PFC CSKA Sofia

CSKA Sofia

Full name	Professional Football Club CSKA Sofia
Nickname(s)	Червените (The Reds) Армейците (The Armymen)
Founded	5 May 1948 (1948-05-05)
Ground	Balgarska Armia Stadium, Sofia
Ground Capacity	22,995 (18,495 seats)
Shareholders	Grisha Ganchev (38.5%) Yulian Indzhov (38.5%) Hristo Stoichkov (20.0%)
Manager	Stamen Belchev (interim)
League	First League
2015–16	South-Western V Group, 1st (promoted)
Website	Club home page
Home colours Away colours

USC CSKA Sofia
Football	Volleyball	Basketball
Hockey	Tennis	Handball
Athletics	Gymnastics	Chess
Boxing	Weightlifting	Cycling
Wrestling	Judo	Taekwondo
Shooting	Ski	Biathlon

PFC CSKA Sofia (Bulgarian: ПФК ЦСКА София, pronounced Tse-se-ka Sòfiya) is an association football club from Sofia, Bulgaria. CSKA stands for Central Sports Club of the Army (Bulgarian: Централен Спортен Клуб на Армията).

Established on May 5, 1948, CSKA have won a record 31 Bulgarian titles, and 4 national supercups, as well as 20 Bulgarian Cups.^[1][2] Internationally CSKA are the only Bulgarian team to reach the semi-final of the European Champion Clubs' Cup, which they have done twice, and they have also reached the semi-final of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.^[3]

In the decades, many of Bulgaria's greatest footballers like Petar Zhekov, Dimitar Yakimov, Dimitar Penev, Hristo Stoichkov, Emil Kostadinov, Lyuboslav Penev, Dimitar Berbatov, Stiliyan Petrov and Martin Petrov have been part of the team.

The club's home colours are red and white. CSKA's home ground is the "Bulgarian Army" stadium in Sofia. The club's biggest rivals are Levski Sofia and matches between the two sides are known as The Eternal Derby of Bulgaria.

History

1948–1962

With the help of Mihail Mihaylov again, in February 1948 Chavdar became the departmental club of the Central House of the Troops ("Centralnia Dom na Voiskata") and took on the name of CDV. Looking for ways to halt the club's decline, CDV's administrators sought to merge it with another club. In May 1948, an agreement was reached between CDV and Septemvri Sofia (who had already earned a place in the play-offs) for uniting the clubs under the name "Septemvri pri CDV" (Septemvri at CDV). The contract was signed on 5 May 1948, which is officially considered the club's date of foundation.

The club's first official game took place on 19 May 1948, against Slavia Sofia at Yunak Stadium, ending in a 1–1 draw. Septemvri pri CDV eliminated Aprilov (Gabrovo) and Spartak Varna on its way to the final, where it faced Levski Sofia, losing 1–2 in the first leg. The decisive second match took place on 9 September 1948. Septemvri pri CDV consisted of: Stefan Gerenski, Borislav Futekov, Manol Manolov, Dimitar Cvetkov, Nikola Aleksiev, Nako Chakmakov (captain), Dimitar Milanov, Stoyne Minev, Stefan Bozhkov, Nikola Bozhilov, and Kiril Bogdanov. The score was 3–3 on aggregate, as Septemvri pri CDV led 2–1 near the end of regulation time, when a last-minute goal by Nako Chakmakov gave the club its first title ever.

In 1950, the definition of "Narodna" (Peoples) was added to the name of the Central House of the Troops, changing it to Central House of the People's Troops (Centralen Dom na Narodnata Voiska), or C.D.N.V. for short, effectively changing the club's name as well. The following two years, C.D.N.V. won two titles in a row. In 1951, the Army club clinched their first double. In 1953, the club was renamed by the authorities again, this time to "Otbor na Sofiyskiya Garnizon" (Team of the Sofia Garrison), and most of the key players were illegally transferred out. The title was lost undeservedly.

The following year, the club was renamed to CDNA (Central House of the People's Army), and the years between 1954 and 1962 marked one of the most successful periods for The Reds, who won 9 consecutive titles—an unprecedented achievement in Bulgarian football to this day—and, in 1956, took part in the second instalment of the newly created European Cup competition.^[4]

1960s

In 1962, CDNA was united with DSO Cherveno Zname to form CSKA Cherveno Zname (CSKA Red Flag). The Central House of the People's Troops ceased its affiliation with the club, which was taken over by the Ministry of People's Defense. CSKA finished third after Spartak Plovdiv and Botev Plovdiv in the 1962–63 season. The following season, CSKA had its worst performance in the Bulgarian championship to date, finishing 11th in the final table—only three points from relegation. This led to the sacking of legendary coach Krum Milev after 16 years. CSKA did not recapture the title until 1966. During the 1966–67 season, however, CSKA made its first major international achievement in reaching the semi finals of the European Cup for the first time, where it faced Italian grand Inter Milano. After two hard-fought 1–1 draws, a third decisive match was played, which CSKA lost 0–1.^[5]

The next two seasons were unmemorable for The Army Men, as they finished in 5th and 2nd place consecutively. CSKA was again joined with Septemvri Sofia in 1968, and the club took the name CSKA Septemvriysko Zname (CSKA September Flag). The club clinched the title in 1969 with the help of the recent acquisition of Petar Zhekov, who would go on to become the top Bulgarian goalscorer of all time – a record he still holds today.

