Sevilla FC

Sevilla Fútbol Club is a Spanish professional football club who play in the top-flight Spanish La Liga championship. The club was established on October 14 1905, making it the oldest football club from Seville, and the second oldest from Andalucia. The club, currently in the midst of celebrating its 100th anniversary during the 2005-06 season, is the current UEFA Cup holder.

History

The Early Years (1905-1948)

On October 14, 1905, the Civil Governor of Seville officially announced the creation of Sevilla F.C. The first president of the club was D. José Luis Gallegos. In 1908, the team played its first official game, against Recreativo Huelva. In 1914, the team won its first Copa de Sevilla (Seville Cup). In 1935, Seville won the first of its three national Spanish Cup trophies, beating CE Sabadell 3-0. After the Spanish Civil War, Sevilla won the first Copa del Generalísimo (the second Spanish Cup win of the club), beating Racing de Ferrol by a score of 6-2.

The 1939-40 season also brought Sevilla very close to its first La Liga championship. The league had just returned after the Spanish Civil War, and Sevilla had some incredible games, beating FC Barcelona 11-1, Valencia CF 10-3 and Hércules CF 8-3. However, in the last game of the season, Sevilla could only manage to tie Hércules 3-3, thus giving the title to Atlético Aviación. In 1942-1943, Sevilla took second place in the league again but fell to third the next year. After a transitional year, in 1945-1946, Sevilla won its first and only La Liga title. In 1948, Sevilla captured its third and last Copa del Rey, defeating Celta Vigo 4-1 at Chamartin Stadium.

Sevilla FC in Europe

Sevilla FC also have a long tradition of European football, being the first Andalusian club to play the European Cup (now known as the UEFA Champions League) in the 1957-58 season. Sevilla have appeared in the Cup Winners Cup once, and won the UEFA Cup on the 10th of May 2006.

The 2005-2006 UEFA Cup Campaign

Having finished 6th in the 2004-2005 season, Sevilla secured a place in the first round of the 2005-2006 UEFA Cup. After advancing through the first round and the group stage of competition, Seville beat Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow to advance to the round of 16. On March 9, Sevilla FC lost 1-0 to French club Lille OSC in the first leg of their home-and-away match, but on March 16, at home in Seville's 50th game in European competition, Sevilla won 2-0 to advance to the quarterfinals. In these matches, which took place against FC Zenit on March 30, 2006 and April 6, 2006, Sevilla beat Zenit 5-2 on aggregate and advanced to the semifinals. In the semis, Seville knocked out the strong German side Schalke 04 after 180 goalless minutes, with Antonio Puerta scoring the decisive goal in the extra time of the return leg.

On May 10, 2006, Sevilla FC broke a 58 year drought on trophies and became the first Andalusian team to win a European final. Sevilla defeated Middlesbrough FC 4-0 in Eindhoven to win their first UEFA Cup, in the largest UEFA cup victory in history. One goal came from Luis Fabiano, two from Enzo Maresca, and one by Frédéric Kanouté. Sevilla is the only European team which has played in the three major competitions (the European Cup, Cup Winner's Cup and UEFA Cup) and has never lost any game (out of 27 and counting) when playing on their home stadium. The newly crowned UEFA Cup champions took their determination from Eindhoven to Seville, where they achieved a stunning come from behind victory over Real Madrid in the last game of the season. Down 2 goals to 0, Sevilla responded with 3 goals of their own in only 15 minutes. the game ended 4-3 with Sevilla winning in tremendous fashion.

The 2006-2007 Champions League

Unfortunately, after a brilliant 2005-2006 campaign, Sevilla FC won't be partaking in the 2006-2007 UEFA Champions League, having narrowly missed out on qualification. They finished the season with the same number of points as Osasuna. However, Osasuna snatched the fourth place, synonymous with a UEFA Champions League berth, because of their better goal average. Sevilla FC will therefore have to contend themselves with UEFA Cup action again in the 2006-2007 season.

