Serial winners in the domestic scene, Buriram United have been champions of Thai League 1 for the past three seasons and will aim to take their dominance past Thailand’s borders when they appear in the inaugural ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™.
With Osmar Loss taking charge of the team for the new season, fans of the club will hope that the Brazilian tactician will get to work on building a new dynasty in Buriram with the Thunder Castle taking part in both the inaugural Shopee Cup and AFC Champions League Elite during the 2024/25 season.
Honours
Thai First Division (9): 2023/24, 2022/23, 2021/22, 2018, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2011
Kor Royal Cup (4): 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013
Thai FA Cup (6): 2022/23, 2021/22, 2015, 2013, 2012, 2011
Thai League Cup (7): 2022/23, 2021/22, 2016, 2015, 2013, 2012, 2011
Thailand Champions Cup (1): 2019
Club highlights
Since winning the Thai top division for the first time in 2011, Buriram United have gone on to lift eight more league titles – of which the 2013 and 2015 triumphs came without tasting a single defeat. They have also won the treble five times during the extremely successful spell that the club has enjoyed.
The Thunder Castle have also represented Thailand at the continental level regularly since 2012, appearing in the group stages of the AFC Champions League on eight occasions and reaching the knockout stages in 2013 and 2018.
Head coach: Osmar Loss
Osmar Loss began his senior managerial career with Juventude in Brazil in 2009 and took up various coaching roles across the South American nation during the following decade. His first foray into Asian football came in 2022 when he was named assistant to Yahya Golmohammadi at Iranian giants Persepolis FC. The Brazilian successfully guided the club to a league title after he was promoted to the head coach role after Golmohammadi’s exit earlier this year. He is the third coach to take charge of Buriram United after the departure of Masatada Ishii in August last year.
Key player: Neil Etheridge
All eyes will be on Neil Etheridge as the goalkeeper ventures outside of English football for the first time in his club career by signing for the Thai champions. The 34-year-old Philippines shot-stopper’s move comes after 16 years in England where he represented clubs including Fulham, Cardiff City, Birmingham City and Charlton Athletic. Etheridge became the first Filipino to play in the Premier League in 2018 and has earned over 80 caps for the Azkals since his debut back in 2008.
One to watch: Supachai Jaided
Supachai Jaided collected an impressive 21 goals during the 2023/24 Thai League 1 season – the 25-year-old’s best single-season tally to date and he will be hoping to have a similar impact during the new campaign as the Thunder Castle battle for silverware on multiple fronts. The Thailand international, who has been with Buriram since 2017, has increased his scoring output in recent years, ending as the club’s top scorer for the last three seasons running.
Did you know?
Buriram United and Malaysia defender Dion Cools, full name Dion-Johan Chai Cools, is named after two footballers – Dutch legend Johan Cruyff and former Coventry City forward Dion Dublin. Cools played for Belgium at youth level before switching allegiance to Malaysia in 2021.
Shopee Cup fixtures
Công An Hà Nội FC vs Buriram United (22 August, 2024)
Buriram United vs Kaya FC - Iloilo (26 September, 2024)
Buriram United vs Borneo FC Samarinda (9 January, 2025)
Lion City Sailors FC vs Buriram United (23 January, 2025)
Buriram United vs Kuala Lumpur City FC (6 February, 2025)
Photo: Buriram United
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