ACS Sticla Arieșul Turda
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| Full name | Asociația Club Sportiv Sticla Arieșul Turda | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Turdenii (The People from Turda) Sticlarii (The Glassmakers) Vulturii roșii (The Red Eagles) | ||
| Short name | Arieșul | ||
| Founded | 1922 as Muncitorul Turda 2016 as Sticla Arieșul Turda | ||
| Ground | Municipal | ||
| Capacity | 10,000 | ||
| Owner | Turda Municipality | ||
| Chairman | Artur Podar | ||
| Manager | Gheorghe Cotuț | ||
| League | Liga IV | ||
| 2023–24 | Liga IV, Cluj County, 4th of 12 | ||
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Asociația Club Sportiv Sticla Arieșul Turda, commonly known as Sticla Arieșul Turda, or simply as Arieșul Turda, is a Romanian football club from Turda, Cluj County, currently competing in Liga IV – Cluj County, the fourth tier of the Romanian football league system.
Established in 1922[1] the club spent most of its history in the second and in the third leagues of Romania. Its best performance was winning the 1960–61 Cupa României against Rapid București. With that performance, the club entered the history of Romanian football as the only club which succeeded to win the Romanian Cup without ever playing in the top league.[2][3][4]
History
[edit]The football club from the industrial town of Turda was founded in 1922 under the name Muncitorul Turda (lit. 'The Turda Worker') and represented the local glass factory. For more than a decade, its team competed in the regional championship until 1936, when it qualified for the national level for the first time.[5]
In the 1936–37 season, Arieșul – named after the Arieș river that flows through Turda – joined the newly established Divizia C. The team finished last in Series I of the North League and withdrew midway through the following season.
During the post-war period, Divizia C was not held regularly, so the club played at the regional level. In 1950, it was renamed Flamura Roșie Turda.[1] In the 1952 season, Flamura Roșie won the Cluj Regional Championship. After defeating Spartac Salonta in the first promotion round, they lost the decisive match against Metalul Hunedoara.
In 1957, the glass factory team merged with another local side, Progresul Turda, restoring the historic name Arieșul Turda and competing in Divizia C, finishing 3rd in the 1957–58 season and 4th in 1958–59.[5][6][7]
When Divizia C was dissolved again in 1959, Arieșul returned to the Cluj Regional Championship. In the 1959–60 season, the team won the title but failed to secure promotion after finishing 4th in the final tournament held in Arad, behind Voința Târgu Mureș, Dinamo Săsar, and Voința Oradea. However, due to the merger between CFR Cluj and Rapid Cluj, Arieșul took CFR Cluj’s place in Divizia B.[8]
The 1960–61 season remains a landmark in Arieșul Turda’s history. Initially coached by Nicolae Szoboszlay and from October 1961 by Ștefan Wetzer, the team finished 6th in Series III of Divizia B. More importantly, Arieșul made a historic run in the Cupa României, eliminating Corvinul Hunedoara (2–0), Penicilina Iași (7–1), Știința Timișoara (2–1), and UTA Arad (3–0) on the way to the final. On 12 November 1961, Arieșul defeated Rapid București 2–1 at the Republicii Stadium, lifting the Cupa României. The squad that played in the final included Vasile Suciu, Eugen Pantea, Ioachim Zăhan, Alexandru Vădan, Eugen Luparu, Ion Onacă, Vasile Mărgineanu, Vasile Pârvu, Dionisie Ursu, Gheorghe Băluțiu, and Liviu Husar.[2]
Despite this achievement, Arieșul was unable to build on its successes, finishing 8th in both the 1961–62 and 1962–63 seasons, and 13th at the end of the 1963–64 season, tied on points with CSM Cluj and CSM Sibiu, and relegated on goal difference.
A comeback followed the next year, winning the North Series of the third division; however, instability marked the second half of the 1960s. Consecutive relegations followed after finishing last in Series II of Divizia B in 1965–66 and 13th in the North Series of Divizia C in 1966–67, eventually dropping to the fourth division.
Arieșul recorded a slight ascent by winning the Mureș Series of the 1967–68 Cluj Regional Championship, earning promotion back to the third division. Over the following years, the club showed steady progress, finishing 7th in Series VI in the 1968–69, 9th in Series VI in 1969–70, and then, under familiar coach Nicolae Szoboszlay, winning Series VII in the 1970–71. However, the club missed out on promotion after the final tournament held in Oradea. In the 1971–72 campaign, Arieșul finished 3rd in Series XI.
