FC Koper

Football Club Koper, commonly referred to as FC Koper or simply Koper, is a football club based in Koper, Slovenia, that plays in the Slovenian PrvaLiga, the top flight of Slovenian football. The club was founded in 1920.[1] Koper is one of five football clubs in the country that managed to win all three of the domestic trophies (league, cup and supercup).

Koper
Full nameFootball Club Koper
Nickname(s)Kanarčki (The Canaries)
Founded1920 (1920)[1]
(as Circolo sportivo Capodistria)
GroundBonifika
Capacity4,047
PresidentAnte Guberac
Head CoachMiran Srebrnič
LeagueSlovenian PrvaLiga
2019–20Slovenian Second League, 1st (promoted)
WebsiteClub website

The club's home ground is Bonifika Stadium, which has a capacity of 4,047 seats.

History

From the records, it appears that football in Koper was played as early as in the 1920s, but officially, the club took the name NK Koper in 1955, when it was formed by the merger of two football teams: Aurora and Meduza.[2] The club played under this name in different Yugoslav leagues until 1991 and was one of the most successful Slovenian clubs. After Slovenia became independent, the club started to play in the Slovenian PrvaLiga and Slovenian Second League. At the beginning of the 1990s, the club was achieving mid-table success. By the end of the 1990s, the club had been relegated to the second division twice, had serious financial problems and renamed itself to FC Koper, thereby avoiding the necessity of paying off its debts. With the advent of the new millennium, FC Koper consistently achieved positions in the upper half of the table (achieving third place in the 2001–02 season, its highest since Slovenian independence). In the 2003–04 season, they were playing in a European competition for the first time since 1991: the UEFA Intertoto Cup. Two years of mid-table anonymity and significant financial difficulties followed, in part because the former owner, Georg Suban, left substantial debts to the club and took half of the team with him when he moved to the other Slovenian PrvaLiga team Mura.

The fans took control of the club and tried to improve its finances to save it from going bankrupt and disappearing like three other major Slovenian clubs (Olimpija, Mura and Ljubljana), with reasonable success. In the 2005–06 season, Mladen Rudonja returned to the club and brought with him the Serbian-American businessman Milan Mandarić, who paid off all the remaining debts. After the first half of the season, before the arrival of the new patron, Koper was battling against relegation, but in the second part of the season, with a new coach, Milivoj Bračun, the club started an unbeaten run that led them to reach the third place in the Slovenian PrvaLiga and to win the Slovenian Cup for the first time, FC Koper's first trophy since the Slovenian independence from Yugoslavia. This also qualified the team to play in the UEFA Cup qualifying rounds in the 2006–07 season. The following seasons were more difficult, with the club narrowly avoiding relegation in 2009. In the 2009–10 season, the team was expanded and, under the leadership of veteran playmaker/director-of-football Miran Pavlin eventually won the Slovenian league championship for the first time, winning a place in the UEFA Champions League qualifiers, where they were defeated by Dinamo Zagreb 5–4 on aggregate (1–5, 3–0). In the aftermath, Pavlin left the club.

Following the 2016–17 season, Koper failed to obtain a competition licence and was excluded from the Slovenian top division.[3][4]

Name changes

  • 1920: Formed as Circolo sportivo Capodistria
  • 1928: Renamed Unione sportiva Capodistriana
  • 1946: Renamed Aurora Koper
  • 1955: Fusion from Aurora Koper and Meduza Koper to NK Koper
  • 1990: Renamed NK Koper Capodistria
  • 2002: Renamed FC Koper
  • 2003: Renamed FC Anet Koper
  • 2008: Renamed FC Luka Koper
  • 2017: Renamed FC Koper

Stadium

Bonifika Stadium is the team's home ground, which is named after the area where it is situated in the town of Koper. The stadium was built in 1948.[5] In 2010 the stadium underwent a major reconstruction[6] and its current capacity is 4,047 seats.[5]

