FC Politehnica Iași (2010) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Politehnica Iași

Full name	Asociația Club Sportiv Municipal Politehnica Iași
Nickname(s)	Alb-albaștrii (The White and Blues) Trupa din Copou (Copou Squad)
Short name	Poli Iași
Founded	27 April 1945; 80 years ago (27 April 1945) (as Sportul Studențesc Iași) 16 August 2010; 14 years ago (16 August 2010) (refounding)
Ground	Emil Alexandrescu
Ground Capacity	11,390
Owner	Iași Municipality
Chairman	Cornel Șfaițer
Head coach	Emil Săndoi
League	Liga I
2023–24	Liga I, 12th of 16
Home colours Away colours

Politehnica Iași, also known as Poli Iași, is a Romanian professional football club. It is based in the city of Iași, in Iași County. The team plays in the top Romanian football league, called Liga I.

The club was started in 2010 as ACSMU Politehnica Iași. This happened after the older club, FC Politehnica Iași, closed down in the same year. The new club was formed by combining two other teams, Tricolorul Breaza and Navobi Iași. It began playing directly in the Liga II, which is the second-highest league. Because of this, many people don't see it as the exact same club as the original one. Between 2011 and 2016, the team changed its name to CSM Studențesc Iași. Later, it went back to the name Politehnica. The team first played in Liga I during the 2012–13 season. In the 2017–18 Liga I season, it reached its best result, finishing sixth, just like the old club once did.

Politehnica Iași wears white and blue uniforms. Their home games are played at the Emil Alexandrescu Stadium. This stadium was built in 1960 and can hold 11,390 people.

Club History: From Foundation to Today

Starting the Club: First Years (2010–2014)

The original Politehnica Iași club was founded in April 1945. It stopped playing in 2010 because it had many unpaid debts. In August of that same year, a new club was formed. It was called ACSMU Politehnica Iași. This new team was created by merging Tricolorul Breaza with Navobi Iași.

The club started playing in the Liga II, the second division. Its main goal was to get back into the top Romanian football league. Ionuț Popa was chosen as the first manager of the new club. Grigore Sichitiu became the executive president.

In the summer of 2011, the club changed its name to Clubul Sportiv Municipal Studențesc Iași, or CSMS Iași for short. For the second half of the 2011–12 season, former Romanian international player Florin Prunea became the president. On June 2, 2012, the team won 4–2 against Farul Constanța. This victory helped them get promoted to Liga I after two years in the second division.

On August 29, Liviu Ciobotariu was appointed as the head coach. However, the team finished the 2012–13 season in 17th place. This meant they were sent back down to the second division. There was hope they might stay in Liga I for the 2013–14 Liga I season. But in the end, CS Concordia Chiajna took the last spot in the first league. This happened because FC Rapid București was relegated due to money problems.

For the 2013–14 Liga II season, a promising young coach named Costel Enache took charge. The team kept its talented young players, such as Alexandru Crețu, Adrian Avrămia, and Andrei Hergheligiu.

Back to the Top League (2014–Present)

Former logo, used between 2016 and 2018

After Marius Lăcătuș became the manager, Politehnica finished first in the 2013–14 Liga II. This meant they were promoted back to Liga I. In the 2014–15 season, the club played in the Cupa Ligii for the first time. They beat ASA Târgu Mureș and moved on to the last-16 round. There, they knocked out CFR Cluj, a team that had won the Romanian Cup and Liga I before.

The 2015–16 Liga I season was one of the best for Politehnica Iași. It was also a great season for football in Iași. The team had a fantastic campaign and finished in 7th place. This allowed them to qualify for the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League. The team was led by Italian coach Nicolò Napoli. They had experienced players like Andrei Cristea, Bojan Golubović, Ionuț Voicu, and Branko Grahovac. In the second round of the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League, Politehnica played against the Croatian team Hajduk Split. They drew 2–2 at Iași. But they lost 1–2 in Split, which meant they left the competition early.

On July 22, 2016, the club announced a name change. They went from CSM Studențesc Iași to CSM Politehnica Iași. This new name was chosen to connect more closely with the football history of Iași.

In June 2017, president Florin Prunea left the club after five years. Adrian Ambrosie then took over his position. Many important players, like Lukács Bőle and Daisuke Sato, left the team. So, the club had to rebuild its squad. They signed several international players, including Denis Rusu, Kamer Qaka, Luwagga Kizito, and Platini. On February 24, 2018, Poli Iași lost 0–1 to Viitorul Constanța. Despite the loss, they became the first team from Moldavia to qualify for the Liga I play-off round. This play-off format was introduced in 2015. Manager Flavius Stoican was very happy. The team finished the league in 6th place. This matched the best result ever achieved by the old FC Politehnica Iași.

