FC Zbrojovka Brno

FC Zbrojovka Brno
Full nameFootball Club Zbrojovka Brno a.s.
Nickname(s)Flinta (The Gun)
Zbrojováci (The Gunmakers)
Jihomoravané (South Moravians)
Founded1913; 111 years ago (1913) (as SK Židenice)
GroundADAX Invest Arena
Capacity12,550
ChairmanJan Mynář
ManagerJaroslav Hynek
LeagueCzech National Football League
2023–249th of 16
Websitehttps://www.fczbrno.cz
Current season

FC Zbrojovka Brno is a professional football club based in the city of Brno, South Moravian Region, Czech Republic and named after Zbrojovka Brno, a firearms manufacturer. Founded in 1913 as SK Židenice, the club later became known as Zbrojovka Brno. Brno won the Czechoslovak First League in the 1977–78 season and finished as runners-up in 1979–80.

History

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Club logo for the 2023–24 season

The club, initially known as SK Židenice, played in the top tier of Czechoslovak football from 1933 until suffering relegation in the 1946–47 Czechoslovak First League.[1] During this period, the club entered the Mitropa Cup three times, reaching the quarter-finals in 1935 as well as taking part in the competition in 1936 and 1938.

Between 1950 and 1962 the club played outside the top tier, returning in the 1962–63 Czechoslovak First League.[1] Five seasons elapsed before the club was again relegated, in 1967.[1] They then spent four years in the second tier of Czechoslovak football before returning to the top flight.[1] In the 1970s the club was a strong force in the country, winning the Czechoslovak First League in 1978, finishing third the following season and being runners up in 1980.

The 1980s were less spectacular for Brno, as the club was relegated in 1983, playing until 1989 in the second tier. After just two seasons in the top tier, the club finished last in 1991 and was again relegated.[1]

Between 1992 and 2011, Brno played in the top tier of the Czech Republic for 19 consecutive seasons, the longest such spell in the club's history.[1] In 2011, the club was relegated to the second division.[1] In the 2011–12 Czech 2. Liga, the club only managed to finish fourth, missing out on the promotion places. However, due to the stadium requirements of the Czech First League, champions FK Ústí nad Labem as well as third-placed FK Baník Sokolov were ineligible for promotion. As a result, Brno won promotion immediately back to the top tier.[2] In 2018, the club was relegated to the second division.[3] In the 2018–19 Czech Second League, the club managed to finish third but lost the promotion play-off to Příbram.[4]

Historical names

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Source: [5]

  • SK Židenice / Sportovní klub (Sports club) Židenice (1913–47)
  • SK Zbrojovka Židenice Brno / Sportovní klub (Sports club) Zbrojovka Židenice Brno (1947–48)
  • JTO Sokol Zbrojovka Židenice Brno / Jednotná tělovýchovná organizace (Unified physical education organization) Sokol Zbrojovka Židenice Brno (1948–51)
  • JTO Sokol Zbrojovka Brno / Jednotná tělovýchovná organizace (Unified physical education organization) Sokol Zbrojovka Brno (1951–53)
  • DSO Spartak Zbrojovka Brno / Dobrovolná sportovní organizace (Voluntary sports organization) Spartak Zbrojovka Brno (1953–56)
  • TJ Spartak ZJŠ Brno / Tělovýchovná jednota (Physical education unity) Spartak Závody Jana Švermy Brno (1956–68)
  • TJ Zbrojovka Brno / Tělovýchovná jednota (Physical education unity) Zbrojovka Brno (1968–90)
  • FC Zbrojovka Brno / Football Club Zbrojovka Brno (1990–92)
  • FC Boby Brno / Football Club Boby Brno (1992–94)
  • FC Boby Brno Unistav / Football Club Boby Brno Unistav (1994–97)
  • FC Boby-sport Brno / Football Club Boby-sport Brno (1997–2000)
  • FC Stavo Artikel Brno / Football Club Stavo Artikel Brno (2000–02)
  • 1. FC Brno / First Football Club Brno (2002–10)
  • FC Zbrojovka Brno / Football Club Zbrojovka Brno (2010– )

In 1962, there was an amalgamation between Rudá Hvězda Brno (1956–62) and Spartak ZJŠ Brno.

European competitions

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Brno (then SK Židenice) competed in the Mitropa Cup three times before World War II, reaching the quarter-finals in 1935.

