FC Sheriff Tiraspol

Fotbal Club Sheriff (Russian: ФК Шериф Тирасполь), commonly known as Sheriff Tiraspol or simply Sheriff, is a football club based in Tiraspol, a city located in the east of the Republic of Moldova in the de jure unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic. Founded in 1996 as Tiras Tiraspol, it quickly established itself within Moldovan football.

Sheriff Tiraspol
Full nameFotbal Club Sheriff
Nickname(s)
  • Zholto-chornyye (The Yellow-Blacks)
  • Osy (The Wasps)
Founded
  • 1997 (1997)
    as Tiras Tiraspol
GroundSheriff Stadium
Capacity12,746[1]
OwnerSheriff
PresidentVictor Gușan
Head CoachYuriy Vernydub
LeagueDivizia Națională
2019Divizia Națională, 1st
WebsiteClub website

In 1997, the team was rebranded as Sheriff, taking the name of its main sponsor, a company which operates various industries. "The Wasps" recorded their debut in the first league in the 1998–99 season, when they also won their first trophy, the Moldovan Cup. They have since amassed 18 championship titles, 10 Cups and 8 Super Cups–all competition records. On the European stage, Sheriff has reached the group stage of the UEFA Europa League on four occasions.

The team plays its home games in yellow and black kits at the Sheriff Stadium, to which it moved in 2002, which has a capacity of 12,746.

History
See also: List of FC Sheriff Tiraspol seasons

The club was originally established in 1996 and introduced in the Moldovan "B" Division as FC Tiras Tiraspol. On 4 April 1997, former policeman Victor Gușan, an employee of the security corporation Sheriff which remains a key sponsor, refounded it as FC Sheriff Tiraspol.[2][3]

Sheriff achieved promotion to the second tier of Moldovan football, the Moldovan "A" Division, and under the guidance of Ahmad Alaskarov, was charged with leading the team to the Moldovan top division.[2] Later that year the club won the championship by 14 points, being promoted to Divizia Națională.[4] The club won its first major honour with the 1999 Moldovan Cup. In the final at the Republican Stadium, Sheriff scored an injury-time equaliser before winning the match against Constructorul Chișinău 2–1 after extra time.[5] Sheriff's first National Division title came in the 2000–01 season, which also included their second Moldovan Cup triumph as they beat Nistru Otaci on penalties after a goalless match.[6] The league triumph was the first of a run of ten consecutively up to 2010, also including league-cup doubles in 2002, 2006 and 2008–10. Sheriff won each Moldovan Super Cup from 2004 to 2010, but did not have to play a match on four occasions due to winning it on default through a double.[7] Sheriff were denied an 11th-straight title by Dacia Chișinău in 2010–11, but reclaimed the title the following season. In 2014–15, Sheriff again lost the championship despite being level with both Milsami Orhei and Dacia Chișinău at the top of the table with 55 points; Milsami would finish in first place because of its superior head-to-head record against both Sheriff and Dacia, with Dacia second and Sheriff third, despite Sheriff having the superior goal difference amongst the clubs.

The team won the Commonwealth of Independent States Cup in 2003 and 2009, becoming the first team from Moldova to win an international title. Sheriff were the first club in Moldova to sign players from Brazil and Africa.[8]

Europe

From 2001–02 to 2008–09, the club tried to reach the group stage in the UEFA Champions League every year, but failed in the second qualifying round every time. Its European fortunes improved after 2009. Sheriff has appeared in three UEFA Europa League group stages (2009–10, 2010–11, 2013–14) with decent results, although they didn't manage to qualify to the knock-out stage. In 2017 they qualified to the group stage for the fourth time, after beating favorites Legia Warsaw on away goals in the play-off round.

2009–10 UEFA Europa League

In the 2009–10 season, Sheriff finally reached the third qualifying round when they defeated Inter Turku. In the next round, Sheriff defeated Slavia Prague 1–1 on aggregate, progressing via the away goal rule due to Nadson's 94th-minute strike in the second leg. They were then eliminated from the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League by Greek club Olympiacos in the qualifying play-off for a spot in the group stage. Sheriff lost 2–0 in the first leg at home, and 1–0 in the second leg away.

