Kukësi
Full nameFutboll Klub Kukësi
Nickname(s)Verilindorët (Northeasters)
Founded4 March 1930 (1930-03-04)
as Shoqëria Sportive Kosova
GroundKukës Arena
Capacity6,300
OwnerLavdrim Gjici (87.5%)
Municipality of Kukës (12.5%)
ChairmanSafet Gjici
CoachStavri Nica
LeagueKategoria Superiore
2022–23Kategoria Superiore, 7th of 10

Futboll Klub Kukësi is an Albanian professional football club based in the city of Kukës. The club plays its home games at the Zeqir Ymeri Stadium and they currently compete in the Kategoria Superiore, the highest tier of Albanian football. The club played in the lower divisions for much of its history since 1930, prior to their 2012 promotion to Kategoria Superiore, where they have finished as runners up in three of the four top flight campaigns they have had.

History

Early history

The club was formed on 4 March 1930 in Kukës under the name as Shoqëria Sportive Kosova, around the same time as the rise in widespread popularity of football in Albania. The club was initially made up of young men from Has, Lumë and Gora, who competed in sports such as athletics and wrestling along with football, which quickly became the most popular sport to follow in Kukës. The club's first ever game was played on 20 April 1930 against Internati Krumë, which ended in a 0–0 draw. On 13 July the club lost for the first time against Dibra in Peshkopi, in a game which ended 4–1 to the opposition. In August 1931 the club competed in a local tournament where they played Kallabaku (Borje), Shkëlzeni (Tropojë), Internati Krumë, and teams from the military. With the establishment of the Albanian Football Association in 1932 Shoqëria Sportive Kosova was registered under the name Sport Klub Kosova. However, they did not participate in any of the national championships that were held at the time. In 1949, following the end of World War II, the Albanian Football Association resumed its championships. In 1953 Shoqëria Sportive Kosova participated for the first time in a national competition, competing in the Albanian Third Division.

Përparimi

In 1958 the club was promoted to the Albanian Second Division for the first time, and they changed their name to Klubi Sportiv Përparimi at the same time. The club's first major trophy came in 1967, winning the Albanian Third Division and achieving promotion for the first time to the Albanian Second Division. They remained in the league for a decade until 1977, when they won the Second Division title, the club's biggest achievement since its formation in 1930. Despite being relegated quickly, the club once again won the Second Division in 1982 and were promoted again to Albania's second tier. Many consider the late 1970s and early 1980s to be the club's so-called golden era.

With the fall of communism in Albania in 1991, the club experienced huge financial problems as they had relied on state funding to run the club for many years. The municipality of Kukës along with local businessmen began to fund the team following the end of Albania's Communism regime, but due to the lack of funds the club did not experience any success for nearly two decades after Communism.

Kukësi

Kukësi in the Europa League in 2016.

In 2010 the club experienced a complete revamp, changing its name for a third time to Futboll Klub Kukësi. The Kukës representative in the Parliament of Albania and member of the Democratic Party of Albania, Fatos Hoxha was elected as president of FK Kukësi. The club aimed to reach Kategoria Superiore for the first time in its history, investing heavily for the 2010–11 season in order to achieve promotion from the Second Division. Fatos Hoxha and the Municipality of Kukës hired Shahin Berberi as the club's manager and gave him the financial backing to make many signings in order to achieve promotion. Berberi did just that and FK Kukësi were crowned winners of the Albanian Second Division at the end of the 2010–11 season. The following season the club once again invested heavily, this time to achieve their aim of top flight football, an aim which was achieved at the end of the 2011–12 season, as FK Kukësi finished second in the table and received automatic promotion to Kategoria Superiore for the 2012–13 season.[1]

