Levski Sofia (sports club) explained

Levski Sofia (bg|Левски София) is a Bulgarian sports club based in Sofia. It was founded in 1914. The club is named after Vasil Levski, the national hero of Bulgaria.

The club develops 30 types of sports. Its football team, PFC Levski Sofia, is its most popular section. Other important sections are BC Levski Sofia, the basketball team, and VC Levski Sofia, the volleyball team. Levski is the only Bulgarian club, and one of the few in Europe, to have won the European Champions' Cup in three different team sports – basketball, volleyball and athletics.

To date, Levski has reached 27 European Finals in total (won nine titles) – one EuroLeague, one CEV Champions League, two European Champion Clubs Cup (athletics) titles, two EuroCup titles, and three Balkan League titles; and was runner-up in (18 finals) – three CEV Champions League Finals, two European Champion Clubs Cup (athletics) Finals, six CEV Cup Winners' Cup Finals, one EuroCup Final, one CELA Cup Final, two Balkan League Finals, two Balkans Cup Finals, and one Intertoto Cup Ernst Thommen Final. The athletes of Levski have won almost 1,000 medals from Olympic Games, World Championships and European Championships,^[1] which makes Levski one of the most successful European sports clubs of all-time.

Football

See main article: PFC Levski Sofia.

Bulgarian A Group : 26

• 1933, 1937, 1942, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1965, 1968, 1970, 1974, 1977, 1979, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2009

Bulgarian Cup : 26

• 1942, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1967, 1970, 1971, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1984, 1986, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2022

Sofia Championship : 11

• 1923, 1924, 1925, 1929, 1933, 1937, 1942, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1948

Tsar's Cup / Cup of the Soviet Army / Cup of Bulgaria : 6

• 1933, 1937, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1988

Ulpia Serdika Cup : 4

• 1926, 1930, 1931, 1932

Bulgarian Supercup : 3

• 2005, 2007, 2009

Double : 13

• 1942, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1970, 1977, 1979, 1984, 1994, 2000, 2002, 2007

Treble : 4

• 1942, 1946, 1984, 2007

UEFA Europa League, UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1/4 Finals : 1969–70, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1986–87, 2005–06

UCL, UEL Group Stage : 2005–06, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2010–11

Balkans Cup Runners-Up : 1960–61, 1961–63

Intertoto Cup Ernst Thommen Runners-Up : 1981

Basketball

See main article: BC Levski Sofia.

Men

National Basketball League : 16

• 1942, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2001, 2014, 2018, 2021

Bulgarian Cup : 16

• 1969, 1971, 1972, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1993, 2001, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2023

Bulgarian Basketball Super Cup : 3

• 2018, 2019, 2023

Double : 5

• 1979, 1982, 1993, 2001, 2014

Treble : 1

• 2014

Balkan League : 3

• Winners : 2010, 2014, 2018

Women

Bulgarian Champions : 8

• 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1994

Bulgarian Cup : 13

• 1969, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1991

Double : 5

• 1980, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987

EuroLeague

• Winners : 1984

Ronchetti Cup / EuroCup

• Winners : 1978, 1979
  • Runners-Up : 1975

Volleyball

See main article: Levski Volley.

Men

Bulgarian Champions : 16

• 1945, 1959, 1980, 1985, 1992, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2024

Bulgarian Cup : 17

• 1960, 1966, 1968, 1972, 1980, 1983, 1987, 1989, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2014

Bulgarian Super Cup : 2

• 2023, 2024

Double : 7

• 1980, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006

CEV Cup Winners' Cup / CEV Cup

• Runners-Up : 6
  • 1975, 1979, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1989

Women

Bulgarian Champions : 28

• 1959, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1990, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2014

Bulgarian Cup : 27

• 1959, 1960, 1961, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1980, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2014, 2016

Double : 17

• 1959, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1980, 1990, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2014

CEV Champions League

• Winners : 1964
  • Runners-Up : 3
    • 1975, 1976, 1981

Hockey

See main article: HC Levski Sofia.

Bulgarian Hockey League : 13

• 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1999, 2003

Bulgarian Cup : 17

• 1968, 1974, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2005

Double : 8

• 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1999

Medals and athletes

Competition	width=85 align=center bgcolor=gold	Gold	width=85 align=center bgcolor=silver	Silver	width=85 align=center bgcolor=cc9966	Bronze	width=85 align=center	Total
	15	42	26	83
	107	107	156	370
	159	151	164	474
Total number of medals	281	300	346	927

Levski Sofia athletes:

Boyan Radev Enyu Valchev Ivanka Khristova Yanko Rusev Valentin Raychev Vania Gesheva Yordanka Donkova Lubomir Geraskov Tanyu Kiryakov

Daniel Petrov Mariya Grozdeva Georgi Markov Ivet Lalova Aleksandar Tomov Stanka Zlateva Serafim Barzakov Yordanka Blagoeva Radoslav Velikov

Maria Petrova Lilia Ignatova Anelia Ralenkova Petkana Makaveeva Atanas Golomeev Petar Stoychev Elitsa Yankova Georgi Mladenov

Supporters

Levski is the most popular club in Bulgaria.^[2] The club has various rivalries in the domestic competitions. Levski fans maintain a friendship with Lazio fans and have Bulgarian nationalist views.^[3]

European competitions history

Sport	Competition	Result	Year
		Runners-up	1961
Football		Runners-up	1963
Volleyball		Champions	1964
Basketball		Runners-up	1975
		Runners-up	1975
Volleyball		Runners-up	1975
Volleyball		Runners-up	1976
Basketball		Champions	1978
Volleyball		Runners-up	1979
	EuroCup	Champions	1979
Volleyball		Runners-up	1981
Football		Runners-up	1981
Volleyball		Runners-up	1982
Basketball		Champions	1984
Volleyball		Runners-up	1985
Volleyball		Runners-up	1987
Volleyball		Runners-up	1989
		Champions	1992
Athletics		Runners-up	1993
Athletics		Champions	1994
Athletics		Runners-up	1995
Wrestling	CELA Cup	Runners-up	2009
Basketball	Balkan League	Champions	2010
Basketball	Balkan League	Runners-up	2012
Basketball	Balkan League	Runners-up	2013
Basketball	Balkan League	Champions	2014
Basketball	Balkan League	Champions	2018

See also

• Bulgaria men's national volleyball team
• Bulgaria women's national volleyball team
• Bulgaria men's national basketball team
• Bulgaria women's national basketball team
• Bulgaria national football team
• Bulgaria men's national ice hockey team
• Bulgaria at the Olympics

External links

• Official club website

Notes and References

1. Web site: LEVSKI – Sport For All – EMCA . . 29 November 2020 . 26 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220526110158/http://www.multisportclubs.eu/index.php/members/9-teams/37-levski-sport-for-all . live .
2. Web site: Concentration of people supporting the most popular clubs in Europe . uefa.com . 21 November 2021 . 21 November 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211121203156/https://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Download/Tech/uefaorg/General/02/09/18/26/2091826_DOWNLOAD.pdf#page=41 . live .
3. Web site: LEVSKI SOFIA 100 YEARS CELEBRATION . ultras-tifo.net . 21 July 2022 . 21 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220721134149/https://www.ultras-tifo.net/photo-news/2573-levski-100anno.html . live .