FK Jelgava

FK Jelgava

Full name	Futbola Klubs Jelgava (Football Club Jelgava) RAF Jelgava (2001–03) FC Universitāte Rīga (1996–97) RAF Rīga (1996) RAF Jelgava (1988–95) Automobīlists Jelgava (1980–87) Metālists Jelgava (1977–79)
Founded	2004
Ground	Olympic Sports Center of Zemgale
Ground Capacity	1,560
Chairman	Māris Peilāns
Manager	Saulius Širmelis
League	Virsliga
2016	2nd
Website	Club home page
Home colours Away colours

FK Jelgava is a Latvian football club that is based in Jelgava. Its best results came when the team was named RAF Jelgava. The club plays its home-matches at the Zemgales Olimpiskais Sporta Centrs stadium with capacity of 1,560 people.^[1]

Team history

Automobīlists Jelgava

The car factory club Automobīlists played in the lower Latvian leagues in the early 1970s, but in the mid 1970s were renamed Metālists.

Metālists Jelgava

The club first appeared in 1977 and in their debut season in the Latvian league finished 7th out of 13 teams. After three less than stellar seasons the club changed owners – it was attached again to the bus factory and renamed to Automobīlists Jelgava.

Automobīlists Jelgava

As Automobīlists the Jelgava squad also had it hard – at best it finished seasons in the middle of the table, and between 1983 and 1987 it played in the 1st league. In 1987 Automobīlists lost to Zemgale Ilūkste for a place in Virslīga but as the league was expanded under the name of RAF, Jelgava once again had a club in the top Latvian league.

RAF Jelgava

In 1988 and 1989 there were two teams of RAF Jelgava which in 1990 merged into one. One of those played in the lower Soviet leagues, the other – in the Latvian league. In 1988 and 1989 under the management of Viktors Ņesterenko the "local" RAF won the Latvian league, in 1988 as a golden double it also won the Latvian Cup. Meanwhile, the "international" RAF weren't doing that well – although they had in its squad several talented young players including Vladimirs Babičevs, Dzintars Sproģis, Igors Troickis and Aleksandrs Stradiņš, its results were very disappointing. In 1989 Ņesterenko took over the unified RAF team in the Soviet league and in the Baltic league. In 1990 and 1991 the team played better, but then the Soviet Union collapsed and RAF joined the Latvian Virslīga.

In the early 1990s RAF was one of the strongest teams in Virslīga, three times finishing second and once third (in 1992 they finished runners up to Skonto Rīga in an additional game after finishing the season on equal points). However, when the plant ran into financial difficulties, the team received new sponsorship from the University of Latvia in 1996 and, as a result, changed their name and relocated to Riga, and played in the Latvian University Stadium. ^[2]

RAF Rīga

As RAF Rīga the club only played one season, finishing 5th in the Latvian league, however it won the 1996 Latvian Cup. But after the season the club changed its name again – this time to Universitāte Rīga.

Universitāte Rīga

The only season under the name of Universitāte didn't bring much success to the club – 6th place in the league with the club being disbanded after the season.

RAF Jelgava (again)

A team under the name RAF Jelgava appeared again in 2001 in the 1. līga. After the 2003 season the club merged with another Jelgava club – FK Viola Jelgava forming FK Jelgava.

FK Jelgava

FK Jelgava has played since their foundation in 2004 in the 1. līga,^[3] but in 2009 after winning the Latvian First League the team had the chance to play their first games in the Virslīga.

On 19 May 2010 FK Jelgava won the Latvian Cup final in Skonto Stadium, beating FK Jūrmala-VV 6:5 in a penalty shoot out after the game had finished 0:0.^[4]

On the way to the final, the club beat FK Liepājas Metalurgs in the quarter-finals and Skonto FC in the semi-finals. ^[5][6] Victory in the Latvian Cup final allowed FK Jelgava to debut in the UEFA Europa League tournament. In the second qualifying round FK Jelgava played Molde FK from Norway. With a score of 2:2 on aggregate, Molde won on away goals.^[7][8]

In the 2010 season Jelgava was the only Latvian football club which won a game in European football tournaments (2:1 against Molde).

