Piast Gliwice

Piast Gliwice
Full nameGliwicki Klub Sportowy Piast Gliwice
Nickname(s)Piastunki (the Custodians, the Keepers)
Founded18 June 1945; 79 years ago (1945-06-18)
GroundPiotr Wieczorek Stadium
Capacity9,913
ChairmanŁukasz Lewiński
ManagerAleksandar Vuković
LeagueEkstraklasa
2023–24Ekstraklasa, 10th of 18
Websitewww.piast-gliwice.eu
Current season
Piast Gliwice Vice-Champion of Poland celebration in 2016

Gliwicki Klub Sportowy Piast Gliwice (pronounced [ɡlʲiˈvʲit͡sʲ.kʲi klup spɔrˈtɔ.vɨ pʲjasd ɡlʲiˈvʲi.t͡sɛ][A]) is a Polish professional football club based in Gliwice. In the 2018–19 season, Piast won its first Polish championship. As of 2024–25, it competes in the Ekstraklasa, Poland's top division.

History

The club was founded in June 1945 by the Poles who had been forced to leave their homes in former eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union (present-day Ukraine). The club's name comes from the Piast dynasty, which ruled Poland from its beginnings as an independent state in the 10th century, until 1370, and in the city itself until 1532.

In 1949, five local teams were merged with Piast, and the team was renamed to Metal Piast Gliwice, and then to Stal Gliwice, before its original name Piast Gliwice was restored in 1955. Piast continued to play their matches on ul. Robotniczej. In 1964, Piast merged with GKS Gliwice, a team formed in 1956 from a fusion of the three other local clubs, and the name was changed to GKS Piast Gliwice. Since the 1950s, Piast mostly played in the Second Division. During that period, Piast have twice (1978, 1983) managed to reach the final of the Polish Cup, losing on both occasions.

In the 1990s, due to financial difficulties, the team was rebuilt from the Klasa B (7th tier), achieving four consecutive promotions from the seventh to the third tier in 1997–2001, and afterwards it won promotion to the II liga (second tier) in 2003. Piast played as many as 33 seasons in the Polish Second Division, before finally being promoted to the Ekstraklasa in 2008. Having played two seasons in the top division, the club was relegated in 2010 to come back in 2012. It is the first football team in Poland to gain promotion from the 7th tier to the Ekstraklasa (Polish top tier of football) and later to the European club competition.[1]

In the 2010s, Piast enjoyed its greatest success, being runners-up in the 2015–16 Ekstraklasa and winning its first Polish championship in the 2018–19 season.

There is also a futsal department of Piast Gliwice, which competes in the Futsal Ekstraklasa (top division). Its home venue is the Gliwice Arena. It won its first Polish Championship in the 2021–22 season.[2]

Naming history

  • (18.06.1945) – KS Piast Gliwice
  • (23.05.1946) – KSM Piast Gliwice
  • (September/November 1947) – ZKSM Piast Gliwice
  • (05.03.1949) – ZS Metal Piast Gliwice (merged with ZKSM Huta Łabędy, ZKS Walcownia Łabędy, RKS Jedność Rudziniec, *RKS PZS Gliwice and ZKS Silesia Gliwice)
  • (01.11.1949) – ZKS Stal Gliwice
  • (11.03.1951) – ZKS Stal GZUT Gliwice
  • (15.03.1955) – ZKS Piast Gliwice
  • (20.01.1957) – KS Piast Gliwice
  • (01.01.1961) – SKS Piast Gliwice
  • (15.03.1964) – GKS Piast Gliwice (merged with GKS Gliwice and KS Metal Gliwice)
  • (17.10.1983) – MC-W GKS Piast Gliwice
  • (12.09.1989) – CWKS Piast-Bumar Gliwice
  • (1989) – [merged with ZTS Łabędy (Gliwice)]
  • (1990) – CWKS Bumar-Piast Gliwice
  • (04.04.1990) – KS Bumar Gliwice
  • (11.05.1990) – KS Bumar Łabędy (Gliwice)
  • (01.07.1990) – KS Bumar Gliwice
  • (1991) – KS Piast-Bumar Gliwice
  • (01.07.1992) – MC-W GKS Piast Gliwice
  • (01.08.1995) – KS Bojków Gliwice (merged with KS Bojków Gliwice)
  • (15.09.1995) – KS Piast Bojków Gliwice
  • (02.09.1996) – GKS Piast Gliwice

Crest

Gliwice city coat of arms from which the club crest is derived

The club's crest is derived from the coat of arms of the city of Gliwice, and thus contains the Piast Eagle of the Upper Silesian line of the medieval Polish Piast dynasty, which ruled the city until 1532.

