Fotbal Club Ripensia Timișoara (Romanian pronunciation: [timiˈʃo̯ara]), commonly known as Ripensia Timișoara, or simply as Ripensia, is a Romanian professional football club based in Timișoara, Timiș County, which currently plays in Liga VI
The team was founded in 1928 by Lázár Kornél and folded twenty years later due to lack of funds.[1] However, Ripi was brought back to life and enrolled in the Liga VI, the sixth tier of the Romanian football league system, in 2012.[2]
Ripensia Timișoara was the first Romanian club to turn professional, and because of this status they were unable to compete in the national league until the 1932–33 season. After being granted permission to participate in the national system, the club soon became one of the best in the country, winning four national titles and two national cups in their short history.
The colors of the team are red and yellow.
It was founded in 1928 by Lázár Kornél, a famous promoter of football in the Banat region, and the former president of Chinezul Timișoara. The players came from Chinezul Timișoara, C.A.T. and Poli Timișoara. Vilmos Kertész coached the team from 1931 to 1932.[3][4] Due to its professional status, until 1932–1933 (the first season of the National League – Divizia A), the team and its players could not participate in official national competitions.
They were champions of the Romanian Football League in 1933, 1935, 1936, and 1938, with two Romanian Cup appearances, winning 3–2 over Universitatea Cluj in 1934 and 5–1 over Unirea Tricolor București in 1936. They were national vice-champions for 1933–34 and 1938–39. After World War II, due to financial problems, the communist sports organisation and controversial actions, Ripensia played in Divizia B and Divizia C. After 1948, without any support, it disappeared, merging with Electrica Timișoara. Their colours were red-yellow. Their home stadium was called Electrica (today UMT; the original wooden stand was demolished in 2004–2005). The greatest players in team history were:[weasel words]
In the 2012 the team was reestablished and competed in the municipal championship, they won it and promoted to Liga V. In Liga V they reached the first place in the 2013–2014 season and promoted to the next league Liga IV. Also they made a good impression in the 2013–14 Romanian Cup, where they defeated again Universitatea Cluj to reach the Last 16 of the cup making them the surprise of the cup. In the Last 16 they lost to Pandurii Târgu Jiu.
In the 2014–15 Liga IV season, Ripi had a very tough opponent, in the position of ASU Politehnica Timișoara, the fan-owned phoenix club formed after the dissolution of FC Politehnica Timișoara by its fans and finished only on the 2nd place.
Next season Ripensia had a perfect journey, won Liga IV – Timiș County and qualified for the promotion play-offs to Liga III. At the promotion play-off Ripensia met the champion of Hunedoara County, Hercules Lupeni, and they won without major difficulties, 7–0 on aggregate, thus ensuring promotion to the Liga III.[5]
2016–17 Liga III season was the first one for Ripi in the last over 60 years. The team had a very close fight for supremacy in the Seria IV against CSM Școlar Reșița, CSM Lugoj, Cetate Deva and Național Sebiș but in the end they won and promoted to Liga II after an absence of 69 years.[6]
The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level.
The players in bold were the top goalscorers in the division.
Ripensia played in the Mitropa Cup, an important inter-war football competition. In the 1938 season Ripensia knocked Italian giants AC Milan out of this competition. The Romanians won the first leg 3–0 at Bucharest, and lost the second leg 1–3. In the next round Ripensia was eliminated by Hungarian side of Ferencváros (1–4, 4–5).
