FC Baník Ostrava

Baník

FC Baník Ostrava
Full name	Football Club Baník Ostrava, a.s.
Nickname(s)	Baníček
Founded	1922, as SK Slezská Ostrava
Ground	Městský stadion, Ostrava
Ground Capacity	10,060
Chairman	Petr Šafarčík
Manager	Vlastimil Petržela
League	Czech First League
2014–15	14th
Website	Club home page
Home colours Away colours

FC Baník Ostrava is a football club from the Silesian part of the city of Ostrava, Czech Republic. It is based in Slezská Ostrava district of the city.

Founded in 1922 as SK Slezská Ostrava, Baník is one of the most traditional clubs in the country – it has won numerous national and international trophies. Their home stadium is Bazaly, and club colours are blue and white. Baník's greatest rivals are Sparta Prague; with a regional "Silesian derby" taking place with SFC Opava. In 2005 however SFC Opava was relegated from the Czech First League.

History

Formation and history to 1937

File:SK Slezska 1923.jpg

Squad of SK Slezská Ostrava in 1923

File:SK Slezska first emblem.jpg

First emblem of the club. Drawn by Karel Aniol.

The club was founded on 8 September 1922 as SK Slezská Ostrava, when 20 activists signed the establishment treaty in the U Dubu restaurant. The signatories were mostly poor coal miners from the Kamenec coal mining settlement in Ostrava. The organizers of the founding were Karel Aniol, Arnošt Haberkiewicz, Petr Křižák, František Mruzek and Jaroslav Horák. The club was officially registered on 14 October 1922. Karel Aniol became the club's first president. First jerseys of SK Slezská Ostrava were red-white striped. Since April 1923, however the club played with white jerseys and blue shorts. These colours were used since then. The first match ever occurred on 4 March 1923, when SK Slezská Ostrava faced reserve team of famous local side Slovan Ostrava.

SK Slezská Ostrava was a poor club, raising money for functioning of the club was a common concern. It had no own playing field and was forced to loan fields from wealthier clubs. The first own field was built in autumn of 1925 at Kamenec. It was however stony and did not meet requirements of the football officials. In 1934 club activists succeeded in renting the land at Stará střelnice from regional wealthy industrialist Count Wilczek. During the summer of 1934 a new field was built there. Many workers volunteered to help with the construction for free. Workers and coal miners often came directly from shifts to build the field.

SK Slezská Ostrava began to compete with other teams in the league system in spring of 1923. It started in the lowest division (III. třída župy) and was promoted to higher division the same year. It took however some time for the club the appear in the highest divisions of football in Czechoslovakia. In 1934 the club won the promotion to the Moravian-Silesian Division, one of the highest leagues in the country. The promotion made SK Slezská Ostrava a popular team in the city and the public interest was rising. The 1935 derby against Slovan Ostrava was watched at Stará střelnice by 5,400 spectators.

Since 1934 the club began also to pay money to footballers, which was made legal by the Czechoslovak Football Association the same year. In the Moravian-Silesian Division, the club played in the safe mid-table position, and faced regional sides like SK Baťa Zlín or Polonia Karwina. In the 1936–37 season, SK Slezská Ostrava won the Moravian-Silesian Division and advanced to the qualification tournament for the First League. The team faced several noted sides, including the DFC Prague and Čechie Karlín, and finally won the tournament to be promoted to the First League for the first time in history.

From 1937 to 1952

The First League in Czechoslovakia was dominated by Prague teams at that time, which were advanced in all aspects. Promotion to the First League was therefore a big success for SK Slezská Ostrava. In 15 years the team advanced from the obscure minnows to the highest level of football in the country. The first league match at Stará střelnice was played on 22 August 1937 against 1. ČsŠK Bratislava. In the second match, the newcomer team faced famous Sparta Prague in Prague. Though Sparta's roster was full of national team players, Baník won 3–2 and caused immediate sensation. SK Slezská Ostrava survived three seasons in the First League before being relegated back to Division in 1940.

SK Slezská Ostrava played in the Division until 1943, when it was again promoted to the First League. Promotion to the highest league sparked even stronger interest in football of local people. Later famed opera singer Rudolf Asmus even sang the new anthem for the club. In the 1943–44 season the home attendances of SK Slezská Ostrava reached the highest level so far. The match against Slavia Prague was attended by 33,000 people. The club was relegated back to the second-tier division (now named Second League) in 1949, but won the league in 1950 and returned to the First League. The club changed its name after World War II and again in 1948 after the communist coup d'état.

