Club Sportiv Tunari, commonly known as CS Tunari, or simply as Tunari, is a Romanian professional football club based in Tunari, Ilfov County, currently competes in Liga II, the second tier of the Romanian football.
Founded in 1980, the club situated near Bucharest, was re-branded as CS Tunari in 2004.
CS Tunari was founded in 1980 under the name Arsenal Tunari. The name changed in 2004 after the club was forced to drop "Arsenal" due to copyright restrictions.[1][2] The name "Tunari" translates to "Gunners" in Romanian, and the commune’s coat of arms features a cannon—elements that inspired the original name as a tribute to the English football club Arsenal F.C. and its nickname, "The Gunners."
In 2018, the club updated its logo and colors, adopting a red-and-white scheme instead of the previous red-and-blue combination. Interestingly, the updated logo reintroduced the name "Arsenal," though the club itself did not revert to the original name. In a 2009 interview with sport.ro, club chairman Lucian Costache recounted an anecdote from 1996, when the club—still known as Arsenal Tunari—sent a letter to Arsenal F.C. requesting official kits. Unfortunately, no response ever arrived.[3]
Around the same period, a new stadium was built in the commune near Bucharest. In 2009, a place in Romania's third division was secured.
Over the years, CS Tunari has established itself as a consistent presence at the third tier, gradually improving its performances. The 2009–10 season ended with a 9th-place finish under the guidance of Ion Ion. The following season, Virgil Nițoi led the team[4] to 7th place. Challenging years unfolded under Ion Voicu's leadership,[5] with the team finishing 10th in 2011–12 and slipping to 13th in 2012–13, before Florin Vlădilă stepped in to take charge in December 2012.[6]
| Name | Period |
| Arsenal Tunari | 1980–2004 |
| CS Tunari | 2004–present |
From the summer of 2013 onward, with Virgil Nițoi returning, significant progress became evident. The club finished 8th in the 2013–14 season and climbed to 4th in the 2014–15 season. A tough 2015–16 campaign saw a drop to 12th under coach Florin Bratu,[7] who replaced Nițoi after the team lost its first six matches of the season. Bratu departed the following summer[8] and was succeeded by Tudorel Dumitru, who led the team to its best-ever finish at the time, securing 3rd place in the 2016–17 season, followed by a solid 7th-place finish in the 2017–18 season.
Ștefan Odoroabă coached the team[9] for the next three and a half seasons, achieving a 6th-place finish in the 2018–19 season, 4th in the 2019–20 season, and 5th in the 2020–21 season. Odoroabă left Tunari in March 2022 and was replaced by Marcel Abăluță, who led the team to an impressive 2nd place in the 2021–22 season, qualifying for the promotion play-offs.[10][11] After eliminating CS Afumați in the first round 5–2 on aggregate (3–2 at home and 2–0 away), the team lost the promotion in the second round to Progresul Spartac București, 1–7 on aggregate (0–4 at home and 1–3 away).
In the 2022–23 season, Valentin Negru was appointed as the new head coach,[12] but he left the club in November, with the team in 1st place. Assistant coach Alin Ilin took charge for the rest of the year. Gabriel Manu was hired in January 2023,[13] leading the team to its first-ever promotion to Liga II. The Gunners ended the season in 1st place in Series IV, nine points ahead of Popești-Leordeni. The promotion play-offs began with Farul Constanța II being eliminated (1–3 away and 4–0 at home), followed by a victory over Popești-Leordeni (1–2 away and 3–1 at home) in the final stage.[14]
In June 2023, Tunari appointed Florin Stângă as head coach, just two days after unexpectedly parting ways with Gabriel Manu.[15][16] Stângă led the team for six rounds before Ștefan Odoroabă replaced interim coach Alin Ilin in October 2023.[17][18] The Gunners finished 17th in the regular season of 2023–24 season and were placed in Group B of the play-out under the guidance of Dan Alexa, who replaced Odoroabă in March 2024.[19][20] However, multiple changes in the squad and coaching staff led to relegation, with Tunari finishing second to last in the group.[21][22] Tunari also qualified for the group stage of Cupa României after a 5–0 victory over third-division side Viitorul Ianca. The group stage featured matches against Universitatea Craiova (1–1), Voluntari (1–1), and Gloria Buzău (1–1), ending in 5th place out of 6 in Group D, resulting in elimination.
CS Tunari plays its home matches on the Comunal Stadium in Tunari, with a capacity of 1,000 seats. The stadium was renovated and expanded in 2004 for the sum of 400,000 lei, at that time approximately 84,000 €.[2] In 2017 the stadium was renovated again and the pitch was changed.[23]
During the 2023–24 season, Tunari Stadium underwent renovations, prompting the team to relocate their matches to the Central Stadium of the Romanian National Football Centre.[24]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Board of directors[edit]
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Current technical staff[edit]
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The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level and/or significant caps for CS Tunari.
Ion Ion (2009–2010) Virgil Nițoi (2010–2011) Ion Voicu (2011–2012) Florin Vlădilă (2013) Virgil Nițoi (2013–2015) Florin Bratu (2015–2016) Tudorel Dumitru (2016–2018) Ștefan Odoroabă (2018–2022) Marcel Abăluță (2022) Valentin Negru (2022) Alin Ilin (2022) interim Gabriel Manu (2023) Florin Stângă (2023) Alin Ilin (2022) interim Ștefan Odoroabă (2023–2024) Dan Alexa (2024–2025) Bogdan Pătrașcu (2025)
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