The 1972–73 season marked the club’s return to Divizia B under coach Gheorghe Váczi. The squad featured Cocan, Sebeng, Ispas, Ludușan, Popa, Gheorghe Fedeleș, Moș, Pop, Szűcs, Mîlna, Cheta, Ciortea, Deac, Szilaghi, Markiș, Moceanu, Ciocan, Neagu, Cocu, and Hășmășan.[5]
The second-tier campaign lasted four seasons in Series III. In 1973–74, survival was secured narrowly on goal difference with a 14th-place finish. The following season, the club’s name changed to Sticla Turda, reflecting the local glass industry heritage. Improvements followed, with 10th place in 1974–75 and 7th in 1975–76. By 1976–77, however, the team slipped to 15th and was relegated back to Divizia C.[5]
Competing in Series XII of the 1977–78 Divizia C season, the Glassmakers finished 4th, then 3rd in Series IX during the 1978–79 season. The club was runners-up in Series XI in both the 1979–80 and 1980–81 seasons and reached the semifinals of the Cupa României in the 1980–81 season after eliminating three first-division sides: FC Baia Mare (2–1), Sportul Studențesc (2–2, 4–1 on penalties), and Steaua București (0–0, 6–5 on penalties), before losing to Politehnica Timișoara (1–2). The lineup included Vlad – Bâlă, Ludușan, Șumfălean, Hexan – Șipoș, Goștilean (42’, Naghi), Tașnadi – Podar (84’, Botezan) – Pașca, Bakoș.[9] This was followed by a 3rd place finish in 1981–82 and 4th in Series X in the 1982–83 season.
Promotion to Divizia B came after winning Series X in the 1983–84 season. The squad, led by head coach Titus Fărcaș, included Vlad, Enidety, Lupaș, Farkaș, Bâlă, Erman, Pop, Ludușan, Botezan, Borza, Doboș, Bozdoc, Sonica, Tehei, Riza, Bakoș, Nic, R. Rus, V. Rus, Osvadă, Pîrv, Horvath, and Pașca.[5]
Honours
[edit]Leagues
[edit]- Winners (6): 1964–65, 1970–71, 1972–73, 1983–84, 1986–87, 2006–07
- Runners-up (4): 1979–80, 1980–81, 1998–99, 2001–02
Cups
[edit]- Winners (1): 1960–61
- Winners (2): 2017–18, 2023–24
Chronology of names
[edit]| Name[1] | Period |
|---|---|
| Muncitorul Turda | 1922–1950 |
| Flamura Roșie Turda | 1950–1957 |
| Arieșul Turda | 1957–1974 |
| Sticla Turda | 1974–1979 |
| Sticla Arieșul Turda | 1979–1999 |
| Arieșul Turda | 1999–2012 |
| FCM Turda | 2012–2013 |
| Arieșul Turda | 2013–2015 |
| Sticla Arieșul Turda | 2016–present |
- Note: 1 year of inactivity between 2015 and 2016, and the team was refounded as Sticla Arieșul Turda in the Liga IV.
League history
[edit]
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Notable former players
[edit]The footballers mentioned below have played at least 1 season for Sticla Arieșul Turda and also played in Liga I for another team.
Former managers
[edit]
Gheorghe Váczi (1958–1959)- Nicolae Szoboszlay (1959–1961)
- Nicolae Szoboszlay (1969–1972)
- Sorin Cigan (2006–2007)
- Victor Roșca (2007)
- Leonida Nedelcu (2007)
- Mircea Bolba (2007–2008)
- Victor Roșca (2008)
- Marin Tudorache (2009–2010)
- George Ciorceri (2010–2012)
- Dorin Toma (2022–2023)
- Ștefan Wetzer
- Ioan Tătăran
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Evoluția denumirilor echipelor de-a lungul anilor" [Evolution of team names over the years]. romaniansoccer.ro. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2024.(in Romanian)
- ^ a b "Echipa care a câștigat Cupa, fără a juca vreodată în Liga I! Amintiri dureroase pentru rapidiști, ce a scris presa vremii și cine e unicul supraviețuitor" [The team that won the Cup, without ever playing in Liga I! Painful memories for Rapid, what did the press of the time wrote and who is the only survivor] (in Romanian). liga2.prosport.ro. 11 January 2014. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ "Performanță istorică! Hermannstadt e prima echipă din Liga 2 calificată în finala Cupei României, după 36 de ani" [Historical performance! Hermannstadt is the first team in Liga 2 to qualify for the Romanian Cup final, after 36 years] (in Romanian). digisport.ro. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ "80 de ani de suprize. O istorie a echipelor din ligile inferioare care au jucat finala Cupei României" [80 years of surprises. A history of the teams from the lower leagues that played the Romanian Cup final] (in Romanian). theplaymaker.ro. 13 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Mihai Ionescu & George Tudoran, Fotbal de la A la Z – Editura Sport-Turism 1984.
- ^ "Divizia C - Season 1957-58 - Edition 6". romaniansoccer.ro. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ "Divizia C - Season 1958-59 - Edition 7". romaniansoccer.ro. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ "Voința Tg.Mureș, Aurul Brad şi C. S. M. Brăila au câștigat grupele barajului pentru categoria B, de la Arad, Ploiești şi București" [Voința Tg. Mureș, Aurul Brad and C. S. M. Brăila won the dam groups for category B, from Arad, Ploiești and București] (PDF) (in Romanian). Sportul Popular. 18 July 1960. p. 3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 January 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2024 – via bibliotecadeva.eu.
- ^ "Poli Timișoara joacă din nou cu Arieșul Turda după 30 de ani!" [Poli Timișoara plays again with Arieșul Turda after 30 years!]. adevarul.ro. 16 November 2011. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 3 June 2025.(in Romanian)