1970s

The 1970s are widely considered the period when CSKA made its name on the European stage. The club began the decade modestly, claiming second place domestically and reaching the Round of 16 in 1970–71 European Cup Winners' Cup, where they fell to English side Chelsea 0–2 on aggregate.^[6] But from 1971 to 1973, CSKA won three consecutive titles and delivered one of the biggest surprises in European football when it eliminated reigning three-time European champion AFC Ajax – considered the finest team of all-time – 2–1 on aggregate in the 1973–74 European Cup.^[7] They faced German champion Bayern Munich next in the quarter-finals. After losing 1–4 in the first leg in Munich, CSKA bowed out of the competition following a 2–1 win at home.^[8] Between 1975 and 1979, the club won two more domestic titles.

1980s

Season 1980–81 was again a memorable one for CSKA Sofia, winning the Bulgarian title once more and twice beating European champion Nottingham Forest, both times with 1–0, before being stopped by the future European Champion Liverpool with a 6–1 on aggregate in the quarter-finals of the European Cup.^[9][10] The next season, CSKA reached their second European Cup semi final in a row, eliminating Spanish champions Real Sociedad, Glentoran F.C., and reigning European Champion Liverpool after losing 0–1 in England and winning 2–0 at home with two goals by Stoycho Mladenov. In the semi-final, the Reds again faced Bayern Munich. The first leg was held in Sofia and started with a full dominance over Bayern, as by the 16th minute CSKA were leading 3–0 in front of 85,000 jubilant spectators who saw the European final in their dreams. But the final result was 4–3 for CSKA. In Munich, the club suffered a 4–0 defeat, ending what is still the deepest run by a Bulgarian side in the European Cup or Champions League.^[11] In the domestic league, CSKA did not let go of the title until the 1984–85 season where they finished second behind archrival Levski, but still managed to reach the Bulgarian Cup final.

The 1985 disbandment

On 18 June 1985, the final for the Bulgarian Cup was held at the Vasil Levski National Stadium between CSKA and Levski. The match was marked by many questionable referee decisions and saw several brutal fights, including an assault on a referee by some of Levski's players. CSKA won the game 2–1 even though they had missed a penalty when the score was 2–0. By decree of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party, both teams were disbanded and re-founded under new management. CSKA was renamed Sredets and Levski was renamed Vitosha. Several players were banned from participating in official games for varying periods of time, including Hristo Stoichkov and Kostadin Yanchev from CSKA. One year later, the committee's decision was reversed and the players were reinstated.

As Sredets, the club finished in fourth place in 1985–86. In 1987, the club was renamed CFKA Sredets (Central Football Club of the Army Sredets), and the following three years were marked by a formidable performance, even as Septemvri Sofia ended their 20-year partnership with CFKA in 1988 and became an independent club again. Coached by Dimitar Penev, CFKA won the title in 1987 and 1989 and reached the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup semi finals against FC Barcelona in 1989. In reaching this stage, CFKA had eliminated Roda JC after penalty kicks following a 2–1 win at home and a 1–2 loss away. Barcelona, coached by former Dutch international Johan Cruijff, won both matches (4–2 in Spain and 2–1 in Bulgaria) and CFKA were eliminated, but Cruijff did notice the talent of Hristo Stoichkov and decided to draw him to Barcelona the following year, effectively launching Stoichkov's international career.

1990s

The decade, immediately following the fall of communism, brought turbulent changes to Bulgarian football, and the club was not spared. The CSKA was restored starting with the 1989–90 season and they won the title again. In March 1991, former footballer and administrator Valentin Mihov was chosen as president of CSKA. The club bought some of the most talented Bulgarian players, including Yordan Letchkov, Ivaylo Andonov, and Stoycho Stoilov, among others. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Defense concluded their affiliation with the club. Despite the uncertainty and the numerous problems that followed, CSKA won the title again in 1992. They were later eliminated in the first round of the Champions League by Austria Vienna after losing 1–3 in Vienna and winning 3–2 in Sofia.

