Legia Warszawa (), commonly referred to as Legia Warsaw or simply Legia, is a professional
football club
A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all- ...
based in
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, Poland. Legia is the most successful Polish football club in history, winning record 15
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 cl ...
champions titles, a record 19
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 title. ...
and four
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 ...
trophies. The club's home venue is the
Polish Army Stadium
The Stadion Wojska Polskiego (, en, Polish Army Stadium), officially named Stadion Miejski Legii Warszawa im. Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego ( eng, The Marshall Józef Piłsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw) in Warsaw, Poland, is an all- ...
(''Stadion Wojska Polskiego''). Legia is the only Polish club never to have been relegated from the top flight of Polish football since
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 opposin ...
(see:
1936 Legia Warsaw season
During the 1936 season, Legia Warsaw participated in 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 profe ...
).
Legia was formed between 5 and 15 March 1916 during military operations in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
on the
Eastern Front, as the main football club of the
Polish Legions. After the war, the club was reactivated on 14 March 1920 in an officer casino in Warsaw as Wojskowy Klub Sportowy Warszawa, renamed Legia in 1923 after merger with another local club, Korona.
It became the main official football club of the
Polish Army
The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...
– ''Wojskowy Klub Sportowy Legia Warszawa'' (). From 1949 to 1957, Legia was known as ''CWKS Warszawa'' ()
Before 8 April 2004 it was owned by
Pol-Mot Pol-Mot Holding SA is a Polish holding company based manufacturer of agricultural equipment. Pol-Mot was established in 1968; it controlled the whole international trade and collaboration of Polish automotive industry, inclusive with license contra ...
and from 8 April 2004 (sold for 3 million
zlotys) until 9 January 2014, it was owned by media conglomerate
ITI Group
ITI Group (International Trading and Investments Holdings SA Luxembourg), known as Grupa ITI in Poland, was a large media conglomerate headquartered in Warsaw, Poland. On 2 July 2015, ITI Group and Canal+ Group complete the sale of their controll ...
. Currently the club is owned by Dariusz Mioduski who serves as the club's chairman.
History
Formation and beginnings
Legia was formed between 5 and 15 March 1916 during military operations in World War I on the
Eastern Front in the locality of Maniewicze, within the region of
Volhynia
Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. Th ...
(Polish: ''Wołyń''). It served as the main football club of the Polish Legions, who at the time fought for
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
.
The formation of the club in 1916 was greatly influenced by the outbreak of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, because many Polish soldiers were involved in the formation of the Polish Legions before the war. Soldiers, often young men from the south of Poland (mainly from
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
and
Lviv
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...
) played football before the war, and therefore, after the formation of the team, they soon became successful. Football was a good way of spending free time, in the calm moments at the front, football matches were organized, which required the ball, making provisional goals, and finding a dozen or so players.
The first team training began in the spring of 1915 in Piotrków, between 5 and 15 March 1916 – at the request of then Master Sergeant Zygmunt Wasserab (pre-war player of Pogoń Stryj) – who was a part of the Polish Legion's Commanding Staff in
Kostiuchnówka
Kostyukhnivka (Ukrainian: Костюхнівка, Polish: ''Kostiuchnówka'') is a village in Kamin-Kashyrskyi Raion of Volyn Oblast, Ukraine, but was formerly administered within Manevytskyi Raion.
In 1916, it was the site of the Battle of Kosti ...
in Volhynia to create a football club. The president of the organization was Władysław Groele, and corporal
Stanisław Mielech
Stanisław Mielech (29 April 1894 – 17 November 1962) was a Polish footballer. He played in two matches for the Poland national football team from 1921 to 1922.
From 1923 to 1927 he was associated with Legia Warsaw. He was the originator ...
proposed the name "Sporting Team Legia", which was adopted (more commonly used term of the team later became Legionowa). Other names were: "Legion Command Squad" and "Styr". White-black colors and arms were also shown, showing the white letter "L" (symbol of the Legions) on the black dial. The players were dressed in white clothes with sloping black belts, which was a reference to
Czarni Lwów
Czarni Lwów was one of the first Polish professional sports clubs with the well developed football section as well as ice hockey among the several other sports. The football club was started in the late 19th century in Lwów as a school football ...
.
In the spring of 1916, the team played a number of matches with other teams, most of which ended with Legia victorious. The oldest recorded matches are: 7–0 with the Divisional Sanitary Division, 3–3 with the 6th Infantry Regiment and two victories (6–4 and 3–1) with the 4th Infantry Regiment.
In July 1916 – because of the
Brusilov Offensive – the Legions began to retreat west and the club relocated to Warsaw. The first match in which
Polonia Warsaw
Polonia Warsaw ( pl, Polonia Warszawa, ), founded on 19 November 1911, is the oldest existing Varsovian sports club, best known for its football and basketball teams. It also has track and field, swimming, chess, mountain biking, and contract ...
was the rival was held on 29 April 1917 at Agrykola Park and ended with a 1–1 draw. Of the nine games played in Warsaw, Legia won six and drew three. At the first away game the team won a 2–1 victory over the then Polish champion
KS Cracovia {{Short description, Sports club based in Kraków
Cracovia is a multi-sports club in Kraków, Poland. Its teams include:
*MKS Cracovia
Miejski Klub Sportowy Cracovia Sportowa Spółka Akcyjna, commonly known simply as MKS Cracovia or Cracovia ...
in Kraków, so Legia became an unofficial champion of the country. In 1918 the war ended, but the team continued to play only amateur-friendly matched.
1920s and 1930s
The club was reactivated on 14 March 1920. In the officers' casinos in the
Royal Castle, a group of former officers formed the Military Sports Club (WKS) -Wojskowy Klub Sportowy- Warsaw, establishing the white and red colors of the statute. Among them was Zygmunt Wasserab, one of the founders of the club.
[Błoński R.: ''Legia Warszawa''. Wydawnictwo Atena, 2008. .]
Due to the Polish-Bolshevik war and the participation of many Warsaw players, WKS was not nominated for the premiership of the Polish championship league in 1920. In the 1921–1926 seasons, the team was not promoted beyond the A-class of the Warsaw district, but it was a very important period for the club. In 1922, a statute was passed allowing the team to play in civilian teams (as opposed to playing against only other soldiers). Zygmunt Wassarab and Jerzy Misiński worked together and the club's name was changed to the Military Sports Club "Legia" Warsaw. It was modeled on the document of LKS Pogoń Lwów. At that time, a merger with the oldest Warsaw sports club, Korona, was created, which resulted in the acquisition of new, white-green club colors.
In the first international match played on 18 May 1922, Legia lost 2–9 at their own stadium with Czechoslovakian club Viktor Zichkov Prague.
A year later, in the championship of Warsaw, the Army took 3rd place.
After the first-ever promotion beyond Class A in 1927, Legia qualified for the newly formed Polish Football League. Roman Górecki, the then president of the Warsaw team, became the first president of the Polish League. Their debut was on 8 May in Łódź – Klub Turystów Łódź was the opponent and the match ended in a 6–1 result. At the same time, Legia player Marian Łańko scored his first league goal free kick and recorded his first hat-trick in club history. In the same year, in a match against Pogonia Lwów, the club suffered the highest league loss, losing 2–11. At the end of the season, Legia finished fifth, despite five defeats at the start of the season. Legia striker Marian Łańko finished second scoring 31 goals. The Warsaw club also made their debut in the Polish Cup, winning the match with Pogoń Warsaw 7–0. For the next two seasons Legia occupied higher positions in the league than the other clubs: Polonia and Warszawianka.
In 1930, after three years of construction, the
Polish Army Stadium
The Stadion Wojska Polskiego (, en, Polish Army Stadium), officially named Stadion Miejski Legii Warszawa im. Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego ( eng, The Marshall Józef Piłsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw) in Warsaw, Poland, is an all- ...
was opened at Łazienkowska Street. In the first match of the new stadium, Legia drew 1–1 with Barcelona. In the same year the legionaries defeated Hajduki Wielkie 7–1 in their 100th match in the league. Legia also had the biggest pre-war successes in the Polish championships in 1930 and 1931, where they were short three points and one point respectively.
Moreover, in the first edition of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs awards for the best results in international competition, the Army received a "traveling" trophy.
In the 1935 season, Legia remained in the league, gaining one point advantage over the relegated Cracovia, and then in 1936 – in the club's 20th anniversary – lost seven consecutive games and recorded the only decline of the league in its history. In 1937 the club's board decided to return to the military statute. As a result, almost all civilians departed from the first team, mainly to other Warsaw teams. In 1937 – in the A class of the Warsaw district – Legia took fourth place, and one year later, took first place, and played in the first division play-offs. Legia was third place in the play-offs and they were not able to advance. The board reacted by withdrawing the club from all competitions and decided to play only friendly matches. In 1938, most of the team's sections were dissolved, leaving only three: tennis, swimming and motocross.
1940s
After the end of World War II – in April 1945 – the club was reactivated under the name of I Wojskowy Klub Sportowy Warszawa (1st Military Sports Club Warsaw), and in June added a historical member of Legia. Among the people who contributed to the reconstruction of the club were: Julian Neuding – prewar player of
Makabi Warszawa
Makabi Warszawa, in English Makabi Warsaw, founded in 1915 in Warsaw, Poland was a Polish sports club founded by the Jewish Gymnastic and Sports Association " Maccabi" in Warsaw. It was the largest multi-section Jewish sports club in the Second Po ...
, Karol Rudolf – prewar player of Legia, Henryk Czarnik and Józef Ziemian – Legia players from the interwar period. The team initially played friendly matches with teams in the region, but later also with clubs from other countries, the likes of the Swedish
IFK Norrköping
Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna Norrköping, more commonly known as IFK Norrköping or simply Norrköping, is a Swedish professional football club based in Norrköping. The club is affiliated to Östergötlands Fotbollförbund and play their ...
and the Yugoslav
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 ...
.
In the first postwar Polish championships held in 1946, Legia took second place in the elimination group, falling out of competition. In 1948, after qualifying for the nine-year break of the highest tier, Legia qualified after a victory in the inter-regional eliminations of the northeastern region and after took second place in the nationwide qualification. Legia eventually took fourth place, drawing 3–3 with
Ruch Chorzów
Ruch Chorzów () is a Polish association football club based in Chorzów, Upper Silesia. It is one of the most successful football teams in Poland: fourteen-time national champions, and three-time winners of the Polish Cup. Currently the team play ...
. It was the 250th league game of the club. The first post-war match in the first tier took place on 14 March 1948, beating
Polonia Bytom
Polonia Bytom () is a Polish football club based in Bytom, founded in 1920, two times Polish Champions. The team currently plays in the III liga (as of 2022–23).
History Beginnings
Polonia was founded on 4 January 1920 in the Upper Silesia ...
3–1.
For the next two seasons, Legia only held on in the first division due to a better goal differential against the relegated teams, taking the 9th and 10th respectively. In November 1949, after the reforms introduced by the then Polish football association, the club once again changed its name to Centralny Wojskowy Klub Sportowy (Central Army Sports Club). Also, a new coat of arms (large letter C, and smaller letters in it: W, K, S). The official patron of the team was the Polish People's Army.
Legia became a military club, so it was possible to get players of other clubs, players like
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
,
Ernest Pohl
Ernest Pohl (3 November 1932 – 12 September 1995), a.k.a. Ernst Pol, was a Polish football player. He was born in Ruda (now Ruda Śląska), Poland and died in Hausach, Germany.
Career
Pohl scored 39 goals in 46 international matches for Pola ...
and Edmund Kowal all were brought to Legia.
1950s
In 1951, Legia took third place in the league, and in the cup competitions lost in the eighth-finals with
Polonia Warszawa
Polonia Warsaw ( pl, Polonia Warszawa, ), founded on 19 November 1911, is the oldest existing Varsovian sports club, best known for its football and basketball teams. It also has track and field, swimming, chess, mountain biking, and contract ...
. A year later, Legia achieved its first success in the Polish Cup competition, reaching the finals (in which Polonia Warszawa won 1–0). The reserve team reached this stage of the competition, while the first team dropped out in the eighth-finals, losing to Lechia Gdańsk. In the league, the club ranked sixth, and in the Puchar Zlotu Młodych Przodowników (the premiere edition of the League Cup) was eliminated in the group stage. In 1953, Legia took 5th place in the first league, and in the next season – in addition to the 7th place – the team managed to reach the semi-final of the Polish Cup, in which Warsaw Gwardia won 2–1.