Home Ground: Emil Alexandrescu Stadium

Politehnica Iași plays its home games at the Emil Alexandrescu stadium. It is located in the Copou area of Iași. The stadium is close to the Alexandru Ioan Cuza University. It has a capacity of 11,390 seats for fans.

Emil Alexandrescu Stadium.

Fan Support and Rivalries

The main fan groups of Politehnica Iași are Băieții Veseli and Ultras. Both groups supported the original FC Politehnica Iași (1945) until it closed down. They now see the new team as its continuation. These groups have friendly relationships with fans of Zimbru Chișinău. Another fan group, Settore Ultra, used to exist but later joined Oțelul Galați.

Main Rivalries

Politehnica Iași's biggest rival is Sporting Vaslui. Games between these two clubs are known as the "Moldovan Derby." This rivalry started in the 2001–02 Liga III season. Back then, both clubs were trying to get promoted to the second division. Poli Iași won the championship and earned promotion. The rivalry grew stronger during another promotion battle in the 2003–04 Liga II season. Again, Poli Iași came out on top.

Another recent rival is Oțelul Galați. This is because Oțelul Galați has friendly relations with Dacia Chișinău. The Peluza Nord Iași fan group often chants rude things about Oțelul Galați during almost every game. There is also a smaller rivalry with FC Botoșani.

Club Achievements

Domestic Leagues

• Liga I:
  • Best finish: 6th place in 1965–66 and 2017–18
• Liga II:
  • Winners (9 times): 1959–60, 1961–62, 1967–68, 1972–73, 1981–82, 2003–04, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2022–23
  • Runners-up (4 times): 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1993–94
• Liga III:
  • Winners (1 time): 2001–02

Current Players

First-team squad

No. Position Player 1 GK Ionuț Ailenei 2 DF Mohammed Umar 3 DF Nicolás Samayoa (on loan from Comunicaciones) 4 DF Cláudio Silva 5 MF Samuel Gouet 7 FW Gonçalo Teixeira 8 MF Luca Mihai (on loan from CFR Cluj) 9 FW Shayon Harrison 10 MF Alin Roman (Vice-captain) 11 MF Valentin Gheorghe 12 GK Toma Niga 14 MF Robert Mišković 18 DF Florin Ilie (4th captain) 19 MF Cătălin Itu 20 DF Ștefan Ștefanovici

No. Position Player 21 MF Matei Tănasă 22 FW Florian Kamberi 24 MF Julián Marchioni (3rd captain) 27 DF Rareș Ispas 30 DF Todor Todoroski 33 DF David Atanaskoski 37 MF Mihai Bordeianu (Captain) 42 DF Guilherme 57 FW Billel Omrani 70 FW David Popa (on loan from FCSB) 77 MF Denis Ciobanu 80 MF Andrei Gheorghiță 88 GK Jesús Fernández 98 MF Vlad Ilie 99 FW Tailson

Players on Loan

No. Position Player GK David Feșteu (to Știința Miroslava) DF Dragoș Ungurenașu (to Știința Miroslava) DF Alexandru Core (to Mioveni) DF Ionuț Olaeru (to Gloria Bistrița)

No. Position Player MF Alexandru Hrib (to Știința Miroslava) MF Robert Niamțu (to Știința Miroslava) MF Diego Farcaș (to Știința Miroslava)

Club Leadership and Staff

Administrative Staff Role Name Owner Iași Municipality President Cornel Șfaițer Vice-president Ilie Gheorghică Board Members Vasile Simionaș Cristian Amironesei General Manager Florin Briaur Head of Youth Development Cezar Honceriu Team Manager Marius Onofraș Last updated: 18 September 2022 Source: Board of directors

Coaching and Medical Staff Role Name Head coach Emil Săndoi Assistant coaches Valentin Năstase Francisc Dican Goalkeeping coach Radu Sardescu Fitness coach Ovidiu Chiribici Club doctor Valeriu Chirica Medical assistant Andrei Gâdea Physiotherapist Alexandru Enea Masseur Tudor Crețu Kit men Gheorghe Ungheanu Last updated: 17 September 2024 Source: Technical staff

Famous Former Players

The players listed below have played for their country's national team, either at a younger age or as adults. Players whose names are here also played many games and scored many goals for the club itself.

Notable Former Managers

Club Statistics and Records

League Performance Over the Years

European Competitions History

Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Aggregate
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	2Q	Hajduk Split	2–2	1–2	3–4

European Competitions All-Time Statistics

See also

In Spanish: CSM Politehnica Iași para niños