Valmiera FC
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| Full name | Valmiera Football Club | ||
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| Founded | 1996 | ||
| Ground | Jānis Daliņš Stadium,Valmiera,Latvia | ||
| Capacity | 1,000 | ||
| Chairman | Uldis Pūcītis | ||
| Manager | Gatis Kalniņš | ||
| League | Altero.lv LIIGA | ||
| 2024 | Virslīga,4th of 10 (Relegated) | ||
| Website | http:// valmierafc | ||
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Valmiera Football Club[1]is aLatvianprofessionalfootballclub playing in theAltero.lv LIIGA,the third highest division in theLatvian football league system.The club is based in the city ofValmiera.By winning theLatvian First Leaguein 2017, the team was promoted to the 2018 Virslīga after a 14-year absence, and won their first title in 2022.
History
[edit]A predecessor of the club and the main team of the city of Valmiera from 1978 to 1993 wasFKGaujaValmiera,which won the finalFootball Championship of the Latvian SSRin 1990 and continued in the top flight after the restoration of the independence of Latvia. However, after the1993 Virslīga seasonGauja was relegated and slowly declined, disbanding in the mid-1990s while playing in the2. līga.
The current club was founded in 1996 asValmieras FK(Valmieras futbola klubs). It participated in the1. līga(the second-highest division of Latvian football). The team finished second in the league which gave Valmiera the possibility to battle with the second from bottom team of theHigher League–Skonto-Metālsfor a place in the top division of Latvian football. In the first game inRigaSkonto-Metāls won 1:0, but at home Valmiera overcame the one goal deficit and won 2:0 (I. Maļukovs, Dz. Savaļnieks), thus earning a place in the Virslīga.
In its debut season in theVirslīgaValmiera managed to finish 7th out of 9 teams with a comfortable margin over the two weakest teams. The following season was even more successful as the team finished 5th in Virslīga, and the same result was repeated in 1999. The newmillenniumbrought financial difficulties for FK Valmiera. After the 2003 season the team had to leave the Virslīga because of financial difficulties and since then played in the 1. līga, paying more attention to developing young talent.[2]
Several of former Valmiera players have played in theLatvia national football team.Those includeVīts Rimkus,Viktors Morozs,Gatis Kalniņš,Deniss RomanovsandMāris Smirnovs.
For more than ten years Valmiera was a mid level team in the1. līga.Since 2010, under managerGatis Ērglisa number of young local players experienced rapid development and the team became one of the leaders of the 1. līga.[3]In 2016 the sports organisation was established as "SO Valmiera Glass / Vidzemes Augstskola" or "Valmiera Glass ViA"- taking the name of the team's long-time sponsorValmiera FiberglassandVidzeme University,which inherited the legacy of Valmiera football.[4]Also joining Valmiera Glass ViA was the school'sbasketball club.[5]In 2017 the team's best scorers wereAlvis DubovsandNiks Savaļnieks,helping Valmiera Glass ViA to win theLatvian First Leaguewith a ten-point margin.
In 2018, Valmiera Glass ViA returned to theVirslīga.One of the biggest offseason deals for the team was the return ofGatis Kalniņšto his hometown, but the veteran striker was mostly sidelined due to injuries.[6]The team struggled in amidst fierce competition and earned only one point in the first ten rounds of the league. That led to the decision to replace long time manager Ērglis withUkrainiancoachMykola Trubachov.[7]In 2019, he was replaced byGeorgiancoachTamaz Pertia.
