Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
n professional
football club
Club may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Club'' (magazine)
* Club, a '' Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character
* Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards
* Club music
* "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea''
Brands and enterprises ...
based in
Belgrade, and a major part of the
Red Star multi-sport club.
They are the most successful club from the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
and
Southeast Europe
Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (a ...
, being the only club to win both the
European Cup and
Intercontinental Cup, having done so in 1991, and only the second team from
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...
to win the European Cup. With 33 national championships, 26 national cups, 2 national supercups, 2 national champions leagues and one league cup between Serbian and Yugoslav competitions, Red Star was the most successful club in Yugoslavia and finished first in the
Yugoslav First League all-time table, and is the most successful club in Serbia. Since the
1991–92 season, Red Star's best results were reaching the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
group stage, the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
round of 16 and the
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...
round of 16.
According to 2008 polls, Red Star Belgrade is the most popular football club in Serbia, with 48% of the population supporting them. They have many supporters in other former Yugoslav republics and in the
Serbian diaspora
Serbian diaspora refers to Serbian emigrant communities in the diaspora. The existence of a numerous diaspora of Serbian nationals is mainly a consequence of either economic or political (coercion or expulsion) reasons.
There were different wa ...
. Their main rivals are fellow Belgrade side
Partizan. The championship matches between these two clubs are known as the
Eternal derby.
According to the
International Federation of Football History & Statistics
The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) is an organisation that chronicles the history and records of association football. It was founded in 1984 by Alfredo Pöge in Leipzig. The IFFHS was based in Abu Dhabi for so ...
' list of the Top 200 European clubs of the 20th century, Red Star is the highest-ranked Serbian and Balkans club, sharing the 27th position on the list with Dutch club
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club (association football), football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names bef ...
.
History
Yugoslavia and Serbia-Montenegro period
In February 1945, during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, a group of young men, active players, students and members of the Serbian United Antifascist Youth League, decided to form a Youth Physical Culture Society, that was to become Red Star Belgrade on 4 March. Previously, as of December 1944, all pre-war Serbian clubs were abolished, and on 5 May 1945, communist Secretary of Sports
Mitra Mitrović-Djilas signed the decree dissolving formally all pre-war clubs on the territory of
Socialist Republic of Serbia. The clubs were dissolved because during the
German occupation, there was an attempt to organize the league so all the clubs were labelled
collaborators by
Josip Broz Tito's
communist regime.
The name Red Star was assigned after a long discussion. Other ideas shortlisted by the delegates included "People's Star", "Blue Star", "
Proleter", "
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
", "
Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...
", ''etc.'' The initial vice presidents of the Sport Society – Zoran Žujović and Slobodan Ćosić – were the ones who assigned it.
Red Star was soon adopted as a symbol of
Serbian nationalism
Serbian nationalism asserts that Serbs are a nation and promotes the cultural and political unity of Serbs. It is an ethnic nationalism, originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, u ...
within Yugoslavia and a sporting institution which remains the country's most popular to this day. On that day, Red Star played the first football match in the club's history against the First Battalion of the Second Brigade of KNOJ (
People's Defence Corps of Yugoslavia) and won 3–0.
Red Star's first successes involved small steps to recognition. In the first fifteen years of existence, Red Star won one Serbian championship, six
Yugoslav championships, five
Yugoslav Cup
The Yugoslav Cup ( hr, Pokal Jugoslavije; sr, Куп Југославије; sl, Pokal Jugoslavije, mk, Куп на Југославија), officially known between 1923 and 1940 as the King Alexander Cup ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Kup kralja Aleksandra, ...
s, one
Danube Cup and reached the semi-finals of the
1956–57 European Cup
The 1956–57 European Cup was the second season of the European Cup, Europe's premier club football tournament. The competition was won for the second time by Real Madrid, who beat Fiorentina 2–0 in the final at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, ...
. Some of the greatest players during this period were
Kosta Tomašević
Kosta Tomašević (Serbian Cyrillic: Коста Томашевић; 25 July 1923 – 13 March 1976) was a Serbian footballer remembered for his illustrious career with Red Star Belgrade. Tomašević also represented both the Yugoslav and Serbian ...
,
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
,
Rajko Mitić
Rajko Mitić ( sr-Cyrl, Рајко Митић, ; 19 November 1922 – 29 March 2008) was a Serbian footballer, coach, executive and journalist.
Mitić is considered one of the most important players in the history of Red Star Belgrade as he is th ...
,
Vladimir Beara,
Bora Kostić,
Vladica Popović
Vladimir "Vladica" Popović (; 17 March 1935 – 10 August 2020) was a Serbian professional footballer and manager. The biggest success in his coaching career was winning the Intercontinental Cup with Red Star Belgrade in 1991.
Born in Zemun, P ...
,
Vladimir Durković and
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
. As champions, Red Star were Yugoslavia's entrants into the
1957–58 European Cup
The 1957–58 European Cup was the third season of the European Cup, Europe's premier club football tournament. The competition was won by Real Madrid, who beat Milan 3–2 in the final, following a 2–2 draw after 90 minutes. This was Real Ma ...
where they were famously beaten 5–4 on aggregate by English champions
Manchester United in the quarter-finals. Manchester United, managed by
Matt Busby defeated Red Star 2–1 in the first leg in England before drawing 3–3 with them in Yugoslavia in the return match on 5 February at
JNA Stadium
The Partizan Stadium (Serbian language, Serbian: Стадион Партизанa / ''Stadion Partizana'') is a association football, football and track-and-field Multi-purpose stadium, stadium in Autokomanda, Belgrade, Serbia. The home ground of ...
. The second leg is notable for being the last match played by the
Busby Babes
The "Busby Babes" were the group of footballers, recruited and trained by Manchester United F.C. chief scout Joe Armstrong and assistant manager Jimmy Murphy, who progressed from the club's youth team into the first team under the management of ...
: on the return flight to England the following day, the plane
crashed
"Crashed" is the third U.S. rock Single (music), single, (the fifth overall), from the band Daughtry (band), Daughtry's debut album. It was released only to U.S. rock stations on September 5, 2007. Upon its release the song got adds at those stat ...
in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
, resulting in the deaths of 23 people, including eight Manchester United players.
During the
Miljan Miljanić era, Red Star won four Yugoslav championships, three Yugoslav cups, two Yugoslav supercups, one Yugoslav league cup, one
Mitropa Cup
The Mitropa Cup, officially called the La Coupe de l'Europe Centrale or Central European Cup, was one of the first international major European football cups for club sides. It was conducted among the successor states of the former Austria-Hunga ...
and reached the semi-finals of the
1970–71 European Cup
The 1970–71 season of the UEFA Champions League, European Cup club association football, football tournament was won by AFC Ajax, Ajax in the final against Panathinaikos F.C., Panathinaikos. It was the first time the cup went to Ajax, beginning ...
. A new generation of players emerged under Miljanić's guidance, led by
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
and
Jovan Aćimović. Red Star eliminated
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
in the second round of the
1973–74 European Cup
The 1973–74 season of the European Cup football club tournament was won for the first time by Bayern Munich, beginning their own three-year period of domination, in a replayed final against Atlético Madrid, the only such occasion in the tournam ...
and
Real Madrid in the quarter-finals of the
1974–75 European Cup Winners' Cup
The 1974–75 season of the European Cup Winners' Cup club football tournament was won by Dynamo Kyiv in a convincing final victory against Ferencváros. It was the first of two Cup Winners' Cup successes for the club.
First round
...
.
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
, whose reign as head coach was to last four years, brought Red Star three trophies and the first great European final. After eliminating teams like
Arsenal,
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...
and
Hertha BSC, Red Star made for the first time the
UEFA Cup final. There, Red Star met
Borussia Mönchengladbach, who played five European finals from 1973 to 1980. The Germans fell behind one goal from
Miloš Šestić, but
Ivan Jurišić's own goal gave Gladbach a psychological advantage before the rematch. This game was played at the
Rheinstadion
The Rheinstadion () was a multi-purpose stadium, in Düsseldorf, Germany. The stadium was built, near the Rhine, in 1926 and held 54,000 people at the end of its life.
It was the home ground for Fortuna Düsseldorf from 1953 to 1970 and 1972– ...
in
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second- ...
, where the Italian referee
Alberto Michelotti gave a questionable penalty to the Germans, and the Danish player
Allan Simonsen
Allan Rodenkam Simonsen (born 15 December 1952) is a Danish former footballer and manager. He most prominently played as a striker for German Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach, winning the 1975 and 1979 UEFA Cups, as well as for Barc ...
sealed Red Star's fate. ''The Foals'' won 2–1 on aggregate.
After the 1970s, historical matches against
Udo Lattek
Udo Lattek (16 January 1935 – 31 January 2015) was a German professional football player and coach.
