| Full name | Football Club Apolonia Fier | |||
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| Founded | 1925 | |||
| Ground | Stadiumi Loni Papuçiu, Fier, Albania (Capacity: 12,000) |
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| Owner | Koço Kokëdhima | |||
| Chairman | Endri Puka | |||
| Manager | Eqerem Memushi | |||
| League | Albanian First Division | |||
| 2009/10 | 11th (Albanian Superliga) | |||
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Klubi Sportiv Apolonia Fier (KS Apolonia Fier) is an Albanian football club based in Fier. The club was founded as "KS Apollonia" in 1925 - a name derived from the nearby ruined ancient city of Apollonia. They play at the Stadiumi Loni Papuçiu. The club has managed to win its only trophy in 1998, winning the Albanian Cup.
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In the early 1920s, in the city of Fier started the organised sportive activities. Most of the city's youngsters were students and used to come back in summer for their holidays but also for the football game. The game spread immediately throughout the city's neighboorhoods and in almost every corner there were kids playing football. The first official match to be played in the city of Fier was the one held on 17 July 1924 between the clubs of Fier and Vlorë, an activity organised from the "Bashkimi Cultural Society". In the summer of 1925, a group of students founded Shoqeria Sportive Apollonia which would be among the first football clubs in the city. During 1928 it became a professional club and re-organised its structure by adding the club's regulation and the board of directors, which would plan every activity and match. After the foundation of the Albanian Football Association football became more organised and many activities were held. One of the most important activities was the Muzakia Cup with the participation of clubs from Fier, Vlorë, Berat and Lushnje, The Muzakia Cup was won by KS Apollonia. Other football clubs created in Fier were: Myzeqeja SK (1927), Sport Klub Fieri (1930) and Ballkanikja SK (1930).
In 1946 Apolonia was re-opened as a multi-sports club. Many sports were practised from the club such as: basketball, volleyball, athletics, hypism etc. However football remained the most popular sport. In 1958 a new stadium was built in Fier to host only the football matches played from the club. The stadium was named "Loni Papuciu" and had a capacity of 6000 attendants. The club had its peak from 1985–1990 when it was managed from coach Vangjel Capo. The club managed to achieve its best result in the Albanian First Division finishing third. This placement gave the team the chance to participate in the UEFA Cup first round where it was eliminated from AJ Auxerre.
After the fall of communism just like in every club in Albania many players left to continue their career abroad. In 1992 the football branch was separated from the main club and continued as KF Apolonia Fier under chairman Koço Kokëdhima. The club started its revival in 1997 after making some impressive appearances to end in the fifth place. The next season the club would finish in a disappointing seventh place but they managed to reach for the first and only time in their history the final of the Albanian Cup. The club would face in the final their arch-rivals KS Lushnja. Apolonia managed to win the game with 1–0 and bring home the only cup. After some good years in the Albanian Superliga, the club got relegated in 2002–03. Apolonia stayed in the Second Division until their promotion in 2005–06 when they finished as runners-up. Romanian Silviu Dumitrescu, who has a lot of experience, was the new coach for the 2006–07 season. On 10 October 2006, Dumitrescu resigned and was replaced by Dhimitër Papuçiu. Even though he started with some good results the club couldn't manage to leave the last place of the table. Papuçiu was replaced by Andrea Marko at the start of 2007. But their Superliga season would be difficult and they would finish bottom of the table. In the next season after a hard-fought championship they managed to get promoted back to the Superliga. This season under manager Esad Karishik they have managed to establish themselves in the middle of the table.This year KS Apolonia has found a talented player whose name is Aldo Capo.
The president of the Albanian Football Association, Armand Duka announced on a visit to Fier on 23 November 2010 that plans are under way to build a new stadium that will be shared by both Apolonia Fier and Flamurtari Vlorë. The stadium will seat between 15,000 and 20,000 people, making it the second biggest stadium in Albania behind the new under construction Qemal Stafa Stadium. The stadium will be located between the two neighbouring cities near the 'Vlorë Fier Bridge' and is due to be completed by 2013. The shareholders that have taken responsibility in building the new stadium are the Vlorë Council, Fier Council, Apolonia Fier, Flamurtari Vlorë and the Albanian Football Association, who have all promised to invest 20% of the costs each.[1]
Apollonia's biggest rivals are KS Lushnja and the match between the two clubs is referred as "The Myzeqe Derby". The rivalry between the two clubs became more tense when in 1998 the two clus faced each other in the final of the Albanian Cup. Other rivals include Flamurtari, KF Çlirimi second team of Fieri and KS Bylis Ballsh.
The club's name comes from the nearby ancient city of Apollonia. In the badge are shown the antic ruins of the city in a red background. The club's traditional colours are white and green and this is the reason why they are usually referred to as "Bardhegjelberit" (English:"White and Green").
As of December 2008
| Season | Competition | Round | Country | Club | Home | Away |
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| 1989–90 | UEFA Cup | 1R | AJ Auxerre | 0-3 | 0-5 | |
| 1998–99 | UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | QR | KRC Genk | 1-5 | 0-4 |
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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