However, by virtue of losing in the play-off round, Sheriff qualified for the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League group stage, where they were drawn into Group H alongside Fenerbahçe, Twente and Steaua București. On 17 September 2009, their first Europa League match, Sheriff drew 0–0 away against Steaua.[9] On 1 October, Sheriff's first Europa League home match, the club lost 1–0 to Fenerbahçe.[9] On 22 October, Sheriff produced a stunning 2–0 home victory over Twente, ending Twente's 17-match unbeaten run.[9] 2 December, Sheriff drew 1–1 at home with Steaua.[9] Sheriff failed to progress past the group stage after finishing third in Group H with five points, ahead of Steaua.

2010–11 UEFA Champions League

In the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League,[10] on 14–20 July 2010, Sheriff defeated Dinamo Tirana in the second qualifying round (3–1, 0–1). Then, on 4 August, the club defeated Dinamo Zagreb on penalties (6–5) after identical 1–1 draws at home and away, thereby reaching the play-off round.[10] On 18–24 August, in the play-off round against Basel, Sheriff lost 1–0 in Switzerland before losing 3–0 at home.[10]

2010–11 UEFA Europa League
Sheriff playing a UEFA Europa League match against Tottenham Hotspur at home in 2013

Dropping to the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League after their play-off defeat to Basel,[11] Sheriff was drawn into Group E alongside Dynamo Kyiv, AZ and BATE Borisov. After losing their first match 2–1 away against AZ on 15 September 2010, on 30 September, Sheriff defeated Dynamo Kyiv 2–0 at home. After losing two-straight matches against BATE – 0–1 at home and 3–1 away on 21 October and 4 November respectively – on 2 December, Sheriff drew 1–1 with AZ at home,[11] then on 15 December, Sheriff drew 0–0 against Dynamo Kyiv away in Kyiv.[11] Accumulating five points, Sheriff failed to progress past the group stage after finishing last in Group E.

2013-14 UEFA Europa League

In the first match at home "Tottenham Hotspur vs. Tromsø". Soccerway. 19 September 2013.

Stadium
Main article: Sheriff Stadium
Stadionul Sheriff seen from the outside

Sheriff Stadium is the home ground of Sheriff Tiraspol and is owned by the corporation Sheriff. Construction of the ground began on 1 August 2000, being completed in May 2002, with official opening in July 2002. It was renovated in 2011. The stadium has a seating capacity for 12,746 spectators and is eligible for FIFA/UEFA international events. Beside Sheriff, the stadium hosted also matches of FC Tiraspol and the Moldova national team.

Asides from main arena of Sheriff Sports Complex, there is also an 8,000 seater stadium, Malaya Sportivnaya Arena, also situated in the same complex, along with eight training fields, a covered training centre, housing for the players, a college for students and a five-star hotel.[12]

Current squad
As of 8 February 2021[13]

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  MDA Dumitru Celeadnic
2 DF  COL Danilo Arboleda
3 DF  MWI Charles Petro
7 MF  UKR Andriy Bliznichenko
9 FW  LBR Peter Wilson
10 FW  COL Frank Castañeda
11 FW  SVN Lovro Bizjak
13 DF  BRA Fernando
14 MF  FIN Sebastian Dahlström
15 DF  BRA Cristiano
16 DF  TRI Keston Julien
17 MF  GRE Dimitris Kolovos (on loan from Panathinaikos)
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 FW  NED Dabney dos Santos
23 FW  CIV Nadrey Dago
24 MF  MDA Eugeniu Gliga
26 GK  SRB Dušan Marković
31 MF  LUX Sébastien Thill (on loan from Progrès Niederkorn)
32 DF  MDA Valeriu Gaiu
33 GK  MDA Serghei Pașcenco
43 FW  GHA Richard Gadze
55 DF  PER Gustavo Dulanto
88 MF  BIH Rifet Kapić (on loan from Paderborn)
90 DF  MDA Veaceslav Posmac (captain)
98 MF  MDA Maxim Cojocaru

Honours
FC Sheriff Tiraspol honours
Type Competition Titles Seasons
Domestic Moldovan National Division 18 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017, 2018, 2019
Moldovan "A" Division 1 1997–98
Moldovan Cup 10 1998–99, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2018–19
Moldovan Super Cup 8 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017
International CIS Cup 2 2003, 2009
  Record

Records and statistics

European record
Accurate as of 26 August 2020
CompetitionPlayedWonDrewLostGFGAGDWin%
UEFA Champions League 70 23 14 33 69 76 −7 032.86
UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League 46 8 21 17 29 46 −17 017.39
Total 116 31 35 50 98 122 −24 026.72

Legend: GF = Goals For. GA = Goals Against. GD = Goal Difference.

