Ground Capacity 8,000 Manager Janito Carvalho Founded 15 December 1962 | Chairman Kiki | |
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Nickname(s) Micá, Briosa, Estudiantes Ground Estádio da VarzeaPraia | ||
Associação Académica da Praia is a football club that plays in the Premier division of the Santiago Island League (South) in Cape Verde. It is played along with Praia's three other famous teams in Estádio da Varzea, the club also practices at the stadium and over a kilometer east in Achada Grande Frente (or Leite). Its current president is Kiki and manager is Janito Carvalho who coached Sporting Praia in the previous season.
Contents
- Uniform
- History
- In the national competition
- Stadium
- Honours
- Statistics
- Current squad
- Squad as of November 21 2015
- Former players
- References
Académica Praia is one of the most successful football (soccer) club in the island of Santiago and the South Zone, having won about 11 official titles, 2 are national and the remaining 9 are regional titles. It won several championship titles before and after independence. The team never won any national championship titles since independence. It also had won five insular titles, three island cup title and a national cup title.
Its nicknames are "Mica", the short of Académica used in many of other Académica clubs around the world, "Briosa", which has recently become rarely used today and "Estudiantes" which means students (students of the academy), used in several other Académica clubs elsewhere.
Uniform
Today's uniform has now added stripes and changed its home sock color to black.
History
Académica won the first upper level title in 1965 by defeating FC Derby from Mindelo 3–2 in extra time, they would win the only national title won before independence. Later, the team won the 1968 Santiago regional title at the time included other islands after beating Os Garridos a gigantic 21–0, 9 of which were scored by Luís Bastos. They challenged against Mindelense and lost 0–1 in the final round.
Académica Praia won their first regional cup title in 1986. Académica celebrated their 25th anniversary in 1987.
Académica celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2012.
Académica had 16 goals in the 2014/15 regional season, with the extended 2015/16 season, their goal total doubled to 32, the club finished fourth with 43 points, 13 wins and 4 draws. Júlio Cesar Tomar was president and Zé Piguita was the coach up to 2016.
In the following season, Kiki became president and Janito Carvalho became coach who previously coached Sporting Praia. Académica da Praia started the season without a loss for some seasons, the club defeated ADESBA and made it their second first win in the first week and the first in seasons being the sole club in the number one position with three points and three goals, a goal more than Sporting Praia.
In the national competition
The team won their first regional title after the breakup (around fifth overall) and advanced to the 2004 finals, it challenged against Sal-Rei FC and lost both legs, 2–0 in the first and 1–2 in the second. The next two appearance succeeded as far as the semis. Académica da Praia was the first club to win the Cape Verdean Cup in September 2007 after defeating 3–1 over Académico do Aeroporto. Later in 2009, the club as champion of the South Zone also advanced to the single island competition, as they are now two championships of the island, the edition featured only a single match where the club, winner of the South Zone challenged with Estrela dos Amadores, winner of the North Zone for 2009, Académica Praia won their last championship of all Santiago.
Stadium
Estádio da Várzea is a multi-use stadium in Praia, Cape Verde. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 8,000. The stadium has seat rows in the left and right sides and a small hill and a plateau lies to the west.
It is played along with Praia's three other famous teams including Sporting Praia, Boavista, Desportivo Praia and CD Travadores in the same stadium. The club practices also at the stadium and at Sucupira just in the northwest corner of the intersection with Rua da Várzea.
Académica once played as Sucupira Field before 2006, in the early 2000s, as the stadium was partly disused and went under renovations, the clubs played there.
Honours
Statistics
Current squad
As of December 18, 2016Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Squad as of November 21, 2015
As of February 2016Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.