Legia won their first trophy on 29 September 1955, defeating
Lechia Gdańsk
Lechia Gdańsk () is a Polish football club based in Gdańsk. The club was founded in 1945 by people expelled from Lwów, who were supporters of Poland's oldest football team Lechia Lwów, founded in 1903. The club's name comes from Lechia, a ...
5–0 in the Polish Cup final. A month later – on 20 November after a 1–1 draw with Zagłębie in Sosnowiec – the club won their first Polish championship. The team trained by the Hungarian coach János Steiner won their first doublet in the history of Polish football. In the following season, Ryszard Koncewicz became the Legia coach. The club celebrated its 40th anniversary and repeated the achievements from the previous year. First he sealed the Polish championship after a 2–2 draw with ŁKS Lodz, and then he defeated in the cup final Górnik Zabrze in a 3–0 win.
These successes were accomplished by strengthening the team by means of conscription to the army
of players from such clubs as: Polonia Bytom, Ruch Chorzów, or Wawel Kraków. The latter, like most of the then Okręgowych Wojskowych Klubów Sportowych (District Military Sports Clubs, OWKS), was dissolved. Officially due to the "reorganization of the military division", in practice this meant strengthening CWKS Warszawa (Legia's name at the time).
The team then won its highest victory in history, defeating
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
12–0 – the match took place on 19 August 1956 in Warsaw. In addition, the first three places in the goal classification at the end of the season were taken by legionnaires, and the title of the king of scorers was won by the Henryk Kempny who scored 21 goals.
In 1956, in addition to winning the national doublet, Legia made their debut in European competition, competing in the round of 16 of the
European Champions Cup with Czechoslovak champions
Slovan Bratislava. In the first away meeting, the team lost 0–4, and in the second leg at home they won 2–0 after goals from Kowal and Brychcz, but they were eliminated from further games. The meeting in Warsaw was watched by 40,000 fans.
At the meeting on 2 July 1957 – chaired by Colonel Edward Potorejko – the club's statute was approved and the first 31-member board of WKS Legia was elected, from which an 11-person presidium was then selected. The legal nature of the club has also changed. From the previous military unit, which was CWKS, a sports association was established with legal personality. The name of the club was also changed, as the historical name Legia was returned (Military Sports Club "Legia" Warsaw). In addition, new colors that are still used today were approved: white-red-green-black (later the order of the first two colors were changed) and the current coat of arms was adopted until today (with intervals).
Legia players (appearing as a Warsaw team) were invited to Spain to play the first match on the new
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded ...
stadium,
Camp Nou
Camp Nou (, meaning ''new field'', often referred to in English as the Nou Camp), officially branded as Spotify Camp Nou for sponsorship and financial reasons, is a football stadium in Barcelona, Spain. It has been the home stadium of FC Barcelo ...
on 24 September. The match ended with a 4–2 result for the hosts. They struggled in the league that season, finishing in fourth place, and were knocked out of the Polish Cup at the eighth-finals, losing to Ruch Chorzow 1–2 (in that period, until 1961, the I liga season was played from March to August). In 1958, Legia took 6th place in the Polish championship, and in 1959 took 4th.
1960s
In the 1960s, Legia regularly held top positions in the league table. In 1960, artificial lighting was installed at the
Polish Army Stadium
The Stadion Wojska Polskiego (, en, Polish Army Stadium), officially named Stadion Miejski Legii Warszawa im. Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego ( eng, The Marshall Józef Piłsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw) in Warsaw, Poland, is an all- ...
, thanks to which the facility became the second in Poland where matches could be played after dark. The first meeting without natural light was played on 5 October with Danish club
Aarhus Gymnastikforening
Aarhus Gymnastikforening (; commonly known as AGF ), is a professional sports club based in Aarhus, Jutland, Denmark. Founded in 1880, it is one of the oldest clubs in the country and gymnastics and fencing are featured as its main sports. Howev ...
as part of the qualification for the European Club Champions Cup.
Legia won the match 1–0 after Helmut Nowak's goal. However, with a 0–3 defeat in the first match in Denmark, they dropped out of further games. In the same season, Tadeusz Błażejewski, in the 11th minute of a 2–2 draw against ŁKS Łódź, scored the thousandth league goal for Legia. The club celebrated another anniversary on 26 October 1960, playing the five-hundredth match in the premier league; Legia beat Zagłębie Sosnowiec 1–0. In the league table Legia took second place, winning the title of runner-up of Poland and losing to Ruch Chorzów by 1 point. The following season, the team won the bronze medal of the Polish championship for taking third place in the league.
In the following year, the league shifted from the spring-fall system to fall-spring, which meant that the league matches started in the spring of 1962. The league was divided into two groups, in which the teams from the same regions played with each other. Legia – which took third place in its group – won the competition for 5th place with Wisła Kraków, drew a 1–1 away match and won 4–1 at home. In the Polish Cup, the team dropped out in the eighth-finals, losing 0–3 with
Odra Opole
Odra Opole () is a football club based in Opole, Poland, currently playing in the I liga.
History Beginnings
The history of Odra Opole began on 16 June 1945, when in the Opole Town Hall, a group of sports officials gathered to form a new ...
. In the 1962–1963 season with the new league system, the team took the 7th place, and the fight for the
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 title. ...
again ended at stage eighth-finals (losing to later winner,
Zagłębie Sosnowiec
Zagłębie Sosnowiec () is a football club based in Sosnowiec, Poland. The club was established in 1906. It won Polish Cup four times (1962, 1963, 1977, 1978), and also was four times Polish runner up (1955, 1964, 1967, 1972). Apart from footbal ...
, 0–2).
Legia ended the 1963–64 season in fourth place in the league, scoring the same number of goals as second place Zagłębie Sosnowiec and third place Odra Opole. The goal differential decided who took which place. The club achieved a much better result in the Polish Cup, where the team, led by the Romanian coach Virgil Popescu, reached the finals. In the match, played at the
10th-Anniversary Stadium
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
, Legia won after extra time with Polonia Bytom 2–1. Henryk Apostel scored both goals for Legia.
In the next season Legia again took 4th place in the league, and in the Polish Cup reached the semi-final, in which they lost after extra time 1–2 with
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 Poli ...
(who became the winner of the cup).
The team also competed in 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 tournam ...
. In the first round, Legia eliminated the Austrian
FC Admira Wacker Mödling
Fußballklub Flyeralarm Admira Wacker Mödling, also known as Flyeralarm Admira for sponsorship reasons or simply Admira, is a football club from Mödling, Austria. The club was originally formed in 1905 as ''SK Admira Wien'' in the Austrian cap ...
. In the second they defeated the Turkish
Galatasaray SK
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 de ...
. After two matches there was a draw and third (the decisive step in the advancement) meeting in Bucharest. Legia won 1–0 and were the first Polish team to advance to the quarterfinals of any European club competition. At this stage of the tournament the team lost to German
TSV 1860 Munich
, commonly known as TSV 1860 München (; lettered as ) or 1860 Munich, is a sports club based in Munich. The club's football team currently plays in the 3. Liga, the third tier of German football.
1860 Munich was one of the founding members o ...
and was eliminated from the competition.
The celebration of the 50th anniversary of the club's existence took place in 1966. In the league the team took 6th place, while a better result was achieved in the twelfth edition of the Polish Cup. In the game played on 15 August at the
Warta Poznań
Warta Poznań () is a multi-sports club based in Poznań, Poland. The name means ''the Guard'' in Polish and also the name of the river Warta on which Poznań is located.
Founded in 1912, the association football club are two-time winners of the ...
stadium, Legia won after extra time in the final, beating Górnik Zabrze 2–1, with
Bernard Blaut
Bernard Blaut (3 January 1940 – 19 May 2007) was a Polish football player, who is most famous for his 1960s performances in both Legia Warsaw and the Polish National Team.
Between 1960 and 1971 he was capped 36 times for Poland, scoring three g ...
scoring in the last minute. Winning the Polish Cup allowed the club to compete in the Cup Winners' Cup in the 1966–67 season. In the round of 16, Legia was knocked out by
FC Sachsen Leipzig
FC Sachsen Leipzig was a German football club from the Leutzsch district of Leipzig, Saxony. The club continued the traditions of BSG Chemie Leipzig. The club officially dissolved in 2011. Although several successor sides were established, onl ...
after losing 0–3 away and drawing 2–2 at home. The team came fourth in the league table, and in the Polish Cup was eliminated after a 1–3 defeat in the eighth-finals with Wisła Kraków. That season,
Kazimierz Deyna
Kazimierz Deyna (; 23 October 1947 – 1 September 1989) was a Polish professional association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder in the playmaker role and was one of the most highly regarded players of his generation, du ...
made his debut in the Legia team.
In the 1967–68 season, for the second time in its history, the club was the vice-champion of Poland and was promoted as the first Polish team to the
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 Association football, football competition played between 1955 and 1971. It is often considered the predecess ...
. In the Polish Cup Legia was knocked out by
GKS Katowice
GKS Katowice (; GKS stands for , "Miners Sporting Club") is a Polish football club based in Katowice, Poland. The club currently plays in the I liga, after having won promotion in 2021.
History
In 1963 in Katowice a special organizational ...
in the eighth-finals. In the same year, the team made their debut in the
Intertoto Cup
The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...
. Legia won their group, but did not advance to the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup because the matches of the Intertoto Cup were not official UEFA competitions.
Legia, led by Czechoslovakian trainer
Jaroslav Vejvoda, finished the 1968–69 season in first place in the table, thus winning the third Polish championship. The team reached the final of the Polish Cup, in which they lost to Górnik Zabrze 0–2. The club also made its debut at the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. In the first round Legia won twice, 6–0 and 3–2 against TSV 1860 Munich. In the next round they won 0–1 and 2–0 against Belgian team
Waregem
Waregem (; vls, Woaregem), sometimes known as Waereghem, is a municipality and city located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality lies in the valley of the river Leie, between Kortrijk and Ghent. It is part of the arrondiss ...
, and the third opponent was
Újpest FC
Újpest Football Club () is a Hungarian professional association football, football club, based in Újpest, Budapest, that competes in Nemzeti Bajnokság I.
Formed in 1885, Újpest reached the first division of the Hungarian League in Nemzeti ...
. In the next round, the Hungarian team's players were better and Legia were defeated 0–1 away. A 2–2 draw in Warsaw saw their rivals promoted to the next stage. In 1969 there was still one more success – the Legia juniors won the first championship in the history of the club.
For the next season, former player
Edmund Zientara
Edmund Jan Zientara (25 January 1929 – 3 August 2010) was a Polish footballer who played as a midfielder.
Career
Born in Warsaw, Zientara played for Polonia Warsaw, Kolejarz Warszawa, CWKS Warszawa, OWKS Lublin, Gwardia Warsaw, Legia Warsa ...
was brought in as the new first team coach. His team won the title of Polish champion for the second time in a row. In the struggle for the Polish Cup, Legia was eliminated in the semi-final with Ruch Chorzów. The performances of the club in the
European Champion Clubs' Cup
The European Champion Clubs' Cup, also known as Coupe des Clubs Champions Européens, or simply the European Cup, is a trophy awarded annually by UEFA to the football club that wins the UEFA Champions League. The competition in its older format ...
was a great success – Legia reached the semi-finals of the competition. In the round of 16, they defeated Romanian club
FC UTA Arad
Asociația Fotbal Club UTA Arad (), commonly known as UTA Arad or simply UTA, is a Romanian professional football club based in the city of Arad, Arad County, which competes in the Liga I. The UTA acronym stands for ''Uzina Textilă Arad'' ("Text ...
2–1 and 8–0, French club
Saint-Étienne
Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
Saint-Étienne is the t ...
in the eighth-finals 2–1 and 1–0, and Turkish club
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 de ...
in the quarter-finals 2–1 and 1–0. In the semi-final, they played against
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional 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 before settling on being called after its ...
. The first match in Warsaw ended in a 0–0 draw, while away the home team triumphed 2–0.