From 1952 to 1967

In 1952 the club adopted the name DSO Baník Ostrava. Since then the name went only through slight changes. In the 1954 season, Baník achieved its biggest league success so far, ending second in the league after Sparta. In 1959 Baník played for the last time at the old Stará střelnice stadium. Stará střelnice did not meet requirements made by the football association. The pitch was not grassy, but covered with slag, which was also a reason to close down the stadium. New Bazaly stadium was constructed in 1959 in Slezská Ostrava, and was opened on 19 April 1959.

In the 1965–66 season Baník was weakened by the generation change. It ended 13th in the league table and was relegated to the Second League. A year later Baník was again promoted to the top division. Since then Baník plays exclusively in the top flight of football in the country.

The Golden Era

In the 1972–73 season Baník won the Czechoslovak Cup. It was club's first domestic trophy. As a winner of domestic cup, Baník advanced to the Cup Winners' Cup. It was a first European cup appearance in club's history. Baník eliminated Irish Cork Hibernians in the first round, but was eliminated in second round by East German 1. FC Magdeburg, who later won the cup. In the 1974–75 UEFA Cup season Baník eliminated Real Sociedad, Nantes and Napoli, only to be eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual Cup winners Borussia Mönchengladbach.

In the 1974–75 season Baník finished 13th in the First League. No one expected the team to make a good result in the forthcoming season. Jiří Rubáš was appointed as a new manager of Baník in the half of the 1975–76 season. Baník managed to improve in the second half of the season and became Czechoslovak champions for the first time in history. Before the last match at Škoda Plzeň, Baník was second in the league table, trailing one point after Slavia Prague. Baník however won 1–0 in Plzeň, while Slavia lost 0–1 to Slovan Bratislava in Bratislava. These results granted Baník the first title.

The true Golden Era in history of the club however started when Evžen Hadamczik took over as manager of Baník on 1 January 1978. Hadamczik was a young coach, without previous league experience. In 1978, the club won the Czechoslovak Cup for the second time in history. In the 1978–79 season Baník finished second, with only worse score than champions Dukla Prague. In this season Hadamczik started also team's home stadium invincibility. On 20 August 1978 Baník lost at Bazaly to Dukla Prague. Since then Baník did not lose 74 home matches in a row, thus being almost five years undefeated at their home ground. In the same season of the Cup Winners' Cup, Baník made it to the semi-finals knocking out Sporting Lisbon, Shamrock Rovers and 1. FC Magdeburg on their way. Baník was eliminated in the semi-finals by Fortuna Düsseldorf.

Team squad was stable in the Golden Era years. The best players like Lička and Vojáček were regularly playing for the national team. Others like Radimec, Rygel, Němec and Šreiner played also for the Olympic team. In the 1979–80 season Baník won its second Czechoslovak title, finishing five points ahead of Zbrojovka Brno. In the 1980–81 season of the UEFA European Cup Baník reached the quarter-finals, where it was knocked out by Bayern Munich. In the same season, Baník also won the First League again. In the subsequent two seasons, Baník finished second in the league table. After the 1982–83 season, coach Hadamczik resigned, thus symbolically ending the Golden Era of the club.

From 1983 to 1991

In the following years Baník withdrew from the highest league positions. The team was undergoing another generation change and young players did not maintain their performance for the whole season. Baník however regularly appeared in the upper part of the league table. In the 1988–89 and 1989–90 seasons it finished second in the league. In 1991, Baník won the Czechoslovak Cup by beating Spartak Trnava 6–1 in the final match. It was the last success of the club for long years to come.

Recent years

Since 1991 the club constantly underachieved. Financial problems soon joined as major sponsors were undergoing restructuraliing following the collapse of communism in the country. In the 1990s, Baník achieved various results. The best was third place in the 1993–94 Czech First League. The club however struggled for the league survival in the 2000–01 season, and finished 14th in the table, just four points short of relegation.

The greatest success of the club in long years came in the 2003–04 season. Baník was leading the table for most of the time and won the league for the first time in history of the independent Czech Republic. Marek Heinz became league's top goalscorer with 19 goals. In the same season, Baník finished as the runner-up in the Czech Cup. After the victorious season, the squad underwent dramatic change. Manager František Komňacký left and most of the crucial players were sold, including Bolf, Heinz, Laštůvka and Matušovič. This affected team performance in the next season. Baník finished in mediocre seventh place, but managed to win the domestic cup for the first time since the dissolution of Czechoslovakia.

