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Klubi i Futbollit Shkëndija (), commonly known as Shkëndija, is a professional football club based in
Tetovo Tetovo (, ; , sq-definite, Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena (river), Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, wit ...
,
North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...
. Founded in
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
by Macedonian Albanians, the club is widely recognized for its strong community identity and passionate support from its ultras group, the Ballistët. After being disbanded in the early 1980s, Shkëndija was re-established in
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
and rose through the ranks of the Macedonian football system. The club won its first national championship in the 2010–11 season and has since become a regular competitor in domestic and European competitions. Since then, Shkëndija has added four more league titles, winning the championship again in 2017–18, 2018–19,
2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
, and 2024–25. The club has won multiple league titles, experienced significant growth under Ecolog International ownership, and plays its home matches at the modern
Ecolog Arena Ecolog Arena is a multi-purpose stadium in Tetovo, North Macedonia used primary for football matches. The stadium's capacity is 15,000 seats. History The stadium opened in 1981 and was called Tetovo City Stadium (Stadion Gradski Tetovo) until ...
in Tetovo.


History


Establishment

KF Shkëndija was founded on 27 August 1979 in
Tetovo Tetovo (, ; , sq-definite, Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena (river), Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, wit ...
by ethnic
Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...
and initially competed in the local municipal league. The club quickly earned back-to-back promotions and by 1981 had reached the second division of the Yugoslav league system. However, due to the growing popularity of the club among the Albanian population, the authorities at the time perceived Shkëndija as a nationalist movement. Consequently, the club was disbanded in the early 1980s and remained inactive for the rest of the decade. Starting at the lowest division, the Municipal League, Shkëndija played their first match against FK Kosmos, winning 4–0.


Re-establishment and rise (1992–2010)

Following Macedonian independence in 1991, Shkëndija was re-established in 1992 and began competing in the fourth tier. The club progressed rapidly through the divisions, earning promotion to the
Macedonian First League The Macedonian First Football League (), also called Macedonian First League, 1. MFL, and Prva Liga, is the highest professional football competition in Macedonia. It is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of t ...
by 1995. Over the next fifteen years, the club oscillated between the top two divisions. During this period, the Ballistët ultras group was founded and became a defining element of the club’s identity.


First championship and European debut (2010–2013)

In the 2010–11 season, KF Shkëndija won the
Macedonian First League The Macedonian First Football League (), also called Macedonian First League, 1. MFL, and Prva Liga, is the highest professional football competition in Macedonia. It is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of t ...
in their debut season after promotion. Led by captain
Ferhan Hasani Ferhan Hasani (; born 18 June 1990), nicknamed Buba, is a Macedonian professional footballer. He made his full international debut on 22 December 2010 against China in a friendly game. He represented the nation at UEFA Euro 2020, their first ma ...
, the team finished unbeaten in 16 consecutive games and claimed the club’s first national title. This success qualified Shkëndija for their first appearance in
UEFA competitions UEFA competitions (), referred improperly by the mass media as European football, are the set of tournaments organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), generally in professional and amateur association football and futsal. Th ...
, where they participated in the
2011–12 UEFA Champions League The 2011–12 UEFA Champions League was the 57th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 20th season in its current Champions League format. As part of a trial that started in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa Lea ...
second qualifying round. Despite continued strong domestic performances, financial difficulties in the 2012–13 season led to instability within the club and the departure of several players.


Ecolog era and domestic success (2013–2020)

During the
2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
season, Shkëndija was embroiled in financial difficulties and as a result, many of its players left the club earlier in the summer. The Shkëndija supporters, the Ballistët, began a social media campaign requesting Ecolog to take over Shkëndija. Albanian international,
Lorik Cana Lorik Agim Cana (; born 27 July 1983) is an Albanian former professional Association football, footballer. He is currently the grassroots ambassador for children's football in Albania, named by the Albanian Football Association on 26 October 201 ...
and Swiss international,
Xherdan Shaqiri Xherdan Shaqiri (; born 10 October 1991) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a winger for Swiss Super League club Basel. Shaqiri rose through the youth ranks at Basel. In his three years playing for the Basel first-team, he was an ...
also joined the campaign with the supporters. On 31 July 2013, Lazim Destani, father of Ecolog founder and chairman, Nazif Destani, announced Ecolog International will take charge of Shkëndija. With increased investment, Shkëndija rebuilt its squad and cycled through several managers in the following years.
Shpëtim Duro Shpëtim Duro (born 24 December 1959) is an Albanian professional football coach. Managerial career Duro won his first major title as coach of KF Besa Kavajë when his team beat KF Vllaznia in the 2010 Albanian Cup final. He won the 2010–11 ...
took over in December 2015 and led the club until December 2016. After a brief return by Jeton Bekjiri and a short stint by
Bruno Akrapović Bruno Akrapović (born 26 September 1967) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. Club career Starting his career in his native Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the time part of Yugoslavia, Akrapović spent the majority of his c ...
,
Thomas Brdarić Thomas Brdarić (; born 23 January 1975) is a German professional association football, football coach and former player who played as a forward (association football), forward. He is the manager free. Club career Brdarić was born in Nürtinge ...
was appointed in January 2017. He was succeeded by Qatip Osmani, with Osmani eventually leading the team to its most dominant period. Under Osmani, Shkëndija won back-to-back league titles in 2017–18 and 2018–19, and completed the domestic double in 2018. The club also had its most notable European campaigns in this period. Shkëndija reached the
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
play-offs twice (2016–17, 2017–18) and participated in the 2 018–19 UEFA Champions League qualifiers, reaching the third round before being eliminated by Red Bull Salzburg. In October 2019, Albanian coach
Ernest Gjoka Ernest Gjoka (born 25 January 1970) is an Albanian professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, f ...
took over and guided Shkëndija to their fourth league title in the
2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
season. Gjoka departed in August 2021 and was succeeded by
Bruno Akrapović Bruno Akrapović (born 26 September 1967) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. Club career Starting his career in his native Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the time part of Yugoslavia, Akrapović spent the majority of his c ...
, who led the club until April 2022. Artim Šakiri briefly managed the club before Qatip Osmani returned in September 2022 and remained until May 2023. In June 2023, former Macedonian international Ardian Nuhiu was appointed as manager. He led the team through the first half of the 2023–24 season before departing in December 2023. On 13 May 2025, Shkëndija secured the
Macedonian First League The Macedonian First Football League (), also called Macedonian First League, 1. MFL, and Prva Liga, is the highest professional football competition in Macedonia. It is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of t ...
title for the fifth time in the club’s history following a 2–1 home victory over FK Rabotnicki. The Tetovo-based club was declared champion with two rounds remaining in the season.