In the meantime, Valentin Mihov was appointed president of the Bulgarian Football Union and Petar Kalpakchiev was chosen to replace him at the helm of CSKA. Kalpakchiev, however, wrangled with the club's administration over their decisions to replace several coaches, one of which was Gjoko Hadžievski, considered to be leading the club in the right direction, and eventually he was fired. The owner of the Multigroup conglomerate, Iliya Pavlov, took over as president, but ultimately his sponsorship proved insufficient to overcome the club's ineffective management. Five coaches were changed in just one season, with Tsvetan Yonchev being coach for just one day. In Europe, CSKA nevertheless beat Juventus 3–2 in the first round of the 1994–95 UEFA Cup, but the result was annulled by UEFA because of the delayed player-indexing of forward Petar Mihtarski, and Juventus were awarded a 3–0 victory. In the second leg in Torino, severely disadvantaged, CSKA succumbed to a 5–1 defeat.

In the summer of 1995, CSKA made a strong selection and eventually the club included half of the youth national football team of Bulgaria. Plamen Markov was appointed coach, but after a disappointing first half of the season, he was replaced by Georgi Vasilev, who had previously won three Bulgarian titles (one with FC Etar Veliko Tarnovo and two with Levski Sofia). Vasilev managed to win a double with CSKA for the 1996–97 season, entering the second qualifying round of the Champions League against Steaua Bucharest. After a dramatic 3–3 in Romania, CSKA fell 0–2 at home. Vasilev was unexpectedly released from the club at the beginning of the second half of the 1997–98 season after a 3–0 win over PFC Spartak Pleven. Coach Petar Zehtinski took his place. That year, the club saw the return of Hristo Stoichkov, Emil Kostadinov and Trifon Ivanov, but the three of them challenged each other for the captain's band. Stoichkov played in only four matches and left CSKA right before the derby with Levski to play for a club in Saudi Arabia. After the end of the season, Trifon Ivanov also left the club. CSKA finished the season in third place.

In the summer of 1998, Dimitar Penev took the lead as coach for a second time. CSKA reached the second round of the UEFA Cup, and won the Bulgarian Cup, but disappointed in the domestic league, finishing in fifth place in 1999. That season, the young talents of Martin Petrov, Stilian Petrov, Dimitar Berbatov, and Vladimir Manchev started to play a bigger role in the team. There were problems with player-indexing due to some unpaid obligations to FC Neftochimik. In the domestic championship, CSKA had only 16 players registered for the 1999–00 season and some un-indexed players took part in official UEFA games. Consequently, at the shareholders meeting at the end of 1999, the club ownership was transferred to businessman Vasil Bozhkov, who became majority owner.

2000s

After the first two fixtures in the spring of 2000, Dimitar Penev was relieved as coach because of the consecutive losses and in his place was appointed Georgi Dimitrov – Jacky, who was later replaced by Spas Dzhevizov. After a 1–1 draw with Pirin at Bulgarian Army Stadium, Dzhevizov handed in his resignation and Aleksandar Stankov took his place. Even though at times CSKA had fallen as far as 9 points behind the leaders Levski, the club shortened the difference to only 2 points before the decisive match for the title at Georgi Asparuhov Stadium. CSKA dominated Levski for most of the match, as Dimitar Berbatov made several serious misses, but a last-minute goal from Georgi Ivanov secured the title for Levski. In the summer of 2000, Italian coach Enrico Catuzzi was employed as head coach, who did manage to revive the team. But even though The Army Men played attractive games under his leadership, Catuzzi handed over the coach position in the winter, citing family problems. Aleksandar Stankov was appointed as coach again, but was replaced by Catuzzi again after two losses from Litex for the cup and the championship. The Reds finished second, seven points behind Levski.

For the new 2001–02 season, coach was Asparuh Nikodimov. He was fired during the winter break as CSKA rested 2 points behind Levski and was replaced by another Italian, Luigi Simoni. Simoni failed to make CSKA champions as the club finished third and lost the Bulgarian Cup final to Levski. Simoni left at the end of the season. In the summer of 2002, Stoycho Mladenov was appointed as coach. With him, the team set a record with 13 consecutive wins in 13 matches in the Bulgarian Championship and CSKA became champions for the first time since 1997. However, Mladenov was fired the following season after losing to Galatasaray in the preliminary rounds of the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League and after giving a less than impressive performance in the first round of the UEFA Cup, where the club lost on penalty kicks to FC Torpedo Moscow. Immediately after, two of the new arrivals, Léo Lima and Rodrigo Sousa, bought for 3 million dollars the year before, left the club on the grounds that they had not received two monthly salaries. FIFA decided that they had the right to leave and that CSKA had to pay them and return the players to their former club of Vasco da Gama. Alexander Stankov was temporarily appointed as coach until the winter break, when Ferario Spasov officially took over the position. In the end of 2004, Spasov was replaced by Serbian coach Miodrag Ješić, despite the team's first place in the domestic championship. Despite problems with the selection, CSKA won their record thirtieth domestic title in 2005.

