F.C. Copenhagen
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| Full name | Football Club København | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Byens Hold (The City's Team) Løverne (The Lions) | ||
| Short name | FCK | ||
| Founded | 1 July 1992 | ||
| Ground | Parken, Copenhagen | ||
| Capacity | 38,065 | ||
| Owner | Parken Sport & Entertainment | ||
| Chairman | John Dueholm | ||
| Manager | Ståle Solbakken | ||
| League | Superliga | ||
| 2012–13 | Superliga, 1st | ||
| Website | http://www.fck.dk/ | ||
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Football Club Copenhagen (Danish: F.C. København, or FCK in short) (Danish pronunciation: [købænhɑʋn]) is a professional Danish football club in Copenhagen, Denmark. F.C. Copenhagen plays in the Danish Superliga and is one of the most successful clubs in Danish football: it is also the highest-ranking Scandinavian club in the UEFA team rankings list, currently the 45th best club in Europe.[1] The club is also currently ranked as the 43rd best club in the world by the IFFHS.[2] F.C. Copenhagen has won ten Danish Superliga championships, five Danish Cup trophies, and the Scandinavian tournament Royal League twice.
They qualified for the 2006–07 edition of the UEFA Champions League, the first time in the club's history. Three years later they became the first Danish club to ever reach the knockout stage of the Champions League. Copenhagen was founded in 1992, through the amalgamation of fifteen-time Danish football champions Kjøbenhavns Boldklub and seven-time Danish football champions Boldklubben 1903. Copenhagen plays its matches at the Parken Stadium, which also serves as the venue for Denmark national football team matches. Since its founding, Copenhagen has had a fierce rivalry with Copenhagen suburban club Brøndby IF, and the so-called "New Firm" games between the two sides have attracted some of the biggest crowds in Danish football history.[3]
History
Early success
Football Club Copenhagen is, in many ways, both an old and a new club. Even though the club was established in 1992, it is rooted in more than 100 years of club tradition. The club is unique in Scandinavia because the club's first team represents two separate clubs: Kjøbenhavns Boldklub (continental Europe's oldest football club) founded in 1876 and Boldklubben 1903 founded in 1903. The two Copenhagen clubs merged their first teams to found Copenhagen on 1 July 1992. Copenhagen used Boldklubben's club license to play in the Danish Superliga championship, while Kjøbenhavns Boldklub became the official reserve team of the club. With the rebuilding of the Parken Stadium, Denmark's national team stadium, the new club had a modern stadium to play at from the beginning. The initial ambition of the club was to continually qualify for one of the European competitions each season. To reach this goal, the club needed a solid economy, a relatively big fan base, and an "attractive and positive style of football".[4]
The club was managed by Benny Johansen and started the club's maiden season well. FCK made its first appearance in the European tournaments when it beat Swiss team Grasshopper Zürich 2–1 in the 1992 UEFA Intertoto Cup.[5] FCK won the Intertoto Cup that year and qualified for the UEFA Cup, where it was eliminated in the second round by French team AJ Auxerre. The club won the 1992–93 Superliga season one point ahead of Odense BK and two points ahead of third-place Brøndby IF.[6] For the 1993–94 Superliga season, expectations were high. The season opened with a 0–6 thrashing at the hands of Italian team A.C. Milan in the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League qualification. FCK went on winter break after the first half of the Superliga season in third place. In the spring of 1994, F.C. Copenhagen gained on leading team Silkeborg IF. In the penultimate match of the season, the two teams met at the Parken Stadium. In front of a record-setting attendance of 26,679,[7] FCK won the match 4–1. The club was one point ahead of Silkeborg, but because FCK lost 3–2 to Odense BK in the final game of the season, it had to settle for second place.[8]
Years of underachievement
For the next three seasons, København had little success in the Superliga, even though it won two Danish Cup trophies. København won the 1995 Cup final against Akademisk Boldklub with a 5–0 win, qualifying for European football once again, despite mediocre results in the league. Kim Brink took over as manager in 1996, but despite winning the second Cup trophy for the club, the eighth-place finish in the 1996–97 Superliga season prompted another change in managers.[9][10][11]
Flemming Østergaard joins the board
In February 1997, Flemming Østergaard, later given the ironic nickname "Don Ø", joined the board of the club as vice chairman and CEO. In November 1997, København was introduced on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange successfully IPO, generating DKK 75 million. The 1997–98 season marked the first season that København averaged more than 10,000 spectators at home, and the club bought their stadium Parken for DKK 138 million in June 1998.[12] The self-acclaimed "best manager in Denmark" Christian Andersen began managing the club in January 1999. After 75 controversial days, however, Andersen was fired in March 1999, Sports Director Niels-Christian Holmstrøm explaining Andersen had created frustration among the players.[13]
In 1999, København made its impact so far on the European tournaments when the club faced Chelsea F.C. in the second round UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In the first leg at Stamford Bridge, Bjarne Goldbæk gave København the lead, nine minutes before the end, but Chelsea scored in the last minute of the game. Chelsea won the second game at Parken with a goal by the Dane Brian Laudrup. At the post-match press conference, it was announced that Chelsea's Brian Laudrup was signing with København from January 1999, with Bjarne Goldbæk signing for Chelsea. A four-time Danish Player of the Year award winner, Brian Laudrup could not help København improve their league position, and the season ended with the club at seventh place in the 1998–99 Superliga season. Laudrup only stayed for six months at the club before signing for Ajax Amsterdam at the end of the season.[14] In the 1999–2000 season, F.C. Copenhagen struggled to make any significant impact and finished eighth in the league.
