Legia Warszawa ( ), is a
professional football club based in Warsaw
, Poland
. It
was founded in March, 1916 (during the military operations of the
World War I on the eastern front) in the
neighborhood of Maniewicze in
Volhynia as
the football club of the
Polish
Legions. After
World War I (since 31
July 1922) it became the main football club of the
Polish Army -
Wojskowy Klub Sportowy
Legia Warszawa (
Military Sports Club Legia
Warsaw). In the years 1949 - 1957 Legia was known by the name
CWKS Warszawa (
Central Military Sports Club
Warsaw).
Currently it is one of two Warsaw-based
football club participating in the Polish
Ekstraklasa (alongside Polonia
Warsaw). Legia is one of the most successful Polish
football clubs in history winning a total of 8 league championships
and a record 13 Polish Cups.
On 11 July 2007, Legia was expelled from the
Intertoto Cup and put on probation for
European competition for the following season, and for the
following five seasons, if they qualified.
This was as a result
of some of their fans rioting during their
match against the Lithuanian
club FK Vėtra in
Vilnius
. The
UEFA stated that
there were ..."obvious problems with Legia supporters at away
matches on the continent". The decision to ban Legia for the future
European cups was later changed to 5 years probation, and Legia
participated in the qualification for the UEFA Cup 2008.
History
Origins
In 1915 during
World War I, some members
of the
Polish Legions
decided to create a lasting
Polish army
club. This idea led to the creation of Legia Warsaw in April 1916.
The club was formed almost entirely by soldiers from the Legion
lead by
Józef Piłsudski.
Most of
these players originated from southern Poland and from the areas no longer held by Poland.
Many of
these recruits played in Wisła, Cracovia, or Lwów
. The
team was originally known as "drużyna legionowa" (Legion Club in
English). The first games were
played in the area of
Volhynian village of
Maniewicze, against other legion teams.
The first
game played in Warsaw was in 1917
on Agrykola street against the team of Polonia Warsaw which ended in a 1:1
draw. The induction into the
PZPN was
officially recognized as 14 March 1920. In the
Polish league it was officially recognized as
WKS or Wojskowy Klub Sportowy (Army Sports Club is the direct
translation). In 1921 after the
War had ended Legia played its first game
in the Polish second league against local rivals
Korona Warszawa which they lost 0-3. Since
its early history Legia played home games on the field on Agrykola
street.
The first field was located in the same spot
as today's training field, which during the annexation was used to
house Russian
Cavalry.
The first League
The first match played in the
first
league was played against
ŁKS Łódź on
8
May 1927 which resulted in a 6:1 away win.
During that game
Marian Łańko
was the first player to score a
hat-trick
for the club. During the 1927-1936 seasons Legia held usually sixth
place.
From 1930 Legia played in a new stadium
, which was presented to them by Józef Piłsudski. After 1936
Legia was relegated to the second division , were it continued to
be until after
World War II .
After the war
After the
World War II, Legia boosted
its squad with many new players and at the end of 1949 the club
changed its name again this time to Centralny Wojskowy Klub
Sportowy (Central Army Sports Club). Eventually
Kazimierz Górski joined the club and
became a player for both the team and the
Poland national team.
The 1970s
The 1970s
were known as Poland's golden age
of football. From the 1960s
to the 1970s, Legia's roster included powerful football players
such as
Jan Tomaszewski,
Kazimierz Deyna, and
Robert Gadocha. In the
European Cup 1969-70 Legia achieved a
successful campaign by reaching the semi finals alongside
Feyenoord,
Leeds
United, and
Celtic. The following
year, Legia reached the quarter
finals where they lost to
Atletico
Madrid.
The 1980s
Though the club had many
national team players
including
Kazimierski,
Okoński,
Dziekanowski,
Janas,
Majewski,
Buncol,
Kubicki,
Wdowczyk and others, the club had problems
winning any league titles. However, thanks to winning four
Polish Cup the team was able to compete in
European competitions.
One of the more memorable European runs was the near upset against
Inter Milan during the
UEFA Cup 1985-86, after two 0-0
games Legia lost in extra time. The next
season Legia were yet again drawn against
Inter Milan this time winning at home 3-2 but losing away 1-0 thus
losing on away goals.
