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Valencia

Spain

Valencia Club de Futbol (Spanish: [ba'lenthja'klub de 'fudbolValencia Club de Futbol Valencian: Valencia Club de Futbol [va'lensia "klub De Fub'bol] ]),[ommonly known in the form of Valencia CF (or simply Valencia) is a professional soccer club within Valencia, Spain, that currently is a part of La Liga, the top league of the Spanish league system.

Valencia was founded in 1919. They've been playing home matches in the 55,000 seater Mestalla since 1923.

Valencia has been awarded Valencia has won six Spanish League titles, eight Copa del Rey titles, one Supercopa de Espana, and one Copa Eva Duarte. In European competitions, they've been awarded the two Inter-Cities Fairs Cups, one UEFA Cup, one UEFA Cup Winners Cup and two UEFA Super Cups, and one UEFA Intertoto Cup. They have also made it to the two UEFA Champions League finals in consecutive years (2000 as well as 2001). Valencia was also part of the G-14 group of top European football clubs, and since the end of time, has been one of the first member of the European Club Association. In all, Valencia have reached seven important European finals, and have won four of them.

It is among the largest clubs in the world, in terms of the amount members (registered as paying fans) which is more than 100,000 season ticket holders as well as an additional around 20,000 season ticket holders waiting on the list.

Through the years the club has gained international recognition for their thriving youth academy, known as "Academia." The alumni of the academy include world-class players like Raul Albiol Andres Palop Miguel Angel Angulo, Javier Farinos, David Albelda, Gaizka Mendieta as well as David Silva. The current stars who graduated in the last few years comprise Isco, Jordi Alba, Juan Bernat, Jose Gaya, Carlos Soler, Ferran Torres, and Paco Alcacer.

1. History

The club was founded on March 5th, 1919. It was officially recognized on the 18th of March 1919 in the presence of Octavio Augusto Milego Diaz being its first president. In addition, the president's election was decided through the result of a vote of the coin. The club had its first game of competitive play at home the 21st of May 1919, against Valencia Gimnastico, and lost the game 1-1.

Valencia CF moved into the Mestalla stadium in 1923, after having played its home games on Mestalla's Algiros ground since the 7th December 1919. The first match played at Mestalla played the home team against Castellon Castalia and ended a 1-1 draw. In a second match that day following, Valencia won against the same team with a score of 1-0. Valencia CF won the Regional Championship in 1923 and was eligible to participate in the local Copa del Rey cup as the only time it has been in the history of the club.

1.1. Emergence as a giant in Spanish football

In the Spanish Civil War halted the development for Valencia until 1941. Valencia squad until the year 1941, when the team was crowned the Copa del Rey, beating RCD Espanyol in the final. In the 1941-42 season Valencia won their debut Spanish La Liga championship title however, this title in the Copa del Rey was more popular than winning the championship at the time. The club remained consistent to win the league title once more during the 1943-44 season and also in the 1946-47 edition of the league.

The club in the 50s was unable to achieve the same success as 1940, even as it was growing as an organization. The restructuring of Mestalla led to the capacity of spectators to increase up to 45,000. The club was home to a variety players who were Spanish and foreign superstars. Some of them included Spanish International Antonio Puchades and Dutch forward Faas Wilkes were among the players who played at Mestalla. In the 1952-53 season the club finished second of the La Liga, and in the next season, the club was awarded the Copa del Rey, then called The Copa del Generalisimo.

1.2. European successes

In spite of a lackluster league performance during the 1960s' early years The club enjoyed its first European victory in the form of Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (the forerunner to the UEFA Cup). The 1961-62 season saw Valencia defeated FC Barcelona in the final. The 1962-63 version of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final pitted Valencia against Croatian club Dinamo Zagreb, which the Valencians also took home. Valencia was also during the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final in the season 1963-64, but was defeated by 2-1 Real Zaragoza from Spain.

Two-time European Footballer of the Year award-winner Alfredo Di Stefano was hired as coach in the year 1970 and immediately led his new team to win its Fourth La Liga championship and first since 1947. This gave Valencia the first time they qualified for the very prestigious European Cup, contested by the numerous European champions from the country. Valencia made it to 3rd round in the 1971-72 tournament but fell in the first two legs Hungarian champions Ujpesti Dozsa. In 1972, the club finished runners-up both in La Liga and the domestic cup, but lost the domestic cup to Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid and Atletico Madrid, respectively. The most prominent players from the 1970s comprise Austrian midfielder Kurt Jara, forward Johnny Rep from The Netherlands along with Argentinian forward Mario Kempes, who became the La Liga leading scorer for two seasons running in 1977-78 and 1976-77. Valencia would later be the winner of the Copa del Rey again in the 1978-79 season and then win the European Cup Winners' Trophy the following season, having defeated English team Arsenal at the end of the competition with Kempes being the main force behind Valencia's successes in Europe.

1.3. Stagnation

The club was founded in 1982 and hired Miljan Miljanic as their coach. After a poor season, Valencia was in 17th position and was in danger of being relegated with only seven games to play. Koldo Aguirre was replaced by Miljanic as coach and Valencia was unable to avoid relegation the following year, depending on positive performances by other teams for their success. In the seasons 1983-84 and 1984-85 the club was in debt, under the direction under Vicente Tormo. The club reached a point of no return after being relegated in the 1985-86 campaign, and was plagued by internal issues including salaries for staff and players that were not paid and low morale. The club was deported to the second time following 55 years of Spanish top-flight football.

Arturo Tuzon was named the new president of the club, and Tuzon was instrumental in guiding Valencia towards La Liga. Alfredo Di Stefano returned as coach in 1986, and Valencia was promoted again following the 1986-87 campaign. Di Stefano stayed on as coach until 1987-88 which saw the team finish at 14th on the table in La Liga. Bulgarian forward Luboslav Penev joined the club in 1989, when Valencia determined to cement their position in La Liga. Guus Hiddink was named head coach for the 1991-92 season. During that time, the team was 4th in League and made it to the quarter-finals in the Copa del Rey. in 1992, Valencia CF officially became an official Sporting Limited Company, and retained Hiddink as the coach until 1993.