Lattek is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the game, having won 15 major titles, most famously with Bayern Munich. He also ...
's
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
followed during the
1982–83 European Cup Winners' Cup
The 1982–83 season of the European Cup Winners' Cup was won by Scottish club Aberdeen in an extra-time victory against Real Madrid. Alex Ferguson's young side defeated the Spanish giants after a notable victory over Bayern Munich in the quarte ...
. In both matches, Barcelona were the better team and Red Star was eliminated. Remarkably, when Barça's
Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona (; 30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the F ...
scored his second goal in front of approximately 100,000 spectators at the
Marakana, the Belgrade audience were so excited about the goal that even the loyal Belgrade fans applauded Maradona.
Gojko Zec
Gojko Zec ( sr-Cyrl, Гојко Зец, ; 15 September 1935 – 3 November 1995) was a Serbian football manager. He coached OFK Beograd, FK Partizan, FK Borac Banja Luka, NK Rijeka, Red Star Belgrade, Aris, Yugoslavia FK Borac Čačak.
He was mu ...
returned to the team in 1983, finding only one player from the champions generation he was coaching back in
1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...
,
Miloš Šestić. Zec similarly repeated the club's triumph from his previous mandate by winning the
championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
immediately upon his arrival. Zec would later leave the club in a controversial ''
Šajber's case''-style scandal which was the result of irregularities in the
1985–86 season.
After Zec left in 1986, there were great changes in the club. The management of the club, run by
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
and
Vladimir Cvetković, began to build a team that could compete with some of the most powerful European sides. During that summer,
Velibor Vasović
Velibor Vasović (Serbian Cyrillic: Велибор Васовић; 3 October 1939 – 4 March 2002) was a Serbian footballer and manager, also one of the legendary players of Partizan Belgrade and Ajax and one of greatest defenders of his gener ...
became coach and the side was strengthened by acquiring a number of talented young players, among whom
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
and
Borislav Cvetković
Borislav Cvetković ( sr-Cyrl, Борислав Цветковић; born 30 September 1962) is a Serbian football manager and retired player. He was nicknamed "Lane sa Korane" (''Doe of Korana''), by legendary sports commentator Ivan Tomić, whil ...
stood out. In the first season that started with penalty points, Red Star focused on the European Cup and achieving good results. In 1987, a five-year plan was developed by the club with the only goal being to win the European Cup. All that was planned was finally achieved. On the club's birthday in
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
, it started.
Real Madrid were defeated at the Marakana. From that day through to March 1992, Red Star enjoyed the best period of success in its history. In these five seasons, Red Star won four National Championships; in the last of those four years of heyday, the club won the
1991 European Cup Final, played in
Bari, Italy.
Red Star coach
Ljupko Petrović
Ljubomir "Ljupko" Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Љубомир "Љупко" Петровић; born 15 May 1947) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He also holds a Bosnian passport.
As a manager, Petrović's biggest success wa ...
brought the team to Italy a week before the final in order to peacefully prepare the players for a forthcoming encounter with
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
. By that time, Red Star had 18 goals in 8 matches, whereas the French champions had 20. Therefore, the 100th European competing final was expected to be a spectacle of offense. Nonetheless, both Petrović and
Raymond Goethals
Raymond Goethals (, ; 7 October 1921 – 6 December 2004) was a Belgian football coach who led Marseille to victory in the UEFA Champions League final in 1993, becoming the first and only coach to win a European trophy with a French club.
Somet ...
opted for defence and the match settled down into a war of attrition. After a 120-minute match and only few chances on both sides, the match was decided following the penalty shootout. After several minutes of stressful penalties, one of Marseille's players,
Manuel Amoros
Manuel Amoros (born 1 February 1962) is a French former professional footballer who played as a right-back. He was capped 82 times for France, and played in the UEFA European Championships finals of 1984 and 1992, and the FIFA World Cup finals ...
, missed a penalty, and
Darko Pančev
Darko Pančev ( mk, Дарко Панчев, ; born 7 September 1965) is a Macedonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He most notably played for FK Vardar and Red Star Belgrade.
He was part of the Red Star Belgrade sq ...
converted his penalty to bring the European Cup to Yugoslavia for the first time. Red Star won the shootout, 5–3, on 29 May 1991 in front of 60,000 spectators and the millions watching on television around the world. Twenty-thousand Red Star fans at the
Stadio San Nicola and millions of them all over Yugoslavia and the world celebrated the greatest joy in Red Star's history. Red Star went unbeaten at the
1990–91 European Cup
The 1990–91 European Cup was the 36th season of the European Cup, a tournament for men's football clubs in nations affiliated to the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). It was won for the first time by Red Star Belgrade on penalties ...
in Bari and the
1991 Intercontinental Cup
The 1991 Intercontinental Cup was an association football match played on 8 December 1991 between Red Star Belgrade of SFR Yugoslavia, winners of the 1990–91 European Cup, and Colo-Colo of Chile, winners of the 1991 Copa Libertadores. The match ...
in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
.
In 1992, the club was weakened by the departure of numerous players from the champions generation (new players were added, such as
Dejan Petković
Dejan Petković ( sr-Cyrl, Дејан Петковић, ; born 10 September 1972) is a Serbian football pundit and retired footballer. In his native country he is widely known under the nickname Rambo while in Brazil he is known as Pet. He played ...
and
Anto Drobnjak). The success in the previous season caught the attention of European giants which rushed making lucrative offers to sign Red Star's best players. In addition, Red Star had to defend the continental trophy playing its home games in
Szeged
Szeged ( , ; see also other alternative names) is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat of Csongrád-Csanád county. The University of Szeged is one of the m ...
,
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
and
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...
due to the war in former Yugoslavia, thereby reducing their chances of defending their title.
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
changed the format of the competition that year and the
1991–92 European Cup
The 1991–92 European Cup was the 37th season of the European Cup football club tournament. It was the first European Cup to have a group stage, from which the winning clubs progressed to the final. 1991–92 was the tournament's last edition b ...
was the first to be played in a format with two groups each having four teams. Despite the disadvantage of playing its home games abroad, Red Star still did well and finished second in the group behind
Sampdoria. In domestic competition, main rivals
Hajduk Split and
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
left the league, just as all the other clubs from
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
,
Macedonia and
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
did, and the championship in Yugoslavia that was cut in size was played on the edge of observance of regulations around the beginning of the
Bosnian War. At the end of May, the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
had the country under
sanctions and dislodged Yugoslav football from the international scene. The
Breakup of Yugoslavia, the
Yugoslav Wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and insurgencies that took place in the SFR Yugoslavia from 1991 to 2001. The conflicts both led up to and resulted from ...
, the inflation and the UN sanctions have hit Red Star hard. In the period between May 1992 and May 2000, only one
championship victory was celebrated at the Marakana. However, they did manage to win five
cups, along with several glorious European performances, including the famed
1996 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup showdown against Barcelona side which featured
Ronaldo and
Hristo Stoichkov.
![Dejan Stanković - Inter Mailand (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Dejan_Stankovi%C4%87_-_Inter_Mailand_%281%29.jpg)
Immediately after the
NATO bombing of Yugoslavia
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) carried out an aerial bombing campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the Kosovo War. The air strikes lasted from 24 March 1999 to 10 June 1999. The bombings continued until an a ...
ended, Red Star won the
17th cup in its history by winning 4–2 against
Partizan. Two seasons later, the club returned to the European spotlight by making it to the
2001–02 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds
The qualifying rounds for the 2001–02 UEFA Champions League began on 11 July 2001. In total, there were three qualifying rounds which provided 16 clubs to join the group stage.
Teams
;Notes
First qualifying round
The draw for this round w ...
, where Red Star was eliminated by
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, t ...
(0–0 and 0–3), which would later be a finalist in the Champions League that year.
Slavoljub Muslin
Slavoljub Muslin ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб Муслин, ; born 15 June 1953) is a Serbian football manager and former player.
Muslin began his head coaching career in 1988 and has since had stints in France, Morocco, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine ...
left the bench in September 2001, after which Red Star's subsequent seasons became more volatile.
Recent era
In the
2006–07 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds, Red Star was eliminated (3–1 on aggregate) by the same
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
side which ultimately won that year's
competition
Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indiv ...
. Furthermore, the campaign in Group F of the
2007–08 UEFA Cup
The 2007–08 UEFA Cup was the 37th edition of the UEFA Cup, UEFA's second-tier club football tournament. The final was played at the City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester, England on 14 May 2008 between Rangers of Scotland and Zenit Saint ...
was a large disappointment, especially given that the first game against
Bayern Munich was a sensational last-minute loss (by a score of 2–3 in Belgrade). In those years, Red Star's teams featured the likes of
Nikola Žigić
Nikola Žigić ( sr-cyr, Никола Жигић, ; born 25 September 1980) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a centre forward.
