Branko Ilić (born 6 February 1983) is a Slovenian former professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
. Usually a
right-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...
, he also played as a
central defender
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...
.
In his country, he appeared for
Olimpija Ljubljana (two spells),
Grosuplje, and
Domžale (two stints). He also competed professionally in Spain, Russia, Cyprus, Israel, Serbia, Kazakhstan, Japan and Denmark.
A
Slovenian international between 2004 and 2015, Ilić was part of the squad at the
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...
.
Club career
Born in
Ljubljana
{{Infobox settlement
, name = Ljubljana
, official_name =
, settlement_type = Capital city
, image_skyline = {{multiple image
, border = infobox
, perrow = 1/2/2/1
, total_widt ...
,
Socialist Republic of Slovenia
The Socialist Republic of Slovenia (, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Slovenija, Социјалистичка Република Словенија), commonly referred to as Socialist Slovenia or simply Slovenia, was one ...
,
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...
, Ilić started his career at local
NK Olimpija, where he made his senior debut in 2003 against
FC Koper
Football Club Koper, commonly referred to as FC Koper or simply Koper, is a Slovenian football club based in Koper that competes in the Slovenian First League, the top flight of Slovenian football. The club was founded in 1920. They won the Sl ...
. He joined
NK Domžale
Nogometni klub Domžale (), commonly referred to as NK Domžale or simply Domžale, is a Slovenian professional Association football, football club based in the town of Domžale that competes in the Slovenian PrvaLiga, the top tier of Slovenian ...
in January 2005, after his former club went bankrupt.
Ilić was loaned to
Real Betis
Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It plays in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. It plays home ...
in January 2007, becoming the first Slovenian to play for them. His first official appearance came against city rivals
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...
, in a
Copa del Rey
The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...
quarter-final clash. On 4 February he first appeared in
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...
, providing the
assist for
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...
's goal in a 2–1 away win at
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club (; ), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao (), or simply Athletic, is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Southern Basque Country, Basque Country, Spain. They are known ...
.
After a positive spell, the Andalusian side completed the transfer for €1.5 million in the summer of 2007, but Ilić eventually fell out of rotation in
2008–09 after the signing of
S.L. Benfica's
Nélson, in a relegation-ending season where he only featured in three matches.
On 6 September 2009,
FC Moscow signed Ilić on loan from Betis, for one year. In late January 2010, however, he was released by the latter, immediately joining another Moscow-based team,
FC Lokomotiv.
On 13 August 2010,
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is a group of British broadcasting of sports events, subscription sports channels operated by the satellite television, satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television ...
reported that Ilić was on trial in England with
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
's
Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
, but nothing came of it. On 5 June 2013, after
one season in the
Cypriot First Division
The Cypriot First Division (), also known as the Cyprus League by Stoiximan for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Cyprus and the highest level of the Cypriot football league system. Operated by the Cyprus Fo ...
with
Anorthosis Famagusta FC
Anorthosis Famagusta (), commonly known as Anorthosis in English or Anorthosi in Greek, is a Cypriot football club, part of the Famagusta multi-sport club founded in 1911 in Varosha, Famagusta. , he and teammate
Jürgen Colin signed two-year contracts with
Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C. from Israel.
Ilić agreed to a two-year deal with Serbian club
FK Partizan
Fudbalski klub Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Партизан, ; ), often referred to in English as Partizan Belgrade, is a Serbian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Belgrade. It forms ...
on 10 July 2014. The following summer he moved teams and countries again, joining
Kazakhstan Premier League
The Kazakhstan Professional Football League (, ''Qazaqstan Premier Ligasy''), commonly referred to as the Kazakh Premier League or simply the Premier League, is a professional association football league in Kazakhstan and the highest level of the ...
champions
FC Astana
Astana Football Club () is a professional Association football, football club based in Astana. They play in the Kazakhstan Premier League, the highest level of Football in Kazakhstan, Kazakh football. The club's home ground is the 30,000-seat As ...
.
