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CFR Cluj
Fotbal Club CFR 1907 Cluj, commonly known as CFR Cluj (Romanian pronunciation: [t͡ʃefeˌre ˈkluʒ] or [ˌt͡ʃefere ˈkluʒ]) or simply CFR, is a Romanian professional football club based in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County, that competes in the Liga I. Founded as Kolozsvári Vasutas Sport Club in 1907, when Transylvania was part of Austria-Hungary, the club's current name is an acronym for Căile Ferate Române ("Romanian Railways").
Before its promotion to Liga I in 2004, CFR Cluj primarily competed in the lower divisions. Since then, the club has increasingly relied on foreign players to achieve success. In the 2005–06 season, CFR participated in its first European competition, the Intertoto Cup, finishing as runners-up. With substantial financial backing from former owner Árpád Pászkány, the club won its first national championship in the 2007–08 season, ending a 17-year dominance by capital-based teams.
Between 2017 and 2022, "the White and Burgundies" won five consecutive Liga I championships. The club has secured 17 domestic trophies, all in the 21st century: eight Liga I titles, five Cupa României, and four Supercupa României. In addition to becoming a prominent force in Romanian football, CFR qualified three times each for the UEFA Champions League and Europa League group stages, and twice for the Europa Conference League group stages.
CFR shares a fierce rivalry with local club Universitatea Cluj, with their matches known as Derbiul Clujului. In recent years, the club has also developed less intense rivalries, notably with FCSB, as they frequently compete for the Liga I title.
CFR was founded in 1907, when the city of Cluj-Napoca (then Kolozsvár) was part of Austria-Hungary, under the name Kolozsvári Vasutas Sport Club ("Kolozsvár Railway Sports Club"). From 1907 to 1910, the team played in the municipal championship. However, the club did not have any notable achievements during this time. In 1911, the team won the newly organized Championship of Transylvania. The club consistently finished in second place in that competition between 1911 and 1914, a competition that was interrupted because of World War I. After the war, Transylvania joined Romania and the club accordingly changed its name to CFR Cluj, maintaining its links with the national rail organisation, this time the Romanian state railway carrier, Căile Ferate Române, hence the acronym. They went on to win two regional titles, in 1918–19 and 1919–20.
Between 1920 and 1934 the club did not have any notable achievements. Between 1934 and 1936, CFR played for two seasons in the Divizia B, ranking sixth in the 1934–35 season and eighth in the 1935–36 season. In 1936, CFR was relegated to the Divizia C, where the team played for two seasons, finishing second and 4th, respectively. After World War II, CFR played for one season in the Divizia C, earning the promotion to the Divizia B. Before the start of the 1947–48 season, the team merged with another local club, Ferar Cluj, and played in the Divizia A for the very first time in history. Unfortunately, the team lasted only two years in the first league and would not play there again for another 20 years. In 1960, another merger, this time with Rapid Cluj resulted in CSM Cluj. In 1964, the team's name was changed to Clujeana. In that same year, the club's junior team won the national championship. Three years later, the team's name was reversed yet again to CFR Cluj.
In 1969, CFR finished first in Divizia B with 40 points, five more than their rival, Politehnica Timișoara. The conclusive game of that season was a 1–1 draw with Politehnica. Politehnica had a 1–0 lead at half-time, but CFR came back with a fine header.
During the summer of 1969, CFR Cluj advanced to Divizia A under the leadership of coach Constantin Rădulescu. Rădulescu was originally from southern Romania, but he grew to manhood in the atmosphere of Transylvania. Before coaching, he had played for CFR and another well-known local team, Universitatea Cluj (or U Cluj), during the 1940s. In the 1969–70 first league championship, CFR made its debut with a 2–0 victory over ASA Târgu Mureș. The next few games did not go as well; although there was a 1–0 win to Politehnica Iași, there were 2 losses to Steaua București (1–3) and Dinamo București (0–2). These and other defeats were a factor in the team's supposed downhill slide. However, the following spring CFR bounced back with a win over ASA Târgu Mureș (1–0), after a goal from Octavian Ionescu, and averted relegation.
