They currently play in the Albanian Superliga, which is the top division in Albania. They play their home games at the Stadiumi Kastrioti, which has a capacity of over 8,500.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Klubi Sportiv Kastrioti Krujë
They currently play in the Albanian Superliga, which is the top division in Albania. They play their home games at the Stadiumi Kastrioti, which has a capacity of over 8,500.
Klubi Futbollit Laçi
Klubi Futbollit Laçi is an Albanian football (soccer) club based in Laç. Its home ground is "Laçi Stadium", which has a capacity of 5,000.
Founded in 1965 under name Industriali Laç, itsfirst participation in the Albanian First Division was in 1992. In the 2006-07 season, the club played in the Albanian Second Division. Currently in top position in Albanian First Division 2008/2009 season.
The club appointed current manager Stavri Nica on 7 July 2006, ahead of the 2006-2007 season in the Albanian First Division. The owner of the club Pashk Laska revealed the new manager at the club's Stadiumi Laçi in front of a considerable number of fans.[3] Nica has guided the club to promotion to the top tier of Albanian football and along with it has managed to win the Albanian First Division title in the 2008-2009 season. Laçi made the best finish in Superliga as 4th in 2009-10 season and qualified for UEFA Europe League once.
Founded in 1965 under name Industriali Laç, itsfirst participation in the Albanian First Division was in 1992. In the 2006-07 season, the club played in the Albanian Second Division. Currently in top position in Albanian First Division 2008/2009 season.
History
Altin Cuko is the KF Laçi player to have won the Albanian Superliga Golden Boot whilst still playing for the club.[1] This was achieved in the 1995-1996 season where KF Laçi finished in 12th place, out of 18. Cuko had already scored 5 goals for KS Tomori Berat before moving to KF Laçi in January 1996, where he netted another 16 times to give him the Golden boot with a total of 21 goals throughout the entire season with both Tomori and Laçi.[2]Management
Stadium
The club currently play their home games at the Stadiumi Laçi which has a capacity of around 5000 people. Following a very impressive 2009-2010 campaign the club's directors turned to reconstructing the current stadium in hope of gaining the UEFA licence to stage their Europa League games at their home ground. The club installed 1500 plastic seats into the "Karshi" stand.[4]Europe
Laci have only ever competed in Europe just once in 2010 in the Europa League, they achieved this through their very good 2009-2010 campaign in which they finished 4th and earned a place in Europe for the first time. The club's first ever European game was played on 1 July 2010 at the Stadiumi Niko Dovana in Durres. They played FC Dnepr Mogilev of Belarus in the Europa League 1st qualifying round and their first ever match finished 1-1. Although Laçi had the lesser of the chances and only had 2 goal attempts in the match, they still managed to lead for much of the second half through a goal by youngster Bledar Marashi in injury time in the first half. However Dnepro equalised in the 92nd minute through Dmitri Turlin which ruined a dream European debut for Laçi.[5]Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Klubi Sportiv Flamurtari Vlorë
Pre-War period
KS Flamurtari Vlorë were founded on March 23, 1923 as Shoqeria Sportive Vlorë. The first president of the club was Milto Korcari and the first secretary was Malo Ismaili. The club was created to make sports and especially football more organized and more popular. Its financial needs were covered by donations from the members or from different activities organized in the city of Vlorë. Shoqeria Sportive played their first football match against Shoqëria Sportive Jeronim de Rada, a local team created from students from Vlorë. The match ended in a 2–2 draw. The goals for Shoqeria Sportive were scored by Adem Gavani and Hazbi Tepelena. During the 20s the club played several friendlies with other Albanian and foreign teams. Interesting were the matches against Cernagore Cetinje and the football team of the Livorno Naval Institute which the Red and Black Fleet both won 1–0 and 3–2 respectively. Shoqeria Sportive Vlorë were a founder member of the Football Association of Albania and participated in the first championship. Its first official match was against KS Skënderbeu Korçë in Vlorë and ended with a 2–0 win. In 1935 the club changed its name to Shoqata Sportive Ismail Qemali. In the pre-war championships the club was always in the bottom half of the table and didn't achieve anything.1945–1980