Žigić was born in Bačka Topola, in what was then SFR Yugoslavia. He began playing football as a you ...
,
Boško Janković
Boško Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Бошко Јанковић; born 1 March 1984) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a winger for the Serbia national football team. He is an attacking minded player, with the tendency to take long shots and ...
,
Milan Biševac,
Dušan Basta,
Dejan Milovanović
Dejan Milovanović ( sr-Cyrl, Дејан Миловановић; born 21 January 1984) is a Serbian retired professional footballer.
Personal
He is the son of Đorđe Milovanović, a member of Red Star Belgrade in the late 1970s and early to mi ...
,
Segundo Castillo,
Ibrahima Gueye,
Nenad Milijaš and
Ognjen Koroman. After a six-year drought, Red Star won their 26th league title in
2013–14 season.
Despite Red Star's success on the pitch in 2013–14, the financial situation at the club has worsened, so much so that the club were banned from participating in the
2014–15 UEFA Champions League
The 2014–15 UEFA Champions League was the 60th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 23rd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
The final was pl ...
for which they qualified by winning the Serbian SuperLiga. The UEFA Club Financial Control Body found Red Star's debts to players, some of whom had not been paid for at least six months, staff and other clubs, totalled €1.86 million. The club board were also alleged to have hidden debts and falsified documents. This, on top of an earlier UEFA disciplinary measure in 2011, meant Red Star did not meet the necessary Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play criteria and, as such, should not have been granted a UEFA license by the Serbian FA. Rivals Partizan took Red Star's place in the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round.
After ten years of waiting, Red Star qualified for the
2017–18 UEFA Europa League group stage. Red Star progressed through four
qualifying rounds and reached the
knockout phase
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
of the tournament, becoming the first team in competition's history to reach the knockout phase after starting their season in the first qualifying round. Although Red Star played in the group stage of the first edition in which groups format was introduced in the European Cup,
1991–92 European Cup
The 1991–92 European Cup was the 37th season of the European Cup football club tournament. It was the first European Cup to have a group stage, from which the winning clubs progressed to the final. 1991–92 was the tournament's last edition b ...
, the designation "Champions League" was only adopted a season later in which Yugoslav clubs were already banned from participating in. Thus, when Red Star eliminated
Red Bull Salzburg in the
2018–19 UEFA Champions League play-off round, and qualified for the
UEFA Champions League group stage, it meant that Red Star competed for the first time since the new format was introduced. Red Star became the first Serbian team to win a match in the UEFA Champions League when they defeated Liverpool.
On 14 May 2019, the 1946 People's Republic of Serbia League title was officially recognized by the Serbian FA, meaning that Red Star's triumph in the
2018–19 Serbian SuperLiga
The 2018–19 Serbian SuperLiga was the thirteenth season of the Serbian SuperLiga since its establishment. Red Star was the defending champions from the previous season.
Teams
The league consisted of 16 teams: fourteen teams from the 2017–1 ...
was their 30th national championship. Red Star reached the
UEFA Champions League group stage for the second successive season after eliminating
Sūduva,
HJK Helsinki
Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi (), commonly known as HJK Helsinki, or simply as HJK, is a professional football club based in Helsinki, Finland. The club competes in the Finnish Veikkausliiga. Founded in 1907, the club has spent most of its history i ...
,
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
and
Young Boys. On 5 November 2019, cable television channel Zvezda TV started airing.
In the
2020–21 Serbian SuperLiga
The 2020–21 Serbian SuperLiga (known as the Linglong Tire SuperLiga for sponsorship reasons) was the fifteenth of the Serbian SuperLiga since its establishment. Red Star were the defending champions from the previous season.
Due to the COVID ...
, Red Star set a world record for the number of points gained in a single season with 108 points.
Crest and colours
Originally the red and white motif of Red Star was inherited from the expropriated
SK Jugoslavija
Sportski klub Jugoslavija ( en, Sport Club Yugoslavia), commonly known as SK Jugoslavija (Serbian Cyrillic: Cпортски клуб Југославија) was a Serbian football club from Belgrade. It was originally formed as SK Velika Srbija ...
that wore red shirts and socks, with white shorts. Between 1945 and 1950, Red Star maintained this strip before adopting the now familiar red and white vertical striped shirts, with alternating white or red shorts and socks in 1950. The red and white stripes have become indivisible to Red Star's image, conferring the popular nickname ''Crveno-beli'', "the red and white's" in
Serbian. The club continued to wear the initial pre-stripe kit throughout its existence, but has generally declined in usage. During the 1950s and 1960s, the club also alternated between blue trunks, a long white V-neck on a red shirt, and a red shirt with thin white horizontal lines.
Red Star have usually worn an all-white away kit, whilst also utilizing predominantly blue or red away or third kits, thereby incorporating the
Serbian tricolour. The club crest is a red five-pointed star, white framed, on a red-white background. In addition, the whole crest is framed in gold. There are three golden stars on the top of the club emblem, symbolizing the 30 titles won.
Despite the club's overtly
Communist name and imagery, Red Star Football Club has become a symbol in its own right. The "
''petokraka''" from which the club's name derives has paradoxically become a symbol of the club itself and of
Serbian nationalism
Serbian nationalism asserts that Serbs are a nation and promotes the cultural and political unity of Serbs. It is an ethnic nationalism, originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, u ...
, moving further away from its original association with the
Partisans and the
Communist Party of Yugoslavia. Due to Red Star's popularity and sporting success, the club and its crest have become synonymous with broader
Serbian identity, and patriotism that echoes beyond the sporting landscape.
Stadium
Red Star's home ground is the Rajko Mitić Stadium (since 21 December 2014), formerly known as Red Star Stadium. With a seated capacity of 53,000 it is the largest stadium in Serbia and in the former Yugoslavia. The stadium was opened in 1963, and in the course of time and due to the fact that stadium's former capacity was about 110,000, it got the unofficial moniker Marakana, after the large and famous
Maracanã Stadium in
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...
, Brazil, and Belgrade's sold-out Marakana garnered the reputation of being a very tough ground for visiting teams to play in. Some of the biggest football events have been held at this stadium, such as the European Cup final between
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...
and
Juventus in
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
,
UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations ( UEFA). The competition is conte ...
final between
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
and
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
in
1976
Events January
* January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 11 – The 1976 ...
, and the first leg of the UEFA Cup final between Red Star and Borussia Mönchengladbach in 1979. During the mid-1990s, in order to meet
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
demands for spectators comfort and security, standing places at the stadium were completely done away with and seats were installed on all four stands. In the years, since the stadium's capacity was gradually decreased, followed different stadium modernisations.
![Fk Red Star stadium](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Fk_Red_Star_stadium.jpg)
In 2008, the club reconstructed the stadium's pitch,
under-soil grass heaters, improved drainage systems were installed and new modern turf replaced the old surface. The training pitch, located next to the stadium, was also renovated by laying down synthetic turf and installing new lighting equipment. In 2011, the stadium received also a new modern LED
scoreboard
A scoreboard is a large board for publicly displaying the score in a game. Most levels of sport from high school and above use at least one scoreboard for keeping score, measuring time, and displaying statistics. Scoreboards in the past used ...
. Today, the stadium has a central lodge, named ''5 Zvezdinih Zvezda'' (English: 5 Stars of Red Star), which consist of five segments, each bears the name of one of Red Star's legendary players (
Mitić,
Šekularac,
Džajić,
Petrović,
Stojković), two other
VIP
A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots.
Examples inc ...
lounges and a special VIP gallery with over 450 seats. It has also a modern press box with a capacity of 344 seats including seven extra-comfortable seats, an extra media center, the Red Cafe and a restaurant. On the west stand of the stadium exist also an official Red Star shop along with a
Delije
Delije ( sr-cyr, Делије) is a name referring to the supporters of various sports clubs that compete under the Red Star Belgrade multi-sport club banner. The plural of the singular form ''delija'' (делија)—which in Serbian generall ...
shop. The playing field measures are 110 × 73 m, and is illuminated by 1,400
lux floodlights
A floodlight is a broad-beamed, high-intensity artificial light. They are often used to illuminate outdoor playing fields while an outdoor sports event is being held during low-light conditions. More focused kinds are often used as a stage ...
. According to the known German
Web portal
A web portal is a specially designed website that brings information from diverse sources, like emails, online forums and search engines, together in a uniform way. Usually, each information source gets its dedicated area on the page for displayi ...
'' "Stadionwelt"'', Belgrade's ''"Marakana"'' is in the top 50 football stadiums in Europe. In 2012, American
Bleacher Report ranked the Red Star Stadium, especially if it is sold out, as among the most intimidating stadiums in the world.