In 2020 club was renamed to "Valmiera FC" (Valmiera Football Club), reportedly due to Valmiera Fibreglass entering a temporary legal protection process due to financial difficulties.[8][9]
In 2022, Valmiera won the Latvian top-tier league for the first time in history under the management of coachJurģis Kalns.This was followed by two consecutive 4th place finishes. However, around 2024 the team started to accumulate unpaid debts, which led to the club being denied a license to play in the2025 Virslīga seasonand being replaced byFS Jelgavawho would have been otherwise relegated.[10]Later, Valmiera was denied aLatvian Future Leaguelicence as well, making the future of the team unclear. Ultimately, the club managed to reduce its debt and was granted a license to play in the third-levelAltero.lv LIIGAin the 2025 season.[11]
Honours
[edit]- Latvian Higher League
- Champions:2022
League and Cup history
[edit]- FK Valmiera / Valmiera Glass ViA / Valmiera FC
| Season | Division (Name) | Pos./Teams | Latvian Football Cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 2nd (1.līga) | 2/(13) | 1/16 finals |
| 1997 | 1st (Virslīga) | 7/(9) | 1/8 finals |
| 1998 | 1st (Virslīga) | 5/(8) | 1/2 finals |
| 1999 | 1st (Virslīga) | 5/(8) | 1/4 finals |
| 2000 | 1st (Virslīga) | 6/(8) | 1/4 finals |
| 2001 | 1st (Virslīga) | 6/(8) | 1/4 finals |
| 2002 | 1st (Virslīga) | 5/(8) | 1/4 finals |
| 2003 | 1st (Virslīga) | 6/(8) | 1/8 finals |
| 2004 | 2nd (1.līga) | 7/(14) | 1/16 finals |
| 2005 | 2nd (1.līga) | 6/(14) | 1/8 finals |
| 2006 | 2nd (1.līga) | 7/(16) | 1/8 finals |
| 2007 | 2nd (1.līga) | 10/(16) | 3rd round |
| 2008 | 2nd (1.līga) | 7/(15) | Did not participate |
| 2009 | 2nd (1.līga) | 11/(14) | Not held |
| 2010 | 2nd (1.līga) | 6/(12) | Did not participate |
| 2011 | 2nd (1.līga) | 9/(13) | 1/4 finals |
| 2012 | 2nd (1.līga) | 8/(14) | 1/8 finals |
| 2013 | 2nd (1.līga) | 3/(16) | 1/8 finals |
| 2014 | 2nd (1.līga) | 3/(16) | 1/8 finals |
| 2015 | 2nd (1.līga) | 2/(16) | 1/8 finals |
| 2016 | 2nd (1.līga) | 4/(15) | 1/32 finals |
| 2017 | 2nd (1.līga) | 1/(12) | 1/8 finals |
| 2018 | 1st (Virslīga) | 8/(8) | 1/4 finals |
| 2019 | 1st (Virslīga) | 4/(9) | 1/8 finals |
| 2020 | 1st (Virslīga) | 3/(10) | 1/2 finals |
| 2021 | 1st (Virslīga) | 2/(8) | 1/2 finals |
| 2022 | 1st (Virslīga) | 1/(10) | 1/4 finals |
| 2023 | 1st (Virslīga) | 4/(10) | 1/4 finals |
| 2024 | 1st (Virslīga) | 4/(10) | 1/4 finals |
European record
[edit]As of match played 17 August 2023
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Agg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Lech Poznań
|
— | 0−3 | — |
| 2021–22 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 1QR |  Sūduva
|
0–0 | 1−2 | 1−2 |
| 2022–23 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 2QR |  Shkëndija
|
1−2 | 1−3 | 2−5 |
| 2023–24 | UEFA Champions League | 1QR |  Olimpija Ljubljana
|
1−2 | 1−2 | 2−4 |
| UEFA Europa Conference League | 2QR |  Tre Penne
|
7–0 | 3–0 | 10–0 | |
| 3QR |  Partizani
|
1−2 | 0−1 | 1−3 | ||
| 2025–26 | UEFA Conference League | 1QR |
- Notes
- QR:Qualifying round
Players
[edit]Current squad
[edit]- As of 13 January 2025[12]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules;some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
[edit]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules;some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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References
[edit]- ^"Kluba paziņojums par nosaukuma maiņuValmiera FC".
- ^DELFI (2008-02-25)."'Futbols pilsētā': Valmieras futbola vēsture ".DELFI(in Latvian).Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^""Valmieras FK" Ērgļa vadībā gatavojas sezonai ".Sportacentrs(in Latvian). 2010-03-02.Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^"We are on the ball in supporting young footballers - VALMIERA GLASS GROUP".valmiera-glass.Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^"Sport and activities at Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences".Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences.Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^"Kalniņš atgriežas dzimtajā pilsētā un pievienojas Virslīgas jaunpienācējai".Sportacentrs(in Latvian). 2018-02-19.Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^"Virslīgas pastarīti" Valmieru "trenēs ukraiņu speciālists Trubačovs, asistēs Kalniņš".Sportacentrs(in Latvian). 2018-05-30.Retrieved2018-09-27.
- ^"Kluba paziņojums par nosaukuma maiņuValmiera FC".Optibet Virslīga / Futbola Virslīga(in Latvian).Retrieved2020-09-20.
- ^"Futbola klubs" VALMIERA GLASS VIA "maina nosaukumu uz" Valmiera FC "- VALMIERA GLASS GRUPA"(in Latvian). 2020-02-17.Retrieved2020-09-20.
- ^"Valmiera booted from top Latvian football league over financial affairs".eng.lsm.lv.2025-01-29.Retrieved2025-02-14.
- ^Ozerinskis, Emils (2025-03-13)."2022. gada Latvijas čempione" Valmiera "pielaista dalībai Otrajā līgā"[2022 Latvian champions Valmiera granted permission to play in the Latvian Second League].Sportacentrs(in Latvian).Retrieved2025-03-14.
- ^"VALMIERA GLASS VIA futbols » Komanda".vgvia.lv(in Latvian).Retrieved2018-09-27.