakarta 4–3 in the final at Senayan Stadium in Jakarta.

Persebaya won their fourth Perserikatan title in the 1987–88 PSSI Premier Division season, following another runners-up finish in 1986–87, when they were defeated by PSIS Semarang in the final. The 1987–88 campaign was marked by the controversial "elephant football" incident. The incident was reportedly motivated by Persebaya's desire for revenge against PSIS Semarang. Seeking to prevent PSIS from advancing to the next round, Persebaya fielded several inexperienced reserve and youth players against Persipura Jayapura on 21 February 1988. Persebaya subsequently lost 0–12 at Gelora 10 November Stadium in Surabaya, allowing Persipura to overtake PSIS in the Eastern Group standings. Persebaya eventually secured the championship by defeating Persija Jakarta 3–2 after extra time in the final at Senayan Stadium in Jakarta.

Liga Indonesia era

In 1994, the two football competitions in Indonesia, Perserikatan and Galatama, were merged into a single competition. The newly established competition, known as the Liga Indonesia Premier Division (Divisi Utama Liga Indonesia), was divided into two regional groups: West and East. In the inaugural 1994–95 season of the Liga Indonesia Premier Division, Persebaya competed in the Eastern Division and finished ninth in the standings.

During the 2002 Liga Indonesia Premier Division season, Persebaya were relegated to the Liga Indonesia First Division after finishing 11th in the Eastern Division standings. However, the club spent only one season in the First Division before securing promotion back to the Premier Division as champions of the 2003 season.

In the 2009-10 season, Persebaya began competing in Indonesia Super League, but ended the season relegated after a "walkover" (WO) loss to Persik Kediri. The club subsequently joined the breakaway Indonesian Premier League, with Assistant Manager Cholid Goromah claiming that the decision was driven by a desire for significant changes in Indonesian football, and denying that it was due to relegation or a lack of regional government funding (APBD). This would lead to a seven-year dispute (called dualisme in Indonesian, to go along with a league-wide issue during the same timeframe) in which there appeared to be two teams both named "Persebaya" in the then-coexisting leagues. Although the original Persebaya did not compete in the reunified Indonesia Super League in 2014 or 2015 (nor the temporary Indonesia Soccer Championship in 2016), the dispute was then resolved when the "rebel" club, which competed in those years, eventually became Bhayangkara F.C. in 2016 after several court rulings were issued disallowing the use of the "Persebaya" and "Bonek" names by the "rebel" club.