The Sevilla Derby

In 1909, disagreement among some members of the directive board led to a minor split from which the team Betis was born; later in 1914 Real Betis Balompié was founded from the union of Betis and Sevilla Balompié. The myth says that this split was due to the fact that Sevilla FC refused to sign a player because he was a "simple worker"; there is not documentation to prove this fact, besides there is no identity for such a decisive individual, and no explanation of how a "simple worker" had the chance to play football, considering the working conditions at the time.

On October 8, 1915, the first Sevilla-Betis derby took place, ending with a 4-3 Sevilla victory. The cross-town rivalry is considered one of the strongest derbies in Spain. 76 Sevilla derbies have been played in La Liga. Sevilla FC has won 34 of them, Real Betis has won 26, and 16 ended with a draw. Two derby games have been played during the 2005/06 season. Sevilla FC beat Real Betis 1-0 at the Sanchez Pizjuan on November 19, 2005. Real Betis beat Sevilla FC, 2-1, on April 2, 2006 at the Ruiz de Lopera Stadium. As of May 8, 2006, Sevilla is 21 points ahead of Betis in the general standings of La Liga.

Club Information

Organization

Sevilla is an unusual football club. The club is owned by the fans, with the stocks distributed across a few major holders and a large base of fans. The club supports one of the most renowned training academies in the country, which has produced many famous players.

Sevilla FC has also promoted innovations such as a school of sport psychologists, who provide support for the younger as well as the professional players, and also more recently sports nutrition and medicine. Another recent success for Sevilla FC has been the establishment of its own radio station, "Sevilla FC Radio", the first of its kind in Spain.

Stadium

Sevilla FC's stadium is named after its former president Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán and has a spectator capacity of 45,500. Sevilla's performance in La Liga in the last few seasons has led to an increase in the number of season ticket holders, making it necessary to create a waiting list for tickets.

Kit

The team wears white, with some red details, for home games and red, with white bits, for away games.

Biris

The most loyal fans of the team (those who sit in the lower section of the north end of the stadium) call themselves Biris. They got their name from Alhaji Momodo Njle, who was nicknamed Biri-Biri. Alhaji, a Gambian player known for his intensity and mercurial nature, was so popular with the Sevilla fans that the most loyal fans named their cheering section (and thus, themselves) after him.

Honours

Before the Spanish national competitions started, Sevilla also won 17 Andalusian Championships, and were crowned twice as Champions of Sevilla.

UEFA Cup: 1
- 2006
La Liga: 1
- 1946
La Liga: Runners-Up 4
- 1940, 1943, 1951 and 1957
King's Cup: 3
- 1935, 1939 and 1948
King's Cup: Runners-Up 2
- ''1955 and 1962

2006/07 Squad

''The numbers are established according to the official websites of Sevilla FC and the Spanish league.

As of February 1 2006

Squad changes during 2006/07 season

In:

Andreas Hinkel - Signed From VfB Stuttgart
Poulsen - Signed From FC Schalke 04
Gallardo - Return From Deportivo de La Coruña
Carlitos - Return From Hércules CF
Antoñio Lopez - Return From Málaga CF
Cobeño - Signed From Real Madrid Castilla
Duda - Signed From Málaga CF
Aranda - Return From Albacete Balompié

Out

Saviola - Return To FC Barcelona
Notario - Transferred To Real Murcia
Jordi Lopez - Transferred To RCD Mallorca
Manuel Blanco - Transferred To CD Tenerife
Antoñito - On Loan To Real Murcia
Gallardo - On Loan To Real Murcia

Statistics 2005/06

Final statistics for the La Liga season 2005/2006.

La Liga	Position	Pts	P	W	D	L	F	A
Sevilla FC	5	68	38	20	8	10	54	39

Top Scores:
- Saviola - 9 goals
- Maresca - 8 goals
- Kanoute - 6 goals
Top Goalkeepers
- Palop - 37 goals In 36 Matchs
- Notario - 2 goals In 2 Matchs

Famous players

see also

Coaches