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CFR Cluj
Fotbal Club CFR 1907 Cluj, commonly known as CFR Cluj (Romanian pronunciation: [t͡ʃefeˌre ˈkluʒ] or [ˌt͡ʃefere ˈkluʒ]) or simply CFR, is a Romanian professional football club based in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County, that competes in the Liga I. Founded as Kolozsvári Vasutas Sport Club in 1907, when Transylvania was part of Austria-Hungary, the club's current name is an acronym for Căile Ferate Române ("Romanian Railways").
Before its promotion to Liga I in 2004, CFR Cluj primarily competed in the lower divisions. Since then, the club has increasingly relied on foreign players to achieve success. In the 2005–06 season, CFR participated in its first European competition, the Intertoto Cup, finishing as runners-up. With substantial financial backing from former owner Árpád Pászkány, the club won its first national championship in the 2007–08 season, ending a 17-year dominance by capital-based teams.
Between 2017 and 2022, "the White and Burgundies" won five consecutive Liga I championships. The club has secured 17 domestic trophies, all in the 21st century: eight Liga I titles, five Cupa României, and four Supercupa României. In addition to becoming a prominent force in Romanian football, CFR qualified three times each for the UEFA Champions League and Europa League group stages, and twice for the Europa Conference League group stages.
CFR shares a fierce rivalry with local club Universitatea Cluj, with their matches known as Derbiul Clujului. In recent years, the club has also developed less intense rivalries, notably with FCSB, as they frequently compete for the Liga I title.
CFR was founded in 1907, when the city of Cluj-Napoca (then Kolozsvár) was part of Austria-Hungary, under the name Kolozsvári Vasutas Sport Club ("Kolozsvár Railway Sports Club"). From 1907 to 1910, the team played in the municipal championship. However, the club did not have any notable achievements during this time. In 1911, the team won the newly organized Championship of Transylvania. The club consistently finished in second place in that competition between 1911 and 1914, a competition that was interrupted because of World War I. After the war, Transylvania joined Romania and the club accordingly changed its name to CFR Cluj, maintaining its links with the national rail organisation, this time the Romanian state railway carrier, Căile Ferate Române, hence the acronym. They went on to win two regional titles, in 1918–19 and 1919–20.
Between 1920 and 1934 the club did not have any notable achievements. Between 1934 and 1936, CFR played for two seasons in the Divizia B, ranking sixth in the 1934–35 season and eighth in the 1935–36 season. In 1936, CFR was relegated to the Divizia C, where the team played for two seasons, finishing second and 4th, respectively. After World War II, CFR played for one season in the Divizia C, earning the promotion to the Divizia B. Before the start of the 1947–48 season, the team merged with another local club, Ferar Cluj, and played in the Divizia A for the very first time in history. Unfortunately, the team lasted only two years in the first league and would not play there again for another 20 years. In 1960, another merger, this time with Rapid Cluj resulted in CSM Cluj. In 1964, the team's name was changed to Clujeana. In that same year, the club's junior team won the national championship. Three years later, the team's name was reversed yet again to CFR Cluj.
In 1969, CFR finished first in Divizia B with 40 points, five more than their rival, Politehnica Timișoara. The conclusive game of that season was a 1–1 draw with Politehnica. Politehnica had a 1–0 lead at half-time, but CFR came back with a fine header.
During the summer of 1969, CFR Cluj advanced to Divizia A under the leadership of coach Constantin Rădulescu. Rădulescu was originally from southern Romania, but he grew to manhood in the atmosphere of Transylvania. Before coaching, he had played for CFR and another well-known local team, Universitatea Cluj (or U Cluj), during the 1940s. In the 1969–70 first league championship, CFR made its debut with a 2–0 victory over ASA Târgu Mureș. The next few games did not go as well; although there was a 1–0 win to Politehnica Iași, there were 2 losses to Steaua București (1–3) and Dinamo București (0–2). These and other defeats were a factor in the team's supposed downhill slide. However, the following spring CFR bounced back with a win over ASA Târgu Mureș (1–0), after a goal from Octavian Ionescu, and averted relegation.