GKS Katowice (; GKS stands for , "Miners Sporting Club") is a Polish football club based in

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most populo ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

. The club currently plays in the

I liga I liga ( pl, Pierwsza liga, ), currently named Fortuna I liga due to its sponsorship by Fortuna, is the men's second professional association football division of the Polish football league system, below the Ekstraklasa and above the II liga ...

, after having won promotion in 2021.

History

In 1963 in

a special organizational committee was called with the purpose of uniting all the clubs and sporting organizations of the city into one large club which would encompass many disciplines. In mid-1963 Rapid Welnowiec and Orzeł Welnowiec merged, creating Rapid/Orzeł. In 1964 Rapid/Orzeł, Górnik Katowice, Koszutka Katowice, Katowicki Klub Łyżwiarski (Katowice Skating Club), Katowicki Klub Sportowy Górnik, Górniczy Klub Żeglarski Szkwał (a sailing club) amongst other clubs from Katowice merged creating GKS Katowice. Four years later on the 9 August 1968, Dąb Katowice also amalgamated with GKS Katowice. GKS Katowice made its debut in Polish football's top league (now call the

Ekstraklasa Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its sponsorship by PKO Bank Polski, is the top Polish professional league for men's association football teams. Contested by 18 ...

) on 8 August 1965 when GKS Katowice took on local rivals

Górnik Zabrze Górnik Zabrze Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Górnik Zabrze S.A. or simply Górnik Zabrze (), is a Polish football club from Zabrze. Górnik is one of the most successful Polish football clubs in history, winning the second-most Po ...

. GKS Katowice's debut season in the top flight was in the season of 1965–66. The new team quickly gained experience and ability. A bad patch for the club came in 1971 when Katowice was relegated to the 2nd Division. The club's problems were quickly overcome, and GKS returned to the top flight where they played with pride and passion. From 1982 the club consistently found itself up the top end of the ladder, as well as playing off in several

Polish Cup The Polish Cup in football ( pl, Puchar Polski w piłce nożnej ) is an elimination tournament for Polish football clubs, held continuously from 1950, and is the second most important national title in Polish football after the Ekstraklasa titl ...

finals. In 1985 GKS Katowice played in its first Polish Cup final but lost in a penalty shootout to

Widzew Łódź RTS Widzew Łódź () is a Polish football club based in Łódź. The club was founded in 1910. Its official colours are red and white, hence their nicknames ''Czerwona Armia'' (Red Army) and ''Czerwono-biało-czerwoni'' (Red-white-reds). Histor ...

. The following year GKS played off in a memorable final at Stadion Śląski against Górnik Zabrze; GKS triumphed 4–1. From that moment the city of

began to live and breathe football. The next year GKS finished third and the two following years they were runners-up. In 1989 GKS again came third, and in 1991 GKS were runners-up. From 1986 to 1995 to GKS Katowice were four times runners-up in the league, twice the winners of the Polish Supercup and three-time Polish Cup winners. The biggest moments for the club and fans were always when the team took part in European cups. The first time GKS faced European opposition was in 1970, in the now defunct

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, sometimes referred to as the European Fairs Cup, Fairs Cities' Cup, or simply as the Fairs Cup, was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecessor to the UEFA Cup (n ...

, GKS took on the might of Barcelona in a two-legged tie. Katowice didn't lose by much (2-4 on aggregate), the fans were proud of their club. The second time GKS took part in European football they showed more and played better football. In the first round of the 1986–1987

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 tournam ...

GKS defeated Iceland's

Fram Reykjavík Fram may refer to: Ships * ''Fram'' (ship), an arctic exploration vessel from Norway * MS ''Fram'', expedition cruise ship owned by Hurtigruten Group Places and geography * Fram, Paraguay, a town in Itapúa, Paraguay * Fram Formation, a sequ ...

but in the second round, they lost to Switzerland's Sion. For the next 10 years, GKS Katowice took part in European football. Over the years fans of GKS got to witness their team take on the likes of Sportul Studentsc Bucharest,

Rangers A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...

Club Brugge (), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,062.

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other dep ...

, Benfica, Aris, Girondins Bordeaux and twice Bayer Leverkusen. GKS's record in European football stands at 10 wins, 7 draws, and 19 losses. GKS Katowice again fell on hard times during the mining crisis. In 1999 the team was relegated from the Ekstraklasa, but was back in the topflight only a year later. Piotr Dziurowicz became president who, despite growing debts and financial troubles, kept the team in the top flight. In 2003 the team even managed to qualify for the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, cla ...