Until the 2009–10 season, Baník appeared regularly in the upper part of the league table, and finished twice in third place. However, the following three seasons the club finished 14th, narrowly avoiding relegation.

Historical names

File:Ostrawa 7176.jpg

Bazaly, stadium of FC Baník Ostrava

• 1922 — SK Slezská Ostrava (Sportovní klub Slezská Ostrava)
• 1945 — SK Ostrava (Sportovní klub Ostrava)
• 1948 — Sokol Trojice Ostrava
• 1951 — Sokol OKD Ostrava (Sokol Ostravsko-karvinské doly Ostrava)
• 1952 — DSO Baník Ostrava (Dobrovolná sportovní organizace Baník Ostrava)
• 1961 — TJ Baník Ostrava (Tělovýchovná jednota Baník Ostrava)
• 1970 — TJ Baník Ostrava OKD (Tělovýchovná jednota Baník Ostrava Ostravsko-karvinské doly)
• 1990 — FC Baník Ostrava (Football Club Baník Ostrava, a.s.)
• 1994 — FC Baník Ostrava Tango (Football Club Baník Ostrava Tango, a.s.)
• 1995 — FC Baník Ostrava (Football Club Baník Ostrava, a.s.)

Supporters

File:Ostrawa 7180.jpg

Club supporters during the home match against 1. FC Brno

Banik are known throughout the Czech Republic as having one of, if not the, most loyal and vociferous groups of supporters in the country. The Bazaly stadium is one of the more highly attended stadiums within the Czech First League, where the club song "Baníčku, my jsme s tebou!" (literally 'Banik, we are with you!') and a sea of flares are not unusual. Fans pride themselves on their displays of devotion to Baník, which include numerous banners and demonstrations of both their love for the club and detest of the opposition.

Ultra supporters of Baník call themselves Chachaři, which means "bad boys" in the local dialect. Some of the ultras' songs contain lyrics proudly demonstrating willingness to not only sing, but also fight for their club. Baník's ultras have made friendships over the years, and in 2006 celebrated 10 years of partnership with 2nd division Poland club, GKS Katowice. The celebration took the form of a game between the two teams, organised by the clubs directors. The fixture took place at GKS's stadium, where throughout the 90 minutes the opposing sets of fans sung one another's songs. At the end of the game, both sets of fans climbed over metal fences in order to race onto the pitch come the final whistle to embrace and exchange scarves. Another club to have had links with Baník is Slovak football club Spartak Trnava. Banik's supporters are well known in the Czech Republic and especially in the 1990s clashed frequently with supporters of other clubs. In Europe they clashed with Dutch, German and British police whilst following Baník during UEFA Cup ties.

Transfers

File:Tomas Galasek.jpg

Tomáš Galásek, who moved to the Netherlands in 1996

Baník have produced numerous players who have gone on to represent the Czech national football team. Over the last 15 years there has been a steady increase of young players leaving Baník after a few years of first team football and moving on to play football in leagues of a higher standard, with the Belgian First Division, Italy's Serie A and also the German Bundesliga being popular destinations. Young Czech footballers tend to fit into two categories – highly skilled, technically sound attacking players, or strong, athletic and somewhat uncompromising defenders. Baník, as with all Czech clubs, are unable to demand huge sums of money for the signature of their youngsters. Top transfers include Václav Svěrkoš 2008 transfer to Sochaux for an undisclosed fee (believed to be in the region of £1.8 million) is a highlight of recent seasons. It wasn't the first time Baník allowed Svěrkoš to move on, with a previous transfer to Borussia Mönchengladbach during the 2003–04 season for £1.2 million. This still pales in comparison to the Milan Baroš transfer of 2001–02 season of £3.2 million.

As with all football fans, supporters of Baník are disappointed when a loved member of the team decides that it is time to move on. Especially when the player signs for a bitter rival, just as Zdeněk Pospěch and Miroslav Matušovič did in 2005. Both players were highly regarded by both the coaching staff and fans at Bazaly, but decided to move on to rivals Sparta Prague. Other players who moved from Baník to Sparta include Tomáš Řepka and Libor Sionko.

Players

Current squad

As of 21 July, 2015.