Kategoria Superiore era

2012–13

The club's first-ever top-flight game was against fellow newly-promoted side Luftëtari Gjirokastër on 26 August 2012 at the Zeqir Ymeri Stadium, and it ended in a goalless draw in front of just over 2,500 spectators.[2] They remained unbeaten in the league for the opening ten games, which included an away win against Albania's most decorated side KF Tirana.[3] Their unbeaten start to life in Kategoria Superiore came to an end on 17 November in a 2–0 loss to Flamurtari Vlorë.[4] They ended the season in second place behind Skënderbeu Korçë, whom they defeated 4–3 on the last day of the season.[5] FK Kukësi's season was considered a tremendous success, considering the club's humble history, which did not stop them collecting memorable wins throughout the 2012–13 campaign including a 6–1 win over Flamurtari Vlorë[6] and a 5–1 win over Shkumbini Peqin.[7] They were featured as UEFA's surprise package, as they were the only team to finish the season unbeaten at home and their second-placed finish earned them a place in the UEFA Europa League first qualifying round.[8] They finished the season with a record of 15 wins, 7 draws and 4 losses, along with a points tally of 52 and a positive goal difference of 24.[9]

2013–14

FK Kukësi's first European game was played on 4 July 2013 and it ended in a 1–1 draw away at Estonian side Flora Tallinn, with midfielder Gerhard Progni scoring a 79th-minute equaliser.[10] The return leg was played at the Qemal Stafa Stadium in Tiranë and it ended in goalless draw which meant that FK Kukësi progressed to the second qualifying round of the Europa League on the away goal rule.[11] In the next round FK Kukësi met Bosnian side FK Sarajevo, whom they defeated 3–2 at the Qemal Stafa Stadium in the first leg, thanks to goals from Yll Hoxha, Lazar Popović and Igli Allmuça.[12] In the second leg played at the Asim Ferhatović Hase Stadium, the match ended goalless which meant FK Kukësi progressed to the third and final qualifying round of the competition.[13] They faced Metalurh Donetsk from Ukraine in the next round and they shocked the Ukrainians with a 2–0 win in Tiranë, courtesy of goals from Lucas Malacarne and Renato Malota.[14] FK Kukësi experienced their first European defeat in their sixth fixture at the hands of Metalurh Donetsk in the away leg of the tie, but still progressed through to the play-off round as they won 2–1 on aggregate over the two games.[15] In the play-offs they were drawn against a far larger club in the shape of Turkish side Trabzonspor, who they faced at home in the first leg which ended in a predictable 2–0 loss.[16] At the Hüseyin Avni Aker Stadium in the second leg FK Kukësi managed to open the scoring through Lazar Popović in the 11th minute, before conceding three times to lose 5–1 on aggregate.[17] The club's European run was widely reported both in Albania and in the region, and the players were considered heroes for overcoming their underdog status both domestically and continentally.

They began the 2013–14 season in poor form, losing their opening game to newly promoted side KF Lushnja before being comprehensively beaten 3–0 at home by Vllaznia Shkodër, leaving them in the relegation zone and second from bottom after two games played. However, they quickly bounced back to beat the reigning champions Skënderbeu Korçë 3–1, before drawing to Teuta Durrës and beating Kastrioti Krujë to lift them out of the relegation zone. They lost their following game against Partizani Tirana which resulted in the head coach Armando Cungu being replaced by Naci Şensoy,[18] whose reign at FK Kukësi began with two draws and a loss that landed the club back in the relegation zone. From week 10 however, they went on a four match winning streak which was ended by a 1–1 draw with Skënderbeu Korçë. However, the head coach Şensoy was under pressure from both the fans and the president Safet Gjici, and after winning just once in his next four league games he resigned immediately after a goalless draw at home against Bylis Ballsh.[19][20] The club's technical director Sulejman Starova took over as head coach until the end of the season, having last managed in 2010 while he was in charge of KF Tirana.[21][22] Starova began with a disappointing 2–0 loss to relegation bound Besa Kavajë, before beating Flamurtari Vlorë and KF Laçi consecutively to regain some momentum for a late title push. Hopes of winning the title dampened following a 3–1 defeat by KF Tirana in week 22, despite losing just once in their last eleven games, which saw them win seven times, to finish comfortably in second place, four points behind Skënderbeu Korçë and three points ahead of KF Laçi who finished first and third respectively. They also had a strong Albanian Cup run, as they eliminated Naftëtari Kuçovë, Apolonia Fier, Bylis Ballsh and Teuta Durrës to reach the final with Flamurtari Vlorë which they eventually lost 1–0 to an Arbër Abilaliaj goal.