Current squad

As of 4 October 2020[7]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  SVN Nejc Ražem
3 DF  CRO Goran Jozinović
5 DF  CRO Denis Cerovec
6 DF  CRO Darko Mišić
7 MF  SVN Ivica Guberac
8 MF  CRO Ivan Borna Jelić Balta
9 MF  CRO Lovre Čirjak
10 MF  SVN Dare Vršič
11 FW  BIH Nardin Mulahusejnović
12 GK  SVN David Adam
14 DF  SVN Luka Badžim
17 MF  SVN Žan Bešir
18 DF  SVN Matej Palčič
21 DF  SVN Žan Žužek
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 MF  SVN Maks Barišič
23 MF  SVN Timotej Dodlek
24 MF  CRO Marko Pejić
25 GK  CRO Ivan Vargić
26 DF  SVN Aleksander Rajčević
28 DF  SVN Mitja Viler
29 MF  CRO Nikola Krajinović
30 MF  CRO Bojan Knežević (on loan from Dinamo Zagreb)
32 FW  ARG Claudio Spinelli (on loan from Genoa)
38 MF  SVN Adam Vošnjak
52 FW  SVN Luka Vekić
90 FW  SRB Stefan Stevanović
MF  MDA Mihail Caimacov (on loan from Osijek)
MF  BRA Victor Juffo
MF  CRO Jurica Bajić

Honours

Yugoslavia

League

Cup

Slovenia

League

  • Littoral League (fourth tier)
    • Winners (1): 2017–18

Cup

  • MNZ Koper Cup
    • Winners (2): 2017–18, 2018–19

Domestic league and cup results

In Yugoslavia

  • 1947–48: 4th (STO League)
  • 1948–49: 1st (STO League)
  • 1949–50: 3rd (STO League)
  • 1950–51: 3rd (STO League)
  • 1951–52: 4th (STO League)
  • 1952–53: 1st (STO League)
  • 1953–54: 4th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1954–55: 6th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1955–56: 9th (Ljubljana-Littoral League)
  • 1956–57: 2nd (Littoral League)
  • 1957–58: 1st (Littoral League)
  • 1958–59: 5th (Littoral League)
  • 1959–60: 3rd (Littoral League)
  • 1960–61: 2nd (Koper Subassociation League)
  • 1961–62: 2nd (Koper Subassociation League)
  • 1962–63: 1st (Koper Subassociation League)
  • 1963–64: 1st (Koper Subassociation League)
  • 1964–65: 1st (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1965–66: 12th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1966–67: 1st (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1967–68: 6th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1968–69: 11th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1969–70: 3rd (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1970–71: 1st (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1971–72: 5th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1972–73: 10th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1973–74: 7th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1974–75: 14th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1975–76: 10th (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1976–77: 3rd (Koper Subassociation League)
  • 1977–78: no senior team in league system
  • 1978–79: no senior team in league system
  • 1979–80: 1st (Slovenian Regional League – West)
  • 1980–81: 9th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1981–82: 11th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1982–83: 4th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1983–84: 4th (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1984–85: 1st (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1985–86: 18th (Yugoslav Second League)
  • 1986–87: 2nd (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1987–88: 1st (Slovenian Republic League)
  • 1988–89: 5th[8] (Yugoslav Inter-Republic League)
  • 1989–90: 14th[9] (Yugoslav Inter-Republic League)
  • 1990–91: 12th[10] (Yugoslav Inter-Republic League)

