History
On April 10, 1913, a group of young people living near a Russian Monument in Sofia and representatives of the local capital clubs Botev and Razvitie, in a coffee-house – Alabin str. in Sofia, decided to establish an incorporated sport club – the first organized sport club in Sofia. The new incorporated club has named Slavia. Dimitar Blagoev – Palio, a 21 year-old student, was elected as the first president of the club. As members of the first club administrative council were elected Emanuil Geshev, Ferdinand Mihaylov, Tsvyatko Velichkov, Georgi Grigorov and Todor Kalkandzhiev. A few days later, was elected the first football team of the club - Stefan Lalov, Ilia Georgiev, Emanuil Geshev, Todor Kalkandzhiev, Stefan Chumpalov, Dimitar Blagoev – Palio (all of them from Botev) and Pavel Grozdanov, Ferdinand Mihaylov, Boris Sharankov, Asen Bramchev, Dimitar Cvetkov (all of them from Razvitie). The first sport dresses of the club were white shirts and black shorts. Since 1924 the team plays with white shirts and white shorts and up to present days it is popular as the "White pride". On August 11, 1913, Slavia plays its first match versus the local team Savata and wins by 1–0.
After the First world war, Slavia began to become more successful. On June 5, 1928, the team won its first champion title, winning with 4–0 the final match against Vladislav Varna. The title was won by Slavia five more times until 1946, these were achieved in 1930, 1936, 1938–39, 1941 and 1943.
Slavia won the Bulgarian Cup for first time in 1952. By winning the 1963 Bulgarian Cup Final, Slavia qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, the club's first appearance in European competition. They were drawn against Hungarian club MTK Budapest in the first round. Slavia were knocked out of the competition 2–1 on aggregate. Its most important achievements in Europe during 1966–67 Cup Winners' Cup campaign when Slavia eliminated Swansea City, RC Strasbourg and Servette FC, before being eliminated by Rangers at the semi-finals. The team consisted of great players such as goalkeeper Simeon Simeonov, Ivan Davidov, Aleksandar Shalamanov, Dimitar Largov, Dimitar Kostov and Aleksandar Vasilev.
In 1969 Slavia was merged with Lokomotiv Sofia under the name ZhSK Slavia. Two years later the two clubs split again after splitting was supported by 100,000 fans.
In the 1980–81 season, lead by Chavdar Tsvetkov and Andrey Zhelyazkov, Slavia reached the quarter-finals of the Cup Winners' Cup before losing 6–3 on aggregate to Feyenoord Rotterdam. In 1986, Slavia won Balkans Cup. In the final they beat Greek side Panionios 5–3 on aggregate. In 1988 Slavia won Balkans Cup for second time in his history.
In 1994 Stoyan Kotsev, the former Slavia midfielder, was appointed as new manager. After finished fourth in 1995, they went on the win the A PFG title in 1995–96. Slavia finished with 5 points more than the second, Levski Sofia. This marked Slavia's first Bulgarian title since 1943. In the 2011–12 season, Slavia reached the Bulgarian Cup Final, beating Ludogorets Razgrad, Etar 1924, Chernomorets Burgas and Pirin Blagoevgrad. However, they lost the final 1–0 to CSKA Sofia.
Read more about this topic: PFC Slavia Sofia
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“A people without history
Is not redeemed from time, for history is a pattern
Of timeless moments.”
—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)
“All history attests that man has subjected woman to his will, used her as a means to promote his selfish gratification, to minister to his sensual pleasures, to be instrumental in promoting his comfort; but never has he desired to elevate her to that rank she was created to fill. He has done all he could to debase and enslave her mind; and now he looks triumphantly on the ruin he has wrought, and say, the being he has thus deeply injured is his inferior.”
—Sarah M. Grimke (1792–1873)
“The steps toward the emancipation of women are first intellectual, then industrial, lastly legal and political. Great strides in the first two of these stages already have been made of millions of women who do not yet perceive that it is surely carrying them towards the last.”
—Ellen Battelle Dietrick, U.S. suffragist. As quoted in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 4, ch. 13, by Susan B. Anthony and Ida Husted Harper (1902)