Stadium

The Kukës Arena in 2015.

Kukësi's home venue is the Zeqir Ymeri Stadium, which is a 9,500 seater stadium located near the centre of Kukës. The existing stadium was completed in 2012, and the club had previously played on a field located in the same position that the stadium was built over, and the previous ground was named the Përparimi Stadium until 2010, after the club's name at the time which was Përparimi Kukës. The ground previously consisted of a playing field surrounded by grass where fans would watch games from, as the club has spent the vast majority of its history in the lower leagues of Albanian football thus there was no requirement to build a stadium for a small local club.

In July 2010 work began to start building the stadium, which was funded jointly by the Albanian Football Association, Municipality of Kukës and UEFA, who invested the €800,000 needed to begin work on the stadium. The ground was given the name Zeqir Ymeri in honour of a former footballer for the club, and the opening of the stadium was on 30 November 2010, where a friendly was played against Partizani Tirana, which FK Kukësi won 1–0. Once the club achieved promotion to Kategoria Superiore in 2012 the stadium did not meet the requirements needed to compete in the top flight, which led to further investment on the ground, which resulted in an intensive reconstruction program during the summer of 2012 in order to get the stadium ready for the 2012–13 season. The stadium was given a seated capacity of over 9,000 spectators and all the required amenities were added in order to meet the league requirements, and the it was reopened on 1 October 2012 with a total reconstruction cost of €1.076,000.

Supporters

Mërgata
Established2013
TypeSupporters' group
ClubFK Kukësi
MottoGjithmonë në mbështetje të Kukësit
HeadquartersKukës,  Albania
AffiliationsTifozat Kuq e Zi
Websitewww.armataeveriut.al

The club is well supported in the local community of Kukës as well as the surrounding regions in the north-east, and the main ultras group is called the Armata e Veriut, which translates to the Army of the North. The supporters have been known for some negative behaviour, which included a top of the table clash with Luftëtari Gjirokastër on 6 May 2012 in the Albanian First Division, where the FK Kukësi fans were seen throwing object onto the field which resulted in the referee Lorenc Jemini having to pause the game. The game eventually restarted, but the club was punished by the Albanian Football Association with a six match stadium ban, meaning they had to play their next six home games behind closed doors. The club was fined a total of €27,000 for the behaviour of its supporters during their Europa League run in the summer of 2013, as they threw bottles and flares onto the field of their home games against Sarajevo and Metalurh Donetsk.[23][24]

FK Kukësi's main rivalries have been with small local clubs such as Pashtriku Has, which is considered the Kukës country derby; a derby which FK Kukësi has typically dominated. The club's other rivalries are with Korabi Peshkopi and Tërbuni Pukë, which are the north-east derbies. More recently however, the club has seen a rivalry grow with Kategoria Superiore's biggest clubs, which especially includes Skënderbeu Korçë whom they finished runners-up in the leaguer to in three consequeitve season; the 2012–13, 2013–14 and 2014–15 campaigns respectively.

