HNK Rijeka
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football club
Hrvatski nogometni klub Rijeka (Template:Langx), commonly referred to as HNK Rijeka, is a Croatian professional football club based in the city of Rijeka.
HNK Rijeka competes in Croatia's top division, Supersport HNL, of which they have been members since its foundation in 1992 and is the current champion. During the reconstruction of Stadion Kantrida, their traditional home ground, they have been based at Stadion Rujevica. Rijeka's traditional home colours throughout its history have been white, sky blue and gold.
The club was founded in 1904, with the football team being active at last since 1906,<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and following the tumultuous political changes that swept the border city of Rijeka in the following decades, it changed its name to U.S. Fiumana in 1926, to S.C.F. Quarnero in 1946,<ref name="ReferenceA">Template:Cite web</ref> to NK Rijeka in 1954,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and finally HNK Rijeka in 1995.<ref name="Name">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref> Rijeka is the third-most successful Croatian football club, having won two Croatian First League titles, two Yugoslav Cups, seven Croatian Cups, one Croatian Super Cup, Serie C 1940–41, the Italian Federal Cup 1927–28 and the 1977–78 Balkans Cup.
History
1906–1926
The club was founded on 21 April 1904 as Club Sportivo Olimpia by Antonio Marchich, Aristodemo Susmel, Agesilao Satti, Carlo Colussi, the brothers Romeo and Alessandro Mitrovich during the time Rijeka was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire as a Corpus Separatum of the Hungarian Crown. The club was originally founded as a tennis-lawn, football, swimming, cycling and athletics club.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first official activities of the football section recorded by contemporary chronicles happened on 25 November 1906, with historians still investigating the football activities in the previous 2,5 years. For lack of better data, this date is currently officially taken as the beginning of HNK Rijeka as a football club.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":3" /> This also makes Rijeka the oldest still active association football club on the territory of today's Republic of Croatia.
While many clubs in town and the region often had specific ethnic leanings, Olimpia intentionally had a very international soul, with Italian, Croatian, Hungarian, and German players all playing and working with each other in unison.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref> The oldest line-up known from Rijeka's pioneer years was: Duimovic, Smoivar, Penka, Brosnich, R. Mittrovich, Lenardon, Satti, Novodnik, A. Mittrovich, Paulovatz, Cittovich (captain). Initially, the club played its matches on the main Scoglietto square, in front of the local Honved HQ, but moved to Kantrida stadium during the following decade (and the stadium changed its name to Campo Sportivo Olympia). Initially, Olimpia played in black and white garments, but in the 1910s, the club also used a fully white kit.
During the following years, Olimpia will be joined by several other local football clubs from the city of Rijeka and will continue the legacy of Fiumei Atletikai Club as the main city club, when Atletico discontinued its football section in the course of the 1910s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Among the many clubs being founded in town during these years, a side, in particular, will soon rise as fierce arch-rival to Olimpia: Doria (later renamed into CS Gloria) arose from the proletarian classes and the humble old town dwellers of the industry-rich port town on the Adriatic. While Olimpia was associated with the wealthier classes, mostly players from working-class families performed for Gloria; therefore, the club found most of its sympathisers among the poorer part of the population.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Olimpia was renamed to Olympia on 9 January 1918 during a meeting of its board and the new president became the Fiuman writer Antonio de Schlemmer, possibly as an anti-irredentist move. During these years, it achieved its first major local and international successes: it became the champion of the Free State of Fiume championship in 1921, and it won several Julian March and North-Eastern Italian championships in the following years, soon becoming the strongest side in the Alpe-Adria region.
1926–1943
On 2 September 1926, following Mussolini's reforms of the FIGC and the 1924 Fiume putsch led by local Italians, which brought to the annexation of the independent Free State of Fiume to Italy, Olympia was then merged with its arch-rival Gloria into the Unione Sportiva Fiumana. Pietro Pasquali was picked as the new president of the club. Two years later, Fiumana won its first national trophy when it reached first place in the Italian Federal Cup.
The following season saw the club playing in the Italian Serie A, with some of the biggest Italian clubs such as Ambrosiana (today's Inter, also forced into a brand image change by the new regime), Juventus and Napoli played at the Kantrida stadium (renamed to Stadio Borgomarina in those years). Despite a decent performance in Serie A, the city, now impoverished by the annexation and cut off from its natural economic hinterland, was not in the financial position to compete with the biggest cities in Italy and following these successes, the club had to see many of its stars signed by major Italian sides. During most of the 1930s and 1940s, the club competed in the second and third tier of the Italian competitions. At the reopening of a refurbished Kantrida (then renamed Stadio del Littorio) in 1935, Fiumana hosted AS Roma. In June 1941, it became champion of the newly created Italian Serie C.