Youth academy
History
Some of the most notable home-grown players are
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
, named the all-time Serbian best player (the choice of the Football Association of Serbia on the 50th anniversary of
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
, known as the
Golden Player), who reached third place at the election for the
European Footballer of the Year
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual football award presented by French news magazine '' France Football'' since 1956. Between 2010 and 2015, in an agreement with FIFA, the award was temporarily merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year (f ...
in
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
, then
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
– a runner-up with
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
at
1960 European Nations' Cup
The 1960 European Nations' Cup was the first edition of the UEFA European Championship, held every four years and organised by UEFA. The first tournament was held in France. It was won by the Soviet Union, who beat Yugoslavia 2–1 in Paris afte ...
,
Vladimir Petrović – the fourth
Star of Red Star,
Vladimir Jugović
Vladimir Jugović ( sr-cyr, Владимир Југовић, ; born 30 August 1969) is a Serbian former professional footballer. A versatile player, he was usually employed as a left or attacking midfielder, but could play anywhere in midfield. ...
– two times the European Cup winner (with Red Star and Juventus), as well as
Dejan Stanković and
Nemanja Vidić
Nemanja Vidić ( sr-Cyrl, Немања Видић, ; born 21 October 1981) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is best known for his time at Manchester United, was part of the Serbia national team, and ...
.
Further notable home-grown players include
Vladica Popović
Vladimir "Vladica" Popović (; 17 March 1935 – 10 August 2020) was a Serbian professional footballer and manager. The biggest success in his coaching career was winning the Intercontinental Cup with Red Star Belgrade in 1991.
Born in Zemun, P ...
,
Ratomir Dujković,
Stanislav Karasi
Stanislav Karasi (; born 8 November 1946) is a Serbian former football manager and player.
Club career
After coming through the youth system of Red Star Belgrade, Karasi started his senior career with Yugoslav Second League side Borovo. He ret ...
,
Slobodan Janković,
Ognjen Petrović,
Vladislav Bogićević,
Dušan Nikolić,
Zoran Filipović,
Dušan Savić
Dušan "Dule" Savić ( sr-cyr, Душан "Дуле" Савић; born 1 June 1955) is a Serbian former footballer.
Club career
Savić started playing football in the local side Jedinstvo Ub in his hometown. He arrived for a tryout at Red Star ...
,
Milan Janković,
Boško and
Milko Gjurovski,
Stevan Stojanović,
Vladan Lukić,
Zvonko Milojević,
Zoran Jovičić,
Ivan Adžić,
Nebojša Krupniković
Nebojša Krupniković (; born 15 August 1973) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
Club career
Born in Arilje, Krupniković started out at Red Star Belgrade, making his first senior appearances duri ...
,
Goran Drulić,
Nenad Lalatović
Nenad Lalatović (, ; born 22 December 1977) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He is currently coaching the team Radnički Niš.
Club career
Lalatović came through the youth system of hometown club Red Star Belgra ...
,
Marko Pantelić,
Ognjen Koroman,
Vladimir Dišljenković,
Marko Perović,
Dejan Milovanović
Dejan Milovanović ( sr-Cyrl, Дејан Миловановић; born 21 January 1984) is a Serbian retired professional footballer.
Personal
He is the son of Đorđe Milovanović, a member of Red Star Belgrade in the late 1970s and early to mi ...
,
Dragan Mrđa,
Boško Janković
Boško Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Бошко Јанковић; born 1 March 1984) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a winger for the Serbia national football team. He is an attacking minded player, with the tendency to take long shots and ...
,
Dušan Basta,
Vujadin Savić
Vujadin Savić ( sr-cyr, Вујадин Савић; born 1 July 1990) is a retired Serbian footballer.
Club career Early career
Savić was eight years old when he began training for the Red Star Belgrade, where he passed all age categories. Betwe ...
,
Slavoljub Srnić,
Filip Stojković,
Marko Grujić
Marko Grujić ( sr-Cyrl, Марко Грујић, ; born 13 April 1996) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Primeira Liga club Porto and the Serbia national team.
A native of Belgrade, Grujić started his career w ...
,
Luka Jović and
Strahinja Eraković.
Former Red Star and Real Madrid coaching legend
Miljan Miljanić was also a member of Red Star's youth school.
Current coaching staff
* U19s:
Zoran Rendulić
Zoran Rendulić ( sr-cyrl, Зоран Peндулић; born 22 May 1984) is a Serbian football coach and a former defender.
Club career
Rendulić played for on loan for SV Ried in Austria from January to June 2007 and then returned to Borac Č ...
* U17s:
Slađan Nikolić
Supporters
Red Star is the most popular football club in
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...
. The club has fans and sympathisers throughout the whole country, but also throughout the regional and global
Serbian diaspora
Serbian diaspora refers to Serbian emigrant communities in the diaspora. The existence of a numerous diaspora of Serbian nationals is mainly a consequence of either economic or political (coercion or expulsion) reasons.
There were different wa ...
, making the club a symbol of
Serbdom
Serbian nationalism asserts that Serbs are a nation and promotes the cultural and political unity of Serbs. It is an ethnic nationalism, originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, und ...
. Fan groups are widespread throughout Serbia and
former Yugoslav republics
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yugo ...
, and the club has the highest social media following amongst former Yugoslav football teams. Traditionally, Red Star has been represented as the people's club, whilst always attracting support from all social classes, their fan base is not associated with any specific social group. Red Star
ultras
Ultras are a type of association football fans who are renowned for their fanatical support. The term originated in Italy, but is used worldwide to describe predominantly organised fans of association football teams. The behavioural tende ...
Delije
Delije ( sr-cyr, Делије) is a name referring to the supporters of various sports clubs that compete under the Red Star Belgrade multi-sport club banner. The plural of the singular form ''delija'' (делија)—which in Serbian generall ...
espouse
patriotic
Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...
,
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...
and
right-wing sentiments.
The organized supporters of Red Star are known as
Delije
Delije ( sr-cyr, Делије) is a name referring to the supporters of various sports clubs that compete under the Red Star Belgrade multi-sport club banner. The plural of the singular form ''delija'' (делија)—which in Serbian generall ...
, roughly translated in English as the "Heroes", "Braves", "Hardman" or "Studs". The term derives from the plural of the singular form "''Delija''", in
Serbian. Delije support all branches of the
Red Star multi-sport society. They are one of the most famous supporter groups in the world, renowned for their passion and fanaticism.
![Beograd 7652](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Beograd_7652.jpg)
Hardcore supporters began to emerge during the 1980s, with official inauguration taking place in 1989. Previously, Red Star fans were scattered amongst several organized fan groups within the north terrace of the
Rajko Mitić Stadium
The Rajko Mitić Stadium ( sr, / , ), previously known as Red Star Stadium ( sr, / ), also known as Marakana ( sr-Cyrl, Маракана), is a multi-use stadium in Belgrade, Serbia which has been the home ground of Red Star Belgrade since ...
, colloquially known as "''Marakana''". Their style of support is greatly influenced by
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
football culture of the 1980s. It includes the use of widespread choreography, flares, flags, banners, and boisterous cheering. The word Delije is displayed (in
Cyrillic) on the north terrace seats of Rajko Mitić Stadium as a sign of appreciation, and fidelity between the club and supporters. Subgroups of Delije exist outside of
Belgrade, along with cities across Serbia and all other ex-Yugoslav republics. Despite Red Star's broad fan base, Delije have developed an infamous reputation for
hooliganism
Hooliganism is disruptive or unlawful behavior such as rioting, bullying and vandalism, usually in connection with crowds at sporting events.
Etymology
There are several theories regarding the origin of the word ''hooliganism,'' which is a d ...
amongst some segments of its ultras, especially during
Belgrade derbies.
Due to historically warm
Serbo-Hellenic relations, Red Star's Delije ultras have developed a strong kinship with
Olympiacos ultras
Gate 7. The "Orthodox Brothers" friendship is based on mutual
Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
faith, a strong cultural marker amongst the
Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
and
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
. Both clubs also share the same colours, and are from the national capitals. They are also the most decorated football teams in their respective countries. The brotherhood has evolved to include
Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia:
* FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club
* HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team
* Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club
* WB ...
ultras
Fratria, owing to strong
Russophilia
Russophilia (literally love of Russia or Russians) is admiration and fondness of Russia (including the era of the Soviet Union and/or the Russian Empire), Russian history and Russian culture. The antonym is Russophobia. In the 19th Century, ...
and a shared
Slavic heritage.
The Eternal derby
![Beograd 7654](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Beograd_7654.jpg)
Red Star's fiercest and long-standing city rival is
FK Partizan
Fudbalski klub Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Партизан, ; en, Partizan Football Club), sometimes known as Partizan Belgrade in English, is a Serbia, Serbian professional football club (association football), football ...
