Kapaz PFK

Kapaz PFK
Full nameKapaz Professional Football Club
Nickname(s)Dağlılar (The Mountaineers)
Yenilməz Armada (Undefeatable Armada)
Qərblilər (The Westerners)
Sarı-Göylər (The Yellow-Blues)
Founded1959; 65 years ago (1959)
GroundGanja City Stadium, Ganja, Azerbaijan
Capacity26,120
ManagerAzer Baghirov
LeagueAzerbaijan Premier League
2023–24Azerbaijan Premier League, 9 th of 10
Websitewww.kapazpfc.az//
Current season

Kapaz PFK (Azerbaijani: Kəpəz Peşəkar Futbol Klubu, pronounced [cæˈpæs]), is an Azerbaijani football club based in Ganja, which competes in the Azerbaijan Premier League, the highest tier of Azerbaijan football. The club was founded as Toxucu in 1959. They have won the Azerbaijani Championship 3 times and the Azerbaijani Football Cup 4 times.

The team's colours are yellow and blue. The club plays at Ganja City Stadium which has a capacity of 26,120.[1]

History

Soviet era (1959–1991)

Kapaz PFC was founded in 1959 as Toxucu and played in the Soviet First League. However, the team were promoted to the Soviet Top League in 1968 as Dinamo Kirovobad after finishing first in the Soviet First League the previous season.[2] The club has been known as Taraggi and Toxucu during its history, however it became famous in more modern times as Kapaz when it was renamed in 1982.[3][4]

Post-Soviet era (1993–1999)

In 1991, the club was once again renamed as Kapaz after Azerbaijan's independence from the Soviet Union and won the Azerbaijan Premier League title three times.[5] At the end of the 1997–98 season, Kapaz finished the season unbeaten. Out of 26 games, the club's final record for the 1997–1998 league campaign stood at 22 wins, 4 draws and 0 losses. To date this has not been matched by any team in a single season in an Azerbaijani league division.[6]

Azerbaijan's longest league winning run belongs to Kapaz PFC.

Kapaz PFC remain the only team to win the league undefeated and, for ten months until 23 September 1998, opponents could not even take a point off them. Two of the 22 matches were technical victories awarded to Käpäz.[7]

Financial struggles (2002–present)

Kapaz, one of the most prominent football clubs in Azerbaijan, entered financial difficulties during the late 2000s. Since 2002, the club has found themselves slipping further and further down the table, which has been influenced by financial difficulties.[8][9] The financial collapse of Kapaz resulted in a great deal of discussion within Azerbaijani football.[10] Major Azerbaijani companies, reportedly "concerned at the current uncertainty about the club's future and its backers" declined to provide Kapaz with the corporate banking facilities it needed.[11][12]

In 2005, the club's new owners decided to rename the club Ganja despite facing criticism from the club's fans.[13][14] In 2007, the club was excluded from Azerbaijan Premier League due to financial struggles. However, after help from the AFFA and local communities, the club participated in the Azerbaijan First Division during the 2009–10 season.[15][16] In 2010 they became champions of the Azerbaijan First Division finishing the season with 47 points and promoted to the Azerbaijan Premier League.[16] In 2011, it was decided that the club's name will be changed back to its old name of Kapaz PFC.[17][18]

In April 2013, Kapaz were relegated to the Azerbaijan First Division. The ended the season in 12th place in the Azerbaijan Premier League, the club's lowest ever league finish.[19][20] The club's financial situation didn't improve, which caused a lot of players to leave the club.[21]

On 18 November 2017, Shahin Diniyev resigned as manager[22] with Yunis Hüseynov being appointed as his replacement 2 days later on 20 November 2017.[23]

For the 2022/23 Azerbaijani Premier League season, an expansion of the league to 10 teams was implemented. As there are only five independent football clubs in the first division, and FK Zaqatala, Qaradag Lokbatan and MOIK Baku declined to play in the Premier league for financial reasons, Kapaz and Turan Tovuz were promoted for next season.