Champions again
In the winter 2000 transfer window, South African striker Sibusiso Zuma was signed from South African side Orlando Pirates,[15] and in May 2000, English manager Roy Hodgson became the new manager. From the 2000–01 season, the club started to improve. The club won its second Superliga championship, winning 3–1 in the last New Firm match of the season, at the Parken Stadium. The 2–0 goal was a bicycle kick by Zuma, who received the ball at his chest, where he bounced it in the air, and in the same motion executed the overhead kick, volleying the ball into the far corner, out of Brøndby keeper Mogens Krogh's reach. This was voted the Danish goal of the year,[16] and was voted the best Superliga goal of the decade in December 2009[17] and was in 2013 voted as the greatest moment in the history of FC Copenhagen.[18] Hodgson broke his contract with København a few weeks after having won the championship, signing with Italian team Udinese Calcio, and he was replaced by Swede Kent Karlsson
København faced Italian team Lazio in the UEFA Champions League qualification, but a 2–1 win in the first game was not enough, as Lazio won with a 5–3 aggregate score. København entered the UEFA Cup, where it defeated Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam 1–0 on a goal by left back Niclas Jensen. In the next round, German team Borussia Dortmund eliminated København. The 2001–02 Superliga season ended in disappointment for København. Brøndby won the championship on goal difference, after København had caught up with Brøndby's 10-point lead after the first half of the season.[19] In the second-to-last round of the 2002–03 Superliga season, København faced Brøndby at Brøndby Stadium. In extra time, Hjalte Nørregaard scored his first goal for København and brought the championship back to Parken.[20] In the Champions League second qualifying round in 2004–05, København won the first match against ND Gorica 2–1 but later lost at Parken 0–5. Under Backe, København went on to win the 2004 and 2006 Danish championships and the 2004 Danish Cup. F.C. Copenhagen also won the inaugural 2004–05 edition of the Royal League tournament, beating Swedish team IFK Göteborg on penalty shootout in the 2005 final.[21] København repeated the achievement in the 2006 edition of the tournament, this time beating Norwegian team Lillestrøm S.K. 1–0 in the 2006 final.[22] Backe became the longest-serving coach for København, before leaving the club in December 2005. Former København player Ståle Solbakken took over as manager.[23]
European ambitions
For the 2006–07 season, København was reinforced by Danish national team player Jesper Grønkjær. København looked forward to the 2006 UEFA Champions League qualifiers, where it beat Ajax Amsterdam. For the first time in the club's history, København entered the group stage of the Champions League, being grouped with Scottish club Celtic F.C., Portuguese club S.L. Benfica and Manchester United from England; all former winners of the trophy. Despite not losing a game at home in Parken (Benfica 0–0, Man Utd. 1–0 and Celtic 3–1), København failed to qualify from the Champions League group stage after losing all its away games.[24] On 9 May København beat Brøndby 1–0 and won its fifth Danish championship in seven years with four games to go in the tournament.[25]
In the 2007–08 season København lost the third qualification round of the Champions League with a 1–3 aggregate score to Benfica. After beating RC Lens (France) 3–2, København qualified for the group stages of the UEFA Cup, where it played Panathinaikos FC (H), FC Lokomotiv Moscow (A), Atlético Madrid (H) and Aberdeen.[26] København lost to Panathinaikos and Madrid, but a win against Moscow meant that the club needed only a draw against Aberdeen to qualify for the next round. However a 0–4 defeat to Aberdeen put them out of the tournament.[27] København finished a third in the league, with AaB taking the title.
In the 2008–09 season København started well. The team qualified for the UEFA Cup group stage by eliminating Cliftonville (NI), Lillestrøm SK (NO) and FC Moscow (RU). København lost at home to St. Etienne and drew 1–1 against Valencia. With a 1–1 draw against Rosenborg BK (NO) and a win over Club Bruges (BE), København qualified for spring 2009 playoffs where it drew 2–2 in the first leg of the Round of 32 against Manchester City on 19 February 2009. The club lost 1–2 in the second leg, a loss that ended its European season. In the domestic league, København battled for first place with Brøndby and Odense BK. Eventually København won the Cup final against AaB and claimed the league title with only one game left in the tournament, thus securing the Double for the second time in the club's history. 2010 proved to be yet another European success. Even though the team lost the
2009–10 UEFA Champions League playoff match to APOEL Nicosia with a 2–3 aggregate score, the team had already qualified to the Europa League group stage by eliminating FK Mogren (MO) and Stabæk (NO). København lost away to CFR Cluj (RO), won 1–0 at home against AC Sparta Prague, 0–1 away loss against PSV (NE), and by beating CFR Cluj at home 2–0 and 3–0 away over AC Sparta Prague, København qualified for spring 2010 Europa League Round of 32 to face Olympique Marseilles. The match-up, however, resulted in two 1–3 losses for Copenhagen, thus eliminating them from the 2009–2010 Europa League.