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

No. Position Player 2 DF Matěj Helešic 3 DF Ondřej Sukup 4 MF Václav Ježdík 5 DF Filip Kaša 6 MF Derrick Mensah 7 MF Patrik Mišák 8 MF Marek Šichor 11 MF Dyjan 13 MF Jan Matěj 14 DF Martin Dostál (on loan from Slavia Prague) 16 GK František Chmiel 17 MF Karol Mondek 18 MF Richard Lásik 21 MF Daniel Holzer

No. Position Player 22 DF Martin Honiš 24 DF Josef Celba 25 MF Tomáš Mičola 26 FW Marek Červenka (on loan from Slavia Prague) 27 FW Namir Alispahić 28 DF Martin Kouřil 29 FW Marek Szotkowski 30 GK Vojtěch Šrom 31 FW Jakub Šašinka 33 DF Luka Lučić - DF Tomáš Vengřinek - DF Robert Hrubý - MF Martin Foltýn

Out on loan

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

No. Position Player

Notable former players

For all players with a Wikipedia article, see Category:FC Baník Ostrava players

Milan Baros

Managers

• Glass (1923–35)
• Karel Nenál (Feb 1936 – Sept 1936)
• Karel Böhm (Sept 1936 – Feb 1937)
• Karel Hromadník (Feb 1937 – Sept 1937)
• Ladislav Holeček (Oct 1937 – Dec 1937)
• Vilém Lugr (Jan 1938)
• Karel Böhm (Jan 1938 – March 1938)
• Karel Texa (March 1938 – April 1938)
• Karel Böhm (April 1938 – June 1938)
• Zdeněk Stefflik (July 1938 – June 1939)
• Antonín Křišťál (June 1939 – Jan 1940)
• Karel Böhm (Jan 1940 – May 1941)
• Evžen Šenovský (May 1941 – Aug 1941)
• Antonín Rumler (Aug 1941 – Aug 1942)
• Václav Horák (Sept 1942 – Aug 1943)
• František Jurek (Aug 1943 – Aug 1945)
• František Bělík (Sept 1945 – Feb 1946)
• František Kuchta (Feb 1946 – June 1946)
• Josef Kuchynka (June 1946 – March 1948)
• Jan Gavač (March 1948 – May 1948)
• Václav Horák (May 1948 – Jan 1949)
• Miroslav Bartoš (Jan 1949 – Oct 1949)
• František Bičiště (Oct 1949 – Sept 1950)
• Jaroslav Šimonek (Sept 1950 – Feb 1951)
• Rudolf Vytlačil (March 1951 – Jan 1952)
• Bedřich Šafl (Feb 1952 – Nov 1952)
• Jaroslav Šimonek (Dec 1952 – Feb 1956)
• František Szedlacsek (Feb 1956 – April 1957)

• Antonín Honál (April 1957 – May 1957)
• František Bičiště (June 1957 – June 1958)
• Jaroslav Vejvoda (July 1958 – July 1960)
• František Bufka (Aug 1960 – Dec 1964)
• Zdeněk Šajer (Jan 1965 – Dec 1965)
• František Bičiště (Jan 1966 – June 1966)
• Jiří Křižák (July 1966 – Dec 1966)
• Jozef Čurgaly (Jan 1967 – July 1967)
• Oldřich Šubrt (July 1967 – Aug 1969)
• Jiří Rubáš (Aug 1969 – June 1970)
• František Ipser (July 1970 – Aug 1971)
• Zdeněk Stanco (Aug 1971 – Dec 1971)
• Karol Bučko (Jan 1972 – Aug 1972)
• František Šindelář (Aug 1972 – Oct 1972)
• Tomáš Pospíchal (Oct 1972 – Dec 1975)
• Jiří Rubáš (Jan 1976 – Dec 1977)
• Evžen Hadamczik (Jan 1978 – June 1983)
• Stanislav Jarábek (July 1983 – June 1984)
• Josef Kolečko (July 1984 – June 1986)
• Milan Máčala (July 1986 – June 1990)
• Jaroslav Gürtler (July 1990 – June 1992)
• Ivan Kopecký (July 1992 – Nov 1992)
• Jaroslav Janoš (Nov 1992 – Dec 1992)
• Verner Lička (Dec 1992 – April 1995)
• Jaroslav Janoš (April 1995 – June 1995)
• Ján Zachar (July 1995)
• Jaroslav Jánoš (July 1995 – Aug 1995)
• Ján Zachar (Sept 1995 – July 1996)