League and cup history

Season Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Domestic Cup
1992 1st 5th 36 23 8 5 98 29 54 1/8 Finals
1993 1st 4th 18 13 4 1 48 13 30 First round
1993–94 1st 3rd 30 20 7 3 74 25 47 Winners
1994–95 1st 1st 24 19 4 1 71 19 42 Semi-finals
1995–96 1st 3rd 20 9 5 6 34 21 32 Quarter-finals
1996–97 1st 5th 30 18 4 8 59 26 58 Winners
1997–98 1st 1st 26 22 4 0 67 10 70 Winners
1998–99 1st 1st 36 26 5 5 94 24 83 Quarter-finals
1999–00 1st 2nd 22 14 2 6 46 24 44 Winners
2000–01 1st 8th 20 8 1 11 34 29 25 Quarter-finals
2001–02 1st 5th 32 14 5 13 51 50 47 Semi-finals
2003–04 1st 11th 26 6 5 15 22 45 23 Quarter-finals
2004–05 1st 9th 34 11 9 14 37 37 42 1/8 Finals
2005–06 1st 10th 26 7 7 12 35 46 28 1/8 Finals
2009–10 2nd 1st 22 4 5 3 51 15 47 1/8 Finals
2010–11 1st 9th 32 8 12 12 33 37 36 1/8 Finals
2011–12 1st 10th 32 9 5 18 35 55 32 Quarter-finals
2012–13 1st 12th 32 5 4 23 22 64 19 1/8 Finals
2013–14 2nd 13th 30 7 4 19 29 37 25 Second round
2014–15 2nd 9th 30 10 8 12 37 37 38 did not enter
2015–16 1st 5th 36 15 11 10 48 40 56 Second round
2016–17 1st 5th 28 9 9 10 24 27 36 Quarter-finals
2017–18 1st 8th 28 3 5 20 18 47 14 Quarter-finals
2018–19 2nd 11th 26 5 7 14 21 40 22 First round
2019–20 2nd 8 12 5 3 4 14 13 18 First round
2020–21 2nd 8 27 7 7 13 30 38 28 Quarterfinal
2021–22 2nd 6 24 9 9 6 35 31 36 First round
2022-23 1st 8 36 6 13 17 34 62 31 Quarterfinal

European history

As of match played 20 July 2016
Competition Pld W D L GF GA +/-
UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League 8 1 1 6 2 19 –17
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 2 0 0 2 0 2 –2
UEFA Champions League 4 1 0 3 4 9 –5
Total 14 2 1 11 6 30 –24
Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
1995–96 UEFA Cup PR Austria Austria Wien 0–4 1–5 1–9
1997–98 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1Q Latvia Dinaburg Daugavpils 0–1 0–1 0–2
1998–99 UEFA Champions League 1Q Poland ŁKS Łódź 1–3 1–4 2–7
1999–00 UEFA Champions League 1Q North Macedonia Sloga Jugomagnat 2–1 0–1 2–2
2000–01 UEFA Cup 1Q Turkey Antalyaspor 0–2 0–5 0–7
2016–17 UEFA Europa League 1Q Moldova Dacia Chișinău 0–0 1–0 1–0
2Q Austria Admira Wacker 0–2 0–1 0–3

Supporters

Khamsa Supporters Club

The club have one of the biggest number of supporters in Azerbaijan alongside Neftçi, Khazar Lankaran and Qarabağ.[24] Amongst all Azerbaijani professional football clubs, Kapaz PFC have the highest average fan attendance at their home games. According to official statistics for the first half of 2015–16 season, Kapaz PFC ranked first in fan attendance at nearly 15,000 fans per home game. This was almost triple that of their nearest rival.[25][26]

