CSA Steaua București (football)

Clubul Sportiv al Armatei Steaua București (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈste̯awa bukuˈreʃtʲ]), commonly known as Steaua București or simply Steaua, is a Romanian football club based in Bucharest and one of the sporting sections of CSA Steaua București.

This article is about the CSA Steaua București football team that is enrolled in the Liga III. For the team that used to be named as FC Steaua București, see FCSB. For the parent multi-sport club, see CSA Steaua București. For other uses, see Steaua București (disambiguation).

Steaua București
Full nameClubul Sportiv al Armatei
Steaua București
Nickname(s)
  • Steliștii
  • Roș-albaștrii (The Red and Blues)
  • Militarii (The Militaries)
  • Viteziștii (The Speedsters)
Short nameSteaua
Founded7 June 1947 (1947-06-07)
StadiumGround V - Ghencea (temporary)
Capacity1,500[1]
OwnerMinistry of National Defence
ChairmanMădălin-Sorin Hîncu
ManagerDaniel Oprița
LeagueLiga III
2019–20Liga IV, Bucharest, 1st
WebsiteClub website
Active departments of CSA Steaua
AthleticsBasketballBoxingCanoe & Kayak
CyclingEquestrianFencingFootball
GymnasticsHandballHockeyJudo
KarateKenpōMotorcyclingPentathlon
RowingRugbySamboShooting
SwimmingTaekwondo WTFTable tennisTennis
VolleyballWater PoloWeightliftingWrestling

In 2017, the parent club reactivated its football section and entered it into the 2017–18 season of Liga IV, the fourth tier of the Romanian Championship.

According to the club's records and the latest Romanian court order (July 2019),[2] it is the most successful football club in Romania, with national records for winning the domestic trophies, plus the European Cup in 1986 and European Super Cup in 1987.[3] However, ownership of the titles is disputed between two entities,[4][5][6] with agencies such as UEFA and LPF attributing all of the original club history to the other club, FCSB.[7][8]

They play their home matches at Ghencea V, one of the former training fields of the Complexul Sportiv Steaua, as the previous stadium, used by the historic Steaua entity during its heyday, was demolished in order for a new replacement to serve as a training pitch for Euro 2020. The team colours are red and blue.

The club has a long-standing rivalry with neighbouring Dinamo București, with matches between the two being commonly referred to as "the Eternal Derby", "the Romanian Derby" or "the Great Derby"

History
Main article: History of FC Steaua București

ASA București (Asociația Sportivă a Armatei București – "Army Sports Association") was founded on 7 June 1947 at the initiative of several officers of the Romanian Royal House. The establishment took place following a decree signed by General Mihail Lascăr, High Commander of the Romanian Royal Army. It was formed as a sports society with seven initial sections, including football, coached by Coloman Braun-Bogdan.[9] ASA was renamed CSCA (Clubul Sportiv Central al Armatei – "Central Sports Club of the Army") in 1948 and CCA (Casa Centrală a Armatei – "Central House of the Army") in 1950.[9]

In 1949, CSCA won its first trophy, the Cupa României, defeating CSU Cluj 2–1 in the final. Under the name of CCA, the club managed to win three Championship titles in a row in 1951, 1952 and 1953, along with its first Championship–Cup double in 1951. During the 1950s, the so-called "CCA Golden Team" became nationally famous.[10] In 1956, the Romania national team (composed exclusively of CCA players) played Yugoslavia in Belgrade and won 1–0. In the same year, CCA, coached by Ilie Savu, became the first Romanian team to participate in a tournament in England, where it achieved noteworthy results against the likes of Luton Town, Arsenal, Sheffield Wednesday and Wolverhampton Wanderers.[11]