For the 2005–06 UEFA Champions League, after eliminating KF Tirana in the second preliminary round, CSKA were paired against reigning European champions Liverpool. The club lost 1–3 in the first match in Sofia, but surprisingly won the second leg by 1–0 at Anfield Road^[12][13] For the UEFA Cup, the Reds eliminated Bayer Leverkusen (with Dimitar Berbatov in the team) with two 1–0 wins and entered the group stage, where they finished fifth with 3 points from 4 matches and were eliminated. At the winter break of the 2005–06 season, the team was first with 7 points ahead of Levski in the standings. During the spring, CSKA lost the 7-point advantage and finished second with 3 points behind Levski. Club president Vasil Bozhkov blamed Serbian coach Miodrag Ješić for the failure to capture the title and fired him, while some supporters blamed Bozhkov instead. Plamen Markov was appointed in Ješić's place. Bozhkov then announced that he would restrict the finances of the club and that during the upcoming season CSKA will not be aiming at the title. In December 2006, Bozhkov sold the club to Indian steel tycoon and owner of Kremikovtzi AD, Pramod Mittal, brother of ArcelorMittal's Lakshmi Mittal. Former Bulgarian politician Aleksandar Tomov became president of the club and assured the supporters that CSKA would, in fact, be aiming at both the championship and the cup. After two draws in the beginning of the spring half of 2006–07, CSKA found themselves 6 points behind Levski. As a result, coach Plamen Markov was replaced by Stoycho Mladenov, who returned to the club after three and a half years. CSKA finished second.

In the beginning of the 2007–08 season, CSKA bought players for more than 2 million euro. The team was unluckily eliminated from the UEFA cup in the first round by French side Toulouse FC after a 96th-minute goal from André-Pierre Gignac in the second leg for 1–1. CSKA was also eliminated from the Bulgarian Cup at the 1/16th finals by Lokomotiv Plovdiv. The match was engulfed in a scandal because of three CSKA players who at the time were on loan at Lokomotiv (Stoyko Sakaliev, Aleksandar Branekov, and Ivan Ivanov). The players had clauses in their contracts restricting them from playing matches against CSKA, but Lokomotiv's management used the players anyway. At the end of the season, The Army Men secured the title in advance, finishing 16 points ahead of second-placed rivals Levski without losing a game from 30 championship matches. On 5 May 2008, the club marked its 60th anniversary with big celebrations organized by the management. An alley of fame was built, comprising the names of the most successful current and former players of CSKA. On 24 May 2008, an exhibition game was played between the current squad and a mixed team of Bulgarian and foreign football stars. The mixed team was coached by former German international Lothar Matthäus, who was a special guest for the anniversary celebrations. The match ended 6:6.

The 2008 crisis

In June 2008, only days after CSKA won its 31st title, UEFA notified the Bulgarian Football Union that the club would not receive a license for participating in the UEFA Champions League because of unpaid obligations.^[14][15] The BFU then speculated that this could also result in CSKA not being able to take part in the domestic championship, effectively turning it into an amateur club. Attempts to arrange a settlement with UEFA proved unsuccessful and CSKA lost its right to compete in the UEFA Champions League in favor of runners-up Levski Sofia.^[16] The person widely blamed for the crisis was president Aleksandar Tomov, who resigned shortly after and was arrested and sued for embezzling millions of levs from CSKA and Kremikovtzi AD.^[17]

The problems with the license exposed the club's weak financial situation and led to chaos and panic, prompting many of the key players to flee, including coach Stoycho Mladenov himself, who left saying he was not happy with the fire sale of so many important players. The future of CSKA looked grim, its status as a professional club hanging in the balance. In the midst of the crisis, Dimitar Penev was given the coach's job for the third time and burdened with the task of saving the club. With almost all senior players gone, Penev was left to rely on members of the CSKA youth squad. Ultimately, CSKA managed to fulfill all licensing requirements set by the BFU and was allowed to compete in A Group.^[18] Despite all the difficulties, and to the surprise of the whole football community, Penev's young squad claimed the Bulgarian SuperCup in August 2008, overcoming Litex by 1–0.^[19]

At the beginning of the 2008–09 season, the club managed to strengthen their ranks by signing Bulgarian internationals Zdravko Lazarov and Vladimir Manchev. On 24 December 2008, owner Pramod Mittal announced that he had signed a preliminary contract with a local investor to sell the club.^[20] The deal was finalized on 6 March 2009, and the ownership of the club was transferred to Titan Sport EAD, a subsidiary of Bulgarian waste management company Titan AS.^[21] Meanwhile, coach Dimitar Penev was replaced by his nephew, Lyuboslav Penev, who set aggressive goals for the club.^[22] After having led the league for most of the season, CSKA finished the championship in second place, one point behind archrivals Levski.