The 2015–16 seasons attendance record was set in Ganja, as 20,400 Kapaz fans attended home game against Qarabag FC on February 14, 2016[27] The fanbase is large and generally loyal and like most major Azerbaijani football clubs, Kapaz have a number of domestic supporters' clubs, including the Khamsa Supporters Club, which works closely with the club and maintains a more independent line.[28][29] The club's most popular celebrity supporters are the likes of Olympic wrestling champion Toghrul Asgarov.[30]

Shirt sponsors and kit manufacturers

Years Manufacturer Sponsor
2010 – 2013 Germany Adidas Azerbaijan Nakhchivan Automobile Plant
2013 – 2016 Azerbaijan Gəncə 4000
2016 – 2017 England Umbro
2017 – 2018 United States Nike
2018 – 2022 Italy Givova
2022 – Spain Joma

Honours

Azerbaijan

USSR

Players

For a list of all former and current Kapaz PFC players with a Wikipedia article, see Category:Kapaz PFC players. Azerbaijani teams are limited to nine players without Azerbaijani citizenship. The squad list includes only the principal nationality of each player; several non-European players on the squad have dual citizenship with an EU country.

Current squad

As of 12 October 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Portugal POR Rógerio
2 DF Azerbaijan AZE Ilkin Qirtimov
3 MF Mali MLI Mahamadou Ba
5 DF Azerbaijan AZE Rauf Hüseynli
6 DF Azerbaijan AZE Nemat Musayev
7 DF Azerbaijan AZE Ehtiram Shahverdiyev
8 MF Azerbaijan AZE Elmir Taghiyev
9 FW Brazil BRA Pachu
10 FW Spain ESP Karim L'Koucha
11 FW Azerbaijan AZE Orkhan Aliyev
12 DF Azerbaijan AZE Turan Manafov
15 MF Azerbaijan AZE Javad Karimov
17 MF Azerbaijan AZE Umid Samadov
18 GK Azerbaijan AZE Elgün Bayramov
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 FW Mali MLI Lassana N'Diaye
20 MF Azerbaijan AZE Mahir Hasanov
21 MF Azerbaijan AZE Jamal Jafarov
22 GK Azerbaijan AZE Mammad Hüseynov
26 MF Angola ANG Paná
28 FW Albania ALB Redon Mihana
29 DF Portugal POR Diogo Verdasca
44 FW Azerbaijan AZE Nihat Faraci
70 FW Azerbaijan AZE Nijat Suleymanov
77 FW Brazil BRA João Braga
78 DF Belarus BLR Yegor Khvalko
80 FW Azerbaijan AZE Tural Rzayev
99 MF Azerbaijan AZE Ali Samadov

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
11 FW Azerbaijan AZE Elnur Jafarov (at Imishli)

Managers

Managers in Soviet League

  • Soviet Union Georgia (country) Isay Abramashvili
  • Soviet Union Azerbaijan Sabir Mammadov

Managers in modern history

Anniversary goals in the Azerbaijan Championship

On September 2, 2024, during their 651st match, "Kapaz" scored their 1000th goal in the Azerbaijani championships.[31] This goal came in the 5th round of the 2024/2025 Azerbaijan Premier League season, in a match against "Sabah" held at the Tovuz City Stadium. The goal was scored by Viktor Braga. In the same match, "Kapaz" also scored their 1001st goal, but the game ended with a 2:3 victory for "Sabah." With this goal, "Kapaz" became the third team in Azerbaijani championship history to score 1000 or more goals, joining "Qarabağ" and "Neftçi".[31]