Serie C's last season before the fall of fascist Italy in 1943 saw Fiumana end in third place. Mostly from workers' families, the players leaned heavily toward the partisan movement, often joining it outright. They didn't participate in the Italian Social Republic championships and the Adriatic Littoral championship set up by the German occupational force. Nonetheless, the players kept playing several matches with other local clubs and against sides organised or brought in by the German occupational authorities. Worth mentioning are the excessive celebrations for some victories against the German sides that brought several players to be imprisoned and sent to various concentration camps in Germany, and a last ceremonial game between the old legends of Olympia and Gloria that was held on 15 June 1944 while allied planes were bombing the city's surroundings.<ref name=":1" /> Most Fiumana players joined the partisan movement and helped the Yugoslav liberation movement, with many ending up in imprisonment and being sent to concentration camps.
1943–1954
Following the liberation of the city from the Nazi occupation and the subsequent occupation by Yugoslav troops, and due to the uncertain future status of the city during the long Paris peace conference, the club resumed its activities in the post-war period under the slightly rebranded name of Rappresentativa Sindacale Fiumana. It went on playing several games against the most notable teams of the newly constituted Yugoslav state, beating Dinamo Zagreb 4–2, Akademičar Zagreb 7–2 and Metalac Beograd 2–0.<ref name=":1" /> During the interim post-war year, and before the first edition of the Yugoslav First League, R.S. Fiumana played against some of its future Balkan rivals. The authorities also set up an unofficial city tournament among factories named after Fiumana's late captain Giovanni Maras, who died heroically in partisan combat on the nearby Mount Risnjak.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Despite Maras and most of his colleagues' partisan allegiance and the many hardships endured by them in Nazi concentration camps, the name Fiumana came soon to be considered too Italian for a city that the Yugoslav occupational authorities were trying to annex by force before the official peace treaty could be signed.
As in most other cities in Yugoslavia, in 1946 the communist authorities established a new identity for the city's most representative club in order for it to take part in the upcoming Yugoslav championship<ref name=":0" /> and rebranded and restructured the club into Società Cultura Fisica Quarnero (S.C.F. Quarnero), which later added also the bilingual title Sportsko Društvo Kvarner.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The new name followed the geographic neutral naming conventions requested to local councils by the central authorities in Belgrade in order to approve the reestablishment of the local sport club activities and to participate in competitions. The initiative came from Ettore Mazzieri, the city's sports commissioner for the Yugoslav military administration and a previous Fiumana manager. The first match with the Quarnero identify was played on 7 August 1946, bringing revenge against Hajduk Split for the loss from the previous year. The club began the new course with a resounding 2–0 against the best Yugoslav side of the time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Quarnero initially continued to play in the Fiumana amaranto colours, but started switching colours after the first few championships games, and continued appearing with new kits every few matches until season 1957–58. Luigi Sošić and, in particular, Giovanni Cucera took over the role of the first post-war president, shaping the new communist direction of the club. At the same time, all former Fiumana players and staff carried on playing in the renamed club for the next few years before the Italian exodus slowly forced many of them to leave the city after the season 1947–48. As all clubs in Yugoslavia had to transform general sports clubs following the Stalinist model imposed by Belgrade in 1945,<ref name=":0" /> S.C.F. Quarnero incorporated 11 other sections in addition to football, including boxing, fencing, basketball and tennis. The international tennis champion Orlando Sirola started his career at the club before his exile.<ref name=":1" />
The authorities in Belgrade soon decided that Rijeka's club should be invited to participate in the first Yugoslav First League in 1946–47 as an external guest, representing the occupied Zone B of the Julian March region, but only after a play-off with the Pula-based club Unione Sportiva Operaia. When the city of Rijeka was assigned to Yugoslavia in February 1947, and Tito broke all ties with Stalin in 1948, most Yugoslav clubs underwent a further re-organisation. Thus, in 1948, Quarnero became once again an all-football club, and the name was also modified into Società Calcio Quarnero – Nogometni Klub Kvarner. During the early period playing in Yugoslavia's competitions, Kvarner reached moderate success in various national and local leagues. Still, the club was relegated at the end of their inaugural season in the Yugoslav First League in 1946–47 due to a purely political decision to favour Ponziana, after Quarnero had already secured its stay in the first league during the season. Upon securing Rijeka for Yugoslavia, the Belgrade authorities were now trying to pander to Trieste's residents through sport in the hope of annexing also that city to Yugoslavia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The club continued to play with mixed results in Yugoslav football's second and third divisions. The club achieved mediocre results over the next ten years, concurrently with Rijeka's autochthonous population slowly leaving hometown over the years. Consequently, the club lost many of its best players because many opted to leave Yugoslavia and move overseas.