Brazilian head coach Carlos Alberto Parreira, fresh from winning the 1994 FIFA World Cup with the Brazilian national team, was appointed manager of Mestalla in 1994. Parreira immediately appointed Spanish goalkeeper Andoni Zubizarreta, Russian forward Oleg Salenko as well as Predrag Mijatovic. However, he failed to achieve the expected results from his team. The club was purchased by the new director Jose Manuel Rielo. The club's previous success were not able to be replicated even though it was lacking top coaches such as Luis Aragones and Jorge Valdano as well as international star forwards such as Brazilian Romario, Claudio Lopez, Ariel Ortega from Argentina as well as Adrian Ilie from Romania.

1.4. The 2000s: Valencia returns to the top of Spain and Europe

Valencia began the 1999-00 campaign with another victory The Spanish Super Cup, beating FC Barcelona. Valencia was second in the competition, just four points behind Champions Deportivo de La Coruna and just a few points behind the second-placed Barca. However, the most notable achievement was the UEFA Champions League; for the first time in the history of the league, Valencia reached the European Cup final. In the final, which took place in Paris on May 24, the year 2000 Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-1.

Claudio Lopez was also able to say departure, since he had signed with the Italian club Lazio and also to leave Farinos in the direction of Internazionale along with Gerard in the case of Barcelona. The major signings of this summer included John Carew, Ruben Baraja, Roberto Ayala, Vicente Rodriguez and the Brazilian left-back Fabio Aurelio. The other player that was bought included Pablo Aimar in January. Baraja, Aimar, Vicente and Ayala were soon to become a mainstay of Valencia's dominance during the 2000s early during La Liga.

Valencia began the tournament in a good way and finished at the top of the table after just 10 games. Following the break over Christmas However, Valencia started to pay for the highest price of a highly competitive competition such as that of the Champions League requires. After completing the mini-league stages Hector Cuper's team defeated Arsenal in the quarter-finals as well as Leeds United in the semi-finals and were set to take on Bayern Munich in the big final. Valencia was in the two European Cup finals in a sequence. The final was scheduled to take place on the streets of Milan on the San Siro on 23 May. Gaizka Mendieta provided Valencia the lead after scoring from the penalty spot at the beginning of the game. Goalie Santiago Canizares then stopped a penalty by Mehmet Scholl, however Stefan Effenberg drew level after the break, thanks to a second penalty. In extra-time, the game was a penalty shootout, and the Mauricio Pellegrino mistake earned Bayern Champions League glory and gave Valencia another exit from the finals. Valencia fell to fifth within La Liga and out of Champions League contestation for the 2001-02 season. In the final match of the year, it saw Valencia could only drawing at Camp Nou against Barcelona to ensure Champions League qualification. Los Che lost to Barcelona 3-1 on Barcelona 3-2 at the Nou Camp, with a late goal by Rivaldo that resulted in Barcelona being able to participate in Champions League qualification. Champions League while Valencia missed out.

President, D. Pedro Cortes was forced to resign for personal reasons and left the club in the month of July with the pleasure of winning one Copa del Rey, one Spanish Super Cup, and having finished runners-up twice in consecutive Champions League finals. D. Jaime Orti replaced as president, and he stated his determination to maintain the winning form that earned the club such a favourable reputation in the European circuit. There were some changes to the team and staff. Rafael Benitez, after helping CD Tenerife to promotion, was appointed coach Hector Cuper after the latter was appointed manager of Internazionale located in Italy. In the team, Gaizka Mendieta Didier Deschamps Luis Milla, and Zlatko Zahovic have all left, and Carlos Marchena, Mista, Curro Torres, Francisco Rufete, Gonzalo de los Santos and Salva Ballesta arrived.

From 1999 to the final season of 2004, Valencia had one of the most successful seasons during the span of the club's existence. With 2 La Liga titles, one UEFA Cup, one Copa del Rey in addition to an UEFA Super Cup in those six years, not less than five first-class championships as well as the two Champions League finals had been accomplished.

The first game they played against the champions Real Madrid produced a significant and significant victory. It was followed by the record-breaking 11 consecutive games won which broke the record that was set in the season 1970-71 in which they previously been crowned their La Liga title under Alfredo Di Stefano.

After losing at A Coruna against Deportivo on the 9th December 2001 The team needed to beat RCD Espanyol in the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in order to avoid getting further behind league leaders. Valencia were down 2-0 at half-time, however an incredible comeback in the second half resulted in Valencia beat RCD Espanyol 3-1.

In the second half in the league, the team of Benitez was a bit shaky after losing 1-0 at Santiago Bernabeu to Real Madrid, but they bounced back and scored four wins and two draws over the next six games with UD Las Palmas Athletic Bilbao, Deportivo Alaves, Real Zaragoza, and Barca.

In one of the crucial games they'd be up with Espanyol, Valencia were trailing by 1-0 at half-time, and one man down after the expulsion of Carboni and after two goals scored by Ruben Baraja Valencia were able to win 2-1. In addition, the defeat of Real Madrid in the Anoeta derby in the relegation battle against Real Sociedad left Valencia with three points in on top.

It was the final match of the season. took place in La Rosaleda to face Malaga CF on May 5, 2002. This date will be remembered in the history of Valencia. The team hid in Benalmadena close to the venue of the match in order to gain concentration. A first goal by Roberto Ayala and another close to half-time by Fabio Aurelio secured the team that they would win their 5th La Liga title, 31 years after their previous victory.

It was a dismal one for Valencia The club did not succeed in their quest to keep their La Liga title and ended being outside their Champions League spots in fifth in the table, just behind Celta of Vigo. The team was also eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Champions League by Internazionale on away goals. This season, 2003-04 saw Valencia being a little behind the leaders of the past, Real Madrid. In February, following 26 games played Real Madrid were eight points in front. However, their form began to decline towards the end of the season and they were beaten in their final five games of the season and allowed Valencia to catch them and take the title. Valencia included an additional trophy UEFA Cup to this success. Valencia had been La Liga champions twice in three seasons.

