Previously until 2008 FC Sumy name carried by two clubs as a provisional name. First it appeared in Ukraine in 1995 when FC SBTS Sumy was renamed and in 1996 changed its name again to Ahroservis Sumy folding after the season. In 1998 the Krasnopillia forestry Yavir was relocated to Sumy and at first named as Yavir-Sumy, but already in 1999 it was renamed again as Spartak Sumy. This club in 2002 carried name of FC Sumy after being merged with Frunzenets-Liha-99, but already next year it changed back to Spartak and in 2006 folded.
In 2008 the revived Krasnopillia forestry team Yavir was brought to Sumy again changing its name to FC Sumy. That team competed until 2019 and for its logo used a coat of arms of Sumy Oblast.
The club plays at the Sumy Oblast central stadium, Yuvileiny Stadium, that was completed in 2001 and has 25,830 spectator seats. It did cost the investors over 50 million euros to construct, making it the most expensive and largest stadium that any Ukrainian Second League club uses.
Brief history
FC Yavir Krasnopillia
FC Sumy's predecessor, FC Yavir Krasnopillia, was established back in 1982 at the Krasnopillia Forestry and competed at regional competitions of Sumy Oblast. In 1991 the club entered the republican amateur competitions. After dissolution of the Soviet Union, the club was admitted to the Ukrainian Transitional League. Yavir Krasnopillia became a champion of the 1994–95 Ukrainian Second League and was promoted to the First League.
After the main team of the Sumy Oblast, FC Ahrotekhservis Sumy, was relegated out of the Second League in 1996, there were talks to revive football in Sumy. On the initiative of the regional government in 1998 Yavir was transferred to the regional center and renamed as Yavir-Sumy. Later it was transformed into FC Spartak Sumy. With that the main city stadium, formerly Spartak Stadium was finally finished and renamed as Yuvileinyi Stadium.
In 2000 Yavir Krasnopillia was revived in its home town and restarted its participation in regional competitions, while Spartak Sumy competed in the First League. In 2002 Yavir again was admitted to the Second League. In 2006 Spartak Sumy went bankrupt and was dissolved. Again there surfaced talks about bringing big football back to Sumy. In 2008 the new Yavir was again moved to Sumy.
FC Sumy / PFC Sumy
The city of Sumy for quite some time used to have its own football teams during the Soviet period, such as Spartak, Frunzenets, and others which eventually were disbanded. The "FC Sumy" football project was another attempt to reestablish the football tradition in the city.
FC Sumy played in the vastly superior Yuvileiny Stadium which can hold 25,830 spectators.
In the fall of 2008 they changed their name once again to FC Sumy. They play in the yellow and green colors of their former stadium Kolos, which can accommodate up to 3,000 spectators. After the 2009–10 Ukrainian Second League season the club again found itself in financial distress and failed attestation, which was followed by their license being withdrawn by the PFL.[2] On 16 June 2010 it was announced that the club is being sponsored by the Russian billionaire Konstantin Grigorishin (through "Sumy Engineering").[3] In July 2010 FC Sumy were readmitted to the Ukrainian Second League – please refer to 2010–11 Ukrainian Second League for details.
In June 2017 it was announced that "Sumy Engineering" transferred its corporate rights on the club to the Romny-based company "Ahrobiznes TSK".[4] Ahrobiznes TSK has its own football club since 2014 that was playing at amateur and regional levels.[5]
In April 2018 the local news media announced a sudden death of director of Romny Ahrobiznes and a member of regional council.[6][7] On 15 June 2018 FC Ahrobiznes TSK Romny announced that it is dissolved due to financial difficulties.[8]
On 13 August 2018 head coach of PFC Sumy Zolotnytskyi announced that the club has salary debts to players and is forced to get relocated to Okhtyrka[9] which team recently was dissolved. In October PFC Sumy acknowledged that it has problems with financing, in addition earlier this month it was accused in match-fixing.[10]
PFC Sumy received new ownership during winter break of the 2018–19 season in the face of Serhiy Vashchenko who earlier that season was supposed to become the owner of Kobra Kharkiv.[12][13][14][15][16] The new head coach was announced also former head coach of Kobra, Oleksandr Oliynyk.[13][17] According to the former club's director Anatoliy Boiko, on 1 December 2018 PFC Sumy did not have any players on contract.[13] On 11 April 2019, the FFU Control and Disciplinary Committee adopted its decision to strip the club of professional status and exclude the club from any competitions that it is participating currently or in the future.[18] However the club has a right to file an appeal. Additional separate sanctions will be also applied against the club's playing and administrative personnel. On 14 April 2019, the chairman of the FFU committee of ethics and fair play Francesco Baranka noted that PFC Sumy has earned some 10 million euros in match fixing.[19] More to it, Ukrainian coach Oleksandr Sevidov who held post of head coach consultant in PFC Sumy and previously managed FC Illichivets Mariupol received a lifetime disqualification.[20]
On 1 October 2019 there appeared some information that the club has intentions to resume its participation in football competitions for the 2020–21 season.[21]
On 10 October 2019 the chief editor of magazine "Futbol" Artem Frankov informed the UAF Committee of Appeals cancelled the decision of the UAF Control and Disciplinary Committee in regards to PFC Sumy.[22]
Club names and crests
1999–2008: Futbol'nyi Klub "Yavir" Krasnopillya (Ukrainian: Футбольний Клуб "Явір" Краснопілля) (Football Club Yavir Krasnopillya)
2008–2010: Futbol'nyi Klub "Sumy" (Ukrainian: Футбольний Клуб "Суми") (Football Club Sumy)
2010–2019: Profesiynyi Futbol'nyi Klub "Sumy" (Ukrainian: Професійний Футбольний Клуб "Суми") (Professional Football Club Sumy)