The qualification for the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League was secured by beating BATE Borisov (0–0 / 3–2) and Rosenborg BK (1–2 / 1–0). The team entered the group stage in Group D and met FC Barcelona, Panathinaikos and Rubin Kazan. After a 3–1 win against Panathinaikos in their last group stage match, they qualified for the 1/8 finals and thus became the first Danish club to go through to the last 16 in the UEFA Champions League, where they were defeated by Chelsea.
F.C. Copenhagen won the 2012-13 Danish Superliga, and took a direct place in the group stage of the 2013-14 UEFA Champions League. The team entered the group stage in Group B and met Real Madrid, Juventus and Galatasaray. The club secured 4 points by drawing 1-1 against Juventus at home, and winning 1-0 against Galatasaray also at home.
Stadium
F.C. Copenhagen owns its stadium, the national arena Parken. It was built in 1992 - the same year the club was founded. Until Parken opened in September 1992, the club played its first home matches at the smaller Østerbro Stadion, which is located adjacent to Parken. Parken has 38,065 seats, 4,000 fewer seats than the original capacity of 42,305.[28]
Supporters
After 2000 the club has regularly attracted the highest attendances in Scandinavia. The official fan club, F.C. København Fan Club, has of March 2009, more than 20,000 members.[29] "FCKFC" was founded on 24 October 1991, approximately half a year before FCK played its first match.[30] Furthermore, there are many unofficial "factions" connected to København, and the biggest are Urban Crew, Copenhagen Cooligans and Copenhagen Casuals. These are also reported to have friendships with fractions from Hamburger SV, Rangers FC and Helsingborgs IF. For the 2006–07 season there were 23,795 spectators on average.[31][32] For many years the lower part of the "C-stand" at Parken Stadium, Nedre C, has been the main stand for the supporters of København. In 2006 a part of the lower "B-stand" was made a fan section and named Sektion 12 and Stemningstribunen (translates to "atmosphere stand").
Records
(In brackets debut year)
Most matches[33]
- Superliga: Michael Mio Nielsen (1993) – 231
- European Cup: Hjalte Nørregaard (2000) and William Kvist (2005) – 56
- Overall: Hjalte Nørregaard (2000) – 320
Most goals[33]
- Superliga: César Santin (2008) – 65
- European Cup: Dame N'Doye (2009) – 16
- Overall: César Santin (2008) – 84
Biggest victory in the Superliga[34]
- 6–0 home against Esbjerg fB on 17 March 2002
- 7–1 home against HB Køge on 25 July 2009
Biggest defeat in the Superliga[34]
- 0–5 away against Silkeborg IF on 17 April 1994
- 0–5 away against Brøndby IF on 16 May 2005
Biggest victory in European cups[34]
- 7–0 home against Cliftonville F.C. on 31 July 2008 (UEFA Cup)
Biggest defeat in European cups[34]
- 0–6 home against A.C. Milan on 20 October 1993 (UEFA Champions League)
Attendance record[35]
- 41,201 spectators against Brøndby IF on 30 April 2006
Transfer records
- Most expensive player bought Andreas Cornelius 27 million DKK from Cardiff City FC
- Most expensive player sold Andreas Cornelius 75 million DKK to Cardiff City FC
Youngest and oldest player playing in the Superliga
- Youngest player playing for FC Copenhagen Kenneth Zohore 16 years and 35 days against AGF on 07.03.2010
- Oldest player playing for FC Copenhagen Per Poulsen 42 years and 125 days against Brøndby IF on 18.06.1995
Players
- For full season squads see 2013–14 F.C. Copenhagen season
Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Players out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Reserves & Youth teams
Hall of fame
- This list is according to a fan vote, which was held during the winter of 2006.[36]
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Denmark
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Brazil
Faroe Islands
Finland
Norway
South Africa
Sweden
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Full list of former players
- For full list of players, see List of F.C. Copenhagen players
Captains
StaffCurrent technical staff
Last updated: 29 June 2012 Managerial historyThere have been eight different permanent and two caretaker managers of FCK since 1992. One of the caretakers (Kim Brink) has managed the club in three separate times. The longest-running manager is Ståle Solbakken (2006–2011)(2013-), who also managed the most games for FCK. The only non-Scandinavian to manage FCK was Roy Hodgson, before Ariël Jacobs took over in the start of the 2012/2013 season. The most successful permanent manager, using win percentage, was also Ståle Solbakken at 58.47 percent, and Christian Andersen is FCK's least successful (0 percent). Andersen is also the shortest-running permanent manager of FCK and received only a single match before he was fired. Honours
European performances
UEFA club coefficient ranking(As of 7 January 2014), Source: uefa.com website
Season results
Footnotes and references
Further reading
See alsoExternal links
Template:UEFA Champions League
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