At the end of summer 2004 the coach Rafael Benitez decided to leave the club, saying there were issues with the club's president. He was soon to be the director of Liverpool. The manager was later replaced the former Valencia manager Claudio Ranieri, who had recently been fired by Chelsea. The second time he was at Valencia was not a success However, Valencia were hopeful of winning the La Liga crown but, by February, they were in seventh position. Valencia was also eliminated from the Champions League group phase, which led to Ranieri getting sacked in February. The 2004-05 season came to an end with Valencia being left out of UEFA Cup spots.

The summer of 2005 saw Getafe CF coach Quique Flores was named Valencia's new coach. Valencia and finished the season in third position which earned Valencia an entry into the Champions League after a season out of the competition. In 2006, the season filled that was not without its challenges, a season that began with realistic expectations of a chance to compete in the race for La Liga was shattered by an extensive list of injury to players, as well as internal disputes between Flores and the new Director of Sporting Amedeo Carboni. Valencia finished the season fourth and was eliminated from the Champions League at the quarter-finals stage by Chelsea 3-1 on aggregate after edging out Italian champions Inter in the second round. At the end of summer 2007 the internal conflict of Flores as well as Carboni was settled , with Carboni becoming replaced Angel Ruiz as the new Sporting Director of Valencia.

On the 29th of October, 2007 The Valencia Board of Directors dismissed Flores after a string poor performances. The the interim manager Oscar Ruben Fernandez took over temporarily until a permanent manager could be discovered, believed to be Marcello Lippi, or Jose Mourinho. The next day, Dutch manager Ronald Koeman announced that he was leaving PSV to join Valencia. However, there was no change; in actual, Valencia even went on to fall to the 15th place within the League, only two points clear of the zone of relegation. However, on the 16th of April in the year 2008 Valencia took home the Copa del Rey by winning 3-1 win against Getafe on the Vicente Calderon Stadium. It was Valencia's seventh Copa title. The following day, following an utterly devastating defeat to the league to Bilbao, Valencia fired Ronald Koeman and took over the role of Voro who would take over Valencia as the Caretaker Manager for the remainder of the season. Voro would go to win his first game since the dismissal of Koeman and beat CA Osasuna 3-0 in his first game as the new manager. Voro was able to pull Valencia from the battle for relegation to a secure middle-table position of 10th and finally end an unsatisfactory league season with Los Che.

Highly highly rated Unai Emery was named Manager of Valencia on the 22nd of May, 2008. The beginning of the new manager's tenure appeared positive, with the club winning four of the first five matches, a rise that saw the team climb to the top in the La Liga table. Although they looked impressive throughout Europe, Los Che then suffered a shaky streak of performance in the league , which saw them fall to as low as seventh the table. There were reports of a huge internal debt to the club that was in excess of 400 million euros in addition to the fact that players were not paid for some time. The problems of the team were exacerbated after they were eliminated in the UEFA Cup by Dynamo Kyiv due to away goals. After a period that saw Valencia scored just five points in ten games within La Liga, an announcement was made that the team was able to secure an investment that would pay for the expenses of players until the final day of the year. The announcement was made in conjunction with an improvement in performance which saw the club win six of the following eight games, gaining back to the vital fourth Champions' League slot. But, Los Che were then defeated by rivals in fourth place Atletico Madrid, and Villarreal in the final three fixtures of this season and ended up finishing sixth in the table. This meant they were not able to get a second consecutive year in The Champions League.

1.5. The 2010s: Debt issues and stability

The solution was not yet discovered to resolve the massive debt Valencia was in the midst of The rumor mill was that top players like David Villa, Juan Mata as well as David Silva could leave the club in order to fund the accounts. In the initial season of the decade that followed, Valencia made it back to the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2007-08, when they finished in a comfortable third place during 2010's La Liga season. But, in this summer due to financial issues, David Villa and David Silva were transferred in the transfer market to Barcelona as well as Manchester City, respectively, to help reduce the club's huge debt. However, despite the departure to two club's top players however, the team managed to finish in the top three spots in during the 2010-2011 La Liga for the second season in a row, even though they were removed out of the Champions League by German side Schalke 04 in the Round of 16. In the summer of 2011 when then captain Juan Mata was sold to Chelsea to aid Valencia's financially strained situation. The President Manuel Llorente that the club's debt was reduced and that work for the new stadium would be completed as soon as is feasible and possibly in 2012.

1.6. Peter Lim's ownership

The 2012-13 season was the time that Ernesto Valverde was announced as the new manager. However, in the end, he was not able to get into the Champions League, he stepped down and was replaced Miroslav Dukic. On the 5th of July, the 5th of July, 2013, Amadeo Salvo took over as president. A little over a month after Salvo was elected president, on August 1, the 1st of August Valencia was able to sell star forward Roberto Soldado to English club Tottenham Hotspur for a reported price that was EUR30 million. Miroslav Dukic was fired just six months into the 2013-14 campaign after only 6 wins in the first 16 matches, the club's most disappointing start in the last 15 years. Dukic was replaced by Juan Antonio Pizzi on 26 December 2013. In the time of Pizzi, Valencia reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League, where they fell the final match to Sevilla with goals from away and placed 7th overall at the top of La Liga despite a disastrous beginning to the season.

The month of May was when Singaporean investor Peter Lim was appointed by Fundacion Valencia CF as the purchaser of 70.4 percent of the shares held by the foundation of the club. After months of talks with Lim as well as Bankia (the main lender to the football club) An agreement was signed in August 2014. Juan Antonio Pizzi was unexpectedly fired as the club's head coach, and was replaced with Nuno Espirito Santanto, who was appointed on July 2, 2014. In the following days, Salvo revealed in an interview that the hiring of Nuno was among the demands Lim demanded when purchasing the club. This caused a stir among the media due to Nuno's close ties to agent for football Jorge Mendes, whose first-ever client was Nuno. Lim as well as Mendes both have close business friends and close friends. Whatever the case, Nuno's debut season was successful. The notable signings were Alvaro Negredo, Andre Gomes and Enzo Perez who just won the LPFP Primeira Liga Player of the Year award in the Portuguese Primeira Liga. Valencia finished the 2014-15 campaign in fourth position in the race to Champions League qualification with 77 points, one point clear of Sevilla after a dramatic closing week that saw them defeat Granada by a score of 4-0.

