History
Founded on 18 May 1932, PSIS is one of the oldest football teams in Indonesia. It was previously known as Voetbalbond Indonesia Semarang.
First title
Before the professional league was held in 1994–1995, PSIS joined Perserikatan, an amateur football competition organized by the PSSI. Their greatest success was in the 1986–87 season, when PSIS won the title after defeating Persebaya Surabaya in the final 1–0 by Syaiful Amri's goal. At the time, PSIS legend Ribut Waidi was in the team. There is now a sculpture of Ribut Waidi in the center of Semarang.
Ligina (Liga Indonesia) era
In 1994, when Perserikatan and Galatama merged to form Liga Indonesia, PSIS was placed in the Premier division. In the 1998–1999 season, PSIS attained their highest achievement by winning the probe. In the final, PSIS defeated Persebaya 1–0 in a final match held at Manado. The goal was scored by Tugiyo in the injury time of the second half. However, PSIS was ironically relegated in 1999–2000 season. A year later, PSIS managed to secure a promotion back to the Premier division.
Golden era: 2005–2007
PSIS Semarang made a surprise by accomplishing the 3rd place after defeating PSMS Medan with a score of 2–1. The players like Muhammad Ridwan, Khusnul Yaqien, Modestus Setiawan, Idrus Gunawan, Maman Abdurrahman, Abdoulaye Djibril Diallo and Emanuel de Porras became superstars and following their success, were wanted by bigger teams. Result was achieved by coach Bambang Nurdiansyah.
In 2006, competing in the Western Zone, PSIS finished in 3rd place of the regular season. Therefore, PSIS went to the next round with 7 other teams, split into two groups of 4. PSIS won the first match against Arema Malang, courtesy of Gustavo Ortiz's goal. However, they were defeated by Persik Kediri with a score of 1–3 on matchday 2. PSIS needed a win in the last match against Persiba Balikpapan to progress to the semi-final, and they successfully booked a place with 1–0 victory in a controversially postponed match due to the pitch invasion by the fans. In the semi-final, PSIS won 1–0 against Persekabpas Pasuruan who defeated them twice in the regular season. In the grand final, PSIS met Persik Kediri once again, and was defeated with the score of 0–1 in extra time. The goal was scored by Cristian Gonzáles in 107th minute.
In 2007 season, PSIS successfully recruited Julio Lopez from Chile, projected as a replacement for Emanuel de Porras who controversially left the team after a defeat in the 2006 Liga Indonesia grand final.
Mascot
Warak ngendog is a fictional fauna that depicts the symbols of unity of all ethnic groups in Semarang, namely Javanese, ethnic Arabian, and Chinese. Ethnic unity creates a harmonious and peaceful city of Semarang. The appearance of the Warak Ngendog animal is that its head resembles a horned dragon, its neck is long like a camel, while its body, legs and tail resemble those of a goat. At first glance, the Warak ngendog animal is similar to the Qilin animal, but the Kirin has a body like a horse and a tail like a lion.
The MJ (Mahesa Jenar) is identical to fictional figures that are more focused on one group, namely Islam.
Mascots are often used to liven up the atmosphere. They don't not only function as an identity, it also brings joy to fans of PSIS Semarang.
