FC Torpedo Kutaisi
FC Torpedo Kutaisi
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FC Torpedo Kutaisi

FC Torpedo Kutaisi (Georgian: საფეხბურთო კლუბი ტორპედო ქუთაისი) is a Georgian professional football club based in Kutaisi, Georgia's third largest city. The team competes in the Erovnuli Liga, the first tier of the national football league system.

Being the all-time second most successful Georgian club, Torpedo have been a regular member of the top division apart from three seasons in the late 2000s. They have won the national league four times, the Georgian Cup five times and the Super Cup three times.

Torpedo play their home games at the Ramaz Shengelia Stadium, known until 2015 as the Givi Kiladze stadium.

FC Torpedo Kutaisi were founded in 1946 as a football club of Kutaisi Automobile Factory. In 1949, the club became the winner of the Georgian SSR Championship. In 1959, Torpedo merged with FC Locomotive Kutaisi, although preserved their name.

Three years later Torpedo Kutaisi took part in the Soviet Top League for the first time. Many famous Georgian football players began their career in this club, among them Revaz Dzodzuashvili, Anzor Kavazashvili, Sergo Kutivadze, Givi Nodia, Manuchar Machaidze, Murtaz Khurtsilava. In addition, when Dinamo Tbilisi won UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1980–81, five footballers were the ex-players of FC Torpedo Kutaisi - Tamaz Kostava, Otar Gabelia, Nodar Khizanishvili, Tengiz Sulakvelidze and Ramaz Shengelia.

Torpedo spent one season in the Soviet Second league in 1988. The club also was represented for twenty years in the First league and for 14 more seasons between 1971 and 1990 in the Top league, the first tier of the Soviet football.

When the Georgian National Championship started in 1990, the club changed its name into FC Kutaisi, but after three years restored the old name. The last years of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st were the most successful years in the club's history. During 1999–2002 the club won five domestic titles. Many players from "FC Torpedo Kutaisi" were represented in the Georgia national football team, including Valeri Abramidze, Sevasti Todua, Malkhaz Asatiani, Levan Silagadze, Revaz Kemoklidze. Besides, several famous managers such as Jemal Kherkhadze, David Kipiani, Revaz Dzodzuashvili, Otar Gabelia, Vladimir Gutsaev worked at the club both as a head coach and in the staff.

After the 2004–05 season, the three-times league champions and two-times cup winners went bankrupt. They sustained a heavy 5–0 defeat in their last game in Borisov, Belarus against BATE Borisov in the first qualifying round of 2005–06 UEFA Cup. Shortly afterwards, new football club "FC Kutaisi Torpedo" was founded, but not being the successor of FC Torpedo Kutaisi, they inherited no titles.[citation needed] "FC Kutaisi Torpedo" was participating in the Georgian Premier League during two seasons, 2005–06 and 2006–07, but due to financial reasons they left the top league and began playing in Pirveli Liga.

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