, football section of the other large and popular multi-sports club in Serbia. The rivalry started immediately after the creation of the two clubs in 1945. Red Star was founded with close ties to the
State Security Administration
The State Security Service ( hr, Služba državne sigurnosti, sr, Служба државне безбедности; mk, Служба за државна безбедност; sl, Služba državne varnosti), also known by its original name ...
and Partizan as the football section of the
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska ar ...
. Since then, both clubs have been dominant in domestic football. The match is particularly noted for the passion of the Red Star's supporters, called ''Delije'', and Partizan's supporters, the ''Grobari'' (English: "Gravediggers" or "Undertakers"). The stands of both teams feature fireworks, coloured confetti, flags, rolls of paper, torches, smoke, drums, giant posters and choreographies, used to create visual grandeur and apply psychological pressure on the visiting teams, hence the slogan, "Welcome to Hellgrade". Some fans also sometimes use trumpets, similar to the supporters in South America. This creates for the region a typical and distinctive Balkan brass, Balkan Brass Band atmosphere. Both sets of supporters sing passionate songs against their rivals, and the stadiums are known to bounce with the simultaneous jumping of the fans. The duel is regarded as one of the List of association football club rivalries in Europe, greatest football rivalries in the world and the matches between these rivals have been labeled as the Eternal derby. Given its widespread touch on the entirety of a major city, it is dubbed one of, along with the Old Firm, the Derby della Capitale, Rome derby and the The Intercontinental Derby, Istanbul derby, the most heated rivalries in European football. The biggest attendance for a Red Star – Partizan match was about 108,000 spectators at the Rajko Mitić Stadium.
Honours and achievements
Red Star has won 4 international and 64 domestic trophies, making it the most successful football club in Serbia and the former Yugoslavia.
Domestic competitions (64)
National Championships – 33 (record)
* People's Republic of Serbia League (record)
** Winners (1): 1945–46
* Yugoslav First League (record)
** Winners (19): 1951 Yugoslav First League, 1951, 1952–53 Yugoslav First League, 1952–53, 1955–56 Yugoslav First League, 1955–56, 1956–57 Yugoslav First League, 1956–57, 1958–59 Yugoslav First League, 1958–59, 1959–60 Yugoslav First League, 1959–60, 1963–64 Yugoslav First League, 1963–64, 1967–68 Yugoslav First League, 1967–68, 1968–69 Yugoslav First League, 1968–69, 1969–70 Yugoslav First League, 1969–70, 1972–73 Yugoslav First League, 1972–73, 1976–77 Yugoslav First League, 1976–77, 1979–80 Yugoslav First League, 1979–80, 1980–81 Yugoslav First League, 1980–81, 1983–84 Yugoslav First League, 1983–84, 1987–88 Yugoslav First League, 1987–88, 1989–90 Yugoslav First League, 1989–90, 1990–91 Yugoslav First League, 1990–91, 1991–92 Yugoslav First League, 1991–92
* First League of Serbia and Montenegro
** Winners (5): 1994–95 First League of FR Yugoslavia, 1994–95, 1999–2000 First League of FR Yugoslavia, 1999–2000, 2000–01 First League of FR Yugoslavia, 2000–01, 2003–04 First League of Serbia and Montenegro, 2003–04, 2005–06 Serbia and Montenegro SuperLiga, 2005–06
* Serbian SuperLiga (shared record)
** Winners (8): 2006–07 Serbian SuperLiga, 2006–07, 2013–14 Serbian SuperLiga, 2013–14, 2015–16 Serbian SuperLiga, 2015–16, 2017–18 Serbian SuperLiga, 2017–18, 2018–19 Serbian SuperLiga, 2018–19, 2019–20 Serbian SuperLiga, 2019–20, 2020–21 Serbian SuperLiga, 2020–21, 2021–22 Serbian SuperLiga, 2021–22
National Cups – 26 (record)
*
Yugoslav Cup
The Yugoslav Cup ( hr, Pokal Jugoslavije; sr, Куп Југославије; sl, Pokal Jugoslavije, mk, Куп на Југославија), officially known between 1923 and 1940 as the King Alexander Cup ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Kup kralja Aleksandra, ...
(record)
** Winners (12): 1948, 1949, 1950, 1957–58 Yugoslav Cup, 1957–58, 1958–59 Yugoslav Cup, 1958–59, 1963–64 Yugoslav Cup, 1963–64, 1967–68 Yugoslav Cup, 1967–68, 1969–70 Yugoslav Cup, 1969–70, 1970–71 Yugoslav Cup, 1970–71, 1981–82 Yugoslav Cup, 1981–82, 1984–85 Yugoslav Cup, 1984–85, 1989–90 Yugoslav Cup, 1989–90
* Serbia and Montenegro Cup (record)
** Winners (9): 1992–93 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1992–93, 1994–95 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1994–95, 1995–96 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1995–96, 1996–97 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1996–97, 1998–99 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1998–99, 1999–2000 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 1999–2000, 2001–02 FR Yugoslavia Cup, 2001–02, 2003–04 Serbia and Montenegro Cup, 2003–04, 2005–06 Serbia and Montenegro Cup, 2005–06
* Serbian Cup
** Winners (5): 2006–07 Serbian Cup, 2006–07, 2009–10 Serbian Cup, 2009–10, 2011–12 Serbian Cup, 2011–12, 2020–21 Serbian Cup, 2020–21, 2021–22 Serbian Cup, 2021–22
National Super Cups – 2 (record)
* Yugoslav Super Cup
** Winners (2): 1969, 1971
National League Cup – 1 (shared record)
* Yugoslav League Cup
** Winners (1): 1972–73
National Champions League – 2 (record)
* Yugoslav Summer Champions League
** Winners (2): 1971, 1973
International competitions (4)
Red Star is the most successful club from Serbia (and former Yugoslavia) in all European competitions, and the only club from
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...
that has won both the UEFA Champions League, European Cup and the Intercontinental Cup (football), Intercontinental Cup. On 27 October 2017, FIFA officially recognized all winners of the Intercontinental Cup as club world champions, in equal status to the FIFA Club World Cup. The club competed in 60 European seasons, and the most notable results are:
* UEFA Champions League, European Cup / UEFA Champions League
** Winners (1): 1990–91 European Cup, 1990–91
* Intercontinental Cup (football), Intercontinental Cup
** Winners (1): 1991 Intercontinental Cup, 1991
* UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League
** ''Runners-up (1):'' 1978–79 UEFA Cup, 1978–79
* UEFA Super Cup
** ''Runners-up (1):'' 1991 European Super Cup, 1991
* Mitropa Cup
** Winners (2): 1958 Danube Cup, 1958, 1967–68 Mitropa Cup, 1967–68
Friendly tournaments (19)
* Torneo Internacional de Chile (1): 1962
* Tournoi de Paris (1): 1962
* Trofeo Ibérico (1): 1971
* Teresa Herrera Trophy (1): 1971
* Trofeo Costa del Sol (1): 1973
* Orange Trophy (1): 1973
* Danube Tournament (1): 1976
* World of Soccer Cup (1): 1977
* Lunar New Year Cup (1): 1980
* Belgrade Tournament (2): 1980, 1981
* Trofeo Villa de Gijón, Trofeo Costa Verde (1): 1982
* YU Tournament (1): 1984
* Mostar Tournament (1): 1991
* Torneo di Verona (1): 1991
* Tournoi de Corse (1): 1995
* Freiburg Tournament (1): 1997
* IFiZ Leipzig (1): 2004
* Chicago Sister Cities International Cup (1): 2010
Individual awards
Domestic
Yugoslav First League, Yugoslav First League top scorers
First League of Serbia and Montenegro, First League of Serbia and Montenegro top scorers
Serbian SuperLiga, Serbian SuperLiga top scorers
;Croatian Footballer of the Year, Yugoslav Footballer of the Year
*
Vladimir Petrović (1980)
*
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
(1988)
*
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
(1989)
* Robert Prosinečki (1990)
;DSL Sport#Golden Badge - Zlatna značka, Sportsperson of the Year in Yugoslavia
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
(1969)
* Dejan Savićević (1991)
;Serbian SuperLiga, Serbian SuperLiga Footballer of the Year
*
Nenad Milijaš (2008–09 Serbian SuperLiga, 2009)
* Hugo Vieira (2015–16 Serbian SuperLiga, 2016)
* Aleksandar Pešić (2017–18 Serbian SuperLiga, 2018)
* Marko Marin (2018–19 Serbian SuperLiga, 2019)
;Serbian Football Coach of the Year, Serbian Coach of the Year
* Vladan Milojević (2017)
* Vladan Milojević (2018)
International
;Ballon d'Or
* 2nd:
Darko Pančev
Darko Pančev ( mk, Дарко Панчев, ; born 7 September 1965) is a Macedonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He most notably played for FK Vardar and Red Star Belgrade.
