The Door were an Albanian women's professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in

Shkodër Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra) is the fifth-most-populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Shkodër County and Shkodër Municipality. The city sprawls across the Plain of Mbishkodra between the southern part of Lake Shkod ...

. They last competed in Kategoria Superiore Femra during the 2016–17 season, finishing at the bottom table, in a ten-team league.

History

During the late 1990s, Norwegian organization Norsk Nødhjelp initiated the creation of a non-profit NGO called "The Door," aimed at providing hope for people in need, around parts of northern Albania. "The Door" began its activities by distributing aid to families in Shkodër and the surrounding region. Later, it focused on the

Kosovo crisis The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the war ...

, primarily offering services to children traumatized by the war. The name "The Door" translates to "dera" in the

Albanian language Albanian ( endonym: or ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is spoken by the Albanians in the Balkans and by the Albanian diaspora, which is generally concentrated in the Americas, Europ ...

, symbolizing a door of support and hope for everyone, regardless of age, gender or status. In the mid-2000s, "The Door" started organizing football teams for boys and girls, prioritizing the youth. On 20 April 2007, a professional women's team was officially established. Like other women's football teams in the region, "The Door" faced initial challenges but continued its journey undeterred. Kastriot Faci managed the club's sports program during this time. The club has participated in several international tournaments, competing in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

under coach Fatmir Axhani and later in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

, and other locations. Notable achievements include taking second place in the "Kaçanik Liberation Cup" and participating in the "International Independence Cup," where they competed against

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

from Italy, led by coach Saimir Keçi. Several players from "The Door" have gone on to represent the

Albania women's national football team The Albania women's national football team ( sq, Kombëtarja e Femrave) represents the country of Albania in international football and is controlled by the Albanian Football Association which is headquartered in the city of Tirana. The team is ...

, including goalkeeper Brilanta Kokiçi, Fatjona Borova, Ornela Smajli, Erida Bajrakurtaj and captain Marsela Djegesina, a yearly contender for the championship's golden boot award. Alaskan born Megan Sassman, who came to Shkodër with her husband as a

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

volunteer, also played for the team, alongside fellow Americans Cathleen Gustafson, Francis Anderson, and Trisha Elizabeth, who were among the first foreigners playing in the women's league. Over time, players from neighboring countries and distant Africa also joined the club's ranks.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Door Football clubs in Albania Defunct football clubs in Albania Women's football clubs in Albania