FC Krasnodar

History

The club owner and founder is Sergey Galitsky, a Russian businessman who has been rewarded by the Russian Football Union for his dedication to development of football in Russia.

Early years

In February 2008, FC Krasnodar had been granted professional status which allowed them enter Second Division (the third tier of Russian professional football). Its first official match was a 0–0 draw against FC Nika Krasny Sulin. The team was at that time managed by Vladimir Volchek.

FC Krasnodar finished third in the 2008 Second Division season. Although the third place does not grant promotion to the upper tier of Russian football league, FC Krasnodar had been invited by PFL to take part in the 2009 First Division tournament. This happened because SKA Rostov and Sportakademklub refused to take part in the tournament despite finishing high enough to avoid relegation.

After being promoted, the club appointed Nurbiy Khakunov as manager. Krasnodar finished its debut First Division campaign tenth in the league table.

In the next season, FC Krasnodar was managed by Sergey Tashuyev. In this year, the team faced another club from Krasnodar city, FC Kuban. The first match between the rival clubs took place on 12 June 2010, where FC Kuban won 3–0. The second match also granted no points to FC Krasnodar as they lost the game 0–1. However the team's overall performance in this season had been more successful compared to previous year. They ended up 5th.

Promotion to the Premier League

In December 2010, FC Krasnodar signed a contract with a Serbian manager Slavoljub Muslin. Before the start of the next season, FC Krasnodar got another promotion despite finishing fifth in the league. This happened because of the fact that Saturn Ramenskoye, Nizhny Novgorod and KAMAZ rejected to play in the Russian Premier League due to financial problems. On 25 January 2011, the Premier League committee decided to replace FC Saturn with FC Krasnodar.

After promotion to the Premier League, the team performed with mixed success. Both matches against perennial title contender CSKA Moscow ended in draws, which could be considered success considering the disparity between the two's squad strengths. However, in both matches against another top Premier League club in Spartak Moscow, the team conceded eight goals, losing away and home matches 4–0 and 2–4, respectively. Other notable matches FC Krasnodar played were the ones against FC Kuban; matches between the two marked the first Premier League derby not involving Moscow-based clubs. In the first match, FC Krasnodar won 0–1, though FC Kuban won the second match, 0–2. During the season, club owner Sergey Galitsky stated that he was satisfied with his team's performance, also stating that he wants his team to play in a manner fascinating for spectators, and that he does not plan on buying expensive players; instead, the club should evolve steadily, "step by step." FC Krasnodar ultimately finished the 2011–12 season ninth in the league table.

The team's sophomore season in 2012–13 was less successful. The team lost all but one match against the eventual top-three teams in the league. FC Krasnodar ended the year in tenth, one of the likelier reasons that led the board to terminate manager Slavoljub Muslin's contract. Muslin himself, however, stated that he was sacked because the club stopped investing into the club to improve its on-field performance.

On 11 August 2013, Belarusian coach Oleg Kononov was named manager of FC Krasnodar, with club management also bolstering the squad ahead of the 2013–14 season, with Ari, Artur Jędrzejczyk and Andreas Granqvist joining the club.

These personnel changes awarded the club a top five Premier League finish, making it eligible to compete in the UEFA Europa League for the first time in its history for 2014–15. FC Krasnodar also advanced to the Russian Cup Final where the club was narrowly defeated by Rostov in a penalty shoot-out. FC Krasnodar successfully completed three Europa League qualification phases after defeating Sillamäe Kalev, Diósgyőr and Real Sociedad on aggregate. The team then advanced to the Group Stage, where they were drawn into Group H alongside Lille, Wolfsburg and Everton, eventually finishing third.

The following year Krasnodar got to the Europa League group stage for the 2nd time in a row. Their group consisted of Borussia Dormund, PAOK and Gabala. They won all their home games and even pulled off a surprising 1–0 win against Dortmund. They finished 1st with 4 wins (1–0 against Dortmund, 2–1 against PAOK, 2–1 and 3–0 against Gabala), 1 draw (0–0 against PAOK and 1 loss (1–2 against Dortmund). They continued to the round of 32 and were drawn against Sparta Prague. They lost 1–0 in their home game and lost a poor home game 3–0.

European history

On 17 July 2014, FC Krasnodar played its first-ever match in the UEFA Europa League, playing Estonian club Sillamäe Kalev. FC Krasnodar took a conclusive victory 0–4. The second match between these teams was also won by Krasnodar; the score was 5–0. In the next round, FC Krasnodar faced Diósgyőr, winning both matches by 1–5 and 3–0 scorelines, respectively.

In a draw for the playoff round, FC Krasnodar was unseeded, which brought them a much stronger opponent, Spanish club Real Sociedad. The first match against this club ended up in a 1–0 defeat, though FC Krasnodar won the second match 3–0, taking them to the competition's group stage.

The following year Krasnodar got to the Europa League group stage for the 2nd time in a row. Their group consisted of Borussia Dormund, PAOK and Gabala. They won all their home games and even pulled off a surprising 1–0 win against Dortmund. They finished 1st with 4 wins (1–0 against Dortmund, 2–1 against PAOK, 2–1 and 3–0 against Gabala), 1 draw (0–0 against PAOK and 1 loss (1–2 against Dortmund). They continued to the round of 32 and were drawn against Sparta Prague. They lost 1–0 in their home game and lost a poor away game 3–0.

Overall

Matches

Stadium

The first stadium FC Krasnodar played its official matches at is Trud stadium. It is a 3,000-seat stadium situated in the southern part of Krasnodar city.

The stadium was used in 2008 when FC Krasnodar was playing in the Second Division. But after promotion to the First Division the stadium's capacity ceased to be enough. Therefore, in 2009 FC Krasnodar had to move to Kuban Stadium (the stadium which is also used by FC Kuban).

In 2013 FC Krasnodar began to construct its own stadium with expected capacity of 36,260 seats. The stadium project was created by English and German companies. The estimated cost of this stadium is €200 million. The stadium will meet the requirements for hosting international matches. Café, club shop, museum, nightclub, several banquet rooms, fitness room, business clubs and children's room will be located inside the stadium.

Current squad

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

Out on loan

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

FC Krasnodar-2

A professional farm club called FC Krasnodar-2 was founded in 2013 and participates in the Russian Professional Football League (third tier).

Youth Academy

FC Krasnodar owns a network of youth football schools spread over 20 cities in two Russian regions – Krasnodar Krai and Adygea. The main school is situated in the eastern part of Krasnodar. The Academy infrastructure includes 10 football fields, a 3000-seat stadium, a medical rehabilitation center, a swimming pool, a sauna, and a gym. There is also a dining room, an assembly hall, offices and hotel rooms for students' parents. The club owner Sergey Galitsky has stated that his goal is to compose the majority of the FC Krasnodar squad from locally trained players.

Notable players

Had international caps for their respective countries. Players whose name is listed in bold represented their countries while playing for Krasnodar.

Managers

P – Total of played matches W – Won matches D – Drawn matches L – Lost matches GS – Goal scored GA – Goals against
%W – Percentage of matches won

Nationality is indicated by the corresponding FIFA country code(s).