Legia also won its first
Superpuchar
Polski defeating
Hetman
Zamość 3-0 in 1989
Into the 1990s
The 1990s started just as the 80s had been, Legia struggled to take
any League wins but made a name for themselves in European
competition. One of the best European runs to date was the
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
1990–91 where Legia advanced all the way to the Semi-Finals
only to lose to the champions
Manchester United.
Also, they're one of
the 2 Polish teams to have played in the current format of UEFA
Champions League, and the only Polish team which advanced to the
Quarter-Finals in the UEFA
Champions League 1995-96 season, advancing in the Group Stage
over Rosenborg and Blackburn
Rovers
.
The club was co-owned by
media mogul
Jan Wejchert.
Achievements
Domestic
- Ekstraklasa :
- 1st place (8): 1955, 1956, 1969, 1970, 1994,
1995, 2002, 2006
- 2nd place (11): 1960, 1968, 1971, 1985, 1986,
1993, 1996, 1997, 2004, 2008, 2009
- 3rd place (11): 1928, 1930, 1931, 1961, 1972,
1980, 1988, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2007
- Polish Cup:
- Winner (13-record): 1955, 1956, 1964, 1966,
1973, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2008
- Finalist (6): 1952 (team Legia B),
1969, 1972, 1988, 1991, 2004
- Polish
SuperCup:
- Winner (4-record): 1989, 1994, 1997, 2008
- Finalist (3): 1990, 1995, 2006
- Polish League
Cup:
- Winner (1): 2002
- Finalist (2): 2000, 2008
Europe
Legia in Europe
| Season |
Competition |
Round |
|
Club |
Score |
| 1956–57 |
European Cup |
Q |
|
Slovan Bratislava |
0-4, 2-0 |
| 1960–61 |
European Cup |
Q |
|
AGF Aarhus |
0-3, 1-0 |
| 1964–65 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
ESV Admira-NÖ Energie
Wien |
3-1, 1-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
Galatasaray SK |
2-1, 0-1, 1-0 |
|
|
1/4F |
|
TSV 1860 München |
0-4, 0-0 |
| 1966–67 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
BSG Chemie Leipzig |
0-3, 2-2 |
| 1968–69 |
Inter-Cities Fairs
Cup |
1R |
|
TSV 1860 München |
6-0, 3-2 |
|
|
2R |
|
KSV Waregem |
0-1, 2-0 |
|
|
3R |
|
Újpest FC |
0-1, 2-2 |
| 1969–70 |
European Cup |
1R |
|
UT Arad |
2-1, 8-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
AS Saint-Étienne |
2-1, 1-0 |
|
|
1/4F |
|
Galatasaray SK |
2-1, 1-0 |
|
|
SF |
|
Feyenoord Rotterdam |
0-0, 0-2 |
| 1970–71 |
European Cup |
1R |
|
IFK Göteborg |
4-0, 2-1 |
|
|
2R |
|
Standard Liege |
0-1, 2-0 |
|
|
1/4F |
|
Atlético Madrid |
0-1, 2-1 |
| 1971–72 |
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
FC Lugano |
3-1, 0-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
Rapid Bucharest |
0-4, 2-0 |
| 1972–73 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
Knattspyrnufélagið
Víkingur |
2-0, 9-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
AC Milan |
1-1, 1-2 |
| 1973–74 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
PAOK FC |
1-1, 0-1 |
| 1974–75 |
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
FC Nantes Atlantique |
2-2, 0-1 |
| 1980–81 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
PFC Slavia Sofia |
1-3, 1-0 |