On the 2nd of July Amadeo Salvo quit his position as chief executive officer of Valencia in a personal reason. Salvo was a well-known figure with the supporters. On the 10th of August, the 10th of August in 2015 Nicolas Otamendi was sold to Manchester City for PS32 million and Aymen Abdennour joined by Monaco in exchange for PS22 million to be his replacement. Valencia beat Monaco during the Champions League playoff round with the score 4-3 on aggregate. The team, however, Valencia had a poor beginning to the 2015-16 season which saw them win just 5 of 13 games and not making it through into the Champions League group stages. Fans were also becoming worried about the increasing involvement that was being exerted by Jorge Mendes in the club's activities. On the 29th of November, Nuno resigned as manager and the former Manchester United defender Gary Neville was appointed as his replacement on the 2nd of December. Valencia lost nine games prior to securing their first victory under Neville with a 2-1 win on the road against Espanyol. On March 30, 2016 Neville was fired after registering the lowest percentage of winning of any manager in La Liga history for a Valencia manager who played a the minimum of five games and losing just three of 16 games. Neville has been replaced Pako Ayestaran, appointed by Neville as assistant coach a month before. Valencia ended the season 12th.

The summer of 2016 Andre Gomes and Paco Alcacer were both transferred to Barcelona and Shkodran Mustafi was traded to Arsenal as well as Ezequiel Garay and the former Manchester United player Nani were hired. Pako Ayestaran was sacked on 21 September 2016, following four consecutive losses at the start of the season 2016-17. A former Italy National team coach Cesare Prandelli was named his replacement on the 28th of September. But he quit after only three months on December 30 after claiming that the club had promised him a false transfer. Seven days later, on January 2017 Valencia the sporting director Jesus Garcia Pitarch also resigned and said he felt that he was employed as a cover for criticism from the club, and that he was unable to defend the things he did not believe in. Voro was appointed as the as the caretaker manager five times, until the season's end, with Valencia was in 17th place and in danger of losing its place. But, the team's performance were improved during the tenure of Voro and he helped Valencia to avoid relegation and ultimately ending the season 12th. On March 27, Mateu Alemany was named the new director general of Valencia.

The club also revealed that club President Lay Hoon Chan had submitted her resignation and will succeed by Anil Murthy. Rumors circulated about Lim's efforts to sell the team, Murthy promised the club's fans as well as the local journalists the public that Valencia is a longer-term plan for him as well as Lim and that they will not be looking at trading the team. In the next season, the former Villarreal director Marcelino was appointed the new manager on May 12.

After a very successful first year under Marcelino the club was able to secure fourth place and made it back into the Champions League. In the second season under Marcelino they finished 4th and reached the semi-finals in the UEFA Europa League. On the 25th of May, the 25th of May Valencia was crowned in the Copa del Rey beating FC Barcelona in the final when they took home their first trophy since the 2008 season.

Both Marcelino as well as the director of sports Mateu Alemany, who were considered to be the primary people behind this success were fired on the 11th of September 2019 following the publically was criticized Lim. The latter was later replaced by the unfavorable Albert Celades, who was fired due to poor performance and the sporting director Cesar Sanchez resigned the same season. This would mean six different managers as well as six directors of sports by 2020.

In the 2020-21 season, the manager Javi Gracia was appointed. He was appointed manager of a squad full of players and reserve players following the failure of the club in signing any player in the summer transfer window however, they did sell crucial players, including the captain Dani Parejo. The local star Ferran Torres was traded by Manchester City for half his market value. In total, Valencia sold players worth 85 million euros to help balance the club's finances. In the first week of the season the club was not able to pay salaries to the players remaining. After six seasons under Lim's management, Valencia CF accumulated losses of 323 million euros as the largest investment company he has, Thomson Medical Group, suffered losses of 1.7 billion euros over the same period of time. In the wake of those years of poor management the squad of players was slashed in terms of performance and Lim's leadership has been met with harsh criticism in Valencia.

In the 2021-2022 season Jose Bordalas was hired after having spent five seasons at Getafe CF. They made it to the Copa del Rey final in his first year as manager and were defeated by Real Betis on penalties after the match ended in a draw of 1-1.

2. Stadium

Valencia was a team that began its existence within The Algiros stadium, before moving into the Mestalla in 1923. In the 1950s the Mestalla was revamped and led to a capacity expansion to 45,000 people. The stadium is currently home to 49,500 spectators which makes it the fifth-largest arena in Spain. It is also famous for its high terracing as well as having an intimidating environments in Europe.

The 20th May 1923 was the day that the Mestalla pitch was officially inaugurated by the first friendly game against Valencia with Levante UD.

An extensive time has passed on the Mestalla field since its beginning, back when it was a time when the Valencia club was part of the Primera Division. In the past, the stadium could accommodate 17,000 spectators at a time. During that time the club began to demonstrate its potential at regional championships. This resulted in the management of the period to make the first changes to Mestalla during 1927. The stadium's capacity grew to 25,000 before being seriously damaged in the Civil War; the Mestalla was used as a concentration camp as well as an abandoned warehouse. It was the only one to keep its structure as the remainder was a solitary parcel of land without terraces or stands. It also had a stand damaged in the course of conflict. When there was a chance to see the Valencian pitch was restored and the Mestalla was able to see how the team could claim their first championship in 1941.

In the 1950s, Valencia stadium experienced the biggest changes in its history. The project led to an arena that could hold a total capacity of 45,500 people and was eventually destroyed due to a flood that occurred in October 1957 that resulted from the overflowing Turia River. However the Mestalla was not just restored to normal, but additional improvements were made such as artificial lighting and a new stadium, which was opened in the year 1959 during Fallas celebrations.

In the 1960s, the stadium remained the same in appearance and the view surrounding it was rapidly changed. The stadium also hosted its first European games in the 1960s, with Nottingham Forest being the first foreign team to play in the Mestalla on September 15, 1961.

In 1969, the phrase "Anem is a Mestalla" ("Let's take a trip into the Mestalla") which was frequent among fans, started to fade into the abyss of time. The reason for this resulted from a plan to name change for the stadium to honour Luis Casanova Giner, the club's most successful president. Giner acknowledged that he was overjoyed by the honor however, he requested to remain with the name of Mestalla remain.