by finishing third in the league under coach Jan Żurek. This was hailed as one of the biggest surprises ever in the history of the Ekstraklasa. Despite the success, the debts under Piotr Dziurowicz began to grow to a significant sum. From March 27, 2003 to June 11, 2004, the club played under the name of its main sponsor Dospel Katowice; this was not taken well by the fans of the club. GKS Katowice Sportowa Spółka Akcyjna finished its reins at the helm of the club in the summer of 2005 after the disastrous 2004–2005 season where GKS finished 14th (and last) in the Ekstraklasa and was relegated to the second Division. Then to make matters worse the team had to drop to the 4th Division due to legal and financial problems. After the drop to the 4th division, a group of dedicated fans known as the "Stowarzyszenie Sympatyków Klubu GKS Katowice" (which loosely translates into Society of Well Wishers Club of GKS Katowice) took over the helm at the club. In June 2006 the club was promoted to the 3rd division, and in June 2007 the team again won promotion this time to the 2nd Division, which in 2008 was renamed the 1st Division (

I Liga I liga ( pl, Pierwsza liga, ), currently named Fortuna I liga due to its sponsorship by Fortuna, is the men's second professional association football division of the Polish football league system, below the Ekstraklasa and above the II liga ...

). The team continues to play, balancing between the

(2nd tier) and

II liga II liga (Druga Liga, ), currently named eWinner II liga due to sponsorship reasons by eWinner, is a Polish football league that sits at the third tier of the Polish football league system. Until the end of the 2007–08 season ''II Liga'' refer ...

(3rd tier).

Major achievements

National

titles (3): 1986, 1991, 1993 :Polish Cup final: 1985, 1987, 1990, 1995, 1997 :

Polish Supercup The Polish Super Cup (, ) is an annually held match between the champions of the Ekstraklasa and the Polish Cup winners or, if the Ekstraklasa champions also win the Polish Cup, the Cup's runners-up. As of 2021, the Polish Super Cup has been pl ...

titles (2): 1991, 1995 :Polish

Runner Up: 1988, 1989, 1992, 1994 :Polish Ekstraklasa Third Team: 1987, 1990, 1995, 2003

International

:Round of 16 –

Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised ...

(2x) – 1986/87, 1991/92 :Round of 16 –

(1x) – 1994/95

Youth Team

*Polish U-19 Bronze Medal: 1995, 2002

GKS in Europe

Current team

Notable players

Jan Furtok Jan Furtok (born 9 March 1962) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a striker. Career Born in Katowice, Furtok played for a few clubs, including GKS Katowice (Polish cup winner in 1986) and Hamburger SV and Eintracht Frankf ...

* Piotr Piekarczyk *

Roman Szewczyk Roman Szewczyk (born 18 March 1965) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a defender. He played 37 times for Poland, scoring 3 goals.

* Moussa Yahaya *

Andrzej Rudy Andrzej Rudy (born 15 October 1965) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Playing career Born in Ścinawa, Rudy started his career in football with Odra Ścinawa (1981–83). He debuted professionally with Ś ...

Piotr Świerczewski Piotr Jarosław Świerczewski (; born 8 April 1972) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. During his 20-year professional career, he played for clubs such as Lech Poznań, GKS Katowice, AS Saint-Étienne (France ...

* Janusz Jojko *

Marek Koniarek Marek Krzysztof Koniarek (born 29 May 1962) is a retired Polish football striker. He was the Ekstraklasa Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its sponsorship by PKO Ba ...

Mirosław Kubisztal Mirosław Kubisztal (born 12 February 1962) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a forward for Unia Tarnów, Cracovia, GKS Katowice, and Swedish club Örebro SK , where he played 161 matches and scored 68 goals. During h ...

Marek Świerczewski Marek Świerczewski (born 2 March 1967) is a Polish former professional footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, Ame ...

* Mirosław Sznaucner *

Sławomir Wojciechowski Sławomir Wojciechowski (born 6 September 1973 in Gdańsk) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Honours * Bundesliga: 2000–01 * DFB-Pokal: 1999–2000 * DFB-Ligapokal: 2000 * UEFA Champions League Th ...

Adam Ledwoń Adam Ryszard Ledwoń (15 January 1974 – 11 June 2008) was a Polish professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Career Ledwoń was born in Olesno, Upper Silesia, Poland. He played for Bayer 04 Leverkusen (1997–1999), Fortuna Köln ( ...

Admir Adžem Admir Adžem (born 25 March 1973) is a Bosnian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who is the current youth coach of UAE Pro League club Al Wasl F.C., Al Wasl. Club career In his playin ...

Gija Guruli Gia Guruli (born 20 May 1964 in Chiatura) is a former Georgian professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally me ...

* Bartosz Karwan *

Paweł Brożek Paweł Łukasz Brożek (; born 21 April 1983) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a striker. Brozek previously represented various youth squads for Poland. He made his Poland national football team debut in 2005, scored over ...

Kazimierz Węgrzyn Kazimierz Węgrzyn (born 13 April 1967 in Biłgoraj) is a former Polish footballer ( defender). Now he is a football commentator. Career Club During his career he played for such a clubs like Wisła Kraków, Cracovia or GKS Katowice. Intern ...