1970s
The 1970s were known as Poland's
golden age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during ...
of
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 means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
. In 1971, Legia were runner's up of Poland for the third time in their history, and ended their Polish Cup campaign in the quarter-finals. For the second year in a row the club competed in the European Club Champions Cup, where it reached the quarter-finals, dropping out against
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
(2–1 and 0–1). They previously eliminated IFK Gothenburg (4–0, 2–1) and Standard Liège (0–1, 2–0).
From December 1971 to February 1972, Legia went on a tour of Spain and the countries of South America, including Ecuador, Costa Rica and Colombia – this was the first time the team had visited this part of the world. In the 1971–72 season, the team finished third in the league table and lost in the Polish Cup final with Górnik Zabrze 2–5. In September 1972, the Warsaw club defeated Víkingur Reykjavík in the round of 16 European Cup Winners' Cup 9–0,
which is the highest Polish team win in European competition. In the next round Legia was matched up against A.C. Milan. The first game was played at the 10th Anniversary Stadium and ended in a 1–1 draw.
At the San Siro, after the regular time, the draw was also maintained – Milan scored the winning goal two minutes before the end of extra time to win the game 2–1.
In that season, Legia took 8th place in the league and won its fifth Polish Cup – after eliminating Szombinrek in the semi-finals (3–1 and 1–1).
In the final match against Polonia, on 17 June 1973 in Poznań, a goalless result was maintained for 90 minutes of regular time of the game, as well as for the entire extra time. The legionaries finally won in penalties, 4–2.
The season of 1973–74 began with a defeat in the round of 16 of the European Club Champions Cup in aggregate with
PAOK FC
P.A.O.K. FC ( el, ΠΑΕ ΠΑΟΚ, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινουπολιτών, '' Panthessaloníkios Athlitikós Ómilos Konstadinoupolitón'', "Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of ...
(1–1 in Warsaw, 0–1 in Thessaloniki). In early 1974, the club went to Spain and France to face Barcelona (1–1 at Camp Nou) and
RC Lens
Racing Club de Lens (, commonly referred to as RC Lens or simply Lens) is a French professional football club based in the northern city of Lens in the Pas-de-Calais department. Its nickname, ''les sang et or'' (''the blood and gold''), come ...
(0–2). The team finished the league competition in 4th place, and in the Polish Cup they were knocked out in the quarterfinals, losing 1–2 to
Stal Rzeszów. Right after the end of the league, the legionnaires went to an international tournament that took place in the Canary Islands – they drew with
Cádiz CF
Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., known simply as Cádiz, is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia.
Founded in 1910, the club competes in the La Liga, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20 ...
, won with
CD Tenerife
Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. Founded in 1912, the club plays in the Segunda División, holding home matches at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez Lóp ...
and
Hércules CF
Hércules de Alicante Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. () is a Spanish football team in Alicante, in the autonomous community of Valencian Community. Founded on 25 October 1922, it currently plays in Segunda División RFEF – Group 3 and plays its hom ...
. Another foreign trip took place at the end of January 1975. Legia flew to Australia and became the first Polish team to visit all continents (except Antarctica).
Legia took 6th place in the league, and lost in the round of 16 in the Polish Cup. After the season, the first transfer of Polish player to the West took place, which was allowed by PZPN and the Ministry of Sport.
Robert Gadocha
Robert Gadocha (born 10 January 1946 in Kraków) is a retired Polish soccer player, most notable for playing for Legia Warsaw.
Gadocha, who started his career in Garbarnia Kraków. later also played for FC Nantes, and briefly in the United Stat ...
was bought by
FC Nantes
Football Club de Nantes (; Gallo: ''Naunnt''), commonly referred to as FC Nantes or simply Nantes (), is a French professional football club based in Nantes in Pays de la Loire. The club was founded on 21 April 1943, during World War II, a ...
, later French champions.
Legia in the 1975–76 season finished the league in the middle of the table (8th place), and in the Polish Cup reached the eighth-finals, where they lost to GKS Jastrzębie after penalties. In the autumn of 1976, the club's 60th anniversary was celebrated. On the anniversary, 12 October, two matches were played at the Polish Army stadium: a meeting with Legia and Warsaw Polonia (a 2–0 home win) and a match between Legia and
Dukla
Dukla is a town and an eponymous municipality in southeastern Poland, in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship. As of December 2021, the town has a population of 2,017. The total area of the commune is . Dukla belongs to Lesser Poland, and until the P ...
, which ended 4–2 for the legionaries. In February 1977 the team made the next trip, this time to Indonesia. Six games were played at that time (four wins, two draws) and a total of 15 goals were scored – without Deyna, who was at a training camp in Yugoslavia and Greece.
Legia also performed for the second time in the Intertoto Cup. Legia's opponents were:
Landskrona BoIS
Landskrona Boll och Idrottsällskap ( en, Landskrona Ball and Sports Society, locally referred to as BoIS) is a Swedish professional football club located in Landskrona, Scania, which currently plays in Superettan, the second league tier of fo ...
(1–0 and 2–1),
SK Slavia Prague
Sportovní klub Slavia Praha – fotbal (Sports Club Slavia Prague – Football, ), commonly known as Slavia Praha or Slavia Prague, is a Czech professional football club in Prague. Founded in 1892, they are the second most successful club in th ...
(1–1 and 2–2) and
BSC Young Boys
BSC Young Boys (YB by short abbreviation ) are a Swiss sports club based in Bern, Switzerland. Its first team has won 15 Swiss league championships and six Swiss Cups. YB is one of the most successful Swiss football clubs internationally, reac ...
(4–1 and 1–1).
Legia took second place in the group and once again was not rewarded with a promotion to the UEFA Cup. The team – finishing in 8th position – repeated the result from the previous league season, while in the Polish Cup they were knocked out in the semi-final, losing to
Polonia Bytom
Polonia Bytom () is a Polish football club based in Bytom, founded in 1920, two times Polish Champions. The team currently plays in the III liga (as of 2022–23).
History Beginnings
Polonia was founded on 4 January 1920 in the Upper Silesia ...
1–2.
During the second half of the 1970s, the legionaries did not make it to the top 3 positions to get into European competitions, and 5th place in the 1977–78 season was their highest position. In addition, the team repeated the result obtained a year earlier in the Polish Cup – Legia reached the semi-final, in which they were knocked out by Zagłębie Sosnowiec after penalties. The next season (1978–79) was the last in which Kazimierz Deyna represented the club. In addition, the club played their 1000th game in the highest football tier – the match took place on 25 April against Lech in Poznań (a 1–2 defeat). The season ended with a 6th-place finish in the league and at the eighth-final stage of the Polish Cup (where they lost against Zagłębie II Lubin 1–2). On 18 September 1979, a farewell to Kazimierz Deyna took place – a friendly with English club
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
, who had agreed to his transfer for
£100,000. The game ended 2–1 to Legia. Deyna played the whole match and scored two goals – one for Legia (in the first half) and the second for his new club (in the second). The match was very popular and many fans had to watch it from behind the stadium gates.
1980s
Legia started the decade by winning the Polish Cup, beating
Lech Poznań
Kolejowy Klub Sportowy Lech Poznań S.A., commonly referred to as KKS Lech Poznań or simply Lech Poznań (), is a Polish professional association football, football club based in Poznań and currently competing in the Ekstraklasa, the nation' ...
5–0 in the final on 9 May 1980. In the league, the legionaries took third place. A year later, the Warsaw club defended the Polish Cup with a 1–0 victory over
Pogoń Szczecin
Pogoń Szczecin Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Pogoń Szczecin (), is a Polish professional football club, based in Szczecin, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, which plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of the national football league s ...
on 24 June, but struggled in the league, finishing fifth place. The following season, the team played a match in the quarter-finals of the European Club Champions Cup with
Dinamo Tbilisi
Dinamo Tbilisi is a sports club from Tbilisi, Georgia. It was founded in 1925.
Among its highest honors, is the European trophy earned by its football team which won the Cup Winners' Cup in 1981, beating FC Carl Zeiss Jena of East Germany 2–1 i ...
. During the first meeting in Warsaw, fans, due to the very large number of policemen at the stadium, began to chant the slogans: "Down with communism" and "MO – Gestapo". After being defeated 0–1, the fans organized an anti-communist parade (this situation was repeated several times in the 1980s). The away match also ended 0–1, which was watched by 90 thousand fans in Tbilisi.
In the 1981–82 season Legia finished fourth, and in the Polish Cup they were knocked out in the eighth-finals, losing to
Arka Gdynia
Morski Związkowy Klub Sportowy Arka Gdynia () is a Polish professional football club, based in Gdynia, Poland, that plays in the Polish I liga. The club was founded as Klub Sportowy Gdynia in 1929.
History
The history of Arka dates back to ...
1–2.
The 1982–83 season began with a change of part of the team. Legia also gained a new coach, with
Kazimierz Górski
Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski (2 March 1921 – 23 May 2006) was a coach of Poland national football team and honorary president of the Polish Football Association. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland.
Playing career
He was bor ...
being replaced by
Jerzy Kopa
Jerzy Kopa (2 January 1943 – 26 June 2022) was a Polish football manager and player.
Career
Playing career
Kopa played for MKS Chrobry Szczecin and AZS Poznań.
Coaching career
Jerzy Kopa managed Arkonia Szczecin, Stal Stalowa Wola, L ...
in the middle of the season. Legia finished eighth place in the league table, while in the Polish Cup they fell in the quarterfinals after losing 0–1 against Lech Poznań in Warsaw. A year later, Legia finished fifth in the fight for the title, and in the Polish Cup reached the 5th round, where they lost against
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 Poli ...
2–3 after extra time.
At the turn of 1984 and 1985, after the autumn round, Legia took first place in the table. They finished runners-up of Poland, which meant the club would participate in 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 Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
. In addition, the team reached the quarter-finals of the Polish Cup (a defeat in aggregate with Górnik Zabrze). The following season, 1985–86, the league success was repeated and the quarterfinals of the home cup were again obtained. Both titles went to Górnik Zabrze. In the same years, the legionaries made it to the round of 16 and eighth-finals of the UEFA Cup, losing twice with
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...
. In the first match, Milan drew 0–0 at home, which was considered a great success for the Warsaw club.
The return match at Łazienkowska ended with the score 0–1 and the Italian team advanced to the next round.
The next year in 1986 Legia faced Inter Milan again with a 3–2 win at Łazienkowska and a 0–1 defeat in Italy, which eliminated the Polish club on
away goals
The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...
.
At the beginning of the 1986–87 season, the Warsaw team traveled to China and won the Great Wall Cup, defeating the hosts 2–0. The team played in Beijing and other cities for a week, at the turn of July and August.
Following this, apart from other successful performance in Europe, Legia took 5th place in the league and reached the 5th round of knockout (losing against Wisła Kraków after penalties). At the end of 1987, at the Legia stadium, the speedway track was removed and the football field was widened.
Legia finished the next year in the league in third place and reached the Polish Cup final. In
Łódź
Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canti ...
, the legionaries drew 1–1 with Lech and the victory was decided by penalty kicks, which the Poznań team won 3–2. A year later, the Warsaw team took fourth place in the league and won the Polish Cup at the stadium in
Olsztyn
Olsztyn ( , ; german: Allenstein ; Old Prussian: ''Alnāsteini''
* Latin: ''Allenstenium'', ''Holstin'') is a city on the Łyna River in northern Poland. It is the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, and is a city with county rights. ...
, beating
Jagiellonia Białystok
Jagiellonia Białystok () is a Polish football club based in Białystok that plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. The club was founded in 1920 by soldiers in the Reserve Battalion in Białystok. Jagiellonia play their home g ...
5–2.
Two weeks after the success, they also won the Polish Super Cup for the first time, defeating
Ruch Chorzów
Ruch Chorzów () is a Polish association football club based in Chorzów, Upper Silesia. It is one of the most successful football teams in Poland: fourteen-time national champions, and three-time winners of the Polish Cup. Currently the team play ...
3–0 in
Zamość
Zamość (; yi, זאמאשטש, Zamoshtsh; la, Zamoscia) is a historical city in southeastern Poland. It is situated in the southern part of Lublin Voivodeship, about from Lublin, from Warsaw. In 2021, the population of Zamość was 62,021.
...
.
The trophy gained in Zamość was the first piece of silverware after the reorganization of the club – on 25 April 1989, the club's board decided to separate the football section from the multi-sport section CWKS and establish the Autonomous Football Section (ASPN CWKS "Legia" Warsaw).
On 1 September, long-time footballer and Legia captain,
Kazimierz Deyna
Kazimierz Deyna (; 23 October 1947 – 1 September 1989) was a Polish professional association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder in the playmaker role and was one of the most highly regarded players of his generation, du ...
, died in a car accident in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
.
At the end of the decade, on 13 September, Legia competed against
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded ...
in the first round of 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 tournam ...
. The match in Barcelona ended with a 1–1 draw, after an unrecognized goal for the legionnaires and a penalty kick for the opponents in the 85th minute of the match. In the rematch at Łazienkowska Legia lost 0–1, with 25 thousand fans in the stands.
Michael Laudrup
Michael Laudrup (, born 15 June 1964) is a Danish professional football coach and former player. He is considered to be one of the greatest players of all time. He is the older brother of fellow retired footballer Brian Laudrup.
During his pl ...
scored the only goal.
1990s
The beginning of the nineties was not successful for the club, especially in the Polish league. In the 1989–90 season, the team finished in seventh place, and the next season in ninth.
The 1991–92 season ended in a 10th-place finish
– for the first time since World War II, Legia was fighting relegation to the second league. The team avoided relegation after winning 3–0 in an away match against
Motor Lublin
Motor Lublin () is a Polish professional football team based in Lublin. The club was founded in December 1950 with their nickname ''The Yellow, White and Blues'' reflecting their official colours. They compete in II liga in the 2021–22 season.
...
in the penultimate game of the season.
The club achieved better results in the Polish Cup. In 1990, Legia defeated
GKS Katowice
GKS Katowice (; GKS stands for , "Miners Sporting Club") is a Polish football club based in Katowice, Poland. The club currently plays in the I liga, after having won promotion in 2021.
History
In 1963 in Katowice a special organizational ...
in the final and won their ninth trophy. A year later, the Warsaw club again faced GKS Katowice in the final of the Polish Cup, but this time the rivals who won the match 1–0 turned out to be better. The next season, 1989–90, Legia won their ninth Polish Cup, meaning they were able to play in 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 tournam ...
in 1990–91. The Warsaw team, managed by
Władysław Stachurski
Władysław Stachurski (27 March 1945 – 13 March 2013) was a Polish football player and manager.
As a player he was best known for his time at Legia Warsaw and was capped eight times for Poland, scoring one goal. He retired aged 28 due ...
reached the semi-finals of the tournament, eliminating the likes of
Sampdoria
Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa.
The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, ...
and
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
. They lost in the semi-finals to
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
(1–3 in Warsaw and 1–1 in Manchester).
In autumn 1992, the first private sponsor, businessman Janusz Romanowski, invested in the club. A two-year sponsorship deal was signed with FSO (worth
PLN 2.4 billion at that time) as well as with Adidas. After the fourth round of the 1992–93 season,
Janusz Wójcik
Janusz Marek Wójcik (November 18, 1953 – November 20, 2017) was a Polish politician, football player and coach.
Playing career
He played in several clubs at home and abroad, including Agrykola, Gwardia, Ursus and Hutnik Warszawa, Ravalpandi ...
became the Legia coach. The high budget from the sponsorship deals allowed players such as
Maciej Śliwowski
Maciej Śliwowski (born 10 January 1967) is a retired Polish football forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forw ...
and
Radosław Michalski
Radosław Michalski (born 26 September 1969, in Gdańsk) is a retired Polish football defender. and current board member at the Polish FA.
Before becoming a footballer he worked alongside Lech Wałęsa at the Gdańsk Shipyard.
As a player h ...
to be brought in. This, in turn, translated into better results and joining the competition for the national championship.
[Błoński R.: ''Legia Warszawa''. Wydawnictwo Biblioteka Gazety Wyborczej, 2008. .] On 20 June 1993, after an away victory of 6–0 against
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
, the team won the Polish championship. However, on the next day the president of the
PZPN
The Polish Football Association ( pl, Polski Związek Piłki Nożnej; PZPN) is the governing body of association football in Poland. It organizes the Polish football leagues (without the Ekstraklasa), the Polish Cup and the Polish national footb ...
board, with a 5–4 vote, decided to take the title from Legia and award it to the third team in the table –
Lech Poznań
Kolejowy Klub Sportowy Lech Poznań S.A., commonly referred to as KKS Lech Poznań or simply Lech Poznań (), is a Polish professional association football, football club based in Poznań and currently competing in the Ekstraklasa, the nation' ...
(after disallowing the last matches of Legia and ŁKS, the team from Poznań took first place in the table). The decision was due to the allegations of bribery in the last league match. In addition, Legia was forced to pay a fine of 500 million zlotys, and the UEFA authorities excluded the team from European competition.
[Gowarzewski A., Szczepłek S.: ''Legia''. Wydawnictwo GiA, 1995. .] Twice (December 2004, January 2007),the club unsuccessfully requested that the unfavorable decision should be repealed and that the title should be restored.
In the same season, the anti-doping committee decided that Legia player
Roman Zub had played after doping before the match against
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).
History ...
. The player's urine sample was also tested in a laboratory in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
, where it was considered that increased testosterone levels were not the result of doping. The match was initially verified as a walkover for the Łódź team, but the decision of the PZPN games department was revoked by the president of the board.
In the next season, Legia won the first triple crown in the history of Polish football. On 15 June 1994, thanks to a 1–1 draw in the last round with
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 Poli ...
in Warsaw, the legionaries maintained a one-point advantage over second place
GKS Katowice
GKS Katowice (; GKS stands for , "Miners Sporting Club") is a Polish football club based in Katowice, Poland. The club currently plays in the I liga, after having won promotion in 2021.
History
In 1963 in Katowice a special organizational ...
and won their fifth Polish title, despite the fact that the season began with three negative points due to the events of the last round in the last season. After the match the press published accusations of corruption with referee Sławomir Redzinski, who, when the score was 1–0 to Górnik, sent off three of the Górnik players. These allegations have not been proven.
On 18 June, in the Polish Cup final held at the Legia stadium, the Legia defeated
ŁKS Łódź
ŁKS Łódź (''Łódzki Klub Sportowy Łódź''; ) is a Polish sports club based in Łódź. They are best known for their football club but are represented in many sports such as basketball, volleyball, tennis, athletics and in the past ice ...
2–0 and won the tenth trophy in their history. In the match for the Super Cup (24 July), Legia also faced ŁKS Łódź and won 6–4 at the stadium in
Płock
Płock (pronounced ) is a city in central Poland, on the Vistula river, in the Masovian Voivodeship. According to the data provided by GUS on 31 December 2021, there were 116,962 inhabitants in the city. Its full ceremonial name, according to the ...
. The club's first experience of the Champions League ended in defeat in the qualifying stage – the team fell to Croatian side
Hajduk Split
Hrvatski nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split () or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, t ...
(0–1 at home, 0–4 away).
The next season began with the signing of a contract with
Canal+
Canal+ (Canal Plus, , meaning 'Channel Plus'; sometimes abbreviated C+ or Canal) is a French premium television channel launched in 1984. It is 100% owned by the Groupe Canal+, which in turn is owned by Vivendi. The channel broadcasts several ki ...
for broadcasting matches (the first match of the Polish league broadcast was the match of Legia against
GKS Katowice
GKS Katowice (; GKS stands for , "Miners Sporting Club") is a Polish football club based in Katowice, Poland. The club currently plays in the I liga, after having won promotion in 2021.
History
In 1963 in Katowice a special organizational ...
, which took place on 1 April 1995). On 31 May 1995, Legia won their sixth Polish championship after a 3–0 victory against
Raków Częstochowa
Robotniczy Klub Sportowy Raków Częstochowa Spółka Akcyjna (commonly referred to as Raków Częstochowa, or simply Raków) is a Polish professional football club, based in Częstochowa, that competes in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of na ...
in Warsaw,
and also won the Polish Cup (2–0 in the final with GKS Katowice). At that time, one of the first protest actions took place at the stadium. The reason was high ticket prices and the ban on hanging flags and banners on the fence – the conflict ended after three matches in Warsaw thanks to an agreement with activists.
After winning the championship in the 1994–95 season, Legia Warszawa qualified for the Champions League – in the last qualifying round it defeated the Swedish team
IFK Göteborg
Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna Göteborg (officially IFK Göteborg Fotboll), commonly known as IFK Göteborg, IFK (especially locally) or simply Göteborg, is a Swedish professional football club based in Gothenburg. Founded in 1904, it is the ...
(1–0 in Warsaw and 2–1 in Gothenburg). In the group stage, Legia drew with
Rosenborg BK
Rosenborg Ballklub, commonly referred to simply as Rosenborg () or RBK, is a Norwegian professional football club from Trondheim that plays in Eliteserien. The club has won a record 26 league titles, a shared record 12 Norwegian Football Cup ti ...
,
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 ...
and
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
. Legia finished the group in second place (with seven points) and in the quarterfinals they faced
Panathinaikos Athens
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos ( el, Παναθηναϊκός Αθλητικός Όμιλος, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club b ...
. The first match in Warsaw ended in a goalless draw, and in the rematch at the Olympic Stadium in Athens, the Greeks won 3–0. The club did not defend the national championship in the 1995–96 competition and took second place in the league table (behind
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).
History ...
).
In 1997, the club was transformed into Sportowa Spółka Akcyjna (SSA) Legia Warsaw and a new sponsor was acquired,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
n company
Daewoo
Daewoo ( ; Hangul: , Hanja: , ; literally "great universe" and a portmanteau of "dae" meaning great, and the given name of founder and chairman Kim Woo-choong) also known as the Daewoo Group, was a major South Korean chaebol (type of conglomerat ...
. This season, the legionaries took second place in the league, one reason being a 2–3 loss 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).
History ...
in the decisive phase of the games (Legia led up until the 85th minute of the match 2–0). The same year Legia went on to win the Polish Cup and the Super Cup. A big change in that period was the addition of Daewoo as a member to the club's name (CWKS "Legia-Daewoo" Warsaw) – the new name did not please fans of Legia and was received coldly by them.
The 1997–98 season saw the club's last appearance in 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 tournam ...
. After passing
Glenavon
Glenavon Football Club is a Northern Irish semi-professional football club that competes in the NIFL Premiership. Founded in 1889, the club hails from Lurgan and plays its home matches at Mourneview Park. Club colours are blue and white. Gar ...
in the qualifying round (with a 1–1 draw in Northern Ireland and a 4–0 win in Warsaw), the team fell to Italian team
Vicenza Calcio
L.R. Vicenza, commonly referred to as Vicenza, is an Football in Italy, Italian football club based in Vicenza, Veneto. Founded in 1902 as Associazione del Calcio in Vicenza, they became Lanerossi Vicenza in 1953, then Vicenza Calcio from 1990 ...
in the first round of the tournament (losing away 0–2 and drawing at home 1–1). In the league the team took 5th place in the table, and in the Polish Cup reached the 1/8 finals, losing to
Amica Wronki
Amica Wronki was a Polish football club based in Wronki, Poland.
The club was invariably linked to Amica, a manufacturer of white goods, predominantly stoves, which gave the club its nickname. The company's increasing profits gave the new te ...
0–3. The next season, 1998–99, ended with a bronze medal in the league. In the national cup the team for the second time in a row was eliminated at stage 1/8 of the tournament; This time,
GKS Bełchatów
GKS Bełchatów is a Polish professional football club based in Bełchatów that currently plays in the IV liga.
History
GKS Bełchatów entered Poland's Klasa A in 1977 under the name of Węgiel Brunatny Bełchatów, and gained promotion to ...
was the one to beat the Warsaw team, who after a goalless result in the regular time of the game won 3–2 in the penalty shootout.
The club played its 100th match in European competitions – the meeting with Macedonian team
Vardar Skopje
FK Vardar Skopje ( mk, ФК Вардар Скопје), or simply Vardar, is a football club based in the capital city of Skopje, North Macedonia. The club was founded in 1947 and currently competes in the Macedonian Second Football League. The ...
as part of the 1/64 UEFA Cup final ended with Legia's away victory 5–0 on 12 August 1999. In the 1999–2000 season, Legia took fourth place in the league and did not get to play in the European competitions. In the Polish Cup, the team fell in the quarterfinals to
Amica Wronki
Amica Wronki was a Polish football club based in Wronki, Poland.