At the end of 1961, CCA changed its name once again to CSA Steaua București (Clubul Sportiv al Armatei Steaua – "Army Sports Club Steaua"). The club's new name translated to The Star and was adopted because of the presence of a red star, a symbol of most East European Army clubs, on its crest. A poor period of almost two decades followed in which the club claimed only three championships (1967–68, 1975–76, 1977–78). Instead, the team won nine national cup trophies, for which matter it gained the nickname of "cup specialists".[12] Also during this period, on 9 April 1974 Steaua's ground, Stadionul Ghencea, was inaugurated with a friendly match against OFK Belgrade.[13]

Steaua with the UEFA European Champions Clubs' Cup in 1986.
The champion team of 1989
Name Period
Asociația Sportivă a Armatei (ASA) București 1947-1948
Clubul Sportiv Central al Armatei (CSCA) București 1948-1950
Casa Centrală a Armatei (CCA) București 1950-1961
Clubul Sportiv al Armatei (CSA) Steaua București 1961–1998
Asociația Fotbal Club (AFC) Steaua București 1998–2003
Clubul Sportiv al Armatei (CSA) Steaua București 2017–present
1986 European Cup Final starting lineup.
1989 European Cup Final starting lineup.

Under the leadership of coaches Emerich Jenei and Anghel Iordănescu, Steaua had an impressive Championship run in the 1984–85 season, which it won after a six-year break. Subsequently, Steaua became the first Romanian club to reach a European Cup final, which it ultimately won against Barcelona on penalties (2–0 thanks to goalkeeper Helmuth Duckadam saving all four penalties taken by the Spaniards), after a goalless draw. Steaua therefore became the first Eastern European team to claim the title of European champions. An additional European Super Cup was won in 1987 against Dynamo Kyiv. Steaua remained at the top of European football for the rest of the decade, managing one more European Cup semi-final in 1987–88 and one more European Cup final in 1989 (lost 4–0 to Milan). Notably, this was in addition to its four additional national titles (1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88,[note 1] 1988–89) and four national cups (1984–85, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89). Furthermore, from June 1986 to September 1989, Steaua ran a record 104-match undefeated streak in the championship, setting a world record for that time and a European one still standing.[14]

The Romanian Revolution led the country towards a free open market and, subsequently, several players of the 1980s team left for other clubs in the West. After a short pull-back, a quick recovery followed and Steaua managed a six consecutive championship streak between 1992–93 and 1997–98 to equalize the 1920s performance of Chinezul Timișoara[15] and also three more cups in 1995–96, 1996–97 and 1998–99. At international level, the club also managed to reach the UEFA Champions League group stage three years in a row between 1994–95 and 1996–97.

Separation from the Romanian Army

In 1998, the Steaua football section separated from CSA Steaua and changed its name to FC Steaua București (Fotbal Club Steaua),[16] ruled by a non-profit association led by Romanian businessman Viorel Păunescu. Păunescu performed poorly as a president and soon the club was plunged into debt.[17] George Becali, another businessman, was offered the position of vice-president in hope of richer investment in the club. Eventually in 2003, Becali managed to gain control over the club by turning it from non-profit to a public share company.[18]

Subsequently, even though the club managed to win five national championships and to qualify for the UEFA Champions League four times, it became increasingly associated with Becali's controversial character, infamous for his homophobia,[19] xenophobia, misogyny, racism,[20] tax evasion[21] and even imprisonments.[22] Apart from this, the club also moved from the historical Stadionul Ghencea to the newly built Arena Națională.

Steaua vs FCSB lawsuit

In December 2014, following legal action from former parent club CSA Steaua, the Becali-backed club lost its right to use the "Steaua" trademark, its use having never been approved by CSA Steaua București.[23] The club which had acted as Steaua throughout this time was summoned to change their name and logo;[24] presently, they are officially called SC FC FCSB SA and continue to play in Liga I. A further ongoing trial was initiated by CSA Steaua, claiming FC FCSB must pay almost 37 million Euros as compensation for having unlawfully used the Steaua brand from 2003.[25] In July 2019, the judgement was made in favour of CSA Steaua, subject to appeal.[2]