In 1954, following rising ethnic tensions around the Trieste Crisis and the subsequent elimination of all forms of bilingualism in the city, paired with a desire to have a brand more recognizable and associated the club was further renamed into NK Rijeka.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1954–1991
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Given the political interferences in the club's life and the continuous mistreatment of ethnic Italians, many of Quarnero's best players were forced to join the Fiuman exodus, and the club lingered between the second and third tier of the Yugoslav competition for the next several years. Following new Italian-Yugoslav tensions that arose during the Trieste Crisis, and the subsequent de facto abolition of the city's full bilingual rights by the communist authorities in Belgrade,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the club changed its name once again, into the now completely monolingual NK Rijeka (Rijeka Football Club) on 2 July 1954, giving up onto the Italian language in its brand image for the first time in the club's history. Rijeka started to use a white kit for the second time in its history in a match in Šibenik in the 1957–58 second league season. During the previous seasons, the kit colours were constantly changing, depending on what was available to the management at any given time and what the sponsors could offer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The main kit remained white since. Rijeka returned to the First League in 1958 and remained in the top tier for 11 consecutive seasons until 1969, when it got relegated once again to the Yugoslav Second League.<ref name="Povijest">Template:Cite web</ref> Despite finishing at the top in four (out of five) seasons of the second league, due to three failed promotion play-off attempts, the club only gained promotion back to the top tier in 1974. Rijeka remained in the top tier until the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, with varying but improving results.<ref name="Povijest" />
The club's greatest successes during this period are two Yugoslav Cup titles in 1978 and 1979 and a runner-up finish in 1987, when Rijeka lost the final in the penalty shoot-out.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The club never managed to finish the season higher than fourth place in the Yugoslav First League. In 1984, the club came closest to a Yugoslav championship title, finishing only two points behind Red Star Belgrade. Rijeka were also the best placed Croatian club in the Yugoslav First League in 1965, 1984 and 1987.<ref name="hocuri.com">Template:Cite web</ref>
1991–present
Following the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992, Rijeka joined the Croatian First Football League in its inaugural season. In 1995, the club changed its name to HNK Rijeka, adding the prefix "Croatian" to its name, following the example of many other clubs during the Croatian War for Independence. Today, Rijeka remains one of only four founding member clubs of the HNL to have never been relegated and is regarded as one of the country's top three clubs. Since the Croatian independence, the club won its first-ever league title in 2017, ending Dinamo Zagreb's run of 11 consecutive titles, and was a runner-up eight times.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Rijeka has also won seven Croatian Cups, including back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006 and most recently in 2019 and 2020. The club also won the cup in 2014 and in 2017, which helped them secure a historic Double in that year.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Rijeka repeated this remarkable feat in the 2024–25 season, once again winning both the league and the cup to complete a second historic Double.
A refereeing error denied Rijeka their first championship title in the final round of the 1998–99 season. With one match to play, Rijeka was one point ahead of Croatia Zagreb, needing a home win against Osijek to secure the title. With the match tied at 1–1, in the 89th minute, Rijeka forward Admir Hasančić converted a cross by Barnabás Sztipánovics. However, moments later, assistant referee Krečak raised his flag, and referee Šupraha disallowed Rijeka's winning goal for an alleged offside.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Following an investigation, 3D analysis revealed Hasančić was not, in fact, in an offside position, and that Rijeka was wrongfully denied their first championship title.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref> An investigation by Nacional revealed Franjo Tuđman, the president of the Republic of Croatia and an ardent Croatia Zagreb supporter, earlier in 1999 ordered the country's intelligence agencies to spy on football referees, officials and journalists, to ensure the Zagreb club wins the league title.<ref name="auto" />
HNK Rijeka in the European competitions
Rijeka participated in UEFA competitions on 25 occasions, including 13 consecutive appearances since 2013–14. The greatest success was the quarter-final of the 1979–80 European Cup Winners' Cup, where they lost to Italian giants Juventus 2–0 on aggregate.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The most memorable result in Europe was the home win (3–1) against eventual winners Real Madrid in the 1984–85 UEFA Cup.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Controversially, in the return leg at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, which Rijeka lost 3–0, three of their players were sent off. Madrid scored their first goal from a dubious penalty in the 67th minute with Rijeka already down to ten men. Over the next ten minutes, two additional Rijeka players were sent off, most notably Damir Desnica. While Desnica received the first yellow card because he did not stop play after Schoeters blew his whistle, the second yellow was issued because he allegedly insulted the referee. However, unbeknownst to the referee, Desnica had been a deaf-mute since birth.<ref name="hocuri.com" /> With Rijeka reduced to eight players, Madrid scored two additional goals, progressed to the next round and eventually won the trophy.Template:Citation needed