He was part of the Red Star Belgrade sq ...
(1991 Ballon d'Or, 1991)
* 2nd: Dejan Savićević (1991 Ballon d'Or, 1991)
* 3rd:
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
(
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
)
;European Golden Shoe
*
Darko Pančev
Darko Pančev ( mk, Дарко Панчев, ; born 7 September 1965) is a Macedonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He most notably played for FK Vardar and Red Star Belgrade.
He was part of the Red Star Belgrade sq ...
(1991)
;List of UEFA Champions League top scorers#Top scorers by season, European Cup top scorer
*
Borislav Cvetković
Borislav Cvetković ( sr-Cyrl, Борислав Цветковић; born 30 September 1962) is a Serbian football manager and retired player. He was nicknamed "Lane sa Korane" (''Doe of Korana''), by legendary sports commentator Ivan Tomić, whil ...
(
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
)
;European Football Coach of the Season, European Coach of the Season
*
Ljupko Petrović
Ljubomir "Ljupko" Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Љубомир "Љупко" Петровић; born 15 May 1947) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He also holds a Bosnian passport.
As a manager, Petrović's biggest success wa ...
(1991)
;Bravo Award
* Robert Prosinečki (1991)
;UEFA Jubilee Awards, UEFA Jubilee Golden Player
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
(2003)
*
Darko Pančev
Darko Pančev ( mk, Дарко Панчев, ; born 7 September 1965) is a Macedonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He most notably played for FK Vardar and Red Star Belgrade.
He was part of the Red Star Belgrade sq ...
(2003)
;UEFA European Championship awards#Golden Boot, UEFA Euro Golden Boot
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
(UEFA Euro 1968, 1968)
;UEFA European Championship awards#Team of the Tournament, UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament
*
Vladimir Durković (1960 European Nations' Cup, 1960)
*
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
(1960 European Nations' Cup, 1960)
*
Bora Kostić (1960 European Nations' Cup, 1960)
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
(UEFA Euro 1968, 1968)
;FIFA World Cup awards#All-Star Team, FIFA World Cup All-Star Team
*
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
(1990 FIFA World Cup, 1990)
;FIFA World Cup awards#Best Young Player Award, FIFA World Cup Best Young Player Award
* Robert Prosinečki (1990 FIFA World Cup, 1990)
;FIFA U-20 World Cup#Golden Ball, FIFA U-20 World Cup Golden Ball
* Robert Prosinečki (1987 FIFA World Youth Championship, 1987)
;FIFA U-20 World Cup#Golden Glove, FIFA U-20 World Cup Golden Glove
* Predrag Rajković (2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup, 2015)
Club records
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
is Red Star's record appearance holder with 389 matches. The goalscoring record holder is
Bora Kostić with 230 goals. Numerous Red Star players were in the Yugoslavia national football team, Yugoslavian national team and
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
,
Rajko Mitić
Rajko Mitić ( sr-Cyrl, Рајко Митић, ; 19 November 1922 – 29 March 2008) was a Serbian footballer, coach, executive and journalist.
Mitić is considered one of the most important players in the history of Red Star Belgrade as he is th ...
,
Vladimir Beara,
Bora Kostić,
Vladimir Durković,
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
, Miroslav Pavlović,
Jovan Aćimović,
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
,
Vladimir Petrović,
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
and Dejan Savićević are among them. Dragan Džajić played 85 matches for the Yugoslavian national football team, a national record.
Red Star holds records such as to be only the second foreign team that could beat
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
at Anfield (after Ferencvárosi TC, Ferencváros in the 1967–68 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup), which was also the only defeat of Liverpool at home in the UEFA Champions League, European Cup history in the whole 20th century (during the
1973–74 European Cup
The 1973–74 season of the European Cup football club tournament was won for the first time by Bayern Munich, beginning their own three-year period of domination, in a replayed final against Atlético Madrid, the only such occasion in the tournam ...
). Red Star was also the first team that could beat
Bayern Munich on the Olympiastadion (Munich), Olympiastadion in its long UEFA competition history (during the
1990–91 European Cup
The 1990–91 European Cup was the 36th season of the European Cup, a tournament for men's football clubs in nations affiliated to the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). It was won for the first time by Red Star Belgrade on penalties ...
).
They are the only Serbian (and ex-Yugoslav) club, and only the second team from
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...
, to have won the European Cup, having done so in 1991 European Cup Final, 1991, which was also the 100th UEFA competition final. Red Star is among the nine clubs which have ever won the European Cup unbeaten. They are also the only team from the Balkans and Southeast Europe to have won the Intercontinental Cup (football), Intercontinental Cup, also in 1991 Intercontinental Cup, 1991. The Romanian football player Miodrag Belodedici was the first ever Red Star player to have won the European Cup with two different teams, FC Steaua București, Steaua București and Red Star; curiously, both of the team's names mean "Star". Later, double winners were also Dejan Savićević (Red Star and Milan) and Vladimir Jugović (Red Star and Juventus).
Top ten most appearances of all-time
Top ten scorers of all-time
Source
Club all-time European record
Best results in international competitions
Players
First team
Players with multiple nationalities
* Zoran Popović
* Mirko Ivanić
* Guélor Kanga
* Aleksandar Dragović
* Nemanja Motika
* Ibrahim Mustapha (Ghanaian footballer), Ibrahim Mustapha
* El Fardou Ben Nabouhane, El Fardou Ben
* Stefan Mitrović (footballer, born August 2002), Stefan Mitrović
* Milan Borjan
Out on loan
Retired number(s)
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
, Midfielder#Winger, winger (1963–1975, 1977–1978)
On 2 September 2022, Red Star Belgrade announced that the Squad number (association football), squad number 11 will be retired from the 2023–24 Red Star Belgrade season, 2023–24 season.
–
Delije
Delije ( sr-cyr, Делије) is a name referring to the supporters of various sports clubs that compete under the Red Star Belgrade multi-sport club banner. The plural of the singular form ''delija'' (делија)—which in Serbian generall ...
12th man (football), (the 12th Man)
Goran Gogić, midfielder (2013−2014) – ''posthumous honour''.
Since 2014, Red Star Belgrade have not issued the Squad number (association football), squad number 26 in the Serbian SuperLiga. It was List of retired numbers in association football, retired in memory of Goran Gogić, who died on 3 July 2015, aged 29. Gogić had also been assigned with jersey 25 for the 2014–15 Red Star Belgrade season, 2014–15 season, which he had worn in FK Jagodina, Jagodina previously. Since then some of players, like Marko Marinković and Milan Jevtović used to be registered for the
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
competitions. Jevtović also made his debut for the club with 26 jersey in summer 2018, but later chose number 33 in the domestic competition.
Club officials
Technical staff
Club management
Coaching history
''For details see List of Red Star Belgrade football coaches''
* Branislav Sekulić
* Svetislav Glišović
* Aleksandar Tomašević
* Ljubiša Broćić
* Žarko Mihajlović
* Branislav Sekulić
* Žarko Mihajlović
* Ljubiša Broćić
* Boško Ralić
* Milovan Ćirić
* Milorad Pavić (footballer), Milorad Pavić
* Ivan Toplak
*
Miljan Miljanić
* Miljenko Mihić
* Milovan Ćirić
*
Gojko Zec
Gojko Zec ( sr-Cyrl, Гојко Зец, ; 15 September 1935 – 3 November 1995) was a Serbian football manager. He coached OFK Beograd, FK Partizan, FK Borac Banja Luka, NK Rijeka, Red Star Belgrade, Aris, Yugoslavia FK Borac Čačak.
He was mu ...
*
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
* Stevan Ostojić
*
Gojko Zec
Gojko Zec ( sr-Cyrl, Гојко Зец, ; 15 September 1935 – 3 November 1995) was a Serbian football manager. He coached OFK Beograd, FK Partizan, FK Borac Banja Luka, NK Rijeka, Red Star Belgrade, Aris, Yugoslavia FK Borac Čačak.
He was mu ...
*
Velibor Vasović
Velibor Vasović (Serbian Cyrillic: Велибор Васовић; 3 October 1939 – 4 March 2002) was a Serbian footballer and manager, also one of the legendary players of Partizan Belgrade and Ajax and one of greatest defenders of his gener ...
*
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
*
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
*
Ljupko Petrović
Ljubomir "Ljupko" Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Љубомир "Љупко" Петровић; born 15 May 1947) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He also holds a Bosnian passport.
As a manager, Petrović's biggest success wa ...
*
Vladica Popović
Vladimir "Vladica" Popović (; 17 March 1935 – 10 August 2020) was a Serbian professional footballer and manager. The biggest success in his coaching career was winning the Intercontinental Cup with Red Star Belgrade in 1991.