According to comments made by Constantin Danilescu (a former Steaua employee who worked for the club until 1999), during the 1998 separation CSA Steaua did not relinquish ownership of the team's name, honours or brand, as was believed until 2017. The club only allowed the non-profit it partnered with to use these elements, but the non-profit never had any right to sell them, placing doubt over the claims of FCSB to titles won before the takeover by Becali.[26]

New start in Liga IV

Having legally reclaimed the football team, CSA Steaua București reactivated its football section and entered it to Liga IV's 2017–18 season, the fourth tier of the Romanian Championship. Funded from privately owned CSA Steaua finances,[27] the team's objective is to promote every year to the higher league, until it reaches Liga I, a timeline which is to coincide with the opening of the new Stadionul Ghencea.

In April 2018, Steaua București played a home league fixture against AS Academia Rapid București, the principal 'phoenix club' established by supporters of the defunct FC Rapid București. Due to the high profile of the participants, the match was moved to the Arena Națională and attracted a crowd of 36,277, setting a lower-league national record; Rapid București won 3–1 to consolidate their position at the top of the table, with Steaua five points behind in second place.[28]

The team reached the promotion play-offs in their first two seasons but lost each time.[29]

Crest and colours

ASA București was founded by the Royal Army on 7 June 1947. During its first season, 1947–48, Steaua wore yellow and red striped shirts with blue shorts, to symbolize Romania's tricolour flag.[30] Starting with the following season and with the Army's change of identity from the Royal Army to the People's Army, the yellow was gradually given up, so that the official colours remained, up to this day, the red and the blue.

Following the Romanian Revolution, the Army decided to break all links to the defunct communist regime, so, in 1991, CSA Steaua had a last change of crest with an eagle also present on the Ministry of Defence coat of arms and also on Romania's. As FC Steaua appeared in 1998, the club added two yellow stars on top of the CSA Steaua badge signifying its 20 titles of champions won, along with the Fotbal Club specification.

Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
1947–1976 None None
1976–1988 Adidas
1988–1990 Ford
1990–1991 Castrol
1991–1994 Philips
1994 CBS
1995 BRCE
1996–1997 Bancorex
1997–1999 Dialog
2000–2002 BCR
2002–2003 Nike None
2017-2018 Joma BetArena
2018-2019 Joma / Jako GoBet1
2019-2020 Joma None
1. ^ Partner of Superbet

Stadium
Main article: Stadionul Steaua (2020)
Ghencea
Location35, Bulevardul Ghencea, Bucharest, Romania
OwnerMinistry of National Defence
Capacity28,365

Steaua played the first three matches in its history at the defunct Venus stadium. Opened in 1931, the venue had previously been in the property of Venus București, a club disbanded in 1949.[31] After that ground's demolition through order of the Communist regime, Steaua played its home matches at any one of Bucharest's three largest multi-use stadia: ANEF, Republicii (built in 1926 and demolished in 1984 to make room for the erection of the Casa Poporului) and 23 August (built in 1953). Of these two, 23 August (later renamed Național) was mostly used when two matches between Bucharest clubs were scheduled in the same matchday or for important European matches, while Republicii for regular matches in the championship.

From 1974 to 2003, Steaua played its home matches at the Stadionul Ghencea, a football stadium situated in South-Western Bucharest. Part of Complexul Sportiv Steaua, it was inaugurated on 9 April 1974 when Steaua played a friendly match against OFK Beograd,[13] at which time it was the first football-only stadium ever built in Communist Romania, with no track & field facilities. The stadium was built through order of the Ministry of National Defence inside a former military base and was long used by CSA Steaua.

The original capacity was 30,000 on benches. A general renovation occurred in 1991; this included installing seats, which dropped the capacity to 28,365.

Currently, the old Stadionul Ghencea is reconstructed, with the same approximate capacity of 30,000 seats, in order to serve as a training pitch for Euro 2020.[32]

Support

Present day

While ultra groups stopped attending matches around the time of the Court's demand that FCSB doesn't have the rights to be Steaua, regular spectators (citizens) continued their presence at Arena Națională matches and now form the majority of the FCSB support, mostly at important European fixtures but also with Universitatea Craiova, CFR Cluj and Dinamo Bucharest.