It was in 1972 that the main headquarters of the club which was located behind the terraces that were numbered it was opened. It was an office in a modern style, with an award hall that was home to the flag that was the first of the club. In 1973, during the summer additional goal seats, which resulted in the removal of 14 rows of standing terraces were added to offer the comfort. The club's management also thought about an option of moving the Mestalla from its present site and locating it on the outskirts of town, but ultimately decided against the move.

Mestalla also was the home of the Spain national team of football initially in the year 1925. Mestalla was selected as the group stadium during the time that Spain held the FIFA World Cup in 1982 as well as during the 1992 Summer Olympics that were held in Barcelona. All matches of Spain's prior to the final were played in Mestalla in the event that they won the gold medal. It is 61 Mestalla has served as the location for international games of a high importance as well as hosting numerous Cup finals and was the venue for Levante. It also served as an interim home to Castellon as well as Real Madrid for European games due to the development of the stadium.

2.1. New Stadium

It was believed scheduled to be the final season for the Mestalla The club was scheduled to be moving to the new 75,000-seat arena Nou Mestalla in time for the 2009-10 season. However because of the club's financial trouble, construction on the stadium was stopped.

3. Club Identity

Please see below.

3.1. Kit

Originally, Valencia's kit was composed of white shirts, black shorts and socks of the same colour. Through the years, however, these colours have alternated between white and black. The away kit has been shades of orange in recent years while third alternate kits have featured colors from the club crest—yellow, blood orange and blue.

From 1980 to present
Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
1980–1982 Adidas None
1982–1985 Ressy
1985–1990 Rasan Caja Ahorros Valencia
1990–1992 Puma
1992–1993 Mediterránia
1993–1994 Luanvi
1994–1995 Cip
1995–1998 Ford
1998–2000 Terra Mítica
2000–2001 Nike
2001–2002 Metrored
2002–2003 Terra Mítica
2003–2008 Toyota / Panasonic Toyota Racing
2008–2009 Valencia Experience
2009–2011 Kappa Unibet
2011–2014 Joma Jinko Solar
2014–2016 Adidas beIN Sports
2016–2017  
2017–2019 BLU Products
2019–2020 Puma bwin
2021–present SOCIOS.com

The team have also attracted smaller, local sponsors over the years. One example is Lamiplast, a Valencia-based furniture company.

3.2. Anthem

To commemorate its 75th birthday,, the current President Arturo Tuzon commissioned Pablo Sanchez Torella to write an anthem to the club. It was an Pasodoble with lyrics that were later composed by Ramon Gimeno Gil in the Valencian language. The anthem was officially performance on the occasion of the 20th birthday of the team on the 21st of September 1993.

3.3. Crest

Valencia along with The Balearic Islands were conquered by King James I of Aragon during the early part of the 13th century. After the defeat the King granted them the independence of the kingdoms over which he was also King (but they were not subject to Aragonese rules or institutions). Valencia's arms Valencia are those from James I.

The unique crown letters "L" in addition to the shield were given to Peter IV. It was believed the city was loyal to the King twice and thus twice received an "L" and crown for the King.

There are many possibilities for the bat. One would be to say that bats fairly common in the area. The other hypothesis is that, on the 9th of October 1238, as James I was about to be able to enter the city, and then retake its defenders, the Moors the bat was spotted on highest point of the flag which he believed to be an indication of good luck. After his victory it was placed on the coat of arms.

It was revealed it was reported that DC Comics had started a legal action against the club and claimed that the brand new design of the bat is too similar to Batman. The club released an announcement stating that it planned to adopt a modified variant of the bat symbol for casual clothing . It also sought authorization to use the logo from the Office of Harmonisation of the Internal Market however, the application was withdrawn following DC Comics filed an objection but not the form of a lawsuit. DC Comics again filed a complaint with the EU's Office of IP against the trademark application submitted by Valencia for its centennial logo, saying there's a chance of confusion between its Batman's logo.

4. Players

Valencia CF is an association-based football club located within Valencia, Spain, that is a part of La Liga. The club was founded in 1919 and played its first match in competition on May 21, 1919, where it was defeated by 1-0 against Valencia Gimnastico. They were elevated into La Liga for the first time in 1931-32. They finished 7th on the first try and have only had just one full season (1986-87) outside of the top division from then on. They are among the clubs with the highest success in Spanish football winning La Liga on six occasions and the Copa del Rey eight times. They also have won the Supercopa de Espana in 1999 as well as its predecessor to it, that of the Copa Eva Duarte, in 1949. They also enjoyed notable successes in the European stage by winning the UEFA Cup, and its predecessor, the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, on three occasions. Additionally they have also won the two UEFA Super Cups, the Winners' Cup of the UEFA Cup in 1980 and the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1998. They were beaten as finalists in the UEFA Champions League in both 2000 and 2001.

Ricardo Arias holds the record for the most total appearances having appeared 501 times between the years 1976 between 1976 and 1992. Waldo was the world's leading scorer with 160.

The list contains notable footballers who had a role with Valencia. This generally means players who are playing at the least 100 league matches and/or achieved international status.