On 6 January 2016, Ilić signed for
Urawa Red Diamonds
The or simply Urawa Reds (浦和レッズ, ''Urawa Rezzu''), also known as Mitsubishi Urawa Football Club from April 1992 to January 1996, are a professional association football, football club in the city of Saitama (city), Saitama, part of t ...
from Japan. On 5 February of the following year he returned to his homeland, joining
Olimpija Ljubljana.
Ilić signed for
Vejle Boldklub
Vejle Boldklub is a Danish professional football club based in Vejle in Jutland. Formed in 1891, the club is one of the most successful clubs in Danish football history, having won the Danish championship five times and the Danish cup title six ...
in Denmark on 15 January 2019. In July 2020, after a second spell with Domžale, the 36-year-old announced his retirement.
International career
Ilić represented
Slovenia
Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
at youth level, making his competitive debut for the
under-19 team in October 2001 against
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
.
He was also
capped for the
under-21s, playing nine matches in
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
competitions.
[
Ilić made his debut for the senior side on 18 August 2004 in a friendly with ]Serbia and Montenegro
The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...
. He was included in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...
in South Africa, but did not leave the substitutes bench in an eventual group-stage exit.
Overall, Ilić played 63 games for his country,[ scoring one goal against ]San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...
in the UEFA Euro 2016
The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's association football, football ch ...
qualifiers (6–0 home victory).
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Score and result list Slovenia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after Ilić goal.''
Honours
Olimpija
*Slovenian Football Cup
The Slovenian Football Cup (, ) is the top knockout tournament of Slovenian football and the second most important football competition in Slovenia after the Slovenian PrvaLiga championship. The cup was established in 1991 following the breakup o ...
: 2002–03
Domžale
*Slovenian PrvaLiga
The Slovenian PrvaLiga (, ), currently named Prva liga Telemach due to sponsorship reasons, also known by the abbreviation 1. SNL, is the top level of the Slovenian football league system. Contested by ten clubs, it operates on a system of prom ...
: 2006–07
Partizan
*Serbian SuperLiga
The Serbian Super League (), also known as Mozzart SuperLiga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Serbia and the highest level of the Serbian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a sys ...
: 2014–15
Olimpija Ljubljana
*Slovenian PrvaLiga
The Slovenian PrvaLiga (, ), currently named Prva liga Telemach due to sponsorship reasons, also known by the abbreviation 1. SNL, is the top level of the Slovenian football league system. Contested by ten clubs, it operates on a system of prom ...
: 2017–18
*Slovenian Football Cup
The Slovenian Football Cup (, ) is the top knockout tournament of Slovenian football and the second most important football competition in Slovenia after the Slovenian PrvaLiga championship. The cup was established in 1991 following the breakup o ...
: 2017–18
See also
* Slovenian international players
References
External links
Slovenian League stats
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ilic, Branko
1983 births
Living people
Slovenian people of Serbian descent
Footballers from Ljubljana
Slovenian men's footballers
21st-century Slovenian sportsmen
Men's association football defenders
Slovenian PrvaLiga players
Slovenian Second League players
NK Olimpija Ljubljana (1945–2005) players
NK Domžale players
NK Olimpija Ljubljana (2005) players
La Liga players
Real Betis players
Russian Premier League players
FC Moscow players
FC Lokomotiv Moscow players
Cypriot First Division players
Anorthosis Famagusta FC players
Israeli Premier League players
Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C. players
Serbian SuperLiga players
FK Partizan players
Kazakhstan Premier League players
FC Astana players
Urawa Red Diamonds players
Danish Superliga players
Vejle Boldklub players
Slovenia men's youth international footballers
Slovenia men's under-21 international footballers
Slovenia men's international footballers
2010 FIFA World Cup players
Slovenian expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
Expatriate men's footballers in Russia
Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus
Expatriate men's footballers in Israel
Expatriate men's footballers in Serbia
Expatriate men's footballers in Kazakhstan
Expatriate men's footballers in Japan
Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Russia
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Israel
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Serbia
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Japan
Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark