PFC Litex Lovech
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| Full name | Professional football club Litex Lovech | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Oranges | ||
| Short name | Litex | ||
| Founded |
1921 as Hisarya Sports Club | ||
| Ground |
Lovech Stadium, Lovech | ||
| Capacity | 8,100 | ||
| Owner | Danail Ganchev | ||
| Chairman | Trifon Popov[1] | ||
| Manager | Lyuboslav Penev | ||
| League | A Group | ||
| 2015–16 | A Group, Expelled | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
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PFC Litex Lovech (Bulgarian: ПФК Литекс Ловеч) or simply Litex (Bulgarian: Литекс) is a Bulgarian football club from the town of Lovech, which competes in the B Group, the second division of Bulgarian football. The club was founded in 1921 as Hisarya Football Club.
The club's home ground is the Lovech Stadium, which has a capacity of 8100 seats, electric floodlights and permission to stage European matches. To date, Litex has won the championship four times and has won the Bulgarian Cup four times. Together with CSKA Sofia and Levski Sofia, Litex is the third Bulgarian football club that represents the country in the European Club Association.
History
1921–1996
The club was founded in 1921 as Hisarya and began playing league football during 1923. Over the years, the club has changed its name several times. From 1957 named Karpachev, before becoming Osam in 1979. Under that name the club played constantly in the B Group, the second division of Bulgarian football and was close to promotion several times. A notable star during this period was Plamen Linkov who broke the club's appearance record, playing 575 times, scoring 167 goals.
In 1990 sponsor of the team become a company LEX. In the same year, the club had changed its name to LEX Football Club. The 1993–94 season was successful for LEX, which finished 1st in second division and qualified for the A Group for first time in the club's history. The first season in the A Group was a success for the club, finishing 11th. The next season was not successful and the club, renamed Lovech, was relegated to the B Group.
Grisha Ganchev era (1996–2015)
In June 1996, the club was purchased by the petrol businessman and citizen of Lovech Grisha Ganchev and it was renamed to Litex. The takeover was immediately followed by a flurry of bids for high-profile players. Ferario Spasov was named as the new Litex coach. He led the club back to the A PFG at the first attempt. During the 1996–97 season Litex also reached the quarter-finals of the Bulgarian Cup and the final of the Bulgarian League Cup, which was lost after a penalty shoot-out.
In 1997, Litex was promoted for the second time to the top division and immediately became Bulgarian champions, finishing the season 5 points ahead of the second-placed Levski Sofia. This was unprecedented in Bulgarian football history. The striker of the team Dimcho Belyakov became top goalscorer with his 21 goals scored during the season. The midfielder Stoycho Stoilov received the Best League Player award. The club's first participation in the European club tournaments was also promising, with Litex eliminating the Swedish Halmstads BK (2-0 and 1-2) and reaching the second qualifying round (but being knocked out by Russian powerhouse Spartak Moscow).
A year later Litex retained their league title, losing only two league games all season. They became the first provincial club to win back-to-back league titles since the 1920s. During the campaign Litex inflicted the biggest defeat of CSKA Sofia's whole history, beating them 8-0 at Lovech Stadium.
In the recent years, Litex has won the Bulgarian Cup four times, in 2001 (a 1-0 win against Velbazhd Kyustendil after extra time), in 2004 (a win over CSKA after a 2-2 in the regular time and a penalty shoot-out), in 2008 a win over Cherno More Varna (1-0)[2] and in 2009 against Pirin Blagoevgrad (3-0 in the regular time).[3] In early August 2007, Litex signed a three-year sponsorship and advertising contract with Bulgarian mobile operator GLOBUL and started the 2007–08 season with the logo of the mobile service i-mode on the team's kits. In December 2007, Litex became the first Bulgarian club to have branded a mobile phone game, Litex Football. Before the start of the 2008–09 season, Litex lost the Bulgarian Supercup final with 0-1 from CSKA Sofia. The winning goal for the army team was scored by Kiril Kotev in the 65th minute. After a season later, Litex again lost the Bulgarian Supercup 0-1 against the champions Levski Sofia.
In 2009–10 season Litex became a champion of Bulgaria for the third time in its history, finishing with 12 points more than the second, CSKA Sofia.[4] On 12 August 2010, Litex defeated Beroe 2–1 to win the Bulgarian Supercup, for the first time in the club's history. In 2010–11 Litex achieved a 4th league title, securing the championship with a 3–1 away win against Lokomotiv Sofia on 21 May 2011.[5]
Danail Ganchev era (2015-present)
In the summer of 2015, Grisha Ganchev stepped down from his position as an owner, only to relocate his investments in the capital to CSKA Sofia, which had been financially struggling recently. As a result of the change, his son Danail took over the club.
On December 16, 2015, Litex Lovech was removed from A PFG.[6] Litex players were forced off the pitch by sporting manager Stoycho Stoilov during the 12th December tie with Levski Sofia, during which Litex had 2 players sent off despite a 1-0 lead.[7] On January 20, 2016 the team was officially relegated in B Group for 2016-17 season. The team will complete its participation in the Bulgarian Cup and the players could finish the 2015-16 season in PFC Litex Lovech II who participate in B Group.
League positions
Recent league statistics
| Season | League | Place | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Bulgarian Cup | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | A Group | 4 | 16 | 9 | 5 | 51 | 26 | 56 | Winner | ||
| 2008–09 | A Group | 4 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 53 | 26 | 58 | Winner | ||
| 2009–10 | A Group | 1 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 59 | 17 | 70 | Third round | ||
| 2010–11 | A Group | 1 | 23 | 6 | 1 | 56 | 13 | 75 | Semifinals | ||
| 2011–12 | A Group | 5 | 17 | 8 | 5 | 57 | 28 | 59 | Semifinals | ||
| 2012–13 | A Group | 5 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 56 | 24 | 50 | Quarterfinals | ||
| 2013–14 | A Group | 3 | 21 | 9 | 8 | 74 | 37 | 72 | Quarterfinals | ||
| 2014–15 | A Group | 4 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 49 | 36 | 54 | Quarterfinals | ||
| 2015–16 | A Group | 10 | 0 (8) | 0 (9) | 0 (3) | 0 (29) | 0 (19) | 0 (33) | Semifinals* | ||
| Green marks a season followed by promotion, red a season followed by relegation. | |||||||||||
Stadium
Litex Lovech's home ground is the Lovech Stadium, a football stadium in Lovech. Built in 1962, the ground underwent a total reconstruction in 1999 and was brought to a suitable standard to host international matches in 1999. The stadium has more than 8000 seating places with pitch dimensions of 105 x 68 metres. The record attendance is 12,500 for the game against Levski Sofia on 19 April 1998. The record attendance in the European club competitions was achieved against Aston Villa on 18 September 2008, when around 8,000 spectators supported the team.
In the summer of 2010, a massive reconstruction of the venue was started, new side sectors with roof covers were built and the media sectors were expanded in order to meet the UEFA guidelines for Champions League matches. On 12 July 2010, the stadium officially received from UEFA a 3-star rating. The reconstructions continued in the summer of 2011. New covered stands and media boxes were built.
Honours
National competitions
- Champions (4): 1997–98, 1998–99, 2009–10, 2010–11
- Runners-up (1): 2001–02
- Third (3): 2002–03, 2005–06, 2013–14
Bulgarian League Cup:
- Runners-up (1): 1997
European: UEFA Cup / Europa League:
European record
| Competition | S | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Champions League | 4 | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 29 | 28 | + 1 |
| UEFA Europa League | 13 | 56 | 23 | 12 | 21 | 76 | 60 | + 16 |
| Total | 17 | 72 | 31 | 13 | 28 | 105 | 88 | + 17 |
Current squad
As of 15 February 2016 Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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- For recent transfers, see Transfers summer 2015 and Transfers winter 2015–16.
- For reserve team players, see Litex Lovech II.
Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Foreign players
Up to five non-EU nationals can be registered and given a squad number for the first team in the A PFG, however only three can be used during a match day. Those non-EU nationals with European ancestry can claim citizenship from the nation their ancestors came from. If a player does not have European ancestry he can claim Bulgarian citizenship after playing in Bulgaria for 5 years.
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EU Nationals |
EU Nationals (Dual citizenship) |
Non-EU Nationals |
Personnel
Board of directors
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Danail Ganchev |  | |
| President | Trifon Popov |  |
| Vice-president | Kostadin Dimitrov | |
| Managing Director | Velichko Dikhonov | |
| Trademark Director | Andon Dimitrov | |
Current technical body
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Head Coach | Lyuboslav Penev | |
| Assistant Coach | Evgeni Kolev | |
| Litex II Coach | Stamen Belchev | |
| Youth Academy Coach | Daniel Morales |  |
| Goalkeepers Coach | Vitomir Vutov | |
| Condition Coach | Thomas Neubert |  |
| Physiotherapist | Stanimir Stoev | |
| Physiotherapist | Lazar Lazarov | |
| Physiotherapist | Petar Petrov | |
| Administrator | Georgi Kolarov | |
| Press Officer | Stoyan Petrov | |
| Technical Secretary | Orlando Morera | |
UEFA club coefficient rankings
- As of 7 August 2015.[8]
| Pos. | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 248 |  Žalgiris | 4.925 |
| 249 |  Željezničar | 4.925 |
| 250 | Litex | 4.875 |
| 251 |  Osijek | 4.875 |
| 252 |  Žilina | 4.850 |
Notable players
The following players included were either playing for their respective national teams or left good impression among the fans.