* Mirosław Widuch *

Dariusz Rzeźniczek Dariusz Rzeźniczek (born 22 May 1968) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Rzeźniczek began his professional career with GKS Katowice, and played in 110 Ekstraklasa league matches over eight seas ...

Managers

* Antoni Brzeżańczyk (1964–65) * Jerzy Nikiel (1965–66) * Tibor Kemény (1966–67) *

Tadeusz Foryś Tadeusz Foryś (31 October 1910 – 6 March 1987) was a Polish footballer and manager. Career Foryś spent his playing career with Warszawianka. After his playing career, he went into coaching and management. In total he was assistant manag ...

* Augustyn Dziwisz * Stanisław Oślizło (1979–80) * Władysław Jan Żmuda (1980–81) * Jerzy Nowok (1981–83) * Jacek Góralczyk (1983) *

Zdzisław Podedworny Zdzisław Podedworny (born 13 April 1941 in Żabińce) is a Polish football coach. Career Coaching career He managed Górnik Zabrze, Olimpia Poznań, GKS Katowice, Ruch Chorzów, Espérance de Tunis :''See also Esperance (disambiguation)'' Esp ...

(1984–85) *

Alojzy Łysko Alojzy Ludwik Łysko (14 April 1935 – 22 March 2021) was a Polish football player and manager. Playing career Łysko played for Siemianowiczanka Siemianowice, Ruch Chorzów and GKS Katowice. He also capped once for Poland, on 10 May 1964 ...

(1985–87) * Władysław Jan Żmuda (1987–90) *

Orest Lenczyk Orest Lenczyk (; born 28 December 1942, in Sanok) is a Polish football manager and former player. Player career He also was a player, in lower divisions teams, such as Sanoczanka Sanok, Stomil Poznań, Sleza Wrocław, and Moto-Jelcz Olawa. At t ...

(1990–91) *

(1991–92) * Adolf Blutsch (1992–93) * Piotr Piekarczyk (1993–94) * Jacek Góralczyk (1995) *

(1995–96) * Piotr Piekarczyk (1996–98) *

(1998–99) * Paweł Kowalski (2000) *

Bogusław Kaczmarek Bogusław Kaczmarek (born 6 March 1950) is a Polish former Manager (association football), football manager and Football player, player. Personal life Kaczmarek is commemorated by a star at the MOSiR Stadium (Gdańsk), MOSiR Stadium in Gdańsk. ...

(2000–01) *

Janusz Białek Janusz Białek (born 10 October 1955) is a retired Poland, Polish football midfielder and later manager. References

1955 births Living people Polish men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Stal Mielec players Ekstraklas ...

(2001–02) * Jan Żurek (2002–03) * Edward Lorens (2003) * Jan Żurek (2003–04) *

Lechosław Olsza Lechosław "Ola" Olsza (born 28 February 1949) is a Polish football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is primarily associated with two Upper Silesian football clubs; GKS Katowice and GKS Tychy. Club career Olsza was b ...

(2004) * Wojciech Borecki (2004) * Mieczysław Broniszewski (2004) *

(2005) *

(2005) * Henryk Górnik (2005–06) * Piotr Piekarczyk (2006–08) * Adam Nawałka (2008–09) * Robert Moskal (2010) *

Dariusz Fornalak Dariusz Fornalak (born 15 October 1965) is a Polish football midfielder and later manager. References 1965 births Living people Polish footballers Association football midfielders Poland international footballers Ruch Chorzów player ...

(2010) * Wojciech Stawowy (2010–11) * Rafał Górak (2011–13) * Kazimierz Moskal (2013–14) *

Artur Skowronek Artur Skowronek (born 22 May 1982) is a Polish football manager. He has managed teams such as Widzew Łódź and Wisła Kraków in the Ekstraklasa Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019� ...

(2014–15) * Piotr Piekarczyk (2015) * Jerzy Brzęczek (2015–17) * Janusz Jojko (2017) *

Piotr Mandrysz Piotr Mandrysz (born 21 September 1962) is a Polish football manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of ma ...

(2017–18) * Jacek Paszulewicz (2018) * Jakub Dziółka (2018) *

Dariusz Dudek Dariusz Dudek (born 8 April 1975 in Knurów) is a Polish football manager and former player, currently in charge of I liga club Zagłębie Sosnowiec. Career Dudek is a former player of such a teams like GKS Katowice, Widzew Łódź, Odra W ...

(2018–2019) * Rafał Górak (2019-)

References

External links

GKS Katowice – Official website

GKS Katowice
at 90minut.pl
Official facebookTwitterInstagram
{{Authority control Football clubs in Katowice Association football clubs established in 1964 1964 establishments in Poland Organisations based in Katowice