In 2009, CSKA earned a place in the UEFA Europa League's group stage after defeating FC Dynamo Moscow in the qualifying round and drew Roma, FC Basel, and Fulham in the group stage.^[23] The first match was against Fulham in Sofia, where CSKA took the lead thanks to a beautiful goal by newly signed from Chernomoretz Brazilian Michel Platini. However, a simple goalkeeper mistake at the end of the match allowed Fulham to score, ending the game in a 1–1 draw. Despite the strong start, CSKA did not manage to earn any more points in the group and exited the competition at fourth place.^[24] In November 2009, coach Luboslav Penev threatened to resign following a squabble with the club's management after they had reversed his decision to reprimand several players for disciplinary reasons, but decided to carry on with the job. Their disagreements eventually boiled over in January 2010 and the board relieved Penev of the position.^[25] Reports in the press pointed to former CSKA coach Miodrag Ješić as a possible replacement, but even though Ješić expressed a desire to come back to CSKA, his current contract with Libyan club Alittihad Tripoli S.C. ruled him out.^[26] On 17 January, the club retained Romanian specialist Ioan Andone as coach.^[27] Andone brought two Romanian players with him and set out to overhaul the team.^[28] But over the next six matches, CSKA won only two games, drew archrival Levski 0:0, and lost the second place to Lokomotiv Sofia. On 30 March, after two months on the job, Andone resigned citing family reasons.^[29] Former CSKA defender Adalbert Zafirov was put in his place.^[30] At the same time, the club turned to Dimitar Penev again, naming him supervisor of the coaching staff.^[31] Despite the tumultuous second half of the season, CSKA managed to finish at second place in the table, behind champions Litex, and prepared to enter the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.^[32]

2010s

In the summer of 2010 the club hired Pavel Dochev as coach, but after a string of unsatisfactory results, including a 0–1 loss to archrival Levski Sofia and a 1–2 loss to Chernomorets Burgas, he was fired. His place was taken by the relatively unknown Macedonian manager Gjore Jovanovski, who kept his job for just 3 months before being replaced by his assistant Milen Radukanov. Under Radukanov, CSKA won the 2011 Bulgarian Cup and the Bulgarian SuperCup, beating league champions Litex Lovech 3–1.

CSKA started 2011-12 with eight league victories in a rowthe league, but after a 1–2 defeat against Slavia Sofia and a 0–0 draw against Cherno More, Radukanov was unexpectedly fired by chairman Dimitar Borisov. Dimitar Penev was appointed as a temporary manager with Adalbert Zafirov as his assistant. In the spring, Stoycho Mladenov was hired as a manager again, and he led the club to a second-place league finish, a single point behind Ludogorets Razgrad after losing on the final day of the season.

2012–2013

CSKA began the season by being surprisingly eliminated from international football by Slovenian football dwarf Mura 05. While the first leg in Slovenia ended in a 0–0 draw, a 1–1 tie at home knocked the "reds" out of the UEFA Europa League in the second qualifying round. The start of the domestic championship was unimpressive as well –- a 0–1 loss to Litex, in which the club had no right to use its new signings due to administrative restrictions. However, in the middle of the autumn half of the season CSKA achieved some significant wins, beating Levski Sofia by 1–0 in the Eternal Derby and eliminating Ludogorets Razgrad in the 1/32 finals of the Bulgarian Cup.

In late December 2012, head coach Stoycho Mladenov was abruptly fired by the club owners for "disciplinary" reasons and Miodrag Jesic was appointed in his place. During the winter transfer window, CSKA made several signings such as Bulgarian internationals Martin Kamburov and Spas Delev in addition to South-American players Marcinho and Ignacio Varela. After managing the team for only two games in the spring half, Jesic was sacked and replaced by fan favourite Milen Radukanov, with whom the club managed to finish the season with the bronze medals.

2013 Ownership change

In June 2013, the FIFA Ballon d'Or winner Hristo Stoichkov was released from PFC Litex Lovech to replace Radukanov on the bench, but the poor financial condition of the club forced him to leave shortly after his arrival without even having signed a contract. Most of the key players left CSKA while speculations about the club's bankruptcy circled in the media.^[33] After the serious financial problems led to CSKA's withdrawal from the 2013-14 UEFA Europa League, igniting multiple fan protests, the club was ultimately declared for sale and on 10 July 2013 it was officially purchased by the Red Champions Group, a union of businessmen and club legends. The leader of the group was Aleksandar Tomov, former club president widely blamed for CSKA's financial crisis in 2008. Stoycho Mladenov was hired back as manager by the new owners.