Supporters

The main supporters group of KF Shkëndija are called the Ballistët (Albanian: ''Ballistët''), an ultras group based in Tetovo, North Macedonia. They were officially established in 1992 and are known for their passionate and politically charged support, representing the Albanian identity in the region. The name ''Ballistët'' is inspired by the World War II Albanian nationalist group
Balli Kombëtar The Balli Kombëtar (literally ''National Front'') was an Albanian nationalist, Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborationist, and anti-communist resistance movement during the Second World War. It was led by Ali Këlcyra a ...
. The Ballistët are based in the North stand of the
Ecolog Arena Ecolog Arena is a multi-purpose stadium in Tetovo, North Macedonia used primary for football matches. The stadium's capacity is 15,000 seats. History The stadium opened in 1981 and was called Tetovo City Stadium (Stadion Gradski Tetovo) until ...
and have a long-standing reputation for creating an intense atmosphere during home and away matches. Their colors are red and black, matching both the club’s and Albania’s national colors. Over the years, the group has been involved in several high-profile incidents. These include politically themed chants, clashes with rival fans, and displays of nationalist banners. In 2014, during a match against
FK Vardar FK Vardar () is a professional Association football, football club based in Skopje, North Macedonia, which competes in the Macedonian First Football League, Macedonian First League. They are the most successful football club in Football in Maced ...
, Ballistët displayed a banner reading: ''"They are cancer of Europe – UEFA do you need more?!"'', referencing tensions with Serbian and Macedonian clubs. In April 2015, KF Shkëndija were fined and supporters banned from matches due to chants and violent conduct related to regional tensions. Ballistët have also had altercations with supporters of clubs such as
FK Teteks FK Teteks () is a football club from the city of Tetovo in North Macedonia. They are currently competing in the Macedonian Second League. History In 1946, there was a club from Tetovo called Šar Tetovo, and it competed in the Macedonian Re ...
, Buducnost Podgorica, and Varvari Podgorica. Despite controversies, Ballistët remain an integral part of Shkëndija's identity, symbolizing pride and resilience for many ethnic Albanians in North Macedonia.


Players


Current squad


Youth players

Players from the U19 Youth Team that have been summoned with the first team in the current season.


Personnel


Current technical staff


Management


Honours


League

* 1. MFL: **Champions (5):
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, 2017–18, 2018–19,
2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
, 2024–25 **Runners-up: 2015–16, 2016–17, 2023–24, * 2. MFL: **Winners (3): 1995–96, 1999–2000, 2009–10 * 3. MFL: **Winners (1): 1993–94


Cups

*
Macedonian Cup The Cup of Macedonia (, ''Kup na Makedonija'') is the top knockout tournament and the second most important football competition in North Macedonia after the Macedonian First League championship. The cup was established in 1992 after local clubs ...
: **Winners (2):
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
,
2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
**Runners-up: 2005–06,
2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, 2016–17 *
Macedonian Football Supercup The Macedonian Football Supercup was an annual one-match football (soccer), football competition. The two participating clubs were the Macedonian First Football League champion and the Macedonian Football Cup winner. The inaugural edition of the ...
: **Winners (1): 2011


Statistics


Results of League and Cup Competitions by Season

1The 2019–20 season was abandoned due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in North Macedonia The COVID-19 pandemic in North Macedonia was a part of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The virus was confirmed to have reached N ...
.


European competitions record


Overview


Matches

;Notes * 1QR: First qualifying round * 2QR: Second qualifying round * 3QR: Third qualifying round * PO: Play-off round


UEFA club coefficient ranking


References


External links

*
Fan Website
*
Club info at MacedonianFootball

Supporters Website

Football Federation of Macedonia
{{Authority control 1979 establishments in the Socialist Republic of Macedonia Association football clubs established in 1979 Football clubs in North Macedonia Shkëndija