Riga FK (''Rīgas futbola klubs'', short – RFK) was a
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
n
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 ...
club which was founded December 14, 1923. It was the strongest and most popular Latvian football club in 1920s and 1930s, it was also the base team for
Latvia national football team in its early years. It was closed after
World War II.
The idea for its creation came about in 1922 with the goal of uniting Latvian players on a team which could beat the mostly-German
Ķeizarmežs. The founder and manager was
Juris Rēdlihs
The Juris were a tribe of South American Indigenous people, formerly occupying the country between the rivers Içá (lower Putumayo) and Yapura, north-western Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Por ...
, one of the most active football organizers in Latvia. In 1923, most of the best Latvian footballers from
JKS moved to Riga FK. Those included
Hermanis Saltups
Hermanis Saltups (1901–1968) was a Latvian football goalkeeper. While playing with JKS Riga, Saltups became one of the footballers who participated in the first ever international game for Latvia national football team (against Estonia on 24 S ...
, Ašmanis, Eihmanis, Roga, Bone, Sokolovs, Zemīts and brothers
Edvīns,
Rūdolfs and
Arvīds Bārda
Arvīds Bārda (24 November 1901 – 11 November 1940) was a Latvian footballer, brother of Edvīns Bārda, Rūdolfs Bārda and Oskars Bārda. He was born and died in Riga.
Biography
Bārda started his football career in 1921 when he along with ...
.
In its first season in the Riga championship Riga FK finished second – one point behind
Ķeizarmežs. In 1924 Riga FK had a new manager who also managed the
Latvia national football team – V.Malošek from
Austria. Because it was prohibited to have foreign citizens playing in the Latvian league for that season, Ķeizarmežs didn't play in 1924. Riga FC easily bet its closest rivals –
ASK Riga in the Riga championship and beat the province champions from
Cēsis
Cēsis (), (german: Wenden, liv, Venden, et, Võnnu, pl, Kieś) is a town in Latvia located in the northern part of the Vidzeme Upland, Central Vidzeme Upland. Cēsis is on the Gauja, Gauja River valley, and is built on a series of ridges ...
5–1, winning its first
Latvian championship. In
1925
Events January
* January 1
** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria.
* January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...
and
1926
Events January
* January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece.
* January 8
**Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz.
** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of V ...
Riga FK won its second and third titles.
In 1927,
Olimpija Liepāja
Olimpija Liepāja was a Latvian football club. It was based in Liepāja
Liepāja (; liv, Līepõ; see #Names and toponymy, other names) is a state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest-city in the Kurzeme Plannin ...
took gold, leaving RFC with second place. Several players (including
Arvīds Jurgens,
Voldemārs Plade,
and
Aleksandrs Ābrams) left Riga FK during this season in order to found a new team –
Riga Vanderers
Riga Vanderer (sometimes written as Wanderer, in later years – Rīgas Vilki, also – RV) was a Latvian football club that was founded in 1927, disbanded in 1940, restored a year later and disbanded again in 1944.
History
Founding
The decisi ...
. Olimpija also beat RFK in the battle for title in 1928 and 1929.
In the 1930s, the emergence of the best pre-war Latvian footballer,
Ēriks Pētersons
Ēriks Pētersons (1909 in Riga – 1987 in United States) was Latvian footballer and hockey player. Between 1929 and 1939 he played 63 international matches and scored 21 goals for Latvia national team. He also played in Latvian national i ...
, once again brought good results for Riga FK – with titles in 1930 and 1931. In 1932, however, the team finished in its worst position so far – 3rd behind ASK and Riga Vanderers. The next titles for RK came in 1934 and 1935, when the team beat its competition by a large margin.
The last time that RFK won the Latvian title was in 1940, just months before
Soviet occupation of Latvia. RFK was then disbanded with its best players joining
FK Dinamo Rīga FK or fk may refer to:
In arts and entertainment:
* Flyer Killer, fictional automated robots in the ''Terminator'' film franchise.
* Fox Kids, a former American children's television programming block.
* Funky Kong, a video game character.
Place ...
. In 1941, with the
German occupation of Latvia, Riga FK and other Latvian football teams were restored and participated in the 1942–1944 championships. The fate of former RFK was different, with some continuing to play football in Soviet Latvia, others emigrating and some being killed in the war.
In 1992, the former
FK Auda
Futbola klubs Auda is a Latvian football club, playing in the highest division of Latvian football (Latvian Higher League). They are based in Ķekava, near the capital, Riga. Auda won their first ever major trophy in 2022, beating RFS 1–0 in ...
was renamed Riga FK but, after a couple of seasons without serious results, it was renamed Auda again.
In 2014 was found
Riga Football Club.
Honours
*Latvia top league:
**Winners: 8 (1924–1926,1930–1931,1934–1935,1940)
**Runners-up: 6 (1923,1927–1929,1933,1938)
*
Latvian Cup:
**Winners: 2 (1937, 1939)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rigas FK
Association football clubs established in 1923
RFK
Association football clubs disestablished in 1944
1923 establishments in Latvia
1944 disestablishments in Latvia