Riga FC
Full name | Riga Football Club | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Founded | 30 April 2014 | |||
Ground | Skonto Stadium | |||
Capacity | 8,087 | |||
Chairman | Aleksandrs Proņins | |||
Manager | Simo Valakari | |||
League | Virslīga | |||
2023 | Virslīga, 2nd of 10 | |||
Website | Club website | |||
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Riga Football Club, commonly referred to as Riga FC, is a Latvian football club, founded in 2014. The club is based at the Skonto Stadium in Riga. Since 2016, the club has been playing in the Virslīga.
History
[edit]The club was officially registered in April 2014.[1] The team was established before the 2015 season after a merger of two Riga based teams – FC Caramba and Dinamo Rīga. In the 2015 season, under the name FC Caramba/Dinamo, the team played in the Latvian First League by using the licence received by FC Caramba, an unrelated team founded by future FK RFS co-founder Maksims Krivuņecs, which had won promotion to the 1. līga after winning the Latvian Second League in 2014.[2] After winning the 2015 First League and earning promotion to the Higher League, the club changed its name to Riga FC.[3]
In 2017, Riga FC acquired the Šitiks Football Academy (Šitika FA), founded in 2001 by Genādijs Šitiks, and operates as one of its youth academies, Riga FC Academy.[4][5]
In 2018, the Ukrainian Viktor Skrypnyk was appointed as coach. He managed to lead the club to two Latvian Higher Leagues in 2018, 2019 and the Latvian Football Cup in 2018.
Domestic
[edit]Season | Division (Name) | Pos./Teams | Pl. | W | D | L | GS | GA | P | Latvian Football Cup | Top Scorer (League) | Manager |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | 2nd | 1/(16) | 30 | 27 | 3 | 0 | 142 | 14 | 84 | Round of 16 | Verners Apiņš – 31 | Mihails Koņevs |
2016 | 1st | 5/(8) | 28 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 28 | 24 | 36 | Runner-up | Roberts Savaļnieks Yōsuke Saitō – 5 |
Kiril Kurbatov Dmitri Khomukha Vladimir Volchek |
2017 | 1st | 3/(7) | 24 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 28 | 20 | 37 | Runner-up | Bogdan Vaštšuk – 8 | Vladimir Volchek Mihails Koņevs Yevgeny Perevertaylo Slaviša Stojanovič |
2018 | 1st | 1/(8) | 28 | 20 | 4 | 4 | 45 | 16 | 64 | Winner | Darko Lemajić – 15 | Goce Sedloski Mihails Koņevs Viktor Skrypnyk |
2019 | 1st | 1/(9) | 32 | 20 | 6 | 6 | 59 | 21 | 66 | Semi-Finals | Roman Debelko – 7 | Luís Berkemeier Pimenta Oleg Kubarev Mihails Koņevs |
2020 | 1st | 1/(10) | 27 | 23 | 0 | 4 | 60 | 21 | 69 | Quarter-finals | Kule Mbombo – 12 | Oleg Kononov Mihails Koņevs |
2021 | 1st | 4/(9) | 28 | 14 | 8 | 6 | 54 | 26 | 50 | Semifinals | Stefan Milošević – 13 | Denis Laktionov Kristaps Blanks Andris Rihters Sashko Poposki |
2022 | 1st | 2/(10) | 36 | 26 | 3 | 7 | 68 | 23 | 81 | Round of 16 | Marcelo Torres – 11 | Thorsten Fink Kristaps Blanks Sandro Perković |
2023 | 1st | 2/(10) | 36 | 27 | 7 | 2 | 89 | 21 | 88 | Winner | Marko Regža – 19 | Tomislav Stipić |
European
[edit]Fully up to date as of 1 August 2024
Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UEFA Champions League | 5 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | –3 |
UEFA Europa League | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 11 | 12 | –1 |
UEFA Europa Conference League | 20 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 27 | 24 | +3 |
Total | 35 | 14 | 7 | 14 | 39 | 40 | –1 |
Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Agg. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018–19 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR | CSKA Sofia | 1−0 | 0−1 | 1−1[a] | |
2019–20 | UEFA Champions League | 1QR | Dundalk | 0−0 | 0−0 | 0−0[b] | |
UEFA Europa League | 2QR | Piast Gliwice | 2−1 | 2−3 | 4−4 (a) | ||
3QR | HJK | 1−1 | 2−2 | 3−3 (a) | |||
PO | Copenhagen | 1−0 | 1−3 | 2−3 | |||
2020–21 | UEFA Champions League | 1QR | Maccabi Tel Aviv | — | 0−2 | — | |
UEFA Europa League | 2QR | Tre Fiori | 1−0 | — | — | ||
3QR | Celtic | 0−1 | — | — | |||