Born in Zemun, P ...
* Milan Živadinović
*
Ljupko Petrović
Ljubomir "Ljupko" Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Љубомир "Љупко" Петровић; born 15 May 1947) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He also holds a Bosnian passport.
As a manager, Petrović's biggest success wa ...
* Vladimir Petrović, Vladimir "Pižon" Petrović
* Vojin Lazarević
* Milorad Kosanović
* Vojin Lazarević
* Miloljub Ostojić
* Zvonko Radić
*
Slavoljub Muslin
Slavoljub Muslin ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб Муслин, ; born 15 June 1953) is a Serbian football manager and former player.
Muslin began his head coaching career in 1988 and has since had stints in France, Morocco, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine ...
*
Zoran Filipović
*
Slavoljub Muslin
Slavoljub Muslin ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб Муслин, ; born 15 June 1953) is a Serbian football manager and former player.
Muslin began his head coaching career in 1988 and has since had stints in France, Morocco, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine ...
*
Ljupko Petrović
Ljubomir "Ljupko" Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Љубомир "Љупко" Петровић; born 15 May 1947) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He also holds a Bosnian passport.
As a manager, Petrović's biggest success wa ...
* Milovan Rajevac
* Ratko Dostanić
* Walter Zenga
* Dušan Bajević
* Boško Gjurovski
* Milorad Kosanović
* Aleksandar Janković
* Zdeněk Zeman
* Čedomir Janevski
* Siniša Gogić
* Vladimir Petrović, Vladimir "Pižon" Petrović
* Ratko Dostanić
* Aleksandar Kristić
* Robert Prosinečki
* Aleksandar Janković
* Ricardo Sá Pinto
* Slaviša Stojanović
*
Nenad Lalatović
Nenad Lalatović (, ; born 22 December 1977) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He is currently coaching the team Radnički Niš.
Club career
Lalatović came through the youth system of hometown club Red Star Belgra ...
* Miodrag Božović
* Boško Gjurovski
* Vladan Milojević
*
Dejan Stanković
* Miloš Milojević (football coach), Miloš Milojević
Club presidents
* Mita Miljković
* Isa Jovanović
* Sava Radojčić
* Dragoslav Marković
* Milić Bugarčić
* Dragoje Đurić
* Dušan Blagojević
* Milić Bugarčić
* Radovan Pantović
* Dušan Blagojević
* Nikola Bugarčić
* Radovan Pantović
* Brana Dimitrijević
* Vlastimir Purić
* Miladin Šakić
* Svetozar Mijailović
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
*
Dragan Stojković
Dragan Stojković ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Стојковић, ; born 3 March 1965), also known by the nickname Piksi (Пикси), is a Serbian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Serbia national team. Wi ...
* Toplica Spasojević
* Dan Tana, Dobrivoje Tanasijević
*
Vladan Lukić
*
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
* Svetozar Mijailović
Notable players
Stars of Red Star
Red Star has almost a 50-year-long tradition of giving the title of the ''Star of [Red] Star'' or ''The Star's star'' ( sr, Звездина звезда / Zvezdina zvezda) to the players that had a major impact on the club's history and have made the name of the club famous around the globe. So far, five players and the entire 1991 team were officially given the title. They are:
* The 1st Star of Red Star:
Rajko Mitić
Rajko Mitić ( sr-Cyrl, Рајко Митић, ; 19 November 1922 – 29 March 2008) was a Serbian footballer, coach, executive and journalist.
Mitić is considered one of the most important players in the history of Red Star Belgrade as he is th ...
* The 2nd Star of Red Star:
Dragoslav Šekularac
Dragoslav Šekularac ( sr-Cyrl, Драгослав Шекуларац, ; 8 November 1937 – 5 January 2019) was a Serbian professional footballer and coach.
Nicknamed Šeki, he was quick and crafty with the ball, displaying creative skills which ...
* The 3rd Star of Red Star:
Dragan Džajić
Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Yugoslav former footballer from Serbia.
Džajić is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to emerge from the former Yugoslavia, and one of the greatest l ...
* The 4th Star of Red Star: Vladimir Petrović, Vladimir Petrović "Pižon"
* The 5th Star of Red Star: Dragan Stojković, Dragan Stojković "Piksi"
* The 6th Star of Red Star: 1990–91 Red Star Belgrade season, The 1991 European Cup Winner Generation
The 1991 European Cup Winner Generation
Generation 1991 with 21 players was presented at the ceremony by president Svetozar Mijailović.
Notable players
:''To appear in this section a player must have played at least 80 matches for the club.''
:''Flags indicate national teams they played for, not nationality.''
*
Jovan Aćimović
* Zoran Antonijević
* Petar Baralić
*
Vladimir Beara
* Dejan Bekić
* Cvijetin Blagojević
*
Vladislav Bogićević
* Zdravko Borovnica
* Jovan Cokić
*
Borislav Cvetković
Borislav Cvetković ( sr-Cyrl, Борислав Цветковић; born 30 September 1962) is a Serbian football manager and retired player. He was nicknamed "Lane sa Korane" (''Doe of Korana''), by legendary sports commentator Ivan Tomić, whil ...
* Milan Čop
* Kiril Dojčinovski
*
Ratomir Dujković
*
Vladimir Durković
* Predrag Đajić
* Ranko Đorđić
* Milovan Đorić
* Žarko Đurović
* Marko Elsner
*
Zoran Filipović
* Boško Gjurovski
*
Milko Gjurovski
*
Milan Janković
*
Slobodan Janković
* Rajko Janjanin
* Zoran Jelikić
* Živorad Jevtić
* Nikola Jovanović (footballer, born 1952), Nikola Jovanović
* Milan Jovin
*
Ivan Jurišić
*
Stanislav Karasi
Stanislav Karasi (; born 8 November 1946) is a Serbian former football manager and player.
Club career
After coming through the youth system of Red Star Belgrade, Karasi started his senior career with Yugoslav Second League side Borovo. He ret ...
* Mihalj Keri
* Branko Klenkovski
*
Bora Kostić
* Zlatko Krdžević
* Miodrag Krivokapić (footballer), Miodrag Krivokapić
* Petar Krivokuća
* Srboljub Krivokuća
* Zlatko Krmpotić
* Vojin Lazarević
* Ljubomir Lovrić
* Živan Ljukovčan
* Dušan Maravić
* Vojislav Melić
* Trifun Mihailović
* Dragan Miletović
* Tomislav Milićević
* Goran Milojević
* Nedeljko Milosavljević
* Đorđe Milovanović
* Mitar Mrkela
* Husref Musemić
*
Slavoljub Muslin
Slavoljub Muslin ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб Муслин, ; born 15 June 1953) is a Serbian football manager and former player.
Muslin began his head coaching career in 1988 and has since had stints in France, Morocco, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine ...
*
Dušan Nikolić
* Jovica Nikolić
* Mile Novković
* Tihomir Ognjanov
* Stevan Ostojić
* Béla Pálfi
* Aleksandar Panajotović
* Miroslav Pavlović
*
Ognjen Petrović
* Vladica Popović, Vladimir Popović
* Slavko Radovanović
* Branko Radović (footballer, born 1950), Branko Radović
* Srebrenko Repčić
* Antun Rudinski
*
Dušan Savić
Dušan "Dule" Savić ( sr-cyr, Душан "Дуле" Савић; born 1 June 1955) is a Serbian former footballer.
Club career
Savić started playing football in the local side Jedinstvo Ub in his hometown. He arrived for a tryout at Red Star ...
* Ljubiša Spajić
*
Branko Stanković
Branko "Stane" Stanković ( sr-Cyrl, Бранко "Стане" Станковић, ; 31 October 1921 – 20 February 2002) was a Bosnian Serb footballer and manager, from Sarajevo.
Playing career Club
He started his career in SK Slavija Sarajevo ...
* Nikola Stipić
* Aleksandar Stojanović
* Sead Sušić
*
Miloš Šestić
* Slobodan Škrbić
* Miroslav Šugar
* Lazar Tasić
*
Kosta Tomašević
Kosta Tomašević (Serbian Cyrillic: Коста Томашевић; 25 July 1923 – 13 March 1976) was a Serbian footballer remembered for his illustrious career with Red Star Belgrade. Tomašević also represented both the Yugoslav and Serbian ...