References

  1. ^ Ganja City Stadium
  2. ^ "Кяпаз Гянджа on Wildstat.ru" (in Russian). wildstat.ru. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  3. ^ Полностью сформировался состав вновь возвратившегося в футбол азербайджанского клуба "Гянджа" Archived 2011-07-06 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian)
  4. ^ "Azerbaycan çempionatlarının rekordçusu "KEPEZ"in möhteşem tarixi" (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 3 July 2011. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  5. ^ "Футбольный клуб "Кяпяз" предпочел называться "Гянджой"". Day.az. 9 February 2005. Archived from the original on 23 September 2005. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  6. ^ "Годы независимости. Успехи Нефтчи, Кяпаза, Шамкира, и французский позор". Azerisport.com. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  7. ^ "Europe's longest domestic winning streaks". Archived from the original on 2016-09-01. Retrieved 2016-09-22.
  8. ^ "Mehman Allahverdiyev: "İsgəndər Cavadov Gəncəyə lazım deyil"". xemsefans.com (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Gəncə futbol ictimaiyyəti İsgəndər Cavadova qarşı çıxdı! (BƏYANAT)". Sportinfo.az (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 3 September 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  10. ^ Четыре причины, по которым Кяпаз не возродился. Day.az (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2013-11-05. Retrieved 2013-09-03.
  11. ^ Товуз и Гянджа – две потери азербайджанского футбола. Azerisport.com (in Russian). Archived from the original on 10 June 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  12. ^ Fataliyev, Rustam. "Почему в Гяндже "умер" футбол?". Zerkalo.az. Archived from the original on 25 April 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  13. ^ Nihat. ""Gəncə", yoxsa "Kəpəz"?" (in Azerbaijani). futbol plus newspaper. Retrieved 4 August 2010.[permanent dead link‍]
  14. ^ "Мехман Аллахвердиев: "Все достижения гянджинцев связаны с именем именно этой команды – "Кяпаз"". sport24.az. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  15. ^ Magsad (6 February 2009). "Футбольный клуб "Гянджа" вновь будет участвовать в чемпионате Азербайджана". Day.az. Archived from the original on 2009-02-11. Retrieved 2010-08-07.
  16. ^ a b “Gəncə”nin növbəti mövsüm I divizionda çıxış etməsi dəqiqləşdi Archived 2009-11-01 at the Wayback Machine (in Azerbaijani)
  17. ^ "Гянджа сменила название". Azerisport.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  18. ^ "Gəncə klublarının adı dəyişdirildi". Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
  19. ^ Четыре причины, по которым Кяпаз не возродился. Azerisport.com (in Russian). Archived from the original on 24 April 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  20. ^ "10 по 4". Azerifootball.com (in Russian). Archived from the original on 19 March 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  21. ^ ""Kəpəz" BİABIRÇI durumda: futbolçular yuyunmağa su, yeməyə çörək tapmırlar". rekord.az (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 28 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
  22. ^ "Şahin Diniyev istefa verdi". kapazpfc.az (in Azerbaijani). Kapaz PFK. 18 November 2017. Archived from the original on 21 November 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  23. ^ "Yunis Hüseynov baş məşqçi təyin edildi". kapazpfc.az (in Azerbaijani). Kapaz PFK. 20 November 2017. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  24. ^ Ali, Ulvi. "Gəncənin ənənəsi, Lənkəranın çılğın azarkeşi var (ARAŞDIRMA)". penalti.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 17 September 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  25. ^ "Peşəkar Futbol Liqası". www.pfl.az. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  26. ^ Azerisport.com. "Кяпаз – неоспоримый лидер". Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  27. ^ Vital, Elan. "<span style=Premyer Liqada yeni rekord". Komanda.az. Archived from the original on 18 October 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  28. ^ ""Xəmsə" rəhbərindən ŞOK ittihamlar". Apasport.az (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 3 September 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  29. ^ "Xəmsə" fan-klubu: "İskəndər Cavadovu kuratorluqdan azad edin!"". Korner.az (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 6 September 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  30. ^ "Toğrul Əsgərov azarkeşlik etdiyi klubumuzun adını açıqladı". awf-az.org (in Azerbaijani). Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
  31. ^ a b ""Kəpəz" Azərbaycan çempionatlarında 1000-ci qolunu vurub". Report İnformasiya Agentliyi (in Azerbaijani). 2024-09-02.