2013–2014

The club made several major signings for the new season, bringing in former team captains Valentin Iliev, Emil Gargorov and Todor Yanchev. Algeria's national goalkeeper Rais M'Bolhi and ex-Premiership stars Mamady Sidibe and Martin Petrov were also brought on board. On 19 October 2013, the reborn CSKA crushed city rivals Levski 3–0 and were given the nickname "The Phoenixes". By the end of the season CSKA smashed Levski three more times and won the silver medals, finishing 2nd behind Ludogorets Razgrad.

IPO

On 21 March 2014, as part of the plan to reduce debt and make the club's finances more transparent, CSKA became the first club from Eastern Europe to be publicly traded by listing itself on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange.^[34][35]

2014–2015

Before the start of the new season a few key players were no longer part of the club. Algeria's international goalkeeper Raïs M'Bolhi was transferred to Philadelphia Union after an impressive performance at the World Cup. Young talent Ivaylo Chochev joined Palermo. Club legends Martin Petrov and Todor Yanchev retired and the team's leading scorer Emil Gargorov left due to conflict with the managing board. CSKA were surprisingly eliminated by the Moldovan side Zimbru in Europa League's 2nd round, but performed well in the domestic league during the first half of the season, beating rivals Levski twice more and being on the top of the table ahead of Ludogorets before the winter break. However, after the season was renewed CSKA made 3 consecutive losses without scoring a single goal which led to the resignation of coach Mladenov. Former team captain and youth team's coach Galin Ivanov was appointed as new head coach,^[36] but after 5 more goalless matches he was replaced by European football legend Lyuboslav Penev, widely praised by fans.^[37]

April 2015 Ownership change and relegation from professional football

On 2 April CSKA's president Aleksandar Tomov transferred his controlling block of shares to Milko Georgiev and Borislav Lazarov, with club supporters intending to find new owner and major sponsors capable of paying off the numerous debts.^[38] On 24 April it was officially announced that the club's new controlling owner is Finance Marketing Company Ltd.^[39] CSKA finished the season 5th, but due to the unfunded debts the Bulgarian Football Union refused to give the club a license for A Group for the upcoming season and sent it to the South-Western V group (the 3rd level of Bulgarian football).^[40]

The age of Grisha Ganchev (2015–)

On 24 June 2015, businessman Grisha Ganchev announced that he would be the new owner of CSKA. Club legends Plamen Markov and Hristo Yanev were appointed as sports director and head coach.^[41] Yanev claimed he wants to form a squad consisting entirely of Bulgarian players.

On May 25 CSKA Sofia won the Bulgarian Cup. They did it ranked as amateurs and were the first 3rd division team making such an achievement. CSKA beat the team of Montana 1-0 and lifted the cup for the 20th time in the club's history.^[42]

In June 2016, the legal firm that represented PFC Chavdar Etropole - "PFC Chavdar EAD" was renamed to "PFC CSKA 1948 AD".^[43] Later, the legal firm that represented the club PFC Litex Lovech - "PFC Litex-Lovech EAD" was renamed to "PFC CSKA-Sofia EAD",^[44] in order for the club to use Litex Lovech's professional license to apply for the reformed First League,^[45] with "PFC CSKA 1948 AD" being written in as it's owner. The shift was made because the old legal firm - "PFC CSKA AD" did not gain a PRO license, and later went bankrupted and ceased operations as of September 9, 2016. PFC Litex Lovech later started playing in the Third League, taking the plase of FC Botev Lukovit.^[46]

Following a series of unfavourable results in the championship, Hristo Yanev submitted his resignation and it was accepted by the club management. Early next week, the son of former Romanian national player Anghel Iordănescu, Edward Iordănescu, was appointed as manager of the club.

League positions

Honours

Domestic

Bulgarian A Group:

• Champions (31) (record): 1948, 1951, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1965–66, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1986–87, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1996–97, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08

Bulgarian V Group:

• Champions (1) : 2015–16

Bulgarian Cup:

• Winners (20 times): 1951, 1954, 1955, 1961, 1965, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1983, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1997, 1999, 2006, 2011, 2016

Bulgarian Supercup:

• Winners (4) (record): 1989, 2006, 2008, 2011

Bulgarian Cup – (unofficial tournament)^[47]

• Winners (1 time): 1981

Cup of the Soviet Army^[47]

• Winners (4 times): 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990

European

European Cup / UEFA Champions League

• Semi-finals (2): 1966–67, 1981–82
• Quarter-finals (4): 1956–57, 1973–74, 1980–81, 1989–90

UEFA Cup / Europa League:

• 1/16 Final – 1998–99
• Group stage (3): 2005–06, 2009–10, 2010–11

European Cup Winners' Cup / UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

• Semi-finals (1): 1988–89

Biggest win in European tournaments:

• UEFA Cup Winners – 8–1 in 1956–57 vs FC Dinamo Bucureşti
• UEFA Cup – 8–0 in 2000–01 vs Constructorul
• UEFA Cup Winners' Cup – 9–0 in 1970–71 vs FC Haka

Other Trophies

Thöle-Pokal, Germany:^[48]

• Winners (1): 2003

Arona Cup, Spain:^[49]

• Winners (1): 2004

Martyrs Of 17 February Cup, Libya:^[50]

• Winners (1): 2012

PlayStation Cup, Bulgaria:

• Winners (4): 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007

European record

Including 2014–15 season.