On 2 September 2010 FK Jelgava played a friendly against Premier League club Blackpool. The match marked the opening of the Olympic Sports Center of Zemgale. The President of Latvia Valdis Zatlers and the British Ambassador in Latvia attended the game.^[9]

Honours

Latvia

• Latvian Higher League
  • Runners-Up (2): 1992, 1994, 1995
• Latvian Cup
  • Winners (6): 1993, 1996, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16

Latvian SSR

• Latvian SSR Higher League
  • Winner: (2) 1988, 1989
• Latvian Cup
  • Winners: (1) 1988

League and Cup history

Soviet Union

RAF Jelgava

Baltic

RAF Jelgava

Latvian SSR

Metālists Jelgava

Automobīlists Jelgava

RAF Jelgava

Latvia

RAF Jelgava

RAF Rīga / FC Universitāte Rīga

FC Universitāte Rīga

RAF Jelgava

FK Jelgava

European record

Season	Competition	Round	Team	Home	Away	Aggregate
1993–94	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	PR	HB Tórshavn1	1–0	0–3	1–3
1995–96	UEFA Cup	PR	Afan Lido F.C.1	0–0	2–1	2–1
		1Q	FC Zimbru Chişinău1	1–2	0–1	1–3
1996–97	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	QR	FC Vaduz2	1–1	1–1(aet)	2–2(p)
1997	UEFA Intertoto Cup	Group 7	İstanbulspor2	1–5	N/A	5th
			Vasas SC2	N/A	0–3
			Werder Bremen2	0–3	N/A
			Östers IF2	N/A	1–2
2010–11	UEFA Europa League	2Q	Molde FK3	2–1	0–1	2–2(a)
2014–15	UEFA Europa League	1Q	Rosenborg3	0–2	0–4	0–6
2015–16	UEFA Europa League	1Q	Litex Lovech3	1–1	2–2	3–3 (a)
		2Q	Rabotnički3	1–0	0–2	1–2
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	1Q	Breiðablik	2–2	3–2	5–4
		2Q	Slovan Bratislava	3–0	0–0	3–0
		3Q	Beitar Jerusalem	1–1	0–3	1–4

Notes

• Note 1: As RAF Jelgava.
• Note 2: As FC Universitate Riga.
• Note 3: As FK Jelgava.

Players and staff

Current squad

Entry for the 2016 Latvian Higher League season, according to LFF.lv^{[10] [11]} Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Kaspars Ikstens 3 DF Igors Savčenkovs 4 DF Vitālijs Smirnovs 5 DF Gints Freimanis 6 MF Ryotaro Nakano 7 DF Valērijs Redjko 8 MF Andrejs Kovaļovs (on loan from FC Dacia Chișinău) 9 FW Kyrylo Silich 10 MF Boriss Bogdaškins 11 FW Daniils Turkovs 12 FW Oļegs Malašenoks

No. Position Player 14 MF Andrejs Perepļotkins 15 DF Abdoulaye Diallo 17 FW Artjoms Osipovs 19 FW Karolis Laukžemis (on loan from Sūduva) 20 MF Mindaugas Grigaravičius 23 MF Gļebs Kļuškins 24 GK Mārcis Melecis 25 DF Mārcis Ošs 27 FW Verners Zalaks 28 MF Artis Lazdiņš 30 MF Mareks Labanovskis

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player MF Kennedy Eriba (at Stumbras Kaunas) FW Kevin Kauber (at FC Levadia Tallinn)

For recent transfers see: List of Latvian football transfers summer 2015 and List of Latvian football transfers winter 2015-16

Staff

Name, surname	Position
Māris Peilāns	Chairman
Jānis Vuguls	Director
Saulius Širmelis	Manager
Jozef Škrlík	Assistant manager
Andrejs Piedels	Coach
Dmitrijs Kalašņikovs	Coach
Oļegs Samoiļenko	Doctor
Jurijs Ksenzovs	Psychotherapist
Mārtiņš Krūmiņš	Technical Director

Managers

• Dainis Kazakevičs (2004 – June 30, 2013)
• Jānis Dreimanis (2013)
• Sergejs Golubevs (interim) (2013)
• Sergejs Golubevs (2013)
• Vladimirs Beškarevs (December 2013 – June 2014)
• Dāvis Caune (interim) (June 2014)
• Vitālijs Astafjevs (June 2014 – May 2016)
• Dāvis Caune (interim) (May 2016 - June 2016)
• Saulius Širmelis (June 2016 – )

References

External links

• (Latvian) (English) FK Jelgava Official Site
• (Latvian) (English) Official Latvian Football Federation website