The club was invariably linked to Amica, a manufacturer of white goods, predominantly stoves, which gave the club its nickname. The company's increasing profits gave the new te ...
after a series of penalty kicks (ended with a 3–1 result), while in the League Cup reached the final, in which they lost at home with
Polonia Warsaw
Polonia Warsaw ( pl, Polonia Warszawa, ), founded on 19 November 1911, is the oldest existing Varsovian sports club, best known for its football and basketball teams. It also has track and field, swimming, chess, mountain biking, and contract ...
1–2.
2000–2010
In March 2001, the main shareholder of the club, Daewoo, withdrew from the club's financing, and on 1 July the name of the former sponsor was removed from the club's name and it was reverted to ASPN CWKS "Legia" Warszawa SSA.
In the 2000–01 season, the team finished third in the Polish league, and in the Polish Cup lost in the quarterfinals, losing on aggregate 1–4 with Zagłębie Lubin. The same result was achieved by the team in the League Cup – in the quarterfinals of the tournament the team lost to Wisla Kraków, a draw in Warsaw 1–1 and a loss in Kraków 1–3. In the UEFA Cup qualifying round, Legia won against
Etzella Ettelbruck
Foussballclub Etzella Ettelbréck, abbreviated to either FC Etzella or Etzella Ettelbruck, is a football club, based in Ettelbruck, in north-eastern Luxembourg.
History
In the 2005–06 season, Etzella finished third in the National Division, ...
(4–0 away, 2–1 in Warsaw), and in the next match they defeated
IF Elfsborg
Idrottsföreningen Elfsborg, more commonly known as IF Elfsborg or simply Elfsborg (), is a professional football club based in Borås, Sweden, and is affiliated to the Västergötlands Fotbollförbund. They play in the Allsvenskan and have spent ...
(4–1 at home, 6–1 in Sweden). The rival of Legia in the second round was
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol (, ca-valencia, València Club de Futbol ), commonly referred to as Valencia CF (or simply Valencia) is a professional football club based in Valencia, Spain, that currently plays in La Liga, the top flight of the Spa ...
. In the first match at the Polish Army stadium there was a 1–1 draw, but in the rematch the Spaniards won 6–1.
The 2001–02 season, which was led by Dragomir Okuki, ended in Legia's seventh championship title (after a 0–0 draw with
Odra Wodzisław Odra may refer to:
Rivers
* Odra (Poland), also known as Oder, a river in Czech Republic, Poland and Germany
* Odra (Kupa), a river in Croatia
* Odra (Spain), a river in Spain
Populated places
* Odra, Silesian Voivodeship, a village in southern ...
in Warsaw),
as well as a triumph in the Polish League Cup (3–0 and 1–2 in the final with
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
). In competing for the Polish Cup, the team reached the quarter-finals, where it lost to
Ruch Chorzów
Ruch Chorzów () is a Polish association football club based in Chorzów, Upper Silesia. It is one of the most successful football teams in Poland: fourteen-time national champions, and three-time winners of the Polish Cup. Currently the team play ...
(2–4 in Warsaw, 1–0 in Chorzów). Legia played in the Champions League qualifiers in the summer, but in the third round they fell against
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded ...
– in the first match at Camp Nou, the Catalans won 3–0, in the second they beat Legia 1–0. After defeat against the Spaniards, the Warsaw team competed in the UEFA Cup. In the first round Legia beat
FC Utrecht
Football Club Utrecht () is a Dutch professional football club based in Utrecht. The club competes in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, and plays its home matches at the Stadion Galgenwaard.
The club was formed in 1970 as a merge ...
(4–1 at home and 3–1 away), in the second round they were eliminated by
Schalke
Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rh ...
– 2–3 in Warsaw, 0–0 in Gelsenkirchen.
The legionaries finished the 2002–03 season in 4th place, in the Polish Cup they fell in the 3rd round. On 13 June 2003, the name of the club changed to KP "Legia" Warszawa SSA and on the same day the team was greeted by a new coach,
Dariusz Kubicki
Dariusz Jan Kubicki (born 6 June 1963) is a Polish football manager and a former player.
Playing career
He played for a few clubs, including Stal Mielec, Legia Warsaw, he then went to England and played for Aston Villa, Sunderland, Wolverha ...
.
The club was purchased by
ITI Group
ITI Group (International Trading and Investments Holdings SA Luxembourg), known as Grupa ITI in Poland, was a large media conglomerate headquartered in Warsaw, Poland. On 2 July 2015, ITI Group and Canal+ Group complete the sale of their controll ...
on 8 April 2004. The team took second place in the league and played in the Polish Cup final, in which it lost to
Lech Poznań
Kolejowy Klub Sportowy Lech Poznań S.A., commonly referred to as KKS Lech Poznań or simply Lech Poznań (), is a Polish professional association football, football club based in Poznań and currently competing in the Ekstraklasa, the nation' ...
.
The next season, 2004–05, the Warsaw team came third in the league table, and in the national cup they lost in the semi-final, falling to
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski (), previously Groclin Grodzisk Wielkopolski, was a Polish football club based in Grodzisk Wielkopolski, Greater Poland Voivodeship.
History
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski was founded on 30 April 1922. Its lo ...
– 1–1, 1–1, 1–4 on aggregate penalties.
The 2005–06 season was exceptional in the club's history – Legia celebrated its 90th anniversary. First, the team dropped out of the UEFA Cup in the second qualifying round (0–1 in Warsaw and 2–4 in Zurich with
FC Zürich
Fussballclub Zürich, commonly abbreviated to FC Zürich or simply FCZ, is a Swiss football club based in Zürich. The club was founded in 1896 and has won the Swiss Super League 13 times and the Swiss Cup 10 times. The most recent titles a ...
) and had a weak start in the league.
In addition, they only reached the quarter-finals of the Polish Cup, losing on the aggregate with
Korona Kielce
Korona Kielce, , (Korona – ''Crown'' – symbol of club and city, Kielce – name of city where club is based) is a Polish football club, which will compete in Ekstraklasa in the 2022–23 Ekstraklasa, 2022–23 season. In the year ...
. Nevertheless, the legionaries won the eighth Polish championship after winning 1–0 in a match against
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 Poli ...
.
After the arrival of the new coach
Dariusz Wdowczyk
Dariusz Wdowczyk (born 25 September 1962) is a Polish football player and coach, who was previously the manager of Piast Gliwice. He played for Gwardia Warszawa, Legia Warsaw, Celtic, Reading, and Polonia Warsaw. He has subsequently carved out a ...
, they managed to make up for seven points when they were behind
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
and reach for the title; The Warsaw City Council decided at that time to finance the modernization of the Legia stadium through the construction of three new grandstands and the extension of the covered grandstand. After four years, the legionnaires again stood a chance of winning promotion to the group stage of the Champions League. In the second round of qualifying they beat
Hafnarfjarðar – 1–0 away, 2–0 at home. Shakhtar Donetsk turned out to be the next rival in the decisive third stage. Both meetings ended with the defeat of Legia – 0–1 in Donetsk and 2–3 in Warsaw. They attempted to make up for the failure playing against Austria Vienna in the first round of the UEFA Cup. However, Legia did not manage to defeat the Austrian opponent; in the first match in Warsaw the team drew 1–1, and in the return the hosts won 1–0.
In following competitions, Legia dropped out of the fight for the Polish Cup in the 1/16 finals, falling to fourth-division team
Stal Sanok
Ekoball Stal Sanok is a Polish football club based in Sanok.
They reached the 1/4 of final in the Polish Cup in the 2008/2009 season, and notable cup exploits include giant-killing Legia Warsaw. The club spent majority of time at third and ...
,
and in the league they won third place. In addition, as part of the Ekstraklasa Cup, the team reached the quarterfinals and lost on aggregate with
Górnik Łęczna Gornik may refer to one of the following.
* Gornik, Pleven Province, a village in Chechen Republic
* April Gornik, an American painter
*Górnik (means "Miner" in Polish) is a common name of Polish sports teams:
**Górnik Konin
**Górnik Łęczna
*** ...
. The year 2007 brought a change of the coat of arms. The club did not agree with CWKS, which had the rights to the previous logo. The club's board registered their logotype, boycotted by the fans, because it did not resemble the old mark (despite similar colors and the letter "L" had a different outline and arrangement of colors).
Eventually, it was not implemented and it was established that the official sign will be modified with the white letter "L" on the black shield. However, the shape differed from the historical one and resembled a triangle, not like the original coat of arms.
At the beginning of the 2007–08 season in
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
there were riots caused by Legia fans, which had their apogee at the stadium of
FK Vėtra
FK Vėtra was a Lithuanian football team from the capital city of Vilnius.
History
The club was founded in 1997 and was initially based in Rūdiškės, a settlement in Trakai district, and moved in 2003 to Vilnius city with the purchase of ...
during the match of the second round of the Intertoto Cup. Hooligans, among others devastated the stadium and attacked the police, as a result of which the match was stopped at 2–0 for the Lithuanian club.
[Skandal w Wilnie. Wykopią Legię z Pucharów? Gazeta Wyborcza 8 VII 2007](_blank)
A few days later, the UEFA Disciplinary Commission verified the result of the meeting with Vėtra for a 3–0 win for the hosts and banned Legia from the current European Cup and qualifying for European competition (UEFA Champions League, UEFA Cup, Intertoto Cup) for the next five years. UEFA also forced the Warsaw club to cover all losses caused by rioters at the host stadium. After submitting the appeal, the penalty was temporarily suspended, taking into account the changes made to enhance safety at Legia's matches.
At the halfway point of the league games Legia took second place, even though it scored more points than in the championship season 2005–06. The legionaries were ten points behind first place
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
.
Eventually, the team reached the Polish Cup and Polish Super Cup
after winning against Wisla Kraków twice (0–0, 4–3
pen. and 2–1), and also won the runner-up title. The legionaries secured their UEFA Cup performance in the next season. In addition, the team played in the Ekstraklasa Cup final. The meeting played in
Grodzisk Wielkopolski
Grodzisk Wielkopolski (german: Grätz) is a town in western Poland, in Greater Poland Voivodeship (Wielkopolskie), with a population of 13,703 (2006). It is south-west of Poznań, the voivodeship capital. It is the seat of Grodzisk Wielkopolski ...
was won by the local
Dyskobolia, which after the 4–1 victory won the trophy. In the spring round of the competition, the club joined the campaign Let's Kick Racism from the Stadium, organized by the Never Again Association – ''Nigdy Więcej'' – the players ran out on 22 March in a match against
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).
History ...
in shirts with the campaign's name.
In the 2008–09 season Legia started by defeating the
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
ian club
FC Gomel
FC Gomel ( be, ФК Гомель), or FK Homiel, is a Belarusian football club, playing in the city of Gomel. Their home stadium is Central Stadium.
History
Teams from Gomel (usually city or raion selection or railway-based team ''Lokomotiv'', ...
(0–0 and 4–1) in the first round of the UEFA Cup qualifying round. In the second the legionaries went to the Russian
FC Moscow :''This article refers to the Moscow government team formed in 2004. For the predecessors in the Russian Premier League, see FC Torpedo-ZIL and FC Torpedo-Metallurg.''
FC Moscow (Russian: Футбольный клуб Москва) was a Russian f ...
. Both matches ended with the defeat of legionnaires: in Warsaw 1–2, and in Moscow 0–2. The only goal scored for Legia was by
Roger Guerreiro
Roger Guerreiro (; born on 25 May 1982), commonly known as Roger, is a Polish footballer who last played for Rio Verde as an attacking midfielder. Brazilian-born Roger was granted Polish citizenship.
Club career AEK Athens
On 27 August 200 ...
. In the league, the team repeated the previous year's achievement, finishing second at the end of the season. The team also reached the semi-finals of the Polish Cup, in which they lost to Ruch Chorzow. In the competition for the Ekstraklasa Cup, Legia appeared in the quarterfinals and was eliminated by
GKS Bełchatów
GKS Bełchatów is a Polish professional football club based in Bełchatów that currently plays in the IV liga.
History
GKS Bełchatów entered Poland's Klasa A in 1977 under the name of Węgiel Brunatny Bełchatów, and gained promotion to ...
.
2011–2020
Legia won its 10th title with another league championship at the end of the
2013–14 Ekstraklasa
The 2013–14 Ekstraklasa (named T-Mobile Ekstraklasa for sponsorship reasons) was the 88th season of the Polish Football Championship, the 80th season of the highest tier domestic division in the Polish football league system since its establi ...
season. Legia qualified for the
2016–17 Champions League group stages for the first time in 21 years after defeating
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
on 23 August 2016. The Legionnaires found themselves in group F with the likes of Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, and Sporting Lisbon. They finished third place after winning 1–0 against Sporting Lisbon on the last match day in the group stages, sending them to the round of 32 in the
2016–17 UEFA Europa League
The 2016–17 UEFA Europa League was the 46th season of Europe's secondary club association football, football tournament organised by UEFA, and the eighth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League.
The 2017 UEFA Eu ...
. Legia was drawn against
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 Greek ...
where the first match fell goalless in Warsaw.
Legia won its 12th League title in the
2016–17 Ekstraklasa season. They finished with a 0–0 draw against
Lechia Gdańsk
Lechia Gdańsk () is a Polish football club based in Gdańsk. The club was founded in 1945 by people expelled from Lwów, who were supporters of Poland's oldest football team Lechia Lwów, founded in 1903. The club's name comes from Lechia, a ...
. Legia needed a draw in the match between
Jagiellonia Białystok
Jagiellonia Białystok () is a Polish football club based in Białystok that plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. The club was founded in 1920 by soldiers in the Reserve Battalion in Białystok. Jagiellonia play their home g ...
and
Lech Poznań
Kolejowy Klub Sportowy Lech Poznań S.A., commonly referred to as KKS Lech Poznań or simply Lech Poznań (), is a Polish professional association football, football club based in Poznań and currently competing in the Ekstraklasa, the nation' ...
which finished 2–2 and gave Legia the title.
Legia's third consecutive Eksrtaklasa title was won in dramatic circumstances. Needing to win away to
Lech Poznan
Lech may refer to:
People
* Lech (name), a name of Polish origin
* Lech, the legendary founder of Poland
* Lech (Bohemian prince)
Products and organizations
* Lech (beer), Polish beer produced by Kompania Piwowarska, in Poznań
* Lech Poznań, ...
to guarantee the title, a 3–0 victory was awarded to Legia after the game was abandoned. Lech fans threw flares and invaded the pitch after Legia scored to make it 2–0 in the 77th minute, after which the referee called the game off. The result meant Legia won the league, finishing three points above second placed
Jagiellonia Białystok
Jagiellonia Białystok () is a Polish football club based in Białystok that plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. The club was founded in 1920 by soldiers in the Reserve Battalion in Białystok. Jagiellonia play their home g ...
.
2021–present
On 28 April 2021, three rounds before the end of the
2020–21 Ekstraklasa
The 2020–21 Ekstraklasa (also known as PKO Ekstraklasa due to sponsorship reasons) was the 95th season of the Polish Football Championship, the 87th season of the highest tier domestic division in the Polish football league system since its e ...
season, the players from Łazienkowska won the fifteenth Polish championship, thanks to a goalless draw between
Jagiellonia Białystok
Jagiellonia Białystok () is a Polish football club based in Białystok that plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. The club was founded in 1920 by soldiers in the Reserve Battalion in Białystok. Jagiellonia play their home g ...
and
Raków Częstochowa
Robotniczy Klub Sportowy Raków Częstochowa Spółka Akcyjna (commonly referred to as Raków Częstochowa, or simply Raków) is a Polish professional football club, based in Częstochowa, that competes in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of na ...
. Thus, Legia took the independent lead in the all-time classification in terms of the number of domestic titles.
On 26 August 2021, Legia defeated
Slavia Prague
Sportovní klub Slavia Praha – fotbal (Sports Club Slavia Prague – Football, ), commonly known as Slavia Praha or Slavia Prague, is a Czech professional football club in Prague. Founded in 1892, they are the second most successful club in th ...
, and for the first time in five years qualified to the group stages of a European cup. In 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. It ...
they were drawn to play in a group stage against
Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
,
Napoli
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
and
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 ...
. After the first two matches won, away with Spartak and at home with Leicester 1–0 each, Legia lost four consecutive matches and ended up at the bottom of the group.
Stadium & facilities
Legia plays its games at Legia Warsaw Municipal Stadium of Marshal Józef Piłsudski (Polish: ''Stadion Miejski Legii Warszawa im. Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego''), traditionally also referred to as the Polish Army Stadium (Polish: ''Stadion Wojska Polskiego''), which is an
all-seater
An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football and Ame ...
football-specific stadium
Soccer-specific stadium is a term used mainly in the United States and Canada to refer to a sports stadium either purpose-built or fundamentally redesigned for soccer and whose primary function is to host soccer matches, as opposed to a multi-p ...
in
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, Poland. Legia has been playing there since 9 August 1930. With space for 31,800 spectators it is the 5th biggest football stadium in 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 cl ...
. The stadium underwent significant reconstruction between 2008 and 2011, during which all of the stands were demolished and replaced with bigger and more modern ones which increased the stadium's capacity from 13,500 to 31,800 seats. The Polish Army Stadium is currently owned by the
City of Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...
. Additionally to the main stadium and its surrounding infrastructure, the club has a newly built
Legia Training Center
The Legia Training Center is the sports venue and the training center of Legia Warsaw in Książenice, Masovian Voivodeship, Książenice. Legia Warsaw II plays home matches in the center, and the first team also plays friendly matches. It is calle ...
completed in June 2020. Facility is located in
Książenice in
Gmina Grodzisk Mazowiecki
__NOTOC__
Gmina Grodzisk Mazowiecki is an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Grodzisk Mazowiecki County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. Its seat is the town of Grodzisk Mazowiecki, which lies approximately south-west o ...
. Legia Training Center has been designated for the Legia Warsaw first team and their
reserves and youth teams, as U18, U17, U16 and U15. The center facilities are, among others, eight pitches; six with natural turf and two with artificial turf, hotel part and dormitory for players aged 13–18.
Sponsors
Supporters and rivalries
As one of the most successful clubs in Poland, Legia Warsaw is also one of its most popular clubs. Legia has gained devotion from generations of fans from Warsaw as well as around the country, mainly in
Masovian Voivodeship
The Masovian Voivodeship, also known as the Mazovia Province ( pl, województwo mazowieckie ) is a voivodeship (province) in east-central Poland, with its capital located in the city of Warsaw, which also serves as the capital of the country. The ...
. Legia supporters are considered very spontaneous, dedicated and
fanatical
''Fanatical'' is a Canadian half-hour documentary television series produced by Peace Point Entertainment Group and currently airs on TVtropolis and DejaView. FANatical explores the motivations and activities of people involved with the fandom of ...
. Accordingly, in terms of quality of football support, they are also often described as the best supporters in Poland. Groups of fans follow Legia for practically all away matches, both domestic and international. Supporters of Legia occasionally attract also some negative attention, in particular after events such as
riots
A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people.
Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targeted ...
in
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
during a match against
Vėtra Vilnius on 10 July 2007.
Traditionally, the most devoted and spontaneous fans occupy the
Żyleta
Żyleta (, en, the Razor) is a common name of a northern stand at the Stadion Wojska Polskiego in Warsaw, Poland, traditionally occupied by the most spontaneous and fanatical fans of Legia Warsaw football club. Before the stadium renovation (200 ...
stand in their stadium. Before the stadium renovation (2008–2011), the "old" Żyleta referred only to the center section within the eastern stand of the stadium (occasionally, it would also refer to eastern stand as a whole). There is a special exhibition dedicated to the "old" Żyleta in the
Legia Warsaw Museum
The Legia Warsaw Museum is a museum and stadium tour dedicated to Legia Warsaw club history in Warsaw in Poland. The museum, located at the Polish Army Stadium, was opened on 21 April 2006 and is open daily for tours.
History
The stadium incl ...
. Today, after the stadium's renovation, the "new" Żyleta means the whole northern stand of stadium (located behind the goal).
As regards their political sentiments, the supporters of Legia tend to be more
right wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authori ...
. During
communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
times, in particular during the 1980s, Legia fans showed their
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: The ...
and strongly
anti-communistic views. Today, the fans actively participate in annual commemorations of the
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising ( pl, powstanie warszawskie; german: Warschauer Aufstand) was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from German occupation. It occ ...
and
Polish Independence Day
National Independence Day ( pl, Narodowe Święto Niepodległości) is a national day in Poland celebrated on 11 November to commemorate the anniversary of the restoration of Poland's sovereignty as the Second Polish Republic in 1918 from the ...
. Legia fans are also vocal with their views on domestic issues, e.g. their conflict with former Polish
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Donald Tusk
Donald Franciszek Tusk ( , ; born 22 April 1957) is a Polish politician who was President of the European Council from 2014 to 2019. He served as the 14th Prime Minister of Poland from 2007 to 2014 and was a co-founder and leader of the Civic Pla ...
, as well as on international politics, e.g. by way of displaying banners reading "
Kosovo is Serbia
"Kosovo is Serbia" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косово је Србија, Kosovo je Srbija) is a slogan that has been used in Serbia since the 1980s, later popularised as a reaction to Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence from Serbia.
History
The ...
n" at the stadium. On 22 October 2014, when Legia played with the Ukrainian
Metalists they displayed a banner with the names Lwów (
Lviv
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...
) and Wilno (
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
) along with the coat of arms of
Rzeczpospolita
() is the official name of Poland and a traditional name for some of its predecessor states. It is a compound of "thing, matter" and "common", a calque of Latin ''rés pública'' ( "thing" + "public, common"), i.e. ''republic'', in Engli ...
and flag of Poland on background, what led to negative reactions. On 19 August 2015, in Lviv and
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, where Legia played with
Zorya
Zorya ( lit. "Dawn"; also many variants: Zarya, Zara, Zaranitsa, Zoryushka, etc.) is a figure in Slavic folklore, a feminine personification of dawn, possibly goddess. Depending on tradition, she may appear as a singular entity, often called "Th ...
, clashes between Ukrainian and Polish fans occurred.
Domestically, Legia Warsaw supporters maintain friendly relations with fans of
Radomiak Radom
Radomiak Spółka Akcyjna (''Radomiak S.A.''), commonly known as Radomiak Radom, is a Polish football (soccer), football club based in Radom, Poland. The club was founded in 1910 and competes in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Football in Poland ...
,
Zagłębie Sosnowiec
Zagłębie Sosnowiec () is a football club based in Sosnowiec, Poland. The club was established in 1906. It won Polish Cup four times (1962, 1963, 1977, 1978), and also was four times Polish runner up (1955, 1964, 1967, 1972). Apart from footbal ...
and
Olimpia Elbląg
Olimpia Elbląg is a Polish professional football team based in Elbląg, Poland, competing in II liga. It was founded in 1945.
Facilities
Olimpia Stadium
Olimpia has played near Agrykola 8 Street since 1945. There are projects for a new s ...
. Internationally, Legia supporters maintain friendly relations with fans of
ADO Den Haag
Alles Door Oefening Den Haag (), commonly known by the abbreviated name ADO Den Haag (), is a Dutch association football club from the city of The Hague. They play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following relegation f ...
and
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
. Their domestic rivals include almost all the other Polish teams that play at the
domestic top-tier league level. Warsaw clubs,
Polonia Warsaw
Polonia Warsaw ( pl, Polonia Warszawa, ), founded on 19 November 1911, is the oldest existing Varsovian sports club, best known for its football and basketball teams. It also has track and field, swimming, chess, mountain biking, and contract ...
,
KS Warszawianka
Klub Sportowy Warszawianka is a Polish multi-sport club from Warsaw. It has several sections, including handball, track and field, fencing and tennis, and in the past it had several more, including a football team which competed in the Polish ...
and
Gwardia Warsaw
Gwardia Warszawa was a Polish sports club based in Warsaw. The club was founded in 1948. It participated in the Polish 1st League from 1953–1960 (8 seasons), 1962–1966 (5 seasons), 1967–1968, 1969–1975, 1978–1979 and 1981–1983. The ...
, were Legia's main league rivals, but since 2013 none of them competes in Ekstraklasa.
Warsaw derby
The Warsaw
derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
is a match between Legia and
Polonia Warsaw
Polonia Warsaw ( pl, Polonia Warszawa, ), founded on 19 November 1911, is the oldest existing Varsovian sports club, best known for its football and basketball teams. It also has track and field, swimming, chess, mountain biking, and contract ...
Other local rivalries
Between Legia and
Gwardia Warsaw
Gwardia Warszawa was a Polish sports club based in Warsaw. The club was founded in 1948. It participated in the Polish 1st League from 1953–1960 (8 seasons), 1962–1966 (5 seasons), 1967–1968, 1969–1975, 1978–1979 and 1981–1983. The ...
Between Legia and
KS Warszawianka
Klub Sportowy Warszawianka is a Polish multi-sport club from Warsaw. It has several sections, including handball, track and field, fencing and tennis, and in the past it had several more, including a football team which competed in the Polish ...
Honours
Domestic
:''As of the 2020–21 season.''
Europe
*
European Cup/Champions League:
** Semi-finals:
1969–70
** Quarter-finals:
1970–71,
1995–96
** Group stage:
2016–17
*
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 ...
:
** Semi-finals:
1990–91
** Quarter-finals:
1964–65,
1981–82
*
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. It ...
:
** Round of 32:
2011–12,
2014–15,
2016–17
** Group stage:
2013–14,
2015–16,
2021–22
Legia Warsaw in European football
Overall record
''Updated 4 August 2021''
Results
Note: ''italics'' means neutral place results or penalised result
UEFA Team ranking
As of 2 January 2022.
Best results in European competitions
Club records
*Number of seasons in
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 cl ...
: 73 (from 1927 to 1936 and from 1948–present)
*Biggest win in the league: 19 August 1956 Legia Warsaw –
Wisła Kraków
Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. It currently competes in the I liga, the second level of Polish football league system. It ...
12–0 (5–0)
*Biggest defeat in the league: 3 September 1927
Pogoń Lwów
LKS Pogoń Lwów is a former Polish professional sports club which was located in Lwów, Lwów Voivodeship (now Lviv in Ukraine), and existed from 1904 until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. It was the second oldest Polish football club behi ...
– Legia Warsaw 11–2 (6–1)
*Longest series of victories in the league: 9 (in 1931 and 1932)
*Longest series of defeats in the league: 7 (1936 and 2021)
*Oldest goalscorer:
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
– 37 years, 2 months, 25 days
*Youngest goalscorer:
Ariel Borysiuk
Ariel Borysiuk (; uk, Аріель Борисюк; born 29 July 1991) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder. He has twelve caps with the Poland national team.
Club career Legia Warsaw
Born in Biała Podlaska, ...
– 16 years, 8 months, 5 days
Most appearances
As of 26 June 2019 the players with the most appearances for Legia are:
* Bold – still active
Top goalscorers
As of 26 June 2019 the ten players with the most goals for Legia are:
* Bold – still active
Club seasons
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Retired numbers
Hall of Fame
''This is a list of former players and coaches who have been inducted into the Legia Warsaw Hall of Fame.''
*
Adam Topolski
Adam Stephen Topolski (born 25 December 1951) is a retired Polish football defender who played professionally Poland and the United States. Since his retirement in 1988, he has amassed a considerable resume as a coach in Poland.
Player
In 196 ...
*
Andrzej Sikorski
Andrzej Sikorski (born 4 September 1961) is a Polish former cyclist. He competed in the team pursuit event at the 1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known ...
*
Andrzej Strejlau
Andrzej Michał Strejlau (born February 19, 1940) is a retired Polish football and handball player.
In 1989–1993 he was a coach of Poland national football team. He also coached many teams from different parts of the world ( China, Iceland ...
*Antoni Trzaskowski
*
Bernard Blaut
Bernard Blaut (3 January 1940 – 19 May 2007) was a Polish football player, who is most famous for his 1960s performances in both Legia Warsaw and the Polish National Team.
Between 1960 and 1971 he was capped 36 times for Poland, scoring three g ...
*
Dariusz Dziekanowski
Dariusz Paweł Dziekanowski (born 30 September 1962) is a Polish football player, coach and commentator. He was known as Jacki Dziekanowski during his time playing in the Scottish and English leagues. He started his career at Polonia Warsaw, bet ...
*
Edmund Zientara
Edmund Jan Zientara (25 January 1929 – 3 August 2010) was a Polish footballer who played as a midfielder.
Career
Born in Warsaw, Zientara played for Polonia Warsaw, Kolejarz Warszawa, CWKS Warszawa, OWKS Lublin, Gwardia Warsaw, Legia Warsa ...
*
Henryk Grzybowski
Henryk Grzybowski (17 July 1934 – 17 November 2012) was a Polish footballer. He was part of Poland's squad at the 1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVI ...
*Jan Pieszko
*
Janusz Żmijewski
Janusz Henryk Żmijewski (born 4 March 1943) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Playing career
Born in Radzymin in the Masovian Voivodeship, he spent most of his career with Legia Warsaw. After his tenure with L ...
*
Jerzy Podbrożny
Jerzy "Gumiś" Podbrożny (born December 17, 1966 in Przemyśl, Poland, Przemyśl) is a former Poland, Polish football (soccer), football Striker (association football), striker, one of the top scorers in Football in Poland, Polish football histor ...
*
Kazimierz Buda
Kazimierz Buda (born 3 May 1960, in Mielec) is a retired Polish 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, American fo ...
*
Kazimierz Deyna
Kazimierz Deyna (; 23 October 1947 – 1 September 1989) was a Polish professional association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder in the playmaker role and was one of the most highly regarded players of his generation, du ...
*
Kazimierz Górski
Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski (2 March 1921 – 23 May 2006) was a coach of Poland national football team and honorary president of the Polish Football Association. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland.
Playing career
He was bor ...
*
Krzysztof Adamczyk
Krzysztof Adamczyk (born 2 February 1956 in Gdańsk, Poland) is a former football player.
He was 1980–1981 Ekstraklasa
Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its s ...
*
Lesław Ćmikiewicz
Lesław Ćmikiewicz (born 25 August 1948 in Wrocław) is a retired Polish football player and manager. He played for Polish clubs including Śląsk Wrocław and Legia Warsaw. He also played for the New York Arrows and Chicago Horizon in the M ...
*
Leszek Pisz
Leszek Pisz () (born 18 December 1966 in Dębica) is a former Polish footballer who plays as a midfielder.
History
Pisz arrived in Legia Warszawa in 1986 from Igloopol Dębica
LKS Igloopol Dębica () is a Polish sports club from Dębica, S ...
*
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
*
Maciej Śliwowski
Maciej Śliwowski (born 10 January 1967) is a retired Polish football forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forw ...
*
Paweł Janas
Paweł Janas (; born 4 March 1953) is a Polish football manager and former footballer.
Career
Club
He began his playing career for the Włókniarz Pabianice team in 1965, but later left the club in 1973.
National team
From 1976 to 1984, he wo ...
*
Radostin Stanev
Radostin Stanev ( bg, Радостин Станев; born 11 July 1975 in Varna) is a former Bulgarian football player who played as a goalkeeper.
Career In Bulgaria
Stanev started his career in Varna in the local Spartak. In 1998, he played for ...
*
Roman Kosecki
Roman Jacek Kosecki (born 15 February 1966) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Career
In his club career, Kosecki played for RKS URSUS, Gwardia Warsaw, Legia Warsaw, Galatasaray, CA Osasuna, Atlético Madrid, ...
*Ryszard Milewski
*
Stefan Białas
*Tadeusz Nowak
*Władysław Dąbrowski
*
Władysław Stachurski
Władysław Stachurski (27 March 1945 – 13 March 2013) was a Polish football player and manager.
As a player he was best known for his time at Legia Warsaw and was capped eight times for Poland, scoring one goal. He retired aged 28 due ...
Coaching staff
Management
Coaches
*
József Ferenczi (December 1922 – May 1923)
*
Karl Fischer (May 1927 – October 1927)
*
Elemér Kovács
Elemér is a masculine given name, the Hungarian form of the Slavic Velimir, and may refer to:
*Elemér Berkessy (1905–1993), Hungarian footballer and coach
*Elemér Bokor (1887–1928), Hungarian entomologist
*Elemér Csák (born 1944), Hungar ...
(March 1928 – November 1929)
*
Józef Kałuża
Józef Ignacy Kałuża (11 February 1896 – 11 October 1944) was a Polish footballer and later coach, was one of the legends of Polish sports.
Club career
Kałuża was one of the most experienced forward players of 1920s Poland. His whole ca ...
(May 1930 – July 1930)
*
Stanisław Mielech
Stanisław Mielech (29 April 1894 – 17 November 1962) was a Polish footballer. He played in two matches for the Poland national football team from 1921 to 1922.
From 1923 to 1927 he was associated with Legia Warsaw. He was the originator ...
(July 1933 – September 1933)
*
Gustav Wieser (October 1933 – October 1934)
*
Karol Hanke
Karol Daniel Hanke (6 September 1903 – 15 April 1964) was a Polish football player who played for ŁKS Łódź and Pogoń Lwów. He debuted for the Poland National Football Team on 29 June 1924 in a 2-0 win against Turkey
Turkey ( tr ...
(March 1936 – November 1936)
*
Stanisław Grządziel (1945–46)
*
František Dembický (March 1947 – November 1947)
*
Edward Drabiński (Feb 1948 – September 1948)
*
Marian Schaller (March 1949 – June 1949)
*
Wacław Kuchar
Wacław Michał Kuchar (16 September 1897 – 13 February 1981) was a Polish sports champion, olympian, and multiple football, track and field and speed skating champion of the country.
Kuchar excelled in many sports – track and field, footb ...
(July 1949 – December 1953)
*
János Steiner
János or Janos may refer to:
* János, male Hungarian given name, a variant of John
Places
* Janos Municipality, a municipality of Chihuahua
** Janos, Chihuahua, town in Mexico
** Janos Biosphere Reserve, a nature reserve in Chihuahua
* Janos ...
(February 1953 – December 1955)
*
Ryszard Koncewicz
Ryszard Tadeusz Koncewicz (born 12 April 1911 in Lemberg; died 15 March 2001 in Warsaw) was a Polish soccer player as well as a coach. In the interbellum period, Koncewicz played without notable successes for Lechia Lwów (1927–1939). Caught ...
(1 July 1955 – 30 June 1958)
*
Kazimierz Górski
Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski (2 March 1921 – 23 May 2006) was a coach of Poland national football team and honorary president of the Polish Football Association. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland.
Playing career
He was bor ...
(January 1959 – April 1959)
*
Stjepan Bobek
Stjepan Bobek (; 3 December 1923 – 22 August 2010) was a Croatian and Yugoslav professional football striker and later football manager.
Usually a forward or attacking midfielder, Bobek was renowned for his technique, vision and goalscoring ...
(April 1959 – Dec 1959)
*
Kazimierz Górski
Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski (2 March 1921 – 23 May 2006) was a coach of Poland national football team and honorary president of the Polish Football Association. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland.
Playing career
He was bor ...
(1 January 1960 – 3 December 1962)
*
Longin Janeczek (December 1962 – December 1963)
*
Virgil Popescu
Virgil Popescu (1916–1989) was a Romanian footballer and later coach. In Yugoslavia, he was known as Stanislav Popesku.
Career
He was born in 1916 during the First World War, in the Transylvanian town of Zlatna, (January 1964 – June 1965)
*
Longin Janeczek (July 1965 – June 1966)
*
Jaroslav Vejvoda (July 1966 – June 1969)
*
Edmund Zientara
Edmund Jan Zientara (25 January 1929 – 3 August 2010) was a Polish footballer who played as a midfielder.
Career
Born in Warsaw, Zientara played for Polonia Warsaw, Kolejarz Warszawa, CWKS Warszawa, OWKS Lublin, Gwardia Warsaw, Legia Warsa ...
(July 1969 – July 1971)
*
Tadeusz Chruściński (July 1971 – May 1972)
*
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
(26 March 1972 – 30 June 1973)
*
Jaroslav Vejvoda (1973–1975)
*
Andrzej Strejlau
Andrzej Michał Strejlau (born February 19, 1940) is a retired Polish football and handball player.
In 1989–1993 he was a coach of Poland national football team. He also coached many teams from different parts of the world ( China, Iceland ...