4.1. Current squad

As of 12 July 2022

 
No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  ESP Jaume Doménech
2 DF  POR Thierry Correia
3 DF  ESP Toni Lato
4 MF  USA Yunus Musah
5 DF  BRA Gabriel Paulista
6 DF  ESP Hugo Guillamón
7 FW  POR Gonçalo Guedes
8 MF  SRB Uroš Račić
9 FW  URU Maxi Gómez
10 MF  ESP Carlos Soler (vice-captain)
12 DF  GUI Mouctar Diakhaby
13 GK  NED Jasper Cillessen
14 DF  ESP José Gayà (captain)
 
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 MF  FRA Koba Koindredi
19 FW  ESP Hugo Duro
20 DF  GLP Dimitri Foulquier
22 FW  BRA Marcos André
24 DF   SUI Eray Cömert
28 GK  GEO Giorgi Mamardashvili
32 DF  ESP Jesús Vázquez
GK  ESP Cristian Rivero
DF  ARG Kevin Sibille
MF  ESP Samu Castillejo
MF  ESP Vicente Esquerdo
FW  ESP Manu Vallejo

4.2. Reserve team

 
No. Pos. Nation Player
26 MF  ESP Pedro Alemañ
30 MF  ESP Javi Guerra
31 MF  ESP Hugo González
33 FW  ESP Diego López
34 DF  ESP Joseda
35 GK  ESP Charly
 
No. Pos. Nation Player
36 MF  PER Alessandro Burlamaqui
37 DF  ESP Cristhian Mosquera
38 DF  ESP César Tárrega
39 DF  ESP Rubén Iranzo
40 MF  CIV Lassina Sangaré
44 MF  ESP Jesús Santiago
46 FW  ESP Mario Domínguez
 

4.3. Out On Loan

 
No. Pos. Nation Player
DF  ESP Jorge Sáenz (on loan to Leganés until 30 June 2023)
 

5. Coaching staff

Current technical staff
Position Staff
Head coach  Gennaro Gattuso
Assistant coach  Óscar Álvarez
Goalkeeping coach  José Manuel Ochotorena
Goalkeeping coach  Borja Fernández
Fitness coach  Javier Miñano
Fitness coach  Sergio García
Physiotherapist  Horacio González
Physiotherapist  José Luis Estellés
Physiotherapist  Mario Jarque
Physiotherapist  Álex Castillo
Physiotherapist  Pascual Castell
Chief of medical services  Pedro López Mateu
Club Doctor  Pascual Casany
Club Doctor  Juan Aliaga
Club Doctor  Antonio Maestro
Delegate  Paco Camarasa

6. Notable coaches

LL. = La Liga; CdR = Copa del Rey; SC = Supercopa de España; UCL = UEFA Champions League; UCWC = UEFA Cup Winners' Cup; UEL = UEFA Europa League; UIC = UEFA Intertoto Cup; USC = UEFA Super Cup

The following coaches have all won at least one major trophy when in charge with club
Name Period Total
Domestic International
LL CdR SC UCL UCWC UEL UIC USC
 Ramón Encinas Dios 1939–42 2 1 1 - - - - -
 Eduardo Cubells 1943–46 1 1 - - - - - -
 Luis Casas Pasarín 1946–48 1 1 - - - - - -
 Jacinto Quincoces 1948–54 3 - 2 1 - - - -
 Domingo Balmanya 1960–62 1 - - - - - 1 -
 Alejandro Scopelli 1962–63 1 - - - - - 1 -
 Edmundo Suárez 1966–68 1 - 1 - - - - -
 Alfredo Di Stéfano 1970–74, 1979–80 2 1 - - - 1 - -
 Bernardino Pérez 1979, 1980–82 2 - 1 - - - - - 1
 Claudio Ranieri 1997–99, 2004–05 3 - 1 - - - - 1 1
 Héctor Cúper 1999–01 1 - - 1 - - - -
 Rafael Benítez 2001–04 3 2 - - - - 1 -
 Ronald Koeman 2007–08 1 - 1 - - - - -
 Marcelino 2017–19 1 - 1 - - - - -
Total 1919– 23 6 8 2 0 1 3 1 2

7. Player records

Most appearances
Rank Player Nationality Apps Years
1 Fernando   553 1983–1998
2 Ricardo Arias   521 1976–1992
3 David Albelda   485 1995–2013
4 Miguel Ángel Angulo   434 1996–2009
5 Manuel Mestre   424 1956–1969
6 Santiago Cañizares   416 1998–2008
7 Enrique Saura   400 1975–1985
8 Dani Parejo   383 2011–2020
9 José Claramunt   375 1966–1978
10 Carlos Arroyo   373 1985–1996
Most goals
Rank Player Nationality Goals Years
1 Mundo   238 1939–1950
2 Waldo Machado   160 1961–1970
3 Mario Kempes   149 1976–1981
1982–1984
4 Fernando   143 1983–1998
5 David Villa   129 2005–2010
6 Silvestre Igoa   117 1941–1950
7 Manuel Badenes   102 1950–1956
8 Vicente Seguí   91 1946–1959
9 Luboslav Penev   88 1989–1995
10 Epi Fernández   87 1940–1949
 

7.1. Transfers

 

 

 
Record transfer fees paid by Valencia
Rank Player Fee (€) Paid to Date
1  Gonçalo Guedes 40,000,000  Paris Saint-Germain 2018
2  Jasper Cillessen 35,000,000  Barcelona 2019
3  Rodrigo 30,000,000  Benfica 2015
4  Álvaro Negredo 28,000,000  Manchester City 2014
5  Joaquín 25,000,000  Real Betis 2006
 Enzo Pérez  Benfica 2015
 Geoffrey Kondogbia  Internazionale 2018
8  Pablo Aimar 24,000,000  River Plate 2001
9  Aymen Abdennour 22,000,000  Monaco 2015
10  Ezequiel Garay 20,000,000  Zenit Saint Petersburg 2016