Competition	S	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
UEFA Champions League / European Cup	25	98	41	16	41	140	144	– 4
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup / European Cup Winners Cup	5	22	12	0	10	49	29	+ 20
UEFA Europa League / UEFA Cup	22	94	30	30	34	120	121	– 1
UEFA Intertoto Cup	1	4	2	1	1	8	4	+ 4
Total	52	216	85	47	86	317	298	+ 19

Names

CSKA has carried a plethora of names throughout its history. In chronological order, they are as follows:

• Septemvri pri CDV (Bulgarian: Септември при ЦДВ), September at the Central House of the Troops in 1948 and 1948/49.
• Narodna Voiska (Bulgarian: Народна Войска), People's Troops in 1950.
• C.D.N.V. (Bulgarian: Централен Дом на Народната Войска, Ц.Д.Н.В.), Central House of the People's Troops in 1951 and 1952.
• Otbor na Sofiyskiya Garnizon (Bulgarian: Отбор на Софийския Гарнизон), Team of the Sofia's garrison in 1953.
• CDNA (Bulgarian: ЦДНА, Централен Дом на Народната Армия), Central House of the People's Army from 1954 and until the 1961/62 season.
• CSKA "Cherveno zname" (Bulgarian: ЦСКА "Червено знаме"), CSKA "Red Flag" between 1962/63 and 1967/68.
• CSKA "Septemvriysko zname" (Bulgarian: ЦСКА "Септемврийско знаме"), CSKA "September's flag" between 1968/69 and 1984/85.
• CFKA "Sredets" (Bulgarian: ЦФКА "Средец"), Central Football Club of the Army "Sredets" from 1985/86 and until 1988/89
• CSKA (Bulgarian: ЦСКА), CSKA – Central Sports Club of the Army since 1989/90.

Club crest

The main element in the current club crest is the red five-pointed star – symbol of glory and power. Red was the colour of the uniform of the Roman legions, associated with love, freedom and aggression. The 6 oak leaves above the star symbolise strength, endurance and traditions. CSKA's name and year of foundation (1948) can be seen below the star, between two Bulgarian flags. The circle form of the crest symbolises infinity and eternity. After CSKA won its 30th national title in 2005, 3 golden stars were added to the logo.^[51]

Club anthem

The official anthem of CSKA Sofia is the song "Sartsa cherveni" ("Red hearts") by the famous Bulgarian singer Yordanka Hristova. The song is written in 1999 by composer Evgeni Dimitrov and lyricist Ivaylo Valchev, authors of many of the hits of Ku-Ku Band.^[52]

Players

Current squad

As of 26 November 2016

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

No. Position Player 1 GK Anatoli Gospodinov 2 DF Stoycho Atanasov 3 DF Anton Nedyalkov 4 DF Bozhidar Chorbadzhiyski (Captain) 5 DF Rafa Pérez 6 MF Rúben Pinto (on loan from Belenenses) 7 MF Diogo Viana 8 MF Boris Galchev 9 FW Preslav Yordanov 10 MF Arsénio 11 DF Stanislav Manolev (Vice-captain) 12 GK Georgi Kitanov 14 DF Vasil Popov 15 MF Kristiyan Malinov

No. Position Player 17 MF David Simão 18 MF Aleksandar Georgiev 19 FW Kiril Despodov 20 MF Petrus Boumal 21 FW Rui Pedro 22 MF Nikola Kolev 23 DF Aleksandar Dyulgerov 24 DF Lazar Marin 26 MF Gustavo Culma 27 FW Georgi Minchev 28 DF Plamen Galabov 29 FW Milcho Angelov 30 GK Aleksandar Konov

For recent transfers, see Transfers summer 2016.

For reserve team players, see CSKA Sofia II.

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

No. Position Player

Current reserve players with first-team appearances

CSKA Sofia's reserve team, plays in the Second Liga. The following CSKA II players have made first-team appearances for the club.

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

No. Position Player 18 MF Aleksandar Georgiev 22 MF Nikola Kolev

No. Position Player 29 FW Milcho Angelov

Foreign players

Up to five non-EU nationals can be registered and given a squad number for the first team in the Parva Liga however only three can be used during a match day. Those non-EU nationals with European ancestry can claim citizenship from the nation their ancestors came from. If a player does not have European ancestry he can claim Bulgarian citizenship after playing in Bulgaria for 5 years.