2021–22 | UEFA Champions League | 1QR | Malmö | 1−1 | 0−1 | 1−2 | |
UEFA Europa Conference League | 2QR | Shkëndija | 2−0 | 1−0 | 3−0 | ||
3QR | Hibernians | 0−1 | 4−1 (a.e.t.) | 4−2 | |||
PO | Lincoln Red Imps | 1−1 | 1−3 (a.e.t.) | 2−4 | |||
2022–23 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 1QR | Derry City | 2−0 | 2−0 | 4−0 | |
2QR | Ružomberok | 2−1 | 3−0 | 5−1 | |||
3QR | Gil Vicente | 1−1 | 0−4 | 1−5 | |||
2023–24 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 1QR | Víkingur Reykjavík | 2−0 | 0−1 | 2−1 | |
2QR | Kecskemét | 3−1 (a.e.t.) | 1−2 | 4−3 | |||
3QR | Twente | 0−3 | 0−2 | 0−5 | |||
2024–25 | UEFA Conference League | 2QR | Śląsk Wrocław | 1−0 | 1−3 | 2−3 |
- Notes
- 1QR: First qualifying round
- 2QR: Second qualifying round
- 3QR: Third qualifying round
- PO: Play-off round
Honours
[edit]- Latvian Higher League
- Latvian Cup
- Latvian First League
- Champions: 2015
Kits
[edit]Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors
[edit]Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
---|---|---|
2015 | Adidas | — |
2016 | Jako | — |
2017 | Marine Service Group | |
2018 | ||
2019 | ||
2020 | ||
2021 | ||
2022 |
2016
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2017–18
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2019
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2020–22
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2016
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2017
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2018–19
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2020–22
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2021–22
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|
Players
[edit]Current squad
[edit]- As of 10 August 2024[6]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Other players under contract
[edit]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
[edit]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Captains
[edit]Season | Pos. | Captain |
---|---|---|
2016 | MF | Oļegs Laizāns |
2017 | DF | Kaspars Gorkšs |
2018 | DF | Volodymyr Bayenko |
2019 | MF | Aleksejs Višņakovs |
2020 | MF | Stefan Panić |
2021 | DF | Antonijs Černomordijs |
2022 | ||
2023 | MF | Miloš Jojić |
Current staff
[edit]Position | Name |
---|---|
Head coach | Simo Valakari |
Assistant coach | Vjekoslav Miletić |
Coach | Sergejs Kožans |
Coach | Kristaps Blanks |
Goalkeeper coach | Goran Brašnić |
Fitness coach | Milenko Kumić |
Physiotherapist | Roberts Krčmar |
Position | Name |
---|---|
Doctor | Viktors Simanovičs |
Doctor | Rolands Brencāns |
Current board
[edit]As of 13 March 2021 [9]
Controversies
[edit]In 2020, it was reported that Russian businessman Sergey Lomakin, the owner of Riga FC, was included in Latvia's persona non grata list.[10] This was denied by the board of the club.[11]
Notable players
[edit]Former managers
[edit]Coach | Period | Major Titles |
Domestic | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
from | until | days | LČ | LK | 1L | ||
Mihails Koņevs | 1 March 2015 | 30 November 2015 | 274 | 1 | – | – | 1 |
Kiril Kurbatov | 1 January 2016 | 10 April 2016 | 100 | – | – | – | – |
Dmitri Khomukha | 11 April 2016 | 9 August 2016 | 120 | – | – | – | – |
Vladimir Volchek | 12 August 2016 | 19 April 2017 | 250 | – | – | – | – |
Mihails Koņevs (caretaker) | 20 April 2017 | 11 May 2017 | 21 | – | – | – | – |
Yevgeny Perevertaylo | 12 May 2017 | 29 July 2017 | 78 | – | – | – | – |
Slaviša Stojanović | 30 July 2017 | 31 December 2017 | 154 | – | – | – | – |
Goce Sedloski | 27 January 2018 | 25 May 2018 | 118 | – | – | – | – |
Mihails Koņevs (caretaker) | 26 May 2018 | 4 July 2018 | 39 | – | – | – | – |
Viktor Skrypnyk | 5 July 2018 | 31 January 2019 | 210 | 2 | 1 | 1 | – |
Luís Berkemeier Pimenta | 5 February 2019 | 2 March 2019 | 25 | – | – | – | – |
Mihails Koņevs (caretaker) | 3 March 2019 | 27 March 2019 | 24 | – | – | – | – |
Oleg Kubarev | 28 March 2019 | 26 April 2019 | 29 | – | – | – | – |
Mihails Koņevs | 27 April 2019 | 5 February 2020 | 284 | 1 | 1 | – | – |
