Fudbalski klub Sutjeska (Serbian Cyrillic: Fudbalski klub Sutjeska) is a football club in Niksic, Montenegro, currently playing within the Montenegrin First League. The club was founded in 1920 and was known under its current name since. Since the return in 2006 of Montenegrin independence in 2006, the club holds an all-time record of with five First League titles.
FK Sutjeska is a part of the Sutjeska sports society.
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FK Sutjeska is founded at 1927 with the title Sports Club Hajduk (SK Hajduk). Then, (before World War II began) it changed the name of its club in the name of SK Hercegovac.
As SK Hajduk, the team made its debut in official competitions in 1929, as a part of the Montenegrin Football Championship. The biggest success that the team of Niksic was in autumn 1929, competing at the Montenegrin Championship finals against SK Crnogorac Cetinje (1-2). In the year 1932, SK Hercegovac played their first official match with FK Buducnost (1-2) and this was the inaugural edition of the Montenegrin Derby - the greatest rivalry in the history of Montenegrin football.
In 1940, the team of Niksic participated only one time at the Championship finals. Since the start in World War II - the team has been disqualified.
After the war, the club revived (1945) in the form of Sutjeska to honor the memory of Yugoslav communists who died in Sutjeska's Battle of Sutjeska. Their first match was played on May 3rd 1945 in a match against FK Buducnost in Podgorica (2-4). The following day, the players from Niksic participated in the first competition for football following their participation in the World War II - 1946 Montenegrin Republic League, winning the third spot at the conclusion of the season.
The first significant win after that war FK Sutjeska made on season 1948/49, and was able to secure an invitation into Yugoslav Third League. Between 1955 and 1964, Sutjeska played nine consecutive seasons in the Yugoslav Second League. As a part of the Second League, Sutjeska participated in the semi-finals in 1962 and 1963 Yugoslav Cup.
Historical record of that period The team had a great season 1963-64 and was champions of the Second League, Sutjeska was moved to the top division that is SFR Yugoslavia. The team made their debut in the Yugoslav First League on 9 August 1964, playing Dinamo at Zagreb. In in the sixties as well as seventies Sutjeska was a part of four years in the First League. In the 1971-72 season, a the match played between Sutjeska as well as Crvena Zvezda in Niksic was watched by 19,000 fans, which was the record attendance for Sutjeska home matches.
In 1973 FK Sutjeska debuted in official international tournaments. They played for Yugoslavia at the Balkans Cup. They finished with a second place in Group A alongside two teams Targu Mures and Elbasani.
FK Sutjeska made their come-back to Yugoslav First League on season 1984-85. They played four seasons playing in the top league competition. The best result of the First league, which the team of Niksic was able to achieve in 1984-85, which saw them finish with a 9th-place finish. The following seasons, FK Sutjeska and FK Buducnost participated in the first editions of Montenegrin Derby in the Yugoslav First League.
Along together with Buducnost, FK Sutjeska is one of the two football clubs in Montenegro that played in the top-flight soccer league in SFR Yugoslavia. This is why FK Sutjeska gained considerable prestige and international recognition and is now one of the largest sports institutions in Montenegro. It is the most well-known sports organisation within the town of Niksic.
After the breakup from Yugoslavia, Sutjeska remained at the top of the league in the state that followed FR Yugoslavia. After a successful year in 2003 Sutjeska made an impressive performance in a European tournaments in which they were eliminated by Racing FC Union Luxembourg in the UEFA Intertoto Cup, but they lost the following game with Tampere United.
After Montenegrin independent, Sutjeska became a member of the Montenegrin First League. The first significant win at the time was when the team participated the Montenegrin Cup 2006-07. They made it to the finals however, they lost to FK Rudar (1-2). As a third-placed team in the 2008-09 season Sutjeska was the first team to play as a team in the UEFA Europa League, but they were eliminated by FC Partizan Minsk from Belarus (1-1 1-1; 1-1).).