8. Seasons

  • 86 seasons in La Liga
  • 4 seasons in Segunda División
Domestic and international results of Valencia
Season League Cup Europe Other Comp. Top scorer(s)[3]
Division Pos Pld W D L GF GA Pts Player(s) Goals
1928–29 Segunda División (II) 5th 18 8 3 7 33 31 19 R2         Jesús Navarro 10
1929–30 6th 18 7 4 7 40 43 18 QF         Juan Costa 23
1930–31 1st 18 12 2 4 37 25 26 QF         Juan Costa 18
1931–32 La Liga (I) 7th 18 6 3 9 38 47 15 R2         Jesús Navarro 14
1932–33 9th 18 4 5 9 34 53 13 SF         Jesús Navarro 33
1933–34 7th 18 7 3 8 28 38 17 RU         José Vilanova 27
1934–35 9th 22 9 2 11 40 49 20 R16         Juan Costa
José Vilanova
16
1935–36 8th 22 7 5 10 36 42 19 R16         'Lelé' Santiago 14
1936–37 Spanish Civil War
1937–38
1938–39
1939–40 La Liga (I) 8th 22 9 3 10 40 36 21 SF         Edmundo Suárez 47
1940–41 3rd 22 11 5 6 60 52 27 W         30
1941–42 1st 26 18 4 4 85 39 40 SF         34
1942–43 7th 26 10 7 9 58 45 27 SF         27
1943–44 1st 26 18 4 4 73 32 40 RU         33
1944–45 5th 26 12 6 8 61 35 30 RU         27
1945–46 6th 26 9 10 7 44 36 28 RU         23
1946–47 1st 26 16 2 8 54 34 34 R16         Vicente Morera
Edmundo Suárez
11
1947–48 2nd 26 15 4 7 59 34 34 QF     Copa Eva Duarte RU Silvestre Igoa 17
1948–49 2nd 26 16 3 7 78 47 35 W         Edmundo Suárez 21
1949–50 3rd 26 12 7 7 71 43 31 SF     Copa Eva Duarte W Silvestre Igoa 27
1950–51 3rd 30 17 3 10 64 48 37 R16         Manuel Badenes 22
1951–52 5th 30 15 5 10 68 51 35 RU         26
1952–53 2nd 30 16 8 6 66 42 40 R16         Manuel Badenes
Antonio Fuertes
16
1953–54 3rd 30 14 6 10 69 51 34 W         Faas Wilkes 18
1954–55 5th 30 15 3 12 71 60 33 QF         Manuel Badenes 25
1955–56 6th 30 13 6 11 58 50 32 R16         Faas Wilkes 11
1956–57 11th 30 10 7 13 43 46 27 SF         Vicente Iborra 11
1957–58 4th 30 13 10 7 56 40 36 QF         Ricardo Alós 20
1958–59 4th 30 13 7 10 47 41 33 SF         Ricardo Alós 10
1959–60 9th 30 11 6 13 37 33 28 QF         José Aveiro 12
1960–61 5th 30 11 10 9 46 42 32 R16         Héctor Núñez 20
1961–62 7th 30 12 11 7 50 50 31 SF Fairs Cup W     Waldo Machado 22
1962–63 7th 30 14 3 13 49 36 31 QF Fairs Cup W     Héctor Núñez 20
1963–64 6th 30 16 0 14 53 47 32 SF Fairs Cup RU     Waldo Machado 25
1964–65 4th 30 17 4 9 59 37 38 QF Fairs Cup R1     24
1965–66 9th 30 11 5 14 40 35 27 R16 Fairs Cup R3     Juan Muñoz Cerdá 12
1966–67 6th 30 14 4 12 58 37 32 W Fairs Cup R3     Waldo Machado 35
1967–68 4th 30 13 8 9 52 38 34 QF Cup Winners' Cup QF     Fernando Ansola 19
1968–69 5th 30 10 11 9 36 39 31 QF Fairs Cup R1     9
1969–70 5th 30 15 5 10 35 23 35 RU Fairs Cup R1     12
1970–71 1st 30 18 7 5 41 19 43 RU Fairs Cup R2     José Vicente Forment 14
1971–72 2nd 34 19 7 8 53 30 45 RU European Cup R2     Quino 14
1972–73 7th 34 12 10 12 37 33 34 R16 UEFA Cup R2     Óscar Rubén Valdez 12
1973–74 10th 34 13 7 14 41 33 33 QF         Quino 12
1974–75 12th 34 12 8 14 53 48 32 R5         Pep Claramunt 12
1975–76 10th 34 12 8 14 43 41 32 R16         Johnny Rep 14
1976–77 7th 34 13 10 11 53 47 36 QF         Mario Kempes 24
1977–78 4th 34 16 7 11 54 33 39 QF         39
1978–79 7th 34 14 7 13 44 39 35 W UEFA Cup R3     18
1979–80 6th 34 12 12 10 50 42 36 R16 Cup Winners' Cup W     33
1980–81 4th 34 17 8 9 59 41 42 R3 Cup Winners' Cup R2 UEFA Super Cup W Fernando Morena 24
1981–82 5th 34 17 5 12 54 46 39 R16 UEFA Cup QF     Frank Arnesen 17
1982–83 15th 34 9 7 18 42 56 25 R16 UEFA Cup QF     Mario Kempes 13
1983-84 12th 34 12 8 14 45 47 32 R16         11
1984–85 9th 34 9 15 10 40 37 33 R16         Wilmar Cabrera 14
1985–86 16th 34 8 9 17 38 62 25 R4         Sixto Casabona 16
1986–87 Segunda División (II) 1st 34 19 8 7 53 26 46 R1         Pedro Alcañiz 11
1987–88 La Liga (I) 14th 38 10 13 15 44 53 33 R32         Fernando Gómez 11
1988–89 3rd 38 18 13 7 39 26 49 R32         15
1989–90 2nd 38 20 13 5 67 42 53 SF UEFA Cup R2     15
1990–91 7th 38 15 10 13 44 40 40 QF UEFA Cup R2     12
1991–92 4th 38 20 7 11 63 42 47 QF         Luboslav Penev 18
1992–93 4th 38 19 10 9 60 33 48 SF UEFA Cup R1     21
1993–94 7th 38 14 12 12 55 50 40 R16 UEFA Cup R2     Predrag Mijatović 19
1994–95 10th 38 13 12 13 53 48 38 RU         Luboslav Penev 16
1995–96 2nd 42 26 5 11 77 51 83 SF         Predrag Mijatović 34
1996–97 10th 42 15 11 16 63 59 56 R16 UEFA Cup QF     Leandro Machado
Goran Vlaović
10
1997–98 9th 38 16 7 15 58 52 55 R16         Adrian Ilie 13
1998–99 4th 38 19 8 11 63 39 65 W UEFA Cup R2 UEFA Intertoto Cup W Claudio López 38
1999–2000 3rd 38 18 10 10 59 39 64 R2 Champions League RU Supercopa de España W Gaizka Mendieta 19
2000–01 5th 38 18 9 11 55 34 63 R2 Champions League RU     Juan Sánchez 17
2001–02 1st 38 21 12 5 51 27 75 R1 UEFA Cup QF     Francisco Rufete
Juan Sánchez
8
2002–03 5th 38 17 9 12 56 35 60 R2 Champions League QF Supercopa de España RU John Carew 13
2003–04 1st 38 23 8 7 71 27 77 QF UEFA Cup W     Mista 24
2004–05 7th 38 14 16 8 54 39 58 R2 Champions League
UEFA Cup
GS
R32
UEFA Super Cup
Supercopa de España
W