In November 1944, Shoqata Sportive Ismail Qemali was re-opened. The championship began on 16 September 1945 and the club was playing against Vllaznia. SH.S. Ismail Qemali lost 1-0. The 1945 season saw the team end in fourth place in a 6 team league. The next championship would be better for The Fleet. On 22 June 1946, the club renamed itself Klubi Sportiv Flamurtari Vlorë. The 1946 season saw Flamurtari going to the championship final after winning First Division Group B. The final was played in two legs, one in Vlorë and one in Shkodër. Flamurtari lost both matches with an aggregated score of 5–0. In 1948, Flamurtari played once again in the final, still losing to KF Partizani Tirana, 6–2 in Qemal Stafa. In 1951 the club changed its name to Puna Vlorë, but in 1958 the club used once again the name Flamurtari. In 1954 Flamurtari participated in the Spartak Cup and won the competition after beating Vllaznia 6-0 and KS Teuta and Ylli i Kuq Pogradec 2–0. After reaching twice the championship final, in 1960 made it to the Albanian Cup final. In the first round playing against Ylli i Kuq Pogradec and beating them both at home and away matches. In the second round Flamurtari would play against KS Besa Kavaje.The teams drew both matches and had to go on extra time.After 90 minutes played in Kavaje and 135 minutes played in Vlorë the two teams were still equal. Flamurtari passed the second round thanks to the corners rule: the team that had more corners would qualify. These were 8 to 5 for Flamurtari. In the third round Flamurtari played against KS Skenderbeu Korce. The first match in Vlorë ended in a 3–0 win for the home side. In Korce, in the 2nd leg match, KS Skenderbeu Korce were leading 3–0 in half-time. In the second half Flamurtari made one of the greatest comebacks in the history of Albanian football winning 4–3 in the end of the 90 minutes. In the final the team played against KS Dinamo Tirana and they lost 1–0 after a hard-fought match. The next years were almost same for the team, placed always in mid-table.The golden years
In the 1980s Flamurtari would regained their former status as one of the big names in Albanian football. Flamurtari finished in 8th place in the 1980–81 season, but in the following season rose to second, runners-up to SK Tirana. During the season Flamurtari remained unbeaten in all matches at home in all competitions. In 1981 Flamurtari would participate for the first time in an international cup, the Balkans Cup. They played AEK Athens but they lost 3–2 in the Olympic Stadium of Athens. They finished second in their group with two wins and two losses, achieving 7–8 goals in the process. In 1983–84 Flamurtari once again reached the Albanian Cup final but lost to Tirana. In the season after, Flamurtari won the Albanian Cup. They defeated KF Partizani and thus claimed their first ever professional trophy.In 1985–86, Flamurtari finished second in the championship losing the trophy only by goal difference to Dinamo Tirana. Finishing second in the championship, Flamurtari would play in the UEFA Cup. They were drawn against FC Barcelona. Flamurtari was eliminated after two draws (1–1 in Vlorë, 0–0 in Barcelona) thanks to the away goal rule. Flamurtari showed their strength by drawing the first match in Barcelona and taking the lead in the 26th minute in Vlorë, but FC Barcelona scored a late away goal to deny the Fleet's triumph. In that season Flamurtari managed once again to finish in 2nd place and to reach the Albanian Cup final losing on aggregate 4–3 to Vllaznia.
After a perfect season they gained the right to play for the 2nd consecutive year in the UEFA Cup. In the first round they had to play against Partizan Belgrade. After a 2–0 win in Vlorë, a result of a great Rrapo Taho and an own goal, Flamurtari were playing at Narodna Armija Stadium on 30 September 1987. Partizan were leading 2–0 until the 76th minute when Sokol Kushta scored the goal that took Flamurtari in the next round.
In the second round Flamurtari were drawn against Wismut Aue. In the first game in Aue, Flamurtari lost 0-1 being denied many times by keeper Weisflog, however in the second leg there was nothing to do for Aue as Flamurtari defeated them 2–0.
In the third round Flamurtari were drawn once again against FC Barcelona. Flamurtari won the first leg match against FC Barcelona thanks to a goal from Vasil Ruci. The enthusiasm was huge for this game, as the Stadiumi Flamurtari was crowded by an attendance of 18,500, more than double of its normal capacity of 8,500. In the second leg, Flamurtari played at Camp Nou in front of 35,000 spectators on 25 November. Flamurtari scored in the first half and the game was 0-1 for Flamurtari. The players went to the first half break with an aggregated score Flamurtari-Barcelona 2-0.
In the second half Barcelona equalised with a controversial goal. After the equaliser Flamurtari were shocked, conceding three goals in just five minutes. The match finished 4–1 for FC Barcelona, ending the longest European adventure of Flamurtari.
In the same season Flamurtari went all the way to win the Albanian Cup, after beating KF Partizani 1–0, and securing their second cup title. In 1989 Flamurtari would play in the Cup Winners Cup against Lech Poznań. After two games Flamurtari was eliminated by losing both home and away matches, 4–2 on aggregate. In the Kategoria Superiore the team finished in the third place. Just a year after Flamurtari lifted for the first time in their history the Kategoria Superiore title. After some stunning results during the season (including beating runners-up Partizani 3-0 and third-place Vllaznia 5–2), they won the championship with a six point lead. In the same year they would win also the Albanian Supercup.