The first national title in the club's history, FK Sutjeska won on the 2012-13 season, scoring five more points than their rivals of the past FK Buducnost. FK Buducnost. In the course of that season, FK Sutjeska home games were watched by over 7000 fans this was the highest attendance since the 80s. As Sutjeska was a Montenegrin winner, Sutjeska participated in UEFA Champions League 2013-14 qualifying matches and was eliminated during the 2nd round against Moldavian team FC Sheriff.
The 2013-14 season saw FK Sutjeska became first Montenegrin club to defend a national title last season. They took the title following the long and intense race against FK Lovcen and gained a chance to take part in UEFA Champions League. On the second qualifying round FK Sutjeska again failed against the well-known rival, FC Sheriff.
Another year one more time in Europe, Sutjeska played in the 2015-16 UEFA Europa League, with two thrilling matches against Hungary's Debreceni VSC (2-0; 0-3).
In the 2016-17 season, FK Sutjeska made a new record with this one, this time at the Montenegrin Cup. This was the 2nd time in their the history of the tournament they took part in the Cup finals. However, this time, they took the trophy by winning against OFK Grbalj (1-0).
From 2017to 2018, FK Sutjeska played two impressive seasons, winning two new championships and a great performance at European competitions. In the 2017-18 season, helmed by the Niksic-born coach Nikola Rakojevic, they won the title by scoring an extra 22 points over their top opponents and runners-up from FK Buducnost. However, Sutjeska player Igor Ivanovic became the highest scoring player during the season. The following time, FK Sutjeska, again along with head coach Rakojevic was able to defend the title again, but this time with a much more intense battle in the battle with FK Buducnost. In the following month, the team from Niksic had a good performance in the 2019.20 Champions League, as they defeated Slovan Bratislava in the first stage of qualifying. They will be eliminated at the next stage, which is against APOEL.
After three seasons that ended with domestic trophies FK Sutjeska performances on season 2019-20 were weaker, which means they were runners-up. In the course of the season, they scored the biggest away win in the history of the Montenegrin Derby, against FK Buducnost in Podgorica (4-1). In addition they were also among the semifinalists in the Montenegrin Cup, but the tournament was halted because of COVID-19.
During the history, FK Sutjeska participated under three different names. Most of the period, they played under today's name.
| Period | Name | Full name |
|---|---|---|
| 1927–1930 | SK Hajduk | Sportski klub "Hajduk" / Sport Club "Hajduk" |
| 1930–1941 | SK Hercegovac | Sportski klub "Hercegovac" / Sport Club "Hercegovac" |
| 1945– | FK Sutjeska | Fudbalski klub "Sutjeska" / Football Club "Sutjeska" |
Below is an overall score of all matches of FK Sutjeska in official competitions since 1946. More details at page List of FK Sutjeska seasons.
| Competition Level | Seasons | First season | Last season | Matches | W | D | L | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First League | 34 | 1964–65 | 2019–20 | 1137 | 526 | 260 | 451 | 1371:1461 |
| Second League | 30 | 1955–56 | 2005–06 | 880 | 425 | 158 | 217 | 1462:1071 |
| Third League | 1 | 1949–50 | 1949–50 | 22 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 16:42 |
| Republic League | 10 | 1946 | 1976–77 | 126 | 85 | 15 | 26 | 334:131 |
| Playoffs | 10 | 1946–47 | 2010–11 | 32 | 13 | 7 | 12 | 37:48 |
| National Cup | 49 | 1947–48 | 2019–20 | 119 | 48 | 22 | 49 | 157:141 |
| UEFA competitions | 8 | 2003–04 | 2019–20 | 24 | 2 | 8 | 14 | 15:37 |
| Balkans Cup | 1 | 1972–73 | 1972–73 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2:4 |
| OVERALL (1946–) | 2344 | 1104 | 475 | 785 | 3394:2935 |
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FK Sutjeska debuted in European competitions in 2003 when they participated in the UEFA Intertoto Cup. Following Montenegrin Independence, Sutjeska often played in UEFA competitions. They also played two seasons playing in the Champions League qualifiers. Apart from participation in UEFA competitions, in the course of its time of the history Buducnost was a participant at the Balkans Cup.