In Slovenia

Season League Position Pts Played W D L GF GA Cup
1991–92 1. SNL 8 43 40 15 13 12 38 33 Round of 16
1992–93 1. SNL 8 35 34 11 13 10 41 45 Round of 16
1993–94 1. SNL 7 32 30 11 10 9 43 38 First round
1994–95 1. SNL 11 26 30 9 8 13 24 34 First round
1995–96 2. SNL 6 41 29 11 8 10 33 30 Round of 16
1996–97 1. SNL 10 31 36 8 7 21 28 61 x
1997–98 2. SNL 2 68 30 20 8 2 75 20 First round
1998–99 1. SNL 11 32 33 8 8 17 34 61 x
1999–2000 2. SNL 1 72 30 22 6 2 76 21 Round of 16
2000–01 1. SNL 6 46 33 12 10 11 43 43 x
2001–02 1. SNL 3 56 33 15 11 7 45 26 Round of 16
2002–03 1. SNL 5 45 31 12 9 10 41 41 First round
2003–04 1. SNL 4 50 32 13 11 8 41 32 Round of 16
2004–05 1. SNL 11 36 32 9 9 14 38 41 Round of 16
2005–06 1. SNL 3 57 36 16 9 11 49 39 Winners
2006–07 1. SNL 6 45 36 10 15 11 51 46 Winners
2007–08 1. SNL 2 64 36 18 10 8 68 50 Semi-finals
2008–09 1. SNL 8 42 36 10 12 14 39 47 Runners-up
2009–10 1. SNL 1 73 36 21 10 5 59 35 Round of 16
2010–11 1. SNL 3 60 36 17 9 10 57 43 Semi-finals
2011–12 1. SNL 4 58 36 16 10 10 48 35 Quarter-finals
2012–13 1. SNL 4 55 36 14 13 9 52 42 Quarter-finals
2013–14 1. SNL 2 69 36 21 6 9 52 36 First round
2014–15 1. SNL 8 40 36 12 4 20 35 58 Winners
2015–16 1. SNL 8 40 36 11 7 18 40 54 Quarter-finals
2016–17 1. SNL 6[lower-alpha 1] 50 36 12 14 10 43 40 Round of 16
2017–18 Littoral League 1 65 23 21 2 0 118 2 Round of 16
2018–19 3. SNL 1 71 28 23 2 3 111 15 Quarter-finals
2019–20 2. SNL 1[lower-alpha 2] 44 20 13 5 2 42 13 Quarter-finals
Totals 1. SNL 1 Title 1085 796 301 228 267 1009 980 3 Cups
  1. Relegated to the fourth division after failing to obtain a licence.[11]
  2. The season was not completed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the competition winner was not declared.[12]
*Best results are highlighted.

Koper in UEFA competitions

Koper goals always listed first.

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Agg.
2002 Intertoto Cup 1R Helsingborgs IF 0–0 0–1 0–1
2003 Intertoto Cup 1R Zagreb 1–0 2–2 3–2
2R Dubnica 1–0 2–3 3–3 (a)
3R Egaleo 2–2 3–2 5–4
SF Heerenveen 1–0 0–2 1–2
2006–07 UEFA Cup 1Q Litex Lovech 0–1 0–5 0–6
2007–08 UEFA Cup 1Q Široki Brijeg 2–3 1–3 3–6
2008–09 UEFA Cup 1Q Vllaznia 1–2 0–0 1–2
2010–11 UEFA Champions League 2Q Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 1–5 4–5
2011–12 UEFA Europa League 1Q Shakhter Karagandy 1–1 1–2 2–3
2014–15 UEFA Europa League 1Q Čelik Nikšić 4–0 5–0 9–0
2Q Neftchi Baku 0–2 2–1 2–3
2015–16 UEFA Europa League 1Q Víkingur Reykjavík 2–2 1–0 3–2
2Q Hajduk Split 3–2 1–4 4–6
Notes
  • 1Q: First qualifying round
  • 2Q: Second qualifying round
  • 1R: First round
  • 2R: Second round
  • 3R: Third round
  • SF: Semi-final

References

  1. "Klubi" [Clubs] (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  2. "Zgodovina" [History] (in Slovenian). FC Koper. Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  3. "Licenčna komisija za pritožbe sprejela odločitev o pritožbi FC Koper" (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. 1 June 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  4. R. K. (1 June 2017). "Koper dokončno brez licence, v prvi ligi Aluminij in Ankaran" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  5. "Stadion" [Stadium] (in Slovenian). FC Koper. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  6. Maver, Rok (28 July 2010). "Prenovljeni stadion bo v obliki črke L" [The renovated stadium will be in the shape of letter L]. Primorske novice (in Slovenian). Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  7. "Trenutno moštvo – Prva liga Telekom Slovenije" [Current squad] (in Slovenian). Slovenian PrvaLiga. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  8. "NK Maribor: Zgodovina (sezona 1988/89)" (in Slovenian). NK Maribor. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  9. "NK Maribor: Zgodovina (sezona 1989/90)" (in Slovenian). NK Maribor. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  10. "NK Maribor: Zgodovina (sezona 1990/91)" (in Slovenian). NK Maribor. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  11. Uredništvo (14 July 2017). "Koper poražen na CAS" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  12. "Zadeva: Zaključek tekmovanja v 2. Slovenski nogometni ligi v sezoni 2019/2020" (PDF) (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. 11 May 2020. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
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