European competitions

Overview

Competition App Pld W D L GF GA
UEFA Champions League 2 6 1 3 2 3 6
UEFA Europa League 7 26 7 7 12 23 37
Total 9 32 8 10 14 26 43

Matches

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1Q Estonia Flora Tallinn 0–0 1–1 1–1 (a)
2Q Bosnia and Herzegovina Sarajevo 3–2 0–0 3–2
3Q Ukraine Metalurh Donetsk 2–0 0–1 2–1
PO Turkey Trabzonspor 0–2 1–3 1–5
2014–15 UEFA Europa League 1Q Kazakhstan Kairat 0–0 0–1 0–1
2015–16 UEFA Europa League 1Q Belarus Torpedo-BelAZ Zhodino 2–0 0–0 2–0
2Q Montenegro Mladost Podgorica 0–1 4–2 4–3
3Q Poland Legia Warsaw 0–3
(awarded)		 0–1 0–4
2016–17 UEFA Europa League 1Q Montenegro Rudar Pljevlja 1–1 1–0 2–1
2Q Austria Austria Wien 1–4 0–1 1–5
2017–18 UEFA Champions League 2Q Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol 2–1 0–1 2–2 (a)
2018–19 UEFA Champions League 1Q Malta Valletta 0−0 1–1 1–1 (a)
2Q Azerbaijan Qarabağ 0−0 0−3 0–3
UEFA Europa League 3Q Georgia (country) Torpedo Kutaisi 2−0 2−5 4–5
2019–20 UEFA Europa League 1Q Hungary Debrecen 1−1 0−3 1−4
2020–21 UEFA Europa League 1Q Bulgaria Slavia Sofia 2–1 — 2–1
2Q Germany VfL Wolfsburg 0−4 — 0−4
Notes
  • 1Q: First qualifying round
  • 2Q: Second qualifying round
  • 3Q: Third qualifying round
  • PO: Play-off Round

Honours

League titles

Cups

Recent seasons

Season Division Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Cup Europe Europe Top Scores
1999–00 Kategoria e Dytë 6/9 165110 183116 SR —— ———
2000–01 Kategoria e Dytë 4/9 16925 292429 SR —— ———
2001–02 Kategoria e Dytë 9/13 249411 283931 FR —— ———
2002–03 Kategoria e Dytë 6/11 20839 192327 FR —— ———
2003–04 Kategoria e Dytë 6/10 18729 152123 FR —— ———
2004–05 Kategoria e Dytë 7/12 226412 274022 FR —— ———
2005–06 Kategoria e Dytë 4/11 191009 222430 — —— ———
2006–07 Kategoria e Dytë 5/12 221147 292137 SR —— ———
2007–08 Kategoria e Dytë 8/11 207310 172624 FR —— ———
2008–09 Kategoria e Dytë 6/12 229310 252630 — —— ———
2009–10 Kategoria e Dytë 11/13 245712 193222 FR —— ———
2010–11 Kategoria e Dytë 1/14 261862 592260 — —— ———
2011–12 Kategoria e Parë 2/16 302145 632467 FR —— ———
2012–13 Kategoria Superiore 2/14 261574 492552 SF —— —— Serbia Lazar Popović 16
2013–14 Kategoria Superiore 2/12 331698 463457 Final UELPO —— Albania Sokol Cikalleshi 17
2014–15 Kategoria Superiore 2/10 362367 592775 RU UEL1QF —— Croatia Pero Pejić 31
2015–16 Kategoria Superiore 3/10 361899 412563 W UEL3QF —— North Macedonia Izair Emini 10
2016–17 Kategoria Superiore 1/10 3620151 511875 QF UCL2QF —— Croatia Pero Pejić 28
2017–18 Kategoria Superiore 2/10 361899 614163 SF UEL2QF —— Albania Sindrit Guri 20
2018–19 Kategoria Superiore 2/10 3617811 422959 W UCL2QF UEL3QF Mozambique Reginaldo 13
2019–20 Kategoria Superiore 2/10 361998 593166 SF UEL1QF —— Albania Vasil Shkurtaj 22
2020–21 Kategoria Superiore 6/10 3613617 474845 QF UEL2QF —— North Macedonia Agim Ibraimi 15
Nigeria Patrick Friday Eze 15
2021–22 Kategoria Superiore 4/10 36151011 504455 SR —— —— Croatia Edi Baša 10
2022–23 Kategoria Superiore 7/10 3612915 313545 QF —— —— Kosovo Gjelbrim Taipi 5
Brazil Gabriel Barbosa 5