RU
Marco Di Vaio 14
2005–06 3rd 38 19 12 7 58 33 69 QF     UEFA Intertoto Cup RU David Villa 28
2006–07 4th 38 20 6 12 57 42 66 R16 Champions League QF     20
2007–08 10th 38 15 6 17 48 62 51 W Champions League GS     22
2008–09 6th 38 18 8 12 68 54 62 QF UEFA Cup R32 Supercopa de España RU 31
2009–10 3rd 38 21 8 9 59 40 71 R16 Europa League QF     28
2010–11 3rd 38 21 8 9 64 44 71 R16 Champions League R16     Roberto Soldado 25
2011–12 3rd 38 17 10 11 59 44 61 SF Champions League
Europa League
GS
SF
    27
2012–13 5th 38 19 8 11 67 54 65 QF Champions League R16     30
2013–14 8th 38 13 10 15 51 53 49 R16 Europa League SF     Paco Alcácer 14
2014–15 4th 38 22 11 5 70 32 77 R16         14
2015–16 12th 38 11 11 16 46 48 44 SF Champions League
Europa League
GS
R16
    15
2016–17 12th 38 13 7 18 56 65 46 R16         Munir
Rodrigo
7
2017–18 4th 38 22 7 9 65 38 73 SF         Rodrigo 19
2018–19 4th 38 15 16 7 51 35 61 W Champions League
Europa League
GS
SF
    15
2019–20 9th 38 14 11 13 46 53 53 QF Champions League R16 Supercopa de España SF Maxi Gómez 11
2020–21 13th 38 10 13 15 50 53 43 R16         Carlos Soler 12
2021–22 9th 38 11 15 12 48 53 48 RU         Gonçalo Guedes 13

9. Honours

Please see below.

9.1. Domestic

  • La Liga
  • Winners (6): 1941–42, 1943–44, 1946–47, 1970–71, 2001–02, 2003–04
    Runners-up (6): 1947–48, 1948–49, 1952–53, 1971–72, 1989–90, 1995–96
    • Segunda Division
    Winners (2): 1930–31, 1986–87
    • Copa del Rey
    Winners (8): 1941, 1948–49, 1954, 1966–67, 1978–79, 1998–99, 2007–08, 2018–19
    Runners-up (10): 1934, 1944, 1944–45, 1946, 1952, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1994–95, 2021–22
    • Supercopa de España
    Winners (1): 1999
    Runners-up (3): 2002, 2004, 2008
    • Copa Eva Duarte (predecessor to the Supercopa de España)
    Winners (1): 1949
    Runners-up (1): 1947
    • Copa Presidente FEF (es) (predecessor to the Supercopa de España)
    Runners-up (1): 1947

9.2. European

  • UEFA Champions League
  • Runners-up (2): 1999–2000, 2000–01
    • European Cup Winners' Cup
    Winners (1): 1979–80
    • UEFA Cup
    Winners (1): 2003–04
    • Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
    Winners (2): 1961–62, 1962–63
    Runners-up (1): 1963–64
    • European Super Cup/UEFA Super Cup
    Winners (2): 1980, 2004
    • UEFA Intertoto Cup
    Winners (1): 1998
    Runners-up (1): 2005

9.3. Awards & recognitions

  • IFFHS The World's Club Team of the Year: 2004

10. Valencia CF in international football

Competition Pld W D L GF GA GD
European Cup/Champions League 128 57 35 36 191 130 61
Cup Winners' Cup 19 10 5 4 39 20 19
UEFA Cup/Europa League 133 65 36 32 226 145 81
Fairs Cup 52 29 10 12 112 67 35
Super Cup 3 2 0 1 4 3 1
Intertoto Cup 12 7 3 2 17 4 13

Total

347 171 90 87 589 369 220
 

11. The Academy: Training Centre Foundation Valencia CF

Since May 2009 Valencia CF has had a training facility, which is the first multidisciplinary training centre for a football team in Spain.

The Training Centre Foundation Valencia CF "The Academy" provides university-level education, classroom training as well as online courses in football and sport. soccer.

Valencia CF is one of the clubs in Spain that offers the Sport Management MBA, the MBA of International Sport Management, currently is in operation alongside Valencia Catholic University Saint Vincent Martyr.

The 90th anniversary celebration of Valencia CF, The Academy was inaugurated in its University of Valencia the first university course to study the background of a football club, Valencia CF is the first football club in Spain that was the subject of study at college.

12. Motorsports involvement

Valencia CF were also involved in motorsports like Formula One, Super GT, MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3 250cc, in addition to Formula Nippon. Valencia CF was an official partner of Panasonic Toyota Racing from 2003 until 2008 to celebrate Toyota for their sponsorship of the team's shirt. Valencia CF also sponsored all Toyota-powered Formula Nippon teams as well as Toyota Super GT teams in GT500 and GT300 cars. Since 2009, Valencia CF became an official partner of the 250cc Stop And Go Racing Team. Stop And Go Racing Team and, later in 2014, Valencia CF also became official partner of the Aspar Team in MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 classes as well as Moto2 and Moto3 classes.

13. E-Sports involvement

In June 2016, Valencia opened an E-Sports division with presences in Hearthstone, Rocket League and League of Legends - in the last case, they joined Besiktas, Santos, Schalke and PSG in the acquisition of League teams. They have announced the details of their League squad on July 13, which is comprised majority made up of Spanish players, with a few who have European League of Legends Championship Series (EU LCS) previous experience.

In November of 2020, Valencia CF eSports launced an eSports team at the Arena of Valor in Thailand . The team is comprised of six Thai players, who compete on the RoV Pro League competitions. They joined the local club Buriram United FC and then, French club Paris Saint-Germain FC when it was acquired by Paris Saint-Germain FC. AoV teams.