In 2013, after winning 4–3 on aggregate against VfB Stuttgart, Rijeka qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League group stage.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Rijeka also participated in the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League group stage, where they defeated Feyenoord and Standard Liège and drew with title-holders and eventual winners Sevilla.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2017, Rijeka reached the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League play-off, where they lost 3–1 on aggregate to Greek champions Olympiacos, and automatically qualified for the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League group stage. In the group stage, they recorded a famous home win (2–0) against AC Milan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2020–21 Rijeka reached the group stages of the Europa League for the fourth time in eight years but once again failed to progress to the knockout stages. In 2021–22, 2023–24 and 2024–25, Rijeka was eliminated in the play-off round of UEFA Conference League.Template:Citation needed
Private ownership
In February 2012, Gabriele Volpi – an Italian businessman and the founder of Orlean Invest, as well as the owner of football club Spezia and water polo club Pro Recco – injected much-needed capital into the club. With the privatization process complete by September 2013, Volpi, through Dutch-based Stichting Social Sport Foundation, owned 70% of the club, with the City of Rijeka in control of the remaining 30%.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 29 December 2017 it was announced that chairman Damir Mišković, through London-based Teanna Limited, acquired the majority stake in the club from Stichting Social Sport Foundation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Record transfers
In January 2015, Rijeka sold their star striker Andrej Kramarić to Leicester City for a club-record £9.7 million transfer fee.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Historical names
- 1904 – C.S. Olimpia (Club Sportivo Olimpia)
- 1918 – C.S. Olympia (Club Sportivo Olympia)
- 1926 – U.S. Fiumana (Unione Sportiva Fiumana), after merger with C.S. Gloria
- 1945 – R.S. Fiumana (Rappresentativa Sindacale Fiumana)
- 1946 – S.C.F. Quarnero (Società Cultura Fisica Quarnero), after rebranding to partake in the Yugoslav football championships system
- 1948 – S.C. Quarnero - N.K. Kvarner (Società Calcio Quarnero - Nogometni Klub Kvarner)
- 1954 – N.K. Rijeka (Nogometni Klub Rijeka)
- 1995 – H.N.K. Rijeka (Hrvatski Nogometni Klub Rijeka)
Stadium
The club initially played at the Honved training field in front of today's Popular University of Rijeka in the central Scoglietto suburb of Rijeka. During the 1920s, the club was allowed to build a new and, at the time, modern facility in Scoglietto, and toward the end of the decade, it started using Stadion Kantrida as its primary field, naming it Campo Sportivo Olympia. Kantrida was the club's traditional home ground for over 95 years (with a short hiatus between 1947 and 1951 due to refurbishing) until July 2015. Since August 2015, Rijeka has been based at the newly built Stadion Rujevica, a modern all-seater with a capacity of 8,279. Stadion Rujevica is part of Rijeka's new training centre and is the club's temporary home ground. Following the club's move to Rujevica, plans emerged to build a new, state-of-the-art, all-seater Stadion Kantrida.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The project was on hold for close to a decade as the club was seeking funding and co-investors to make the project viable. In December 2023, plans were unveiled that, in addition to the stadium, investors plan to build a commercial complex, which may include three residential highrise towers and a hotel, with a total cost exceeding €100 million. The new Kantrida stadium will be located at the previous location but rotated 90 degrees from the previously proposed location, facing north–south. The facility is designed to accommodate 12,000 to 14,000 spectators and will meet UEFA's fourth-category standards.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Support
Rijeka's ultras group is called Armada Rijeka, or simply Armada. The group has been active since 1987, but some forms of organised (albeit not registered as associations) support were present and following the club already in the decades before, with the earliest reported in the 1920s.
During most home matches, the majority of the seats are occupied by season ticket holders. For the 2024–25 season, the club had more than 4,600 season ticket holders and 16,500 members.
Rivalries
Rijeka's greatest rivalry nowadays is with Hajduk Split. Since 1946, the Adriatic derby has been contested between the two most popular Croatian football clubs from the Adriatic coast. Other rivalries exist with major clubs in Croatia like Dinamo Zagreb and a milder with Osijek. The primary regional derby is with Istra Pula. The origins of the Rijeka–Pula rivalry date back to the clashes between Fiumana and Grion Pola since the late 1920s. The city derby with Orijent is probably the oldest, with its roots in the clashes between CS Olimpia and CS Gloria against Orijent and the other more successful in those early years Sušak-based club, Victoria.
Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt partner |
|---|---|---|
| 1998–1999 | Adidas | INA |
| 1999–2002 | Kronos | |
| 2002–2003 | Torpedo | |
| 2003–2004 | Lero | |
| 2004–2005 | Legea | |
| 2005–2006 | INA | |
| 2006–2008 | Kappa | Croatia Osiguranje |
| 2008–2012 | Jako | |
| 2012–2014 | Lotto | – |
| 2014–2016 | Jako | |
| 2017–2018 | Sava Osiguranje | |
| 2018–2023 | Joma | |
| 2023– | Favbet |
Players
Current squad
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Players with multiple nationalities
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Martin Zlomislić
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Stjepan Radeljić
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Silvio Ilinković
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Luka Menalo
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Mladen Devetak
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Matej Momchilovski
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Omar Sijarić
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Anel Husić
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Dominik Yankov
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Daniel Adu-Adjei
- Template:Flagicon Template:Flagicon Samuele Vignato
Dual registration
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Out on loan
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Club officials and technical staff
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Notable players
- To appear in this section a player must have satisfied all of the following three criteria:
- (1) player has at least 100 appearances in official matches, including first division (Yugoslav First League and Croatian First Football League), domestic cup (Yugoslav Cup, Croatian Cup and Croatian Supercup) and UEFA club competitions;
- (2) player has scored at least 20 goals in official matches if forward, 5 if midfielder and no goal requirement if defender or goalkeeper in first division (Yugoslav First League and Croatian First Football League), domestic cup (Yugoslav Cup, Croatian Cup and Croatian Supercup) and UEFA club competitions; and
- (3) player has played at least one international match for their national team while under contract with Rijeka.
- Otherwise, also included are 30 of the club's top scorers and most capped players in the first division.
- Template:Flagicon Ezio Loik
- Template:Flagicon Rodolfo Volk
- Template:Flagicon Mario Varglien
- Template:Flagicon Giovanni Varglien
- Template:Flagicon Luigi Ossoinach
- Template:Flagicon Andrea Kregar
- Template:Flagicon Giovanni Maras
- Template:Flagicon Ernő Egri Erbstein
- Template:Flagicon Ferenc Molnár
- Template:Flagicon Balassa Béla
- Template:Flagicon Alexander Gorgon
- Template:Flagicon Senad Brkić
- Template:Flagicon Admir Hasančić
- Template:Flagicon Zoran Kvržić
- Template:Flagicon Héber Araujo dos Santos
- Template:Flagicon Fredi Bobic
- Template:Flagicon Filip Bradarić
- Template:Flagicon Elvis Brajković
- Template:Flagicon Antonio Čolak
- Template:Flagicon Dario Knežević
- Template:Flagicon Andrej Kramarić
- Template:Flagicon Nediljko Labrović
- Template:Flagicon Mate Maleš
- Template:Flagicon Matej Mitrović
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Mladenović
- Template:Flagicon Roberto Paliska
- Template:Flagicon Dubravko Pavličić
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Romić
- Template:Flagicon Daniel Šarić
- Template:Flagicon Leonard Zuta
- Template:Flagicon Radomir Đalović
- Template:Flagicon Marko Vešović
- Template:Flagicon Roman Bezjak
- Template:Flagicon Josip Drmić
- Template:Flagicon Mario Gavranović
- Template:Flagicon Radojko Avramović
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Brnčić
- Template:Flagicon Boško Bursać
- Template:Flagicon Nikica Cukrov
- Template:Flagicon Damir Desnica
- Template:Flagicon Adriano Fegic
- Template:Flagicon Nenad Gračan
- Template:Flagicon Tonči Gulin
- Template:Flagicon Miloš Hrstić
- Template:Flagicon Janko Janković
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Jantoljak
- Template:Flagicon Srećko Juričić
- Template:Flagicon Miodrag Kustudić
- Template:Flagicon Vladimir Lukarić
- Template:Flagicon Sergio Machin
- Template:Flagicon Danko Matrljan
- Template:Flagicon Nikica Milenković
- Template:Flagicon Anđelo Milevoj
- Template:Flagicon Velimir Naumović
- Template:Flagicon Petar Radaković
- Template:Flagicon Zvjezdan Radin
- Template:Flagicon Milan Radović
- Template:Flagicon Mauro Ravnić
- Template:Flagicon Milan Ružić
- Template:Flagicon Miroslav Šugar
- Template:Flagicon Edmond Tomić
- Template:Flagicon Bruno Veselica
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Vranković
- Template:Flagicon Nedeljko Vukoje
Template:Div col end Source: Appearances and Goals. Last updated 26 March 2024.