Because Brno was a major fairs city of Czechoslovakia, teams from Brno played in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in the 1960s. It was Spartak KPS Brno who participated first, then Spartak ZJŠ Brno (Zbrojovka) played five times in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in a row, reaching the quarter-finals in 1963–64.

In their only appearance to date in the competition, Brno reached the second round of the 1978–79 European Cup. The club played in the 1993–94 European Cup Winners' Cup but lost in the first round. Brno took part in the UEFA Cup three times, reaching the quarter-finals in 1979–80 and also playing in 1980–81 and 1997–98.

Stadium

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Brno have played at Městský fotbalový stadion Srbská since 2001, when they moved from previous home Stadion Za Lužánkami.[6] In the 1990s, Brno attracted record crowds to their football matches, with Za Lužánkami as the venue for all of the top ten most-attended Czech First League matches.[7] The highest attendance for a Brno match is 44,120, set in a league match against Slavia Prague.[7]

Players

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Current squad

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As of 28 August 2024.[8]

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 Czech Republic CZE Michal Hložánek
2 DF Slovakia SVK Šimon Mičuda
3 DF Ghana GHA Foster Gyamfi
4 DF Czech Republic CZE Luděk Pernica
5 DF Czech Republic CZE Jiří Hamza
6 MF Czech Republic CZE Daniel Polák
7 MF Czech Republic CZE Ondřej Pachlopník
8 DF Czech Republic CZE Zdeněk Toman
9 FW Czech Republic CZE Daniel Švancara
10 MF Czech Republic CZE Roman Potočný
13 MF Czech Republic CZE Jiří Texl
16 FW Czech Republic CZE Adam Kronus
17 FW Croatia CRO Carlo Mateković (on loan from Lokomotiva Zagreb)
No. Pos. Nation Player
18 DF Czech Republic CZE Denis Granečný
21 FW Czech Republic CZE Filip Večeřa
23 DF Czech Republic CZE Jakub Šural
24 GK Czech Republic CZE Dominik Sváček
26 DF Czech Republic CZE Martin Nový
27 GK Czech Republic CZE Filip Mucha
29 MF Czech Republic CZE Tomáš Smejkal
31 MF Czech Republic CZE David Jambor
32 MF Czech Republic CZE Jan Hellebrand
44 DF Czech Republic CZE Filip Štěpánek
68 MF Czech Republic CZE Jakub Janetzký
77 DF Czech Republic CZE Lucas Kubr

Out on loan

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

No. Pos. Nation Player

Reserves

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As of 2024–25, the club's reserve team FC Zbrojovka Brno B plays in the Moravian-Silesian Football League (3rd tier of Czech football system). The reserve team played in three consecutive seasons of the Czech National Football League (2003–04, 2004–05 and 2005–06).

Notable former players

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Some of the biggest Czech football legends played for Brno briefly:[9]

Player records in the Czech First League

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As of 31 May 2024.[10]

Highlighted players are in the current squad.

Most clean sheets

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# Name Clean sheets
1 Czech Republic Luboš Přibyl 70
2 Czech Republic Dušan Melichárek 30
3 Czech Republic Martin Lejsal 27

Current technical staff

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As of 17 June 2024
Position Name
Manager Czech Republic Jaroslav Hynek
Assistant manager Czech Republic Richard Polák
Goalkeeping coach Czech Republic Vlastimil Hrubý

Managers

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History in domestic competitions

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  • 1971–83: Czechoslovak First League
  • 1983–89: Czech National League
  • 1989–91: Czechoslovak First League
  • 1991–92: Czech National League
  • 1992–93: Czechoslovak First League
  • 1993–11: Czech First League
  • 2011–12: Czech National Football League
  • 2012–18: Czech First League
  • 2018–20: Czech National Football League
  • 2020–21: Czech First League
  • 2021–22: Czech National Football League
  • 2022–23: Czech First League
  • 2023–present: Czech National Football League
  • Seasons spent at Level 1 of the football league system: 26
  • Seasons spent at Level 2 of the football league system: 5
  • Seasons spent at Level 3 of the football league system: 0
  • Seasons spent at Level 4 of the football league system: 0