| Competition | Seasons | First | Last | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Champions League | 4 | 2013–14 | 2019–20 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 20 | –17 |
| UEFA Europa League | 6 | 2009–10 | 2020–21 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 16 | –8 |
| UEFA Europa Conference League | 1 | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | –2 |
| Intertoto Cup | 1 | 2003 | 2003 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| OVERALL | 12 seasons | 29 | 3 | 10 | 16 | 17 | 42 | –25 |
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National Championships – 4
National Cups – 1
Championships (1922–1940)
"The Dukes" (Vojvode) is the most well-known name given to the most passionate Sutjeska supporters. They were founded on the 28th of October, 1988 Niksic and are now one of the biggest fan groups in Montenegro. They are located in the east of the stand and they typically follow games of all sports competing with"sutjeska" "Sutjeska" name at home and away matches. The most significant Sutjeska opponent can be found in FK Buducnost Podgorica, as the "Barbarians" (Varvari) are the second largest section of supporters within the country. Also, they have a battle against Fap masina of Celik Niksic and Celik Niksic, who are the two teams that compete in their own derby. Niksic derby.
The Sutjeska youth academy is among the most renowned and well-known in Montenegro as is FK Buducnost. It was the very first Sutjeska player who was chosen to an international team for the Yugoslav National team was Vojin Lazarevic. Lazarevic later had a successful professional career at Red Star Belgrade. Lazarevic was named captain of the Yugoslav senior side during an informal game with Romania in 1964, while participating in Niksic.
A highly gifted youth team won the title of champions of Yugoslavia and the team was comprised of names that would go on to become successful soccer players, including Brajan Nenezic Mojas Radonjic as well as Pero Giljen. Pero's son Vladan Giljen was a highly successful goalie after mastering his craft in Sutjeska. After the illustrious generation of 1976 made its first impression within Yugoslav soccer, Sutjeska took home its first Yugoslav Cup in the year 1980, becoming one of the few Yugoslav club of the time to have both of these trophies.
In the year 2010, Sutjeska's Cadet Team (for players under 17) were the champions of Montenegro in the nation's U-17 league. In the same time, the U-19 team was awarded the Gallipoli Cup in Italy which is an international tournament that is considered to be one of the best competitions for players in that age. The U-19 teams from U.S. Lecce, A.S. Bari, FC Zenit Saint Petersburg and FC Krylia Sovetov Samara all participated in the competition for the title, which Sutjeska's team of youth took home.
The most notable thing is that Sutjeska was where which the well-known Juventus F.C. Former striker Mirko Vucinic started his career.
Stadium city "Kraj Bistrice" was built in 1946. In the course of its history, Stadium Kraj Bistrice, used as the home for FK Sutjeska, was renovated several times. In the 60's, there were stands on all four sides. The the stadium's capacity was 15,000. Following the year 2000 year, there was a complete reconstruction of the stadium. In 2001, the old north and south stands were demolished and a new stand for the east was constructed, and the capacity was reduced to 10,800 seats. Following the declaration of Montenegrin independence, in accordance with UEFA regulations, the stadium's capacity was decreased to 5,214 seating. In 2015, floodlights had been installed. The first match that was night-time took place on August 7, 2016. (FK Sutjeska vs. FK Lovcen). Around the stadium is a parking lot that is large. The sports complex next to the stadium features an modern training facility with synthetic surfaces and a miniature auditorium.
As of 1 July 2022
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During the history, several notable players started their career or played for FK Sutjeska. Most known are Nikšić-born players Mirko VuÄinić, Andrija Delibašić, Miodrag Bajović, Miladin BeÄanović, Vojin Lazarević and Brajan Nenezić. Player with the most appearances is Brajan Nenezić, who played 293 matches in period 1975–1989. Below is the list of international players and domestic players which, during their career, played for FK Sutjeska and represented their countries at national teams or made international careers.
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