All-time Best 11
According to a 2005–07 survey of former players (older than 40 years of age) and respected journalists, Marinko Lazzarich found that the best all-time team of Rijeka is as follows:
1. Jantoljak, 2. Milevoj, 3. Hrstić, 4. Radaković, 5. Radin, 6. Juričić, 7. Lukarić, 8. Gračan, 9. Osojnak, 10. Naumović, 11. Desnica.<ref>Lazzarich, Marinko (2008) (in Croatian). Kantrida bijelih snova. Rijeka: Adamić. Template:ISBN, p. 467.</ref>
Rijeka's daily, Novi list, in 2011 declared the following 11 players as Rijeka's best all time team:
1. Jantoljak, 2. Šarić, 3. Radin, 4. Juričić, 5. Hrstić, 6. Loik, 7. Radaković, 8. Mladenović, 9. Naumović, 10. Skoblar, 11. Desnica.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Best 11 (2010–20)
In 2020, the club's fans voted to select the best squad over the past decade to fit in a 4–2–3–1 formation:
Prskalo – Ristovski, Župarić, Mitrović, Zuta – Kreilach, Moisés – Vešović, Andrijašević, Sharbini – Kramarić. Manager: Kek.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Historical list of coaches
- Template:Flagicon Karoly Bela (September 1926 – July 1927)
- Template:Flagicon Delfino Costanzo Valle (August 1927 – July 1929)
- Template:Flagicon Imre Emmerich Poszonyi (August 1929 – July 1932)
- Template:Flagicon Luigi Ossoinak (August 1932 – July 1933)
- Template:Flagicon Andrea Kregar (August 1933 – July 1936)
- Template:Flagicon Eugen Payer (August 1936 – July 1938)
- Template:Flagicon Marcello Mihalich (August 1938 – July 1940)
- Template:Flagicon Angelo Piccalunga (August 1940 – July 1942)
- Template:Flagicon Artur Kolisch (August 1942 – 1944)
- Template:Flagicon Hans Bloch (July 1946 – August 1946)
- Template:Flagicon Jozo Matošić (August 1946 – August 1947)
- Template:Flagicon Ivan Smojver & Template:Flagicon Ante Vukelić (September 1947 – October 1947)
- Template:Flagicon Franjo Glaser (October 1947 – July 1948)
- Template:Flagicon Zvonko Jazbec (September 1948 – December 1948)
- Template:Flagicon Franjo Glaser (January 1949 – December 1950)
- Template:Flagicon Slavko Kodrnja (January 1951 – December 1951)
- Template:Flagicon Ljubo Benčić (January 1952 – August 1952)
- Template:Flagicon Nikola Duković (September 1952 – April 1953)
- Template:Flagicon Antun Lokošek (May 1953 – December 1953)
- Template:Flagicon Ratomir Čabrić (January 1954 – July 1954)
- Template:Flagicon Franjo Glaser (August 1954 – July 1956)
- Template:Flagicon Nikola Duković (September 1956 – July 1957)
- Template:Flagicon Milorad Ognjanov (September 1957 – October 1959)
- Template:Flagicon Luka Kaliterna (November 1959 – May 1960)
- Template:Flagicon Stojan Osojnak (May 1960 – June 1961)
- Template:Flagicon Ostoja Simić (June 1961 – May 1962)
- Template:Flagicon Angelo Ziković (August 1962 – December 1962)
- Template:Flagicon Virgil Popescu (January 1963 – September 1964)
- Template:Flagicon Stojan Osojnak (October 1964 – June 1967)
- Template:Flagicon Vladimir Beara (May 1967 – November 1968)
- Template:Flagicon Angelo Ziković (November 1968 – June 1970)
- Template:Flagicon Ilijas Pašić (June 1970 – June 1971)
- Template:Flagicon Stevan Vilotić (June 1971 – June 1972)
- Template:Flagicon Marcel Žigante (June 1972 – May 1973)
- Template:Flagicon Ivica Šangulin (May 1973 – June 1974)
- Template:Flagicon Gojko Zec (June 1974 – June 1976)
- Template:Flagicon Dragutin Spasojević (June 1976 – April 1979)
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Brnčić (interim) (April 1979 – June 1979)
- Template:Flagicon Miroslav Blažević (June 1979 – January 1981)
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Brnčić (January 1981 – April 1983)
- Template:Flagicon Josip Skoblar (May 1983 – December 1986)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Vranković (January 1987 – June 1989)
- Template:Flagicon Vladimir Lukarić (June 1989 – January 1991)
- Template:Flagicon Nikola "Pape" Filipović (January 1991)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Vranković (February 1991)
- Template:Flagicon Željko Mudrovičić (March 1991 – June 1991)
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Jantoljak (June 1991 – November 1992)