Ever since the Court's decision in 2014, Peluza Sud has fully adopted the reopened football team of Steaua București and represents a constant presence for the Liga IV matches.

More recently, as of 2017, the supporters have formed their own official association, called AS47 (Asociația Steliștilor 1947 – Steaua Supporters' Association 1947), as a legal entity with its stated goals of 'reoffering Steaua and its supporters their true meaning, in harmony with the club's original values'.[33]

Honours

Note: As of June 2018, UEFA and LPF regard FC FCSB as the continuation of historic FC Steaua and attribute all honours since 1947 to that entity.[7][8] However, the ownership of the many trophies won between 1947 and 2003 is disputed, with the restarted football department of former parent club CSA Steaua also claiming them[34] following legal disputes between the two organisations.[4][35][26] In July 2019, CSA Steaua won a first court decision regarding the record dispute. However, the ruling is not definitive.[2][36]

Domestic

Seasons
Season Competition Pos Pl W D L GF GA GD Romanian Cup Notes
2017–18Liga IV – Bucharest[37] 2nd2823411549+145PreliminaryPromotion play-offs[38]
2018–19 Liga IV – Bucharest 1st 30 28 1 1 191 6 +185 Preliminary Promotion play-offs
2019–20 Liga IV – Bucharest 1st 18 18 0 0 156 5 +151 Preliminary Promoted to Liga III

Players

First team squad
As of 13 August 2020[39]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  ROU Teodor Meilă
4 DF  ROU Valentin Neaga
5 DF  ROU Sergiu Bactăr
6 MF  ROU Mădălin Mihăescu
7 MF  ROU Florin Răsdan
8 MF  ROU Andrei Neagoe
9 MF  ROU Valentin Niculae
10 MF  ROU Rareș Enceanu
11 FW  ROU Andrei Antohi
13 DF  ROU Adrian Ilie
15 MF  ROU Valentin Bărbulescu
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 MF  ROU George Ban
20 MF  ROU Marian Neagu
22 GK  ROU Horia Iancu (Captain)
26 MF  ROU Dorin Capotă
30 MF  ROU Liviu Băjenaru
31 FW  ROU Róbert Elek
89 DF  ROU Ovidiu Morariu
90 FW  ROU Alexandru Zaharia
99 MF  ROU Vlad Nițu
- DF  BRA Wallace

Out on loan

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
No. Pos. Nation Player

Club officials
gollark: Heresy™!
gollark: I don't like phone-calling people.
gollark: Scaling is a thing, Android apps *might* be runnable in an emulator, and I mostly need a browser and phone/SMS.
gollark: Meh. I mostly just need a browser.
gollark: Well, I use it on my laptop, the demos seem pretty good, and I have a Linux terminal on my phone too.