World & European Rankings

UEFA club coefficient ranking

RankTeamPoints
194Albania FK Kukësi6.000

Players

Current squad

As of 1 September 2023[25]

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 Albania ALB Angelo Tafa (captain)
3 DF Albania ALB Endri Murati
4 DF Albania ALB Franko Lamçe
5 DF Albania ALB Endri Reçi
6 DF Greece GRE Vasilios Zogos
7 FW Peru PER Sebastián La Torre
8 MF Albania ALB Arbër Basha
9 FW Albania ALB Atdhe Rashiti
10 MF Albania ALB Françesko Hasaj
11 FW Peru PER Carlos Rivas
14 MF Nigeria NGA Daniel Momoh
17 FW Switzerland SUI Erduan Smajli
19 FW Albania ALB Arbër Mehmetllari
20 FW Albania ALB Fluturim Domi
No. Pos. Nation Player
25 DF Kosovo KOS Blerim Sahitaj
26 DF Albania ALB Nikolin Duka
27 FW Albania ALB Klevis Hilaj
29 MF Albania ALB Mario Beshiraj
44 FW Nigeria NGA Mustapha Gbolahan Kango
46 DF Albania ALB Franci Lala
59 GK Albania ALB Marvin Brozi
78 MF Albania ALB Eogen Sula
80 GK Albania ALB Alvin Mehmetaj
81 MF Mauritania MTN Abdou El Id
88 MF Albania ALB Plarent Fejzaj
97 MF Brazil BRA Matheus Motta
99 FW Albania ALB Redi Veriu

Personnel

Current technical staff
Position Name
Head coach Albania Rrahman Hallaçi
Assistant coach(es) Albania Ylli Shameti
Board members
Office Name
President Albania Safet Gjici
Sports director Albania Naim Halili

Historical list of managers

References

  1. ↑ AlbaniaSoccer. "Kategoria e Parë/ Luftëtari kampion, Kukësi në Superligë". albaniasoccer.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  2. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Luftëtari Gjirokastër - 26 August 2012 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  3. ↑ "Tirana vs. Kukësi - 4 November 2012 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  4. ↑ "Flamurtari Vlorë vs. Kukësi - 17 November 2012 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  5. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Skënderbeu Korçë - 11 May 2013 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  6. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Flamurtari Vlorë - 27 April 2013 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  7. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Shkumbini Peqin - 30 March 2013 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  8. ↑ uefa.com (13 June 2013). "Member associations - Albania - News – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  9. ↑ "Summary - Superliga - Albania - Results, fixtures, tables and news - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  10. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Kukës-Flora – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  11. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Kukës-Flora – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  12. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Kukës-Sarajevo – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  13. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Sarajevo-Kukës – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  14. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Kukës-Metalurh Donetsk – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  15. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Metalurh Donetsk-Kukës – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  16. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Kukës-Trabzonspor – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  17. ↑ uefa.com. "UEFA Europa League 2013/14 - History - Trabzonspor-Kukës – UEFA.com". uefa.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  18. ↑ "Kukesi, Naci Şensoy'a emanet". hurriyet.com.tr. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  19. ↑ ""Më shanë nga nëna", dorëhiqet Shensoji. Starova: Ja çfarë do të ndryshojë te Kukësi". Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  20. ↑ "Kukësi del huq me Bylisin. Shensoji largohet nga detyra, Sul Starova emërohet si trajner". Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  21. ↑ Shensoji vetëlargohet, Starova trajner i ri i Kukësit Archived 9 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  22. ↑ "Harrohet Shensoji, Kukësi do kualifikimin me Starovën". Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  23. ↑ "Gazetametropol.com". gazetametropol.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  24. ↑ AlbaniaSoccer. "Kategoria e Pare/ Kukesi denohet me 6-ndeshje pa tifoze". albaniasoccer.com. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
  25. ↑ "Players". FK Kukësi.
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