- Template:Flagicon Srećko Juričić & Mile Tomljenović (November 1992)
- Template:Flagicon Srećko Juričić (January 1993 – June 1994)
- Template:Flagicon Zvjezdan Radin (June 1994 – March 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Vranković (April 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Josip Skoblar (April 1995 – June 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Marijan Jantoljak (June 1995 – September 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Ranko Buketa (interim) (September 1995 – October 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Josip Skoblar (October 1995 – November 1995)
- Template:Flagicon Miroslav Blažević & Template:Flagicon Nenad Gračan (January 1996 – June 1996)
- Template:Flagicon Luka Bonačić (June 1996 – August 1996)
- Template:Flagicon Ivan Kocjančić (interim) (August 1996)
- Template:Flagicon Branko Ivanković (August 1996 – March 1998)
- Template:Flagicon Nenad Gračan (March 1998 – November 2000)
- Template:Flagicon Boris Tičić (interim) (November 2000 – December 2000)
- Template:Flagicon Predrag Stilinović (December 2000 – 1 May)
- Template:Flagicon Ivan Katalinić (May 2001 – 2 May)
- Template:Flagicon Zlatko Kranjčar (May 2002 – 2 November)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Mladenović (November 2002 – 3 March)
- Template:Flagicon Vjekoslav Lokica (March 2003 – 3 July)
- Template:Flagicon Ivan Katalinić (July 2003 – 4 May)
- Template:Flagicon Elvis Scoria (1 July 2004 – 30 September 2005)
- Template:Flagicon Dragan Skočić (1 October 2005 – 30 September 2006)
- Template:Flagicon Milivoj Bračun (1 October 2006 – 13 March 2007)
- Template:Flagicon Josip Kuže (12 March 2007 – 4 June 2007)
- Template:Flagicon Zlatko Dalić (1 June 2007 – 30 June 2008)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Ivančić (7 July 2008 – 8 October 2008)
- Template:Flagicon Stjepan Ostojić (interim) (4 October 2008 – 13 October 2008)
- Template:Flagicon Robert Rubčić (13 October 2008 – 21 September 2009)
- Template:Flagicon Zoran Vulić (22 September 2009 – 10 November 2009)
- Template:Flagicon Nenad Gračan (10 November 2009 – 6 November 2010)
- Template:Flagicon Elvis Scoria (7 November 2010 – 16 June 2011)
- Template:Flagicon Alen Horvat (20 June 2011 – 4 October 2011)
- Template:Flagicon Ivo Ištuk (4 October 2011 – 18 March 2012)
- Template:Flagicon Dragan Skočić (19 March 2012 – 30 April 2012)
- Template:Flagicon Mladen Ivančić (interim) (30 April 2012 – 2 May 2012)
- Template:Flagicon Elvis Scoria (2 May 2012 – 24 February 2013)
- Template:Flagicon Matjaž Kek (27 February 2013 – 6 October 2018)
- Template:Flagicon Igor Bišćan (9 October 2018 – 22 September 2019)
- Template:Flagicon Simon Rožman (23 September 2019 – 27 February 2021)
- Template:Flagicon Goran Tomić (1 March 2021 – 27 May 2022)
- Template:Flagicon Dragan Tadić (20 June 2022 – 16 August 2022)
- Template:Flagicon Fausto Budicin (interim) (16 August 2022 – 5 September 2022)
- Template:Flagicon Serse Cosmi (5 September 2022 – 13 November 2022)
- Template:Flagicon Sergej Jakirović (30 November 2022 – 21 August 2023)
- Template:Flagicon Darko Raić-Sudar (interim) (22 August 2023 – 25 August 2023)
- Template:Flagicon Željko Sopić (25 August 2023 – 13 August 2024)
- Template:Flagicon Radomir Đalović (13 August 2024 – 1 September 2025)
- Template:Flagicon Víctor Sánchez (3 September 2025 – present)
Template:Div col end Source:<ref name=":4">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="nk-rijeka.hr">Template:Cite web</ref>
Winning managers
Presidents
- Antonio Carlo de Schlemmer 1918–1920
- Antonio Marcich 1920–1921
- Pietro Pasquali 1921–1923
- Clemente Marassi 1923–1925
- Nino Host-Venturi 1925–1926
- Giovanni Stiglich 1926–1928
- Ramiro Antonini 1928–1929
- Oscar Sperber 1929–1931
- Costanzo Delfino 1931–1936
- Alessandro Szemere 1936–1937
- Eugenio Zoncada 1937–1938
- Alessandro Andreanelli 1938–1939
- Giuseppe Ianetti 1939–1940
- Alesandro Andreanelli 1940–1941
- Carlo Descovich 1941–1942
- Andrea Gastaldi 1942–1945
- Luigi Sošić, 1946
- Giovanni Cucera, 1946–1948
- Ambrosio Stečić, 1948–1952
- Dr. Zdravko Kučić, 1953–1954
- Milorad Doričić, 1955–1956
- Milan Blažević, 1957–1959