Oleg Kononov | 5 February 2020 | 11 November 2020 | 280 | – | – | – | – |
Mihails Koņevs (caretaker) | 12 November 2020 | 31 December 2020 | 49 | 1 | 1 | – | – |
Denis Laktionov | 1 January 2021 | 25 May 2021 | 144 | – | – | – | – |
Kristaps Blanks (caretaker) | 27 May 2021 | 8 June 2021 | 12 | – | – | – | – |
Andris Rihters | 9 June 2021 | 10 September 2021 | 93 | – | – | – | – |
Sashko Poposki (caretaker) | 12 September 2021 | 30 November 2021 | 79 | – | – | – | – |
Thorsten Fink | 4 January 2022 | 16 May 2022 | 132 | – | – | – | – |
Kristaps Blanks (caretaker) | 16 May 2022 | 7 June 2022 | 22 | – | – | – | – |
Sandro Perković | 7 June 2022 | 7 January 2023 | 214 | – | – | – | – |
Tomislav Stipić | 7 January 2023 | 13 December 2023 | 340 | 1 | – | 1 | – |
Simo Valakari | 14 December 2023 | present | 283 | – | – | - | – |
Player records
[edit]Top goalscorers
[edit]- As of 11 November 2023
# | Name | Years | League | Cup | Europe | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Darko Lemajić | 2017 – 2019 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 26 |
2 | Marko Regža | 2023 – present | 19 | 1 | 1 | 21 |
3 | Mikael Soisalo | 2021 – 2023 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 19 |
4 | Felipe Brisola | 2018 – 2021 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 18 |
5 | Douglas Aurélio | 2022 – present | 13 | 1 | 3 | 17 |
6 | Gabriel Ramos | 2021 – 2022 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 15 |
Stefan Milošević | 2020 – 2021 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 15 | |
8 | Kamil Biliński | 2018 – 2019 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 14 |
Roman Debelko | 2019 – 2020 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 14 | |
10 | Marcelo Torres | 2022 – 2022 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
Bold signifies a current Riga FC player
Most appearances
[edit]- As of 30 November 2021
# | Name | Years | League | Cup | Europe | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Armands Pētersons | 2016 – present | 117 | 11 | 17 | 145 |
2 | Antonijs Černomordijs | 2016 – 2017 2018 – present |
96 | 9 | 15 | 120 |
3 | Oļegs Laizāns | 2016 – 2021 | 96 | 13 | 8 | 117 |
4 | Roberts Ozols | 2015 – present | 88 | 12 | 15 | 115 |
5 | Antons Kurakins | 2017 – present | 86 | 15 | 2 | 103 |
Bold signifies a current Riga FC player
Notes
[edit]- ^ Lost 5−3 on Penalty shootout.
- ^ Lost 5−4 on Penalty shootout.
References
[edit]- ^ LURSOFT (2019-04-01). "Riga Football Club, 40008223802 - company data". Lursoft. Archived from the original on 2021-08-18. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
- ^ Novickis, Edmunds (2016-02-26). "Virslīgas kluba RFS pārstāvji ar entuziasmu: "Šis projekts 100% ir ilgtermiņa!"" [Representatives of Virslīga club RFS say with enthusiasm "This project is 100% long-term!"]. Sportacentrs.com (in Latvian). Retrieved 2024-01-26.
- ^ ""Caramba/Dinamo" pārmaiņas: jauns treneris, cits nosaukums un stadions". sportacentrs.com (in Latvian). 22 December 2015. Archived from the original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
- ^ "Genādija Šitika trešais cikls". Sporto (in Latvian). Retrieved 2023-10-18.
- ^ "Par mums – Riga Football Club Academy". Retrieved 2023-10-18.
- ^ "Komanda" [A Team] (in Latvian). Riga FC. Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
- ^ "Coaches and staff - Riga Football Club". www.rigafc.lv. Archived from the original on 2021-07-18. Retrieved 2021-07-18.
- ^ "Coaches and staff – Riga FC". Riga FC. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
- ^ "Management and administration – Riga FC". Riga FC. Archived from the original on 18 May 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
- ^ "Pēdējo gadu Latvijas spēcīgākās futbola komandas īpašnieks iekļauts valstij nevēlamo personu sarakstā". Jauns.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 2024-02-20.
- ^ курс, The Baltic Course-Балтийский. "Latvian football club Riga owner Lomakin included on persona non grata list". The Baltic Course | Baltic States news & analytics. Retrieved 2024-02-20.