(1 July 1975 – 30 June 1979)
*
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
(1 July 1979 – 15 October 1980)
*
Ignacy Ordon Ignacy is a Polish given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Ignacy Tadeusz Baranowski (1879–1917), Polish historian
*Piotr Ignacy Bieńkowski (1865–1925), Polish classical scholar and archaeologist, professor of Jagiellonian Universit ...
(10 October 1980 – June 1981)
*
Kazimierz Górski
Kazimierz Klaudiusz Górski (2 March 1921 – 23 May 2006) was a coach of Poland national football team and honorary president of the Polish Football Association. He was also a football player, capped once for Poland.
Playing career
He was bor ...
(1 July 1981 – 1 December 1982)
*
Jerzy Kopa
Jerzy Kopa (2 January 1943 – 26 June 2022) was a Polish football manager and player.
Career
Playing career
Kopa played for MKS Chrobry Szczecin and AZS Poznań.
Coaching career
Jerzy Kopa managed Arkonia Szczecin, Stal Stalowa Wola, L ...
(December 1982 – June 1985)
*
Jerzy Engel
Władysław Jerzy Engel (; born 6 October 1952 in Włocławek, Poland) is a Polish former Association football, footballer and coach.
Biography
Playing career
Engel began his career in football at an early age playing at local youth club Juna ...
(1 July 1985 – 15 August 1987)
*
Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
(27 August 1987 – 30 November 1987)
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Andrzej Strejlau
Andrzej Michał Strejlau (born February 19, 1940) is a retired Polish football and handball player.
In 1989–1993 he was a coach of Poland national football team. He also coached many teams from different parts of the world ( China, Iceland ...
(1 December 1987 – 30 June 1989)
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Rudolf Kapera (July 1989 – April 1990)
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Lucjan Brychczy
Lucjan Antoni Brychczy (otherwise known as Kici; born 13 June 1934) is a former Polish football player who is most notable for winning four top-tier titles with Legia Warsaw, but was also a keen archer.
In football, he represented ŁTS Łabęd ...
(15 April 1990 – 30 June 1990)
*
Władysław Stachurski
Władysław Stachurski (27 March 1945 – 13 March 2013) was a Polish football player and manager.
As a player he was best known for his time at Legia Warsaw and was capped eight times for Poland, scoring one goal. He retired aged 28 due ...
(1 July 1990 – 20 August 1991)
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Krzysztof Etmanowicz (August 1991 – August 1992)
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Janusz Wójcik
Janusz Marek Wójcik (November 18, 1953 – November 20, 2017) was a Polish politician, football player and coach.
Playing career
He played in several clubs at home and abroad, including Agrykola, Gwardia, Ursus and Hutnik Warszawa, Ravalpandi ...
(1 September 1992 – 31 December 1993)
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Paweł Janas
Paweł Janas (; born 4 March 1953) is a Polish football manager and former footballer.
Career
Club
He began his playing career for the Włókniarz Pabianice team in 1965, but later left the club in 1973.
National team
From 1976 to 1984, he wo ...
(1 Jan 1994 – 30 June 1996)
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Mirosław Jabłoński
Mirosław Korneliusz Jabłoński (born 16 September 1950) is a Polish football manager.
References
1950 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Warsaw
Polish football managers
Gwardia Warsaw managers
Górnik Wałbrzych (football) mana ...
(1996)
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Władysław Stachurski
Władysław Stachurski (27 March 1945 – 13 March 2013) was a Polish football player and manager.
As a player he was best known for his time at Legia Warsaw and was capped eight times for Poland, scoring one goal. He retired aged 28 due ...
(1 July 1996 – 10 April 1997)
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Mirosław Jabłoński
Mirosław Korneliusz Jabłoński (born 16 September 1950) is a Polish football manager.
References
1950 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Warsaw
Polish football managers
Gwardia Warsaw managers
Górnik Wałbrzych (football) mana ...
(15 April 1997 – 15 April 1998)
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Stefan Białas /
Jerzy Kopa
Jerzy Kopa (2 January 1943 – 26 June 2022) was a Polish football manager and player.
Career
Playing career
Kopa played for MKS Chrobry Szczecin and AZS Poznań.
Coaching career
Jerzy Kopa managed Arkonia Szczecin, Stal Stalowa Wola, L ...
(April 1998 – 1997)
*
Jerzy Kopa
Jerzy Kopa (2 January 1943 – 26 June 2022) was a Polish football manager and player.
Career
Playing career
Kopa played for MKS Chrobry Szczecin and AZS Poznań.
Coaching career
Jerzy Kopa managed Arkonia Szczecin, Stal Stalowa Wola, L ...
(1998 – January 1999)
*
Stefan Białas (15 December 1998 – 30 June 1999)
*
Dariusz Kubicki
Dariusz Jan Kubicki (born 6 June 1963) is a Polish football manager and a former player.
Playing career
He played for a few clubs, including Stal Mielec, Legia Warsaw, he then went to England and played for Aston Villa, Sunderland, Wolverha ...
(1 July 1999 – 15 October 1999)
*
Franciszek Smuda
Franciszek Smuda (; born 22 June 1948) is a Polish Association football, football Coach (sport), coach and former footballer who also holds a German passport. As a player, he spent his career playing for clubs in Poland, the United States and Ge ...
(24 September 1999 – 8 March 2001)
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Krzysztof Gawara
Krzysztof Stanisław Gawara (born 15 March 1958) is a former Polish football player and former manager of Legia Warsaw.
Playing career
The first years of his career were spent in Bydgoszcz and Gdansk where Gawara graduated from Polonia Bydgoszc ...
(March 2001)
*
Dragomir Okuka
Dragomir "Dragan" Okuka (; born 2 April 1954) is a Serbian football coach and former player.
As a player, he was predominantly associated with his time with Velež Mostar where he won the 1981 Yugoslav Cup before joining Swedish club Örebro SK, ...
(10 March 2001 – 12 June 2003)
*
Dariusz Kubicki
Dariusz Jan Kubicki (born 6 June 1963) is a Polish football manager and a former player.
Playing career
He played for a few clubs, including Stal Mielec, Legia Warsaw, he then went to England and played for Aston Villa, Sunderland, Wolverha ...
(13 June 2003 – 1 October 2004)
*
L. Brychczy /
K. Gawara /
J. Zieliński (2 October 2004 – December 2004)
*
Jacek Zieliński (January 2005 – 1 September 2005)
*
Dariusz Wdowczyk
Dariusz Wdowczyk (born 25 September 1962) is a Polish football player and coach, who was previously the manager of Piast Gliwice. He played for Gwardia Warszawa, Legia Warsaw, Celtic, Reading, and Polonia Warsaw. He has subsequently carved out a ...
(2 September 2005 – 13 April 2007)
*
Jacek Zieliński (14 April 2007 – 2 June 2007)
*
Jan Urban
Jan Urban (; born 14 May 1962) is a Polish football manager and former player who played as a striker, who was most recently in charge of Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze.
His professional career was closely associated to Górnik Zabrze and Osas ...
(3 June 2007 – 14 March 2010)
*
Stefan Białas (14 March 2010 – 25 May 2010)
*
Maciej Skorża
Maciej Skorża (; born 10 January 1972) is a former Poles, Polish professional Association football, footballer. He is currently the Manager (association football), manager of J1 League club Urawa Red Diamonds.
Club career
He was playing as a def ...
(1 June 2010 – 30 May 2012)
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Jan Urban
Jan Urban (; born 14 May 1962) is a Polish football manager and former player who played as a striker, who was most recently in charge of Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze.
His professional career was closely associated to Górnik Zabrze and Osas ...
(30 May 2012 – 19 Dec 2013)
*
Henning Berg
Henning Stille Berg (; born 1 September 1969) is a Norwegian football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Cypriot First Division club Pafos FC.
His career lasted from 1988 to 2004, most notably in the Premier League where h ...
(19 December 2013 – 4 October 2015)
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Stanislav Cherchesov
Stanislav Salamovich Cherchesov (russian: Станислав Саламович Черчесов, ; os, Черчесты Саламы фырт Станислав, Ĉerĉesty Salamy fyrt Stanislav; born 2 September 1963) is a Russian football ma ...
(6 October 2015 – 1 June 2016)
*
Besnik Hasi
Besnik Ilmi Hasi (born 29 December 1971) is an Albanian professional football coach and former player who was most recently the manager of Saudi club Al-Ahli.
Club career
Born in Gjakova, SFR Yugoslavia (present day Kosovo), he began playing wi ...
(3 June 2016 – 20 September 2016)
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Aleksandar Vuković
Aleksandar Vuković ( sr-cyrl, Александар Вуковић, ; born 25 August 1979) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice.
Club career
He started his care ...
(interim)
*
Jacek Magiera (24 September 2016 – 13 September 2017)
*
Romeo Jozak
Romeo Jozak (born 11 October 1972) is a Croatian football manager and former player who most recently managed the Kuwait national team.
Early career
Jozak grew up in a family of mathematics and physics teachers. He ended his football career e ...
(13 September 2017 – 14 April 2018)
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Dean Klafurić
Dean Klafurić (born 26 July 1972) is a Croatian professional football manager, currently serving as head coach for Budapest Honvéd FC of the Hungarian first division.
Manager career
Klafuric started to work as a coach in NK Udarnik in 2005 ...
(16 April 2018 – 4 June 2018) (caretaker)
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Dean Klafurić
Dean Klafurić (born 26 July 1972) is a Croatian professional football manager, currently serving as head coach for Budapest Honvéd FC of the Hungarian first division.
Manager career
Klafuric started to work as a coach in NK Udarnik in 2005 ...
(4 June 2018 – 1 August 2018)
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Aleksandar Vuković
Aleksandar Vuković ( sr-cyrl, Александар Вуковић, ; born 25 August 1979) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice.
Club career
He started his care ...
(1 August 2018 – 13 August 2018) (interim)
*
Ricardo Sá Pinto
Ricardo Manuel Andrade e Silva Sá Pinto (born 10 October 1972) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a forward, currently manager of Persian Gulf Pro League club Esteghlal.
He was known for his fighting spirit, best displayed in hi ...
(13 August 2018 – 31 March 2019)
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Aleksandar Vuković
Aleksandar Vuković ( sr-cyrl, Александар Вуковић, ; born 25 August 1979) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice.
Club career
He started his care ...
(2 April 2019 – 21 September 2020)
*
Czesław Michniewicz
Czesław Michniewicz (; born 12 February 1970) is a Polish football manager and former player who managed the Poland national team in 2022.
Managerial career Early years
In September 2003, Michniewicz was appointed as the manager of Lech Pozna ...
(21 September 2020 – 25 October 2021)
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Marek Gołębiewski
Marek Gołębiewski (born 18 May 1980) is a Polish football manager and former player who was most recently in charge of I liga club Chrobry Głogów.
Club career
Gołębiewski started his career with KS Piaseczno in 1997. Then he played for Gw ...
(25 October 2021 – 12 December 2021)
*
Aleksandar Vuković
Aleksandar Vuković ( sr-cyrl, Александар Вуковић, ; born 25 August 1979) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice.
Club career
He started his care ...
(13 December 2021 – 23 May 2022)
*
Kosta Runjaić
Kosta Runjaić (born 4 June 1971) is a German 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 managing ...
(23 May 2022 – Present)
See also
*
Football in Poland
Football is the most popular sport in Poland. Over 400,000 Poles play football regularly, with millions more playing occasionally. The first professional clubs were founded in the early 1900s, and the Polish national football team played its ...
*
Stadion Wojska Polskiego
The Stadion Wojska Polskiego (, en, Polish Army Stadium), officially named Stadion Miejski Legii Warszawa im. Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego ( eng, The Marshall Józef Piłsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw) in Warsaw, Poland, is an all- ...
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Żyleta
Żyleta (, en, the Razor) is a common name of a northern stand at the Stadion Wojska Polskiego in Warsaw, Poland, traditionally occupied by the most spontaneous and fanatical fans of Legia Warsaw football club. Before the stadium renovation (200 ...
Notes
References
External links
Official website
Academy official website
Legionisci Fansite
Legia.net Fansite
{{Authority control
Military association football clubs in Poland
Association football clubs established in 1916
1916 establishments in Poland