References
  1. Steaua București gave up the trophy in 1990.
  1. "Pitch 5 transforming Steaua Bucuresti". Gazeta Sporturilor.
  2. Tribunalul BUCUREŞTI: Informaţii dosar (Bucharest tribunals: File information), Ministerul Justiției al României (Romanian Ministry of Justice), 4 July 2019
  3. http://www.steaualibera.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/20292988_1389555091080148_3321750527425968456_n.jpg
  4. "S-a stins Steaua lui Gigi Becali. FCSB preia palmaresul din 2003" [Gigi Becali's Steaua is gone. FCSB keeps historical record only as of 2003.] (in Romanian). Evenimentul Zilei. 30 March 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  5. "Ultima zi cu "Steaua" – Anunţ-şoc făcut de Becali: "De mâine e gata" – Anunț IMPORTANT despre palmaresul echipei" [Last day as "Steaua" – Shocking statement made by Becali – Important announcement about the club's honours]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 29 March 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  6. "FCSB – FC Steaua Bucharest official website: Trophies". FCSB. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  7. "Profile: Fotbal Club FCSB". UEFA.com. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  8. "Liga 1 Betano: Cifrele vicecampioanei FCSB" [Liga 1 Betano: The records of vice-champion FCSB]. LPF. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  9. Dida, Alexandru (21–12–2001), Steaua fotbalului românesc, Pro TV Magazin, nr.51/IV, pp.62–63
  10. Brancu, Constantin (1994), Din culisele supercampioanei, Tempus, p.5–8, ISBN 973-95993-1-1
  11. "Întîia cucerire a Occidentului!" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 14 February 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
  12. "Cupa Romaniei: STEAUA – Otelul Galati". FCSteaua.ro.
  13. "Ghencea Stadion". StadiumGuide.com.
  14. "Unbeaten in the Domestic League". RSSSF.com. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  15. "Romania – List of Champions". RSSSF.com. Retrieved 7 July 2007.
  16. Besutiu, Andrei. "Politica mineaza sportul românesc". Ziua. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 10 June 2007.
  17. Petrache, Bogdan; Predan, Cristian. "Conducatorii vor plati cu averea datoriile cluburilor". 9am.ro. Retrieved 7 July 2007.
  18. "Planurile lui Becali". Evenimentul. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 11 June 2007.
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  20. "The most offensive owner in world sports is sadly not Donald Sterling". Washington Post. 28 April 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
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  24. "Deciziile Comitetului Executiv din 30 martie 2017" [The Executive Committee's decisions on 30 March 2017]. Romanian Football Federation. 30 March 2017. Archived from the original on 31 March 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
  25. http://www.steaualibera.com/2017/05/24/inceput-dosarul-care-steaua-ii-cere-despagubiri-de-37-milioane-euro-lui-becali/
  26. "Trofeele Stelei rămân în ceață. Dănilescu: "Aveam aceeași emblemă și dreptul de a folosi palmaresul și marca"" [Steaua Trophies Stay in the Fog. Danilescu: "We had the same emblem and the right to use the record and mark"] (in Romanian). Digisport. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  27. "The new Steaua will have a 300,000 Euro budget and in four years the team must reach Liga I". Romania TV. 9 September 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  28. "Steaua – Academia Rapid 1–3" (in Romanian). CSA Steaua București. 14 April 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  29. https://www.sport1.de/internationaler-fussball/2019/06/csa-steaua-bukarest-heftige-ausschreitungen-nach-niederlage-im-playoff-spiel-zur-3-liga
  30. "Zbuciumata infiintare a Stelei". Archived from the original on 23 July 2011.
  31. "Venus București". romaniansoccer.ro. Retrieved 27 August 2007.
  32. "Expertise finalised. 3 Bucharest stadia set to enter renovation". Gazeta Sporturilor. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  33. "What we want to do". as47.ro. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  34. "Jocuri sportiveb fotbal" [Sporting departments: football] (in Romanian). CSA Steaua București. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  35. "Ultima zi cu "Steaua" " Anunţ-şoc făcut de Becali: "De mâine e gata" – Anunț IMPORTANT despre palmaresul echipei" [Last day as "Steaua" " Shocking statement made by Becali " Important announcement about the club's honours]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 29 March 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  36. "CSA Steaua a câştigat procesul pentru palmares / Gigi Becali: "Voi ataca decizia la Curtea de Apel" - Fotbal - HotNews.ro". sport.hotnews.ro. 5 July 2019.
  37. http://www.frf-ajf.ro/bucuresti/competitii-fotbal/liga-4-6139.html
  38. http://www.prosport.ro/fotbal-intern/play-off-ul-ligii-4-va-fi-transmis-la-tv-unde-pot-fi-urmarite-partidele-decisive-dintre-academia-rapid-si-steaua-17230046
  39. SPORTIVI SECȚIA FOTBAL – SENIORI. csasteaua.ro (in Romanian)
  40. "Președinte – CSA Steaua Clubul Sportiv al Armatei STEAUA București".
  41. "Fotbal – CSA Steaua Clubul Sportiv al Armatei STEAUA București".
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