EU Nationals Diogo Viana Arsénio David Simão Rúben Pinto Rui Pedro

EU Nationals (Dual citizenship) Petrus Boumal

Non-EU Nationals Rafa Pérez Gustavo Culma

Club officials

Board of directors

Position	Name	Nationality
Owner	Grisha Ganchev
President	Hristo Stoichkov
Honorary President	Dimitar Penev
Executive Director	Milko Georgiev
Financial Director	Trifon Popov
Director of Youth Academy	Stefan Yaramov
International Relations	Stoyan Petrov

Current technical body

Position	Name	Nationality
Sports Director	Plamen Markov
Head Coach	Stamen Belchev
Assistant Coach	Daniel Morales
CSKA II Coach	Ivaylo Stanev
U19 Coach	Ivaylo Stanev
Goalkeeper Coach	Ivaylo Ivanov
Fitness Coach	Thomas Neubert
Physiotherapist	Petar Petrov
Physiotherapist	Lazar Lazarov
Technical Secretary	Orlando Morera
Club Doctor	Andrey Miladinov
Housekeeper	Dobri Dimov

"Bulgarian Army" stadium

The team's home stadium, "Bulgarian Army", was completed in 1967 and stands on the same spot as its predecessor, "Athletic Park". It is situated in the Borisova gradina park, named after Bulgarian tsar Boris III, in Sofia's city center. The stadium has four sectors with a total of 22,995 places (18,495 seats),^[53][54] of which 2,100 are covered. The pitch length is 105 meters and the width is 68 meters. The sports complex also includes tennis courts, a basketball court and gymnastics facilities, as well as the CSKA Sofia Museum of Glory. The press conference room has 80 seats.

Supporters

According to many surveys, CSKA Sofia is one of the two most popular clubs in Bulgaria with around 190,000 organized supporters in 799 fan clubs around the world, including supporters from United States, Republic of Macedonia, Spain, Austria, UK, Canada, Italy, Sweden, Greece, Germany, and almost every country in which there is a large number of Bulgarians. The official fan club was formed in 1990, which to date is the oldest one in the capital of Bulgaria.

Sector G, the main stand for the ultras of CSKA, is located at the north side of the stadium. Inside the sector, the most influential supporters group is the newly founded ultras group "Ofanziva", which was formed after the unification of several smaller fan clubs. Another strong group is "Animals". CSKA is also the favourite football club of the current head of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church Patriarch Neophyte.^[55]

Notable Bulgarian players

The mentioned players are listed in the alley of fame of the club:^[56]

Foreign players

The first international player in CSKA's history was Colombian Bernardo Redín (1990–91).^[57]

Managerial history

This is a list of the last 10 CSKA Sofia managers:

Name	Nat	From	To	Honours
Stoycho Mladenov		5 March 2012	4 January 2013	–
Miodrag Ješić		7 January 2013	11 March 2013	–
Milen Radukanov		11 March 2013	5 June 2013	–
Hristo Stoichkov		5 June 2013	8 July 2013	–
Stoycho Mladenov		11 July 2013	20 March 2015	–
Galin Ivanov		24 March 2015	28 April 2015	–
Lyuboslav Penev		28 April 2015	31 May 2015	–
Hristo Yanev		26 June 2015	21 August 2016	1 Bulgarian Cup 1 Bulgarian V AFG Title
Edward Iordănescu		24 August 2016	27 November 2016	–
Stamen Belchev		28 November 2016	Present	–

Club kits

After the merger between Chavdar Sofia and Septemvri Sofia is accepted that the club's home colour will be red. White colour becomes the away colour of the club.

In previous years was also used the black colour, mainly for away or third kits. Other colours of the CSKA kits that can be seen are grey, yellow, orange and green, but only in rarely occasions and only in the colour scheme of the third kits. In season 2009/10 for the first time in the club's history CSKA used golden colour for their away kits.

After season 2011/12 in which CSKA used equipment of the Italian company Kappa, from June 2012 the club has new kit supplier, and again a company from the Italian Peninsula – Legea. The team used the new equipment for the first time in the pre-season friendly against the Moscow side Torpedo, ended 1:2. The kits were sample and they were with a different outfit and a different spot where the team badge was placed. The official presentation of the new kits was before the friendly match against Macedonian side FK Drita on 14 July 2012 (2:0), played on Bulgarian Army Stadium.

Shirt sponsors and manufacturers

• Only Domestic Cup matches

UEFA Current ranking

UEFA Club Coefficients

Rank	Country	Team	Points
199		Videoton FC	7.950
200		Kardemir Karabükspor	7.940
201		CSKA Sofia	7.850
202		Servette FC	7.835
203		Ruch Chorzów	7.800
204		Red Star Belgrade	7.775

References

External links

• Official website
• Official forum
• The biggest CSKA Sofia fans portal
• UEFA Profile