• Petr Uličný (July 1996 – Sept 1997)
• Verner Lička (Sept 1997 – March 2000)
• Rostislav Vojáček (March 2000 – June 2000)
• Milan Bokša (July 2000 – Nov 2000)
• Jaroslav Gürtler (Nov 2000 – April 2001)
• Verner Lička (May 2001)
• Jozef Jarabinský (June 2001 – May 2002)
• Erich Cviertna (June 2002 – April 2003)
• Pavel Vrba (May 2003)
• František Komňacký (June 2003 – Oct 2004)
• Jozef Jarabinský (Oct 2004 – Aug 2005)
• Pavel Hapal (Aug 2005 – June 2006)
• Karel Večeřa (July 2006 – April 2009)
• Verner Lička (interim) (April 2009 – June 2009)
• Miroslav Koubek (June 2009 – Oct 2010)
• Verner Lička (Oct 2010 – Nov 2010)
• Karol Marko (Nov 2010 – July 2011)
• Pavel Malura (July 2011 – March 2012)
• Radoslav Látal (March 2012 – Oct 2012)
• Martin Pulpit (Oct 2012 – May 2013)
• Martin Svědík (May 2013 – Dec 2013)
• František Komňacký (Dec 2013 – April 2014)
• Tomáš Bernady (April 2014 – Dec 2014)
• Petr Frňka (Dec 2014 – June 2015)
• Radomír Korytář (June 2015 – Jan 2016)
• Vlastimil Petržela (Jan 2016 –)

History in domestic competitions

1993– Czech First League

• Seasons spent at Level 1 of the football league system: 22
• Seasons spent at Level 2 of the football league system: 0
• Seasons spent at Level 3 of the football league system: 0
• Seasons spent at Level 4 of the football league system: 0

Czech Republic

Season	League	Placed	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Cup
1993–94	1. liga	3rd	30	14	8	8	52	25	+27	36	Semi-finals
1994–95	1. liga	11th	30	10	8	12	36	41	–5	38	Quarter-finals
1995–96	1. liga	12th	30	10	5	15	40	46	–6	35	Round of 16
1996–97	1. liga	10th	30	8	13	9	33	35	–2	37	Semi-finals
1997–98	1. liga	4th	30	13	11	6	51	35	+16	50	Quarter-finals
1998–99	1. liga	5th	30	10	15	5	39	26	+13	45	Quarter-finals
1999–00	1. liga	11th	30	8	11	11	43	45	–2	35	Round of 32
2000–01	1. liga	14th	30	7	9	14	28	45	–17	30	Quarter-finals
2001–02	1. liga	6th	30	12	8	10	43	36	+7	44	Semi-finals
2002–03	1. liga	5th	30	13	6	11	41	38	+3	45	Quarter-finals
2003–04	1. liga	1st	30	18	9	3	60	25	+35	63	Runners-up
2004–05	1. liga	7th	30	9	10	11	33	36	–3	37	Winners
2005–06	1. liga	6th	30	10	10	10	35	32	+3	40	Runners-up
2006–07	1. liga	7th	30	12	10	8	43	33	+10	46	Round of 16
2007–08	1. liga	3rd	30	15	10	5	51	28	+23	55	Round of 64
2008–09	1. liga	9th	30	11	6	13	38	36	+2	39	Quarter-finals
2009–10	1. liga	3rd	30	17	9	4	47	25	+22	60	Round of 16
2010–11	1. liga	14th	30	7	9	14	31	46	–15	30	Round of 64
2011–12	1. liga	14th	30	7	7	16	31	48	–17	28	Quarter-finals
2012–13	1. liga	14th	30	7	8	15	34	44	–10	29	Round of 32
2013–14	1. liga	10th	30	8	11	11	33	43	–10	35	Round of 32
2014–15	1. liga	14th	30	8	9	13	23	41	–18	33	Round of 16

Honours

International

• Mitropa Cup Winner: 1989
• Mitropa Super Cup Winner: 1989
• Intertoto Cup Winner: 1970, 1974, 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1989
• European Cup quarter-final: 1981
• Cup Winners' Cup semi-final: 1979
• UEFA Cup quarter-final: 1975

Domestic

• Czechoslovak Champion (3 times): 1976, 1980, 1981
• Czechoslovak First League Runner-up (6 times): 1954, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1989, 1990
• Czech Champion (once): 2004
• Czechoslovak Cup Winner (3 times): 1973, 1978, 1991
• Czechoslovak Cup Runner-up (once): 1979
• Czech Cup Winner (once): 2005
• Czech Cup Runner-up (twice): 2004, 2006
• Biggest win 10–1 versus Hradec Králové in the 1956 season
• Biggest loss 0–9 versus Dukla Prague also during 1956 season

External links

• Fan site
• Official website
• UEFA´s Banik site