Czech Republic

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Season League Placed Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Cup
1993–94 1. liga 12th 30 10 6 14 38 46 –8 36 Quarter-finals
1994–95 1. liga 3rd 30 15 9 6 52 27 +25 54 Round of 32
1995–96 1. liga 8th 30 12 7 11 39 42 –3 43 Round of 64
1996–97 1. liga 4th 30 14 10 6 44 35 +9 52 Quarter-finals
1997–98 1. liga 10th 30 10 7 13 42 42 0 37 Semi-finals
1998–99 1. liga 7th 30 11 8 11 37 33 +4 41 Quarter-finals
1999–00 1. liga 4th 30 12 6 12 3 33 +2 42 Round of 16
2000–01 1. liga 13th 30 7 9 14 24 35 –11 30 Round of 16
2001–02 1. liga 8th 30 10 10 10 34 42 –8 40 Round of 16
2002–03 1. liga 9th 30 10 9 11 35 31 +4 39 Round of 16
2003–04 1. liga 14th 30 7 9 14 33 43 –10 30 Quarter-finals
2004–05 1. liga 11th 30 9 6 15 30 42 –12 33 Round of 32
2005–06 1. liga 12th 30 7 14 9 35 36 –1 35 Semi-finals
2006–07 1. liga 5th 30 13 7 10 34 42 –8 46 Second round
2007–08 1. liga 4th 30 16 7 7 43 32 +11 55 Semi-finals
2008–09 1. liga 11th 30 9 8 13 32 36 –4 35 Round of 32
2009–10 1. liga 11th 30 9 8 13 31 40 –9 35 Round of 32
2010–11 1. liga 15th 30 7 3 20 33 55 –22 24 Quarter-finals
2011–12 2. liga 4th 30 13 10 7 37 29 +8 49 Round of 32
2012–13 1. liga 13th 30 9 5 16 34 53 –19 32 Second round
2013–14 1. liga 9th 30 10 7 13 32 42 –10 37 Semi-finals
2014–15 1. liga 14th 30 9 6 15 34 45 –11 33 Round of 32
2015–16 1. liga 6th 30 14 5 11 37 38 -1 47 Round of 16
2016–17 1. liga 11th 30 6 14 10 32 45 -13 32 Quarter-finals
2017–18 1. liga 16th 30 6 6 18 20 43 –23 24 Round of 64
2018–19 2. liga 3rd 30 17 6 7 63 31 +32 57 Round of 32
2019–20 2. liga 2nd 30 20 7 3 75 29 +46 67 Round of 32
2020–21 1. liga 16th 34 5 11 18 33 57 –24 26 Round of 16
2021–22 2. liga 1st 30 22 3 5 61 29 +32 69 Round of 32
2022–23 1. liga 16th 35 8 9 18 41 64 –23 33 Quarter-finals
2023–24 2. liga 9th 30 11 6 13 41 42 –1 39 Round of 32

Honours

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  • Czechoslovak First League
    • Winners (1): 1977–78
    • Runners-up (1): 1979–80
    • Third place (4): 1934–35, 1937–38, 1945–46, 1978–79
  • Czech First League
    • Third place (1): 1994–95
  • Czechoslovak Amateur League
    • Winners (1): 1926
  • Czechoslovak Cup
    • Winners (1): 1959–60 (Rudá Hvězda)
  • Czech Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 1992–93

Club records

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Czech First League records

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Krutil, Robin; Meitner, Zdeněk (25 May 2011). "Kdo zavinil pád fotbalového Brna? Chyby kupili všichni" (in Czech). idnes.cz. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  2. ^ Novák, Jaromír (6 June 2012). "Brno postupuje do první ligy, Ústí doplatilo na nevyhovující stadion" (in Czech). idnes.cz. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  3. ^ Punčochář, Jiří (20 May 2018). "Odchod zadním vchodem, zklamání, ticho. Na Brno naplno dolehl sestup". iDnes. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  4. ^ "Příbram – Brno 0:0. Středočechům stačila k ligové záchraně remíza". iSport. Archived from the original on 10 June 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  5. ^ "Historie brněnského fotbalového klubu" (in Czech). fczbrno.cz. Archived from the original on 16 June 2022. Retrieved 28 May 2022.
  6. ^ "Fanoušci Zbrojovky oslaví století klubu u ruiny stadionu za Lužánkami". Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). 5 January 2013. Archived from the original on 8 January 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Na Letné padl divácký rekord 21. století" [At Letna the spectator record for the 21st century was broken]. Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). Czech Republic. 9 November 2003. Archived from the original on 6 April 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2012.
  8. ^ "A-tým". FC Zbrojovka Brno.
  9. ^ Zabloudil, Antonín; Čapka, František (2013). 100 let fotbalového klubu FC Zbrojovka Brno. Brno: CERM. ISBN 978-80-7204-834-2.
  10. ^ "Detailed stats". Fortuna liga.
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