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Note: For a complete list of Litex Lovech players, see Category:PFC Litex Lovech players.
Managerial history
This is a list of the recent Litex Lovech managers:
| Name | From | To | Honours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stoycho Mladenov |
June 2004 | Nov 2004 | |
 Itzhak Shum |
Nov 15, 2004 | May 2005 | |
 Ljupko Petrović |
July 1, 2005 | June 12, 2007 | 1 Bulgarian Cup |
| Ferario Spasov |
June 2007 | Nov 2007 | |
| Miodrag Ješić |
Nov 2007 | May 2008 | 1 Bulgarian Cup |
| Stanimir Stoilov |
June 1, 2008 | Aug 28, 2009 | 1 Bulgarian Cup |
| Angel Chervenkov |
Sept 1, 2009 | Aug 5, 2010 | 1 Bulgarian A PFG |
| Petko Petkov (interim) |
Aug 5, 2010 | Sept 1, 2010 | 1 Bulgarian Supercup |
| Lyuboslav Penev |
Sept 2, 2010 | Oct 24, 2011 | 1 Bulgarian A PFG |
| Atanas Dzhambazki |
Oct 24, 2011 | Dec 31, 2011 | |
| Hristo Stoichkov |
Jan 5, 2012 | June 5, 2013 | |
| Zlatomir Zagorčić |
July 1, 2013 | March 31, 2014 | |
| Miodrag Ješić |
March 31, 2014 | May 25, 2014 | |
| Krasimir Balakov |
May 26, 2014 | July 10, 2015 | |
| Ljupko Petrović (interim) |
July 10, 2015 | August 5, 2015 | |
 Laurențiu Reghecampf |
August 6, 2015[9] | December 3, 2015 | |
| Ljupko Petrović |
December 3, 2015 | January 3, 2016 | |
| Lyuboslav Penev |
January 22, 2016 |
Notable stats
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Most appearances for the club
Most goals for the club
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Bulgarian league top scorer with the club
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Notes:
- Bold signals active players
- Correct as of 2010-05-16
All-time top scorers in A PFG
- Bold signals active players
- Correct as of December 13, 2014[10]
| Rank | Name | Games played | Goals scored | Assists | Goals per game | Years played |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Svetoslav Todorov |
127 | 56 | 22 | 0.44 | 1997–01, 2009–12 |
| 2 | Stefan Yurukov |
113 | 55 | 11 | 0.49 | 1996–97, 1998–02, 2003–04 |
| 3 | Hristo Yovov |
97 | 45 | 20 | 0.46 | 2000–04 |
| 4 |  Wilfried Niflore |
72 | 39 | 11 | 0.54 | 2008–11 |
| 5 | Dimtcho Beliakov |
67 | 35 | 11 | 0.52 | 1994–97, 1998–99, 2004 |
| 6 | Zhivko Zhelev |
194 | 31 | 7 | 0.16 | 1996–07 |
| 7 |  Wilmar Jordán |
54 | 29 | 7 | 0.54 | 2013–15 |
| 8 | Zoran Janković |
64 | 29 | 17 | 0.45 | 2000–02, 2004, 2007–08 |
| 9 | Georgi Milanov |
106 | 28 | 20 | 0.26 | 2009–13 |
| 10 | Krum Bibishkov |
60 | 27 | 6 | 0.45 | 2007–09 |
References
- ↑ "Ръководство". PFCLitex.com (in Bulgarian). Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
- ↑ "Litex claim third Bulgarian Cup". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ↑ "Stoilov guides Litex to cup glory". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
- ↑ "Litex can party like it is 1999". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
- ↑ "Litex retain Bulgarian crown". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2011-05-21.
- ↑ "Litex thrown out of Bulgarian league". BBC. Retrieved 2015-12-16.
- ↑ "Bulgarian champions may quit league". BBC. Retrieved 2015-12-16.
- ↑ "UEFA club coefficient rankings". UEFA.
- ↑ "Reghecampf becomes Litex's third coach this season". Daily Mail. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
- ↑ Ваюши и Десподов от Литекс влязоха в историята Football24.bg, August 13, 2013
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to PFC Litex Lovech. |
- Official websites
- Supporters website
- Information and statistics
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