- Stjepan Koren, 1960–1963
- Milorad Doričić, 1964–1969
- Vilim Mulc, 1969–1971
- Davor Sušanj, 1971
- Ljubo Španjol, 1972–1978
- Zvonko Poščić, 1978–1979
- Nikola Jurčević, 1980
- Marijan Glavan, 1981
- Davor Sušanj, 1981–1984
- Stjepko Gugić, 1985–1986
- Dragan Krčelić, 1986–1989
- Želimir Gruičić, 1989–1991
- Darko Čargonja, 1991–1992
- Josip Lokmer, 1993–1994
- Krsto Pavić, 1994–1995
- Hrvoje Šarinić, 1995–1996
- Franjo Šoda, 1996–1997
- Prof. Žarko Tomljanović, 1997–2000
- Hrvoje Šarinić, Dr. Ivan Vanja Frančišković, Robert Ježić, 2000
- Robert Ježić, 2000
- Sanjin Kirigin, 2000–2002
- Duško Grabovac, 2002–2003
- Robert Ježić, 2003–2008
- Dr. Ivan Vanja Frančišković, 2008–2009
- Ivan Turčić, 2009–2011
- Robert Komen, 2011–2012
- Damir Mišković, 2012–
Template:Div col end Source:<ref name=":4" /><ref name="nk-rijeka.hr" />
Seasons, statistics and records
Honours
Rijeka has won two Croatian First Football League titles, two Yugoslav Cups and seven Croatian Cups, one Italian Coppa Federale. In European competitions, the club has reached the quarter-final of the Cup Winners' Cup in 1979–80, UEFA Cup Round of 32 in 1984–85, and group stages of the UEFA Europa League in 2013–14, 2014–15, 2017–18 and 2020–21. The club has also won the 1977–78 Balkans Cup.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
| Type | Competition | Titles | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | Croatian First League | 2 | 2016–17, 2024–25 |
| Croatian Cup | 7 | 2004–05, 2005–06, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2024–25 | |
| Croatian Super Cup | 1 | 2014 |
Other titles
Yugoslavia
Italy
- Italian Coppa Federale
- Winners (1): 1927–28
- Italian North-East league
- Winners (1): 1923–24
- Runners-up: 1924–25
- Italian Third League
- Winners (1): 1940–41
- Julian March Championship
- Winners (2): 1921–22, 1922–23
Friuli and Julian March Cup
- Winners (1): 1922–23
Free State of Fiume
- Fiuman championship
- Winners (1): 1920–21
- Fiuman-Julian Cup
- Winners (1): 1921
Austria-Hungary
- Grazioli Cup
- Runners-up: 1919
- Balkans Cup
- The Atlantic Cup:
- Winners: 2017
Runners-up
Source:,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Last updated 29 May 2025.
European record
UEFA club competition record
| Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Last season played |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Champions League | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 14 | 2025–26 |
| UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League | 76 | 29 | 19 | 28 | 105 | 97 | 2025–26 |
| UEFA Conference League | 18 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 26 | 21 | 2025–26 |
| UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 1979–80 |
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2008 |
| Total | 118 | 43 | 30 | 45 | 153 | 146 |
Source: uefa.com, Fully up to date on 2 October 2025.
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against. Defunct competitions indicated in italics.
By ground
| Ground | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | 59 | 30 | 15 | 14 | 92 | 54 | +38 |
| Away | 59 | 13 | 15 | 31 | 61 | 92 | −31 |
| Total | 118 | 43 | 30 | 45 | 153 | 146 | +7 |
Source: uefa.com, Fully up to date on 2 October 2025.
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against.
Matches
Non-UEFA competitions are listed in italics.
Last updated on 2 October 2025.
Note: List includes matches played in competitions not endorsed by UEFA.
† Matches played at neutral ground in Ascoli and Pisa, Italy.
Player records
- Most appearances in UEFA club competitions: 38 appearances<ref name="uefa">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Top scorer in UEFA club competitions: 8 goals<ref name="uefa" />
UEFA coefficient
Correct as of 21 May 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
| Rank | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 133 | Template:Flagicon Rio Ave F.C. | 12.453 |
| 134 | Template:Flagicon FC Astana | 12.000 |
| 135 | Template:Flagicon HNK Rijeka | 12.000 |
| 136 | Template:Flagicon FK Žalgiris | 12.000 |
| 137 | Template:Flagicon FC Spartak Moscow | 12.000 |