| 1981–82 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
Vålerenga |
2-2, 4-1 |
|
|
2R |
|
Lausanne Sports |
2-1, 1-1 |
|
|
3R |
|
FC Dinamo Tbilisi |
0-1, 0-1 |
| 1985–86 |
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
Viking FK |
3-0, 1-1 |
|
|
2R |
|
Videoton FC
Fehérvár |
1-0, 1-1 |
|
|
3R |
|
Inter Milan |
0-0, 0-1 |
| 1986–87 |
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
FC Dnipro
Dnipropetrovsk |
0-0, 1-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
Inter Milan |
3-2, 0-1 |
| 1988–89 |
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
Bayern Munich |
1-3, 3-7 |
| 1989–90 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
FC Barcelona |
1-1, 1-0 |
| 1990–91 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
1R |
|
FC Swift Hesperange |
3-0, 3-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
Aberdeen FC |
0-0, 1-0 |
|
|
1/4F |
|
UC Sampdoria |
1-0, 2-2 |
|
|
SF |
|
Manchester United |
1-3, 1-1 |
| 1994–95 |
UEFA Champions League |
Q |
|
Hajduk Split |
0-1, 0-4 |
| 1995–96 |
UEFA Champions League |
Q |
|
IFK Göteborg |
1-0, 2-1 |
|
|
GR |
|
Rosenborg BK |
3-1, 0-4 |
|
|
|
|
FC Spartak Moscow |
1-2, 0-1 |
|
|
|
|
Blackburn Rovers |
1-0, 0-0 |
|
|
1/4F |
|
Panathinaikos FC |
0-0, 0-3 |
| 1996–97 |
UEFA Cup |
1Q |
|
Jeunesse Esch |
4-2, 3-0 |
|
|
2Q |
|
FC Haka |
3-0, 1-1 |
|
|
1R |
|
Panathinaikos FC |
4-2, 0-2 |
|
|
2R |
|
Beşiktaş J.K. |
1-1, 1-2 |
| 1997–98 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |
Q |
|
Glenavon FC |
1-1, 0-4 |
|
|
1R |
|
Vicenza Calcio |
0-2, 1-1 |
| 1999–00 |
UEFA Cup |
Q |
|
FK Vardar |
5-0, 4-0 |
|
|
1R |
|
Anorthosis Famagusta
FC |
0-1, 2-0 |
|
|
2R |
|
Udinese Calcio |
0-1, 1-1 |
| 2001–02 |
UEFA Cup |
Q |
|
FC Etzella Ettelbruck |
4-0, 2-1 |
|
|
1R |
|
IF Elfsborg |
4-1, 6-1 |
|
|
2R |
|
Valencia CF |
1-1, 1-6 |
| 2002–03 |
UEFA Champions League |
2Q |
|
FK Vardar |
3-1, 1-1 |
|
|
3Q |
|
FC Barcelona |
0-3, 0-1 |
|
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
FC Utrecht |
4-1, 3-1 |
|
|
2R |
|
FC Schalke 04 |
2-3, 0-0 |
| 2004–05 |
UEFA Cup |
2Q |
|
FC Tbilisi |
1-0, 6-0 |
|
|
1R |
|
FK Austria Wien |
0-1, 1-3 |
| 2005–06 |
UEFA Cup |
2Q |
|
FC Zürich |
0-1, 1-4 |
| 2006–07 |
UEFA Champions League |
2Q |
|
FH Hafnarfjörður |
1-0, 2-0 |
|
|
3Q |
|
Shakhtar Donetsk |
0-1, 2-3 |
|
UEFA Cup |
1R |
|
FK Austria Wien |
1-1, 0-1 |
| 2007 |
Intertoto Cup |
2R |
|
FK Vėtra |
0-3 (Awarded), (w/o) |
| 2008–09 |
UEFA Cup |
1Q |
|
FC Gomel |
0-0, 4-1 |
|
|
2Q |
|
FK Moscow |
1-2, 0-2 |
| 2009–10 |
UEFA Europa League |
2Q |
|
Olimpi Rustavi |
3-0, 1-0 |
|
|
3Q |
|
Brøndby IF |
1-1, 2-2 |
|
Current squad
The players in
bold have senior international caps
for their respective countries.
Out on loan
Reserve team
Sponsors
Notable players
Retired numbers
Coaches and managers
Main rivals
Warsaw derby
The Warsaw
derby is a match between
Legia and
Polonia Warsaw.
| All
matches |
| Matches |
Legia wins |
Draws |
Polonia wins |
| 51 |
25 |
13 |
13 |
See also
References
External links
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