Honours

Seasons

European record

Results

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 2Q Azerbaijan Qarabağ FK 2–2 1–2 3–4 (a.e.t.)
2016–17 UEFA Europa League 2Q Sweden IFK Göteborg 0–3 0–0 0–3
2019–20 UEFA Champions League 1Q Belarus BATE Borisov 1−2 1−1 2−3
UEFA Europa League 2Q Latvia Riga FC 3−2 1−2 4−4
2020–21 UEFA Europa League 1Q Belarus Dinamo Minsk 2−0
2Q Austria Hartberg 3–2
3Q Denmark Copenhagen 0−3
Notes
  • 1Q: First qualifying round
  • 2Q: Second qualifying round
  • 3Q: Third qualifying round

UEFA Team ranking

As of 30 September 2021.[3]

Rank Team Points
301 Lithuania Kauno Žalgiris 3.500
302 Bosnia and Herzegovina Široki Brijeg 3.500
303 Poland Piast Gliwice 3.500
304 Azerbaijan Gabala 3.500
305 Republic of Ireland Cork City 3.500

Stadium

Piotr Wieczorek Stadium

Piast plays their home games at the 10,000 capacity Piotr Wieczorek Stadium in Gliwice.

Supporters

Piast have a friendship with fans of Belarusian club BATE Borisov since 2011. The friendship started when BATE fans on their way to a Champions League match in Copenhagen stopped for a Piast game against local rivals GKS Katowice. The Piast fans then went to Alkmaar to support BATE versus AZ. After another visit for a Champions League game against Sturm Graz, the friendship became official and both sets of fans regularly visit each other.[4]

Piast's major rivals are Górnik Zabrze, with whom they contest the local derby.[5][6] The stadiums are located just a few kilometres from each other. Other rivals are local teams Ruch Chorzów, GKS Katowice and the two Bytom clubs, Szombierki and Polonia.

Players

Current squad

As of 7 September 2024[7]

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
3 DF Spain ESP Miguel Muñoz
4 DF Poland POL Jakub Czerwiński (captain)
5 DF Slovakia SVK Tomáš Huk
6 MF Poland POL Michał Chrapek
7 MF Spain ESP Jorge Félix
9 FW Poland POL Fabian Piasecki
10 MF Poland POL Patryk Dziczek
12 GK Poland POL Bartłomiej Jelonek
14 DF Portugal POR Miguel Nóbrega (on loan from Rio Ave)
15 DF Poland POL Levis Pitan
17 MF Poland POL Filip Karbowy
20 MF Poland POL Grzegorz Tomasiewicz
22 DF Poland POL Tomasz Mokwa
23 MF Poland POL Szczepan Mucha
No. Pos. Nation Player
25 DF Poland POL Piotr Liszewski
26 GK Slovakia SVK František Plach
29 DF Poland POL Igor Drapiński
30 MF Poland POL Miłosz Szczepański
31 DF Poland POL Oskar Leśniak
33 GK Poland POL Karol Szymański
36 DF Poland POL Jakub Lewicki
37 DF Austria AUT Constantin Reiner
39 FW Poland POL Maciej Rosołek
70 FW Cyprus CYP Andreas Katsantonis
77 DF Poland POL Arkadiusz Pyrka
79 GK Poland POL Dawid Rychta
92 MF Poland POL Damian Kądzior
96 MF North Macedonia MKD Tihomir Kostadinov

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 MF Ukraine UKR Sergiy Krykun (at Stal Mielec until 30 June 2025)
67 MF Poland POL Jakub Niedbała (at Skra Częstochowa until 30 June 2025)
No. Pos. Nation Player
99 FW Poland POL Piotr Urbański (at Pogoń Grodzisk Mazowiecki until 30 June 2025)
FW Poland POL Marcel Bykowski (at Kotwica Kołobrzeg until 30 June 2025)

Retired numbers

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
21 MF Spain ESP Gerard Badía (2014–21)

Former players

Had international caps for their respective countries.


Managers

Notes

  1. ^ In isolation, Piast is pronounced [pʲjast]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Kapitan Piasta awansował z nim od B-klasy do ekstraklasy" (in Polish). Sport.pl. 2008-05-27. Archived from the original on 2019-12-28. Retrieved 2013-06-08.
  2. ^ "Piast Gliwice po raz pierwszy mistrzem Polski w futsalu". Rzeczpospolita (in Polish). 22 May 2022. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  3. ^ "Club coefficients | UEFA Coefficients". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 2019-11-14. Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  4. ^ Kuczyński, Tomasz. "Sztama GieKSy z Banikiem, Ruchu z Atletico, Piasta z BATE. Czy to ma sens? [SŁYNNE SZTAMY]". dziennikzachodni.pl. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Piast Gliwice - Górnik Zabrze 3:2. Festiwal goli w śląskich derbach [ZDJĘCIA]". sport.pl. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  6. ^ SG, JU. "Piast Gliwice - Górnik Zabrze. Dziś derby przy Okrzei WYNIK NA ŻYWO GDZIE W TV, TRANSMISJA ONLINE". gazetawroclawska.pl. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  7. ^ "Piast Gliwice current squad" (in Polish). Piast Gliwice. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  8. ^ "Lech Poznań – Strona Oficjalna. Specjalista od awansów – Jacek Zieliński" (in Polish). Lechpoznan.pl. Archived from the original on 2013-05-26. Retrieved 2013-06-08.
  9. ^ "Waldemar Fornalik trenerem Piasta" (in Polish). 90minut. 19 September 2017. Archived from the original on 26 February 2018. Retrieved 20 September 2017.

50°18′23.69″N 18°41′45.42″E / 50.3065806°N 18.6959500°E / 50.3065806; 18.6959500