* Novak Tomić
* Ivan Toplak
* Branislav Vukosavljević
* Miljan Zeković
* Siniša Zlatković
* Todor Živanović
*
Ivan Adžić
* Srđan Bajčetić
*
Dušan Basta
* Dragan Bogavac
* Branko Bošković
* Goran Bunjevčević
*
Vladimir Dišljenković
*
Goran Drulić
* Ivan Dudić
* Milan Dudić
* Slavoljub Đorđević
* Goran Đorović
* Jovan Gojković
* Ivan Gvozdenović
* Dejan Ilić
* Ilija Ivić
* Branko Jelić
* Dragoslav Jevrić
*
Zoran Jovičić
* Aleksandar Kocić
*
Ognjen Koroman
* Nenad Kovačević
* Radovan Krivokapić
*
Nebojša Krupniković
Nebojša Krupniković (; born 15 August 1973) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
Club career
Born in Arilje, Krupniković started out at Red Star Belgrade, making his first senior appearances duri ...
*
Nenad Lalatović
Nenad Lalatović (, ; born 22 December 1977) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. He is currently coaching the team Radnički Niš.
Club career
Lalatović came through the youth system of hometown club Red Star Belgra ...
* Leo Lerinc
* Aleksandar Luković
* Vinko Marinović
* Marjan Marković
* Dragan Mićić
*
Zvonko Milojević
* Dragan Mladenović (footballer), Dragan Mladenović
* Zoran Njeguš
* Perica Ognjenović
* Miodrag Pantelić
*
Dejan Petković
Dejan Petković ( sr-Cyrl, Дејан Петковић, ; born 10 September 1972) is a Serbian football pundit and retired footballer. In his native country he is widely known under the nickname Rambo while in Brazil he is known as Pet. He played ...
* Mihajlo Pjanović
* Nikola Radmanović
* Nenad Sakić
*
Dejan Stanković
*
Nemanja Vidić
Nemanja Vidić ( sr-Cyrl, Немања Видић, ; born 21 October 1981) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is best known for his time at Manchester United, was part of the Serbia national team, and ...
* Milivoje Vitakić
*
Nikola Žigić
Nikola Žigić ( sr-cyr, Никола Жигић, ; born 25 September 1980) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a centre forward.
Žigić was born in Bačka Topola, in what was then SFR Yugoslavia. He began playing football as a you ...
* Bratislav Živković
* Dušan Anđelković
* Srđan Babić
*
Milan Biševac
*
Strahinja Eraković
* Milan Gajić (footballer, born 1996), Milan Gajić
* Marko Gobeljić
*
Boško Janković
Boško Janković ( sr-Cyrl, Бошко Јанковић; born 1 March 1984) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a winger for the Serbia national football team. He is an attacking minded player, with the tendency to take long shots and ...
* Aleksandar Katai
* Nenad Krstičić
* Darko Lazović
* Nikola Mikić
*
Nenad Milijaš
*
Dejan Milovanović
Dejan Milovanović ( sr-Cyrl, Дејан Миловановић; born 21 January 1984) is a Serbian retired professional footballer.
Personal
He is the son of Đorđe Milovanović, a member of Red Star Belgrade in the late 1970s and early to mi ...
* Nemanja Milunović
*
Dragan Mrđa
* Pavle Ninkov
* Radovan Pankov
* Milan Pavkov
*
Marko Perović
* Marko Petković
* Njegoš Petrović
* Ivan Ranđelović
* Mihailo Ristić (footballer), Mihailo Ristić
* Milan Rodić
*
Vujadin Savić
Vujadin Savić ( sr-cyr, Вујадин Савић; born 1 July 1990) is a retired Serbian footballer.
Club career Early career
Savić was eight years old when he began training for the Red Star Belgrade, where he passed all age categories. Betwe ...
*
Slavoljub Srnić
* Saša Stamenković
* Đorđe Tutorić
* Aleksa Vukanović
Notable foreign players
:''To appear in this section a player must have played at least 30 matches for the club.''
* Luis Ibáñez
* Miloš Degenek
* Milan Ivanović
* Aleksandar Dragović
* Srđan Pecelj
* Cadú (footballer, born 1986), Cadú
* Evandro (footballer, born 1986), Evandro
* Sávio (footballer, born 1984), Sávio
* Milan Borjan
* Cristian Martínez (Colombian footballer), Cristian Borja
* El Fardou Ben Nabouhane, El Fardou Ben
* John Jairo Ruiz
*
Segundo Castillo
* Damien Le Tallec
* Guélor Kanga
* Marko Marin
* Lee Addy
* Richmond Boakye
* Abraham Frimpong
* Mohammed-Awal Issah
* Diego Falcinelli
* Filippo Falco
* Sékou Sanogo (footballer), Sékou Sanogo
* Boban Bajković
* Igor Burzanović
* Mirko Ivanić
* Filip Kasalica
* Nemanja Nikolić (footballer, born 1988), Nemanja Nikolić
* Savo Pavićević
* Milan Purović
* Vukan Savićević
*
Filip Stojković
* Marko Vešović
* Lorenzo Ebecilio
* Abiola Dauda
* Blaže Georgioski
* Mitko Stojkovski
* Ivan Trichkovski
* Tomané
* Hugo Vieira
*
Ibrahima Gueye
* Milenko Ačimovič
* Nejc Pečnik
* Mitchell Donald
Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors
General sponsor
The general sponsor of Serbia's most popular football club has, since 2010, been Gazprom Neft, the majority shareholder in leading Serbian company Naftna Industrija Srbije, Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), and the most important foreign investor in the country. The club has won seven Serbian championship titles and three Serbian Cups in that time, as well as regularly competing in European championships. This cooperation, as well as supporting Gazprom Neft's brands, also involves collaborating in youth football together with FC Zenit Saint Petersburg, with the clubs exchanging youth players and holding friendly youth matches.
In popular culture
The club's name in Serbian is also the title of the 2013 Italian novel ''Crvena Zvezda'' by Enrico Varrecchione. Written in the alternate history genre, utilizing elements of uchronia, its story is based on the premise of what if 9 November 1988 return leg of the 1988–89 European Cup, European Cup second round clash between Red Star and A.C. Milan, AC Milan hadn't been ordered abandoned by German referee Dieter Pauly in the 65th minute due to thick fog that night in Belgrade. Red Star were leading 1–0 after a goal by Dejan Savićević and were also a man up due to Milan striker Pietro Paolo Virdis receiving a red card. After abandonment,
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
cancelled the match and ordered it replayed in full the next day. This time it finished 1–1 and went to penalties (the first leg in Milan also ended 1–1) where Milan won and went through to the quarter-finals, eventually 1989 European Cup Final, winning the European Cup — thus getting the coveted trophy again after twenty years, the club's first under its recently arrived owner, ambitious businessman Silvio Berlusconi. In the novel's parallel universe, Red Star won 9 November 1988 match in Belgrade and eliminated AC Milan, which thus never won its 1989 European Cup, meaning that Berlusconi's ultimate entry into Italian politics had a much weaker background push, which adversely affected his performance at the Italian general election, 1994, 1994 Italian general election.
The novel also follows the fate of Red Star's fictional striker, loosely based on Savićević, Jovan Eldzic who scored the famous goal in the fog and later went on to transfer to AC Milan where he achieved more accolades, eventually taking Italian citizenship, remaining living in Italy upon retiring from football before entering politics and running for mayor of a small town in Piedmont's Province of Alessandria, Alessandria province.
Billy Bragg's 1991 UK top thirty hit song "Sexuality (Billy Bragg song), Sexuality" contains the lyric ''"I had an uncle who once played for Red Star Belgrade."'' When interviewed many years later Bragg was asked if this was true, to which he replied that his uncle actually played for Fulham F.C., Fulham but that did not fit the rhyme with played.
Two non-related bands, one of them from Great Yarmouth, Great Britain, and Red Star Belgrade (band), the other one from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States, shared the name ''Red Star Belgrade''.
A football club in Ecuador, in the city of Cuenca, Ecuador, Cuenca, created in 1961, is inspired in Red Star Belgrade. It is named :es:Club Deportivo Estrella Roja, CDS Estrella Roja. Estrella Roja is the translation and the way Red Star is known in Spanish speaking countries. The club crest is even the same as the one Red Star had between 1995 and 2011.
CSD Estrella Roja
official Facebook page, retrieved 24 July 2017
A junior football team called 'Lenadoon Red Star' played in West Belfast, North of Ireland from 1972–1975 during the height of The Troubles. The team wrote to Red Star Belgrade in the early 1970s, asking if they could donate any kits to the young team, but Red Star Belgrade wrote back saying they couldn't afford to send over any kits.
References
External links
; Official
*
Red Star Belgrade
at UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
{{Navboxes, titlestyle=background:#d90512;color:white;, list1=
{{Serbian Superliga
{{First League of Serbia and Montenegro
{{UEFA Champions League winners
{{Intercontinental Cup winners
Red Star Belgrade,
Crvena zvezda
Football clubs in Yugoslavia
Football clubs in Belgrade
Association football clubs established in 1945
1945 establishments in Serbia
UEFA Champions League winning clubs
Savski Venac
Intercontinental Cup winning clubs