Matches

UEFA rankings

At the end of the 2017–18 season, Sheriff Tiraspol ranked 97th in the UEFA club coefficient rankings, up from 145th the previous season.

RankTeamPoints
112 Sheriff Tiraspol12.750

As of 1 July 2020. Source

Club officials

Managers
Name Nat. From To P W D L GS GA %W Honours Notes
Veaceslav Rusnac  Moldova 12 July 2013 15 August 2014 41 32 4 5 113 25 078.05 2013–14 Divizia Națională
Zoran Zekić  Croatia 15 August 2014 26 May 2015[16] 25 20 3 2 63 14 080.00 2014–15 Divizia Națională
2014–15 Moldovan Cup
Lilian Popescu  Moldova 27 May 2015[17] 5 October 2015 13 7 4 2 21 9 053.85 2015 Moldovan Super Cup
Zoran Vulić  Croatia 7 October 2015 12 June 2016[18] 21 17 2 2 43 9 080.95 2015–16 Divizia Națională
Bruno Irles  France 22 July 2016[19] 23 September 2016[20] 11 7 1 3 23 9 063.64 2016 Moldovan Super Cup
Victor Mihailov (interim)  Moldova 23 September 2016 4 October 2016 1 1 0 0 2 0 100.00
Roberto Bordin  Italy 4 October 2016[21] 24 April 2018[22] 62 40 14 8 145 40 064.52 2016–17 Divizia Națională
2016-17 Moldovan Cup
2017 Divizia Națională
Victor Mihailov (interim)  Moldova 24 April 2018[22] 7 June 2018[23] 5 2 2 1 6 4 040.00
Goran Sablić  Croatia 7 June 2018[23] 27 April 2019[24] 31 19 5 7 68 16 061.29 2018 Divizia Națională
Zoran Zekić  Croatia 30 April 2019[25] Present 4 4 0 0 6 4 100.00 2018–19 Moldovan Cup

Information correct as of match played 5 August 2018. Only competitive matches are counted.

  • Notes:

P – Total of played matches W – Won matches D – Drawn matches L – Lost matches GS – Goal scored GA – Goals against
%W – Percentage of matches won Nationality is indicated by the corresponding FIFA country code(s).

See also

The Invincibles (football)

Honours

Commonwealth of Independent States Cup

References
  1. "Stadium capacity".sheriff-sport.com
  2. uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2010/11 - History - Sheriff – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  3. Montague, James (20 August 2012). "In Sliver of Old U.S.S.R., Hot Soccer Team Is Virtual State Secret". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  4. "Moldova 1997/98". rsssf.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  5. Miron Goihman. Moldova Cup 1998–99, 20 October 1999
  6. "Moldova Cup 2000/01". rsssf.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  7. "Moldova – List of Super Cup Finals". rsssf.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  8. "More Brazilian players signed to FC Sheriff". tiraspoltimes.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  9. uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2009/10 - History - Sheriff – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  10. uefa.com. "UEFA Champions League 2010/11 - History - Sheriff – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  11. uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2010/11 - History - Sheriff – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  12. "Sport complex". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  13. "Squad". fc-sheriff.com. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
  14. uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2002/03 - History - Sheriff – UEFA.com". UEFA.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  15. "Coaching Staff". fc-sheriff.com. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  16. "Зоран Зекич покидает Шериф". fc-sheriff.com/ (in Russian). FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 26 May 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  17. "Лилиан Попеску назначен главным тренером Шерифа". fc-sheriff.com/ (in Russian). FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 27 May 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  18. "Zoran Vulic leaves FC Sheriff head coach position". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  19. "Bruno Irles as FC Sheriff new head coach". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 20 June 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  20. "Bruno Irles left FC Sheriff". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 23 September 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  21. "Roberto Bordin as a new head coach". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  22. "Grazie, Mister". fc-sheriff.com (in Russian). FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 24 April 2018. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
  23. "New head coach". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  24. "Goran Sablic resigned". fc-sheriff.com. FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  25. "С возвращением, Зоран". fc-sheriff.com (in Russian). FC Sheriff Tiraspol. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
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