Association football, known more popularly as football, is considered the national sport of Singapore. The country is home to the Football Association of Singapore (FAS), the oldest football association in Asia with its roots coming from The Football Association in England. The national teams include the men's, women's and youth. Despite the country having a relatively small population pool, it has generally punched above its weight by successively producing squads that has fiercely competed with much larger and more populated countries in both club and international football. The sport reached one of its highest peaks during the 1980s and 1990s with the Singapore Lions' participation in the Malaysia Cup, whereby they dominated the competition. The Singapore Lions, the team which played in the Malaysia Cup, is not considered as a national team. The Singapore Lions left the Malaysia Cup in 1994, before rejoining the competition in 2012 as the LionsXII until 2015, winning a league title in 2013 and an FA Cup in 2015 in the process. The men's senior team is one of the strongest national sides in Southeast Asia, being the second most successful team in the AFF Championship with 4 titles, winning in 1998, 2004, 2007 and 2012. It is also one of the only two national teams in history to have won consecutive titles in the competition. The current champions of Singaporean club football is Lion City Sailors, having won the Singapore Premier League title in the 2021 season. History The first football match in Singapore were between two teams of British engineers in 1889. The Singapore Amateur Football Association (SAFA), under its current name Football Association of Singapore (FAS), was formed in 1892 by a group of British in colonial Singapore. League system Professional league The Singapore Premier League is a professional league for men's football clubs in Singapore, governed by the Football Association of Singapore. The semi-professional FAS Premier League was replaced by the professional S.League in 1996 when Singapore FA left the Malaysia Cup in 1994, due to disputes with the Football Association of Malaysia. The league adopted its current name in 2018. Although the SPL is the highest level of domestic football competition in Singapore, it fails to attract supporters, with the dwindling attendees to matches and television view ratings. The FAS has invited foreign clubs to participate in the league, in attempt to increase competitiveness and attract more fans. There is