The 90's
After the fall of communism, Flamurtari had difficult moments. Many players left the club and went to play abroad. In the 1991–92 season the club started the championship with –6 points because of financial irregularities. Flamurtari finished the Kategoria e Pare in sixth place. In the next season the club faced a huge crisis finishing the season 13th out of 16 teams. But the team improved a lot and many new players from the Youth Academy were brought in. The 1993–94 season saw Flamurtari finishing 2nd and making Stadiumi Flamurtari a fortress, winning nine and drawing four out of 13 matches played home, but away from home the team had some horrible results culminating with a 5–0 away defeat to KF Laçi. The next two seasons Flamurtari would finish in fourth place. The 1996–97 would be the best season for Flamurtari after the fall of communism. The team had a great start in the season with eight wins in the first nine games. Finishing the 1st phase of the championship in the first place, Flamurtari started the second phase while Albania was suffering the 1997 riots. Flamurtari was leading until the week the championship was suspended and the Albanian Football Association decided to play all games after in Tirana, something Flamurtari couldn't afford because of the danger. So, the Albanian Football Association decided that the championship would go to KF Tirana while Flamurtari finished in third place. The next seasons would be the worst for the team in the last 30 years with the team having its best placement in the 1998–99 season finishing 11th in a 16 team leagueKS Bylis Ballsh
Founded on 1972 under name Ballshi i Ri, the club participated for first time in the Albanian Superliga in the season 1997-98. In the season 1998-99 they had first match in the preliminary rounds of the European Cup.
In Ballsh, many young talents are developing hoping to make the team better. The club has many loyal fans but needs investment if it is to do better than it is now.
In the season 2006-07, the club played in the Albanian Second Division, group B. They won their group after collecting 55 points with a goal score of 65-22. This automatically earned them the promotion to the Albanian First Division and they also went on to beat Dajti in the final and earn the Albanian Second Division title. In the 2008/09 season they will be playing at the highest level in the Albanian Superliga.
Klubi Sportiv Vllaznia Shkodër
It was founded in 1919. Vllazni is the oldest football team in Albania. In 1929 the club was named "Bashkimi Shkodran". The debut in the league was in 1930. In 1958 it was renamed “KS Vllaznia “. In the European Cup for Champions 1978/79 they beat Austrian team Austria Wien (who went on to the semifinals) 2-0 at home but lost 3-4 on aggregate. In the Cup Winners Cup of 1987/88 they reached the second round after beating Sliema Wanderes from Malta in both games (aggregate 6-0). In the 2001/2002 UEFA Champions league qualifying they beat KR Reykjavik from Iceland 2-1 in Reykjavik and 1-0 in Tirana with two goals from Klodian Duro. In next round KS Vllaznia were eliminated by the Turkish club Galatasaray 2-0 in Istanbul and 1-4 in Tirana. German Uli Schulze, a UEFA Cup Winners' Cup winner with 1. FC Magdeburg in 1974, was appointed as new coach in summer 2006. He was later replaced by Mirel Josa who is currently appealing a six month ban for leading his side off the field in protest at a controversial goal in the final game of last season.
Klubi Sportiv Teuta Durrës
Skënderbeu Korçë Team
Early years (1909-1927)
The club was founded in the city of Korçë on 15 April 1909 under the name Vllazëria by politician and poet Hilë Mosi, making it the oldest club in Albania. During the years 1920 and 1922 there were football associations made in Korçë for the first time, such as Përparimi and Sport Klub Korça, in 1923 the Shpresa society was founded under the Albanian National Lyceum. But it was not until 1925 that Skënderbeu would be born, as football began to more popular in this city of Albania, almost every field would be used as a football ground for locals to play and enjoy the sport. This lead to many neighbourhoods in Korçës trying to form their own small football teams. In 1926 the Zhgaba society was created, and in 1927 many neighbourhood teams were finally set up, such as Leka i Madh, Pirro, Brekverdhit, Zjarri, Tigri and Diamanti. However there was still a main squad representing the city, which was Skënderbeu who managed to overcome problems in the start, some even political.[1]Championship (1930s)
The club participated for the first time in the Albanian First Division in 1930, which was the first Albanian tournament, and won one Albanian Title in 1933. Skënderbeu is also a three time finalist in the Albanian Cup in 1958, 1965 and 1976, in which they lost all three finals. They did however win the Albanian First Division in 1976. The greatest manager in the club's history is Fredi Stefo who is also their most successful manager ever, with the first team and youth teams.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)