Valur

Valur
Full name Knattspyrnufélagið Valur
Nickname(s) Valsarar
Founded 11 May 1911
Ground Hlíðarendi
Reykjavík
Iceland
Capacity 3,000
Club Chairman Björn Zoëga
Manager Ólafur Jóhannesson
League Úrvalsdeild
2014 5th

Knattspyrnufélagið Valur (English: Falcon Football Club) is an Icelandic athletic club based in Reykjavík, Iceland. It celebrated its 100th birthday in May 2011. The club is situated close to the city centre, in the traditional east side of town, on the former farmland of Hlíðarendi. The club was originally formed as part of the local YMCA to play association football, but later incorporated handball and basketball. The club is the country's most prolific, looking at the national and cup titles amongst both men and women in the three biggest local ball sports: football, handball and basketball.[1] Valur has a famous handball section, that reached the EHF Champions League final in 1980. It has won the Icelandic league 22 times, more than any other N1 deildin team.

History

The club was founded on 11 May 1911, as a subdivision of KFUM, the Icelandic YMCA. Later the same year its name changed to Valur, which is an Icelandic word for gyrfalcon. In 1930 the club won its first national title, and it has been amongst the best football teams in the country ever since. In 1939 Valur bought the farmland of Hlíðarendi which retains its name even today, where they currently practice and play, and where they now have a full-fledged football field and an indoor arena. Originally Valur played only football, but around 1940 the club got involved in more sports, first team handball where they won the first national title and also reached the final of the EHF Champions League in 1980, and later skiing. In the post-war era (1948), a women's handball division was started at Valur and in the 1970s a women's football division. In 1970, Körfuknattleiksfélag Reykjavíkur (Reykjavík Basketball Club, KFR) joined Valur and became their basketball division.[2]

Stadia

The grounds at Hlíðarendi were completely restructured in the years between 2004 and 2007 and Valur currently play their home games at Vodafonevöllurinn ("The Vodafone Field"), and the handball games in the new Vodafonehöllin ("The Vodafone Hall"), the first section of the new grounds to be utilized. The new football pitch was used for the first time in the 2008 season. Reconstruction of Hlíðarendi will then be finalized with an indoor football pitch.

In June 2007 the club signed a 5 year sponsorship deal with Vodafone.[3]

Club honours

Men's football
  • 1930, 1933, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1940, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1956, 1966, 1967, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1985, 1987, 2007
  • 1965, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 2005
  • 2005, 2008
Women's football
  • 1978, 1986, 1988, 1989, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
  • 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1995, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011
Men's handball
  • 1940, 1941, 1942, 1944, 1947, 1948, 1951, 1955, 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2007
  • 1974, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2008, 2009, 2011
  • 2009
  • Final 1980
Women's handball
  • 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1983, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014
  • 1988, 1993, 2000, 2012, 2013, 2014
Men's basketball
  • 1980, 1983
  • 1980, 1981, 1983

Players

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Iceland GK Fjalar Þorgeirsson
2 Sweden DF Billy Berntsson
3 Scotland MF Iain Williamson
4 Iceland MF Sigurður Egill Lárusson
2 Iceland DF Hilmar Þór Hilmarsson
7 Iceland MF Haukur Páll Sigurðsson
8 Iceland MF Kristinn Ingi Halldórsson
10 Iceland MF Kristinn Freyr Sigurðsson
11 Iceland FW Andri Sveinn Geirsson
14 Iceland MF Gunnar Gunnarsson
16 Iceland MF Halldór Hermann Jónsson
20 Iceland MF Indriði Áki Þorláksson
22 The Gambia DF Matarr Jobe
No. Position Player
23 Iceland MF Andri Fannar Stefánsson
25 Iceland GK Ásgeir Þór Magnússon
27 Iceland DF Andri Sigurðsson
28 Iceland FW Haukur Ásberg Hilmarsson
29 Iceland FW Ragnar Þór Gunnarsson
29 Iceland DF Tómas Aron Tómasson
30 Iceland FW Guðni Rúnar Ólafsson
31 Iceland MF Breki Bjarnason
37 Iceland DF Bjarni Ólafur Eiríksson
Iceland GK Anton Ari Einarsson
Iceland MF Þórður Steinar Hreiðarsson
Denmark FW Patrick Pedersen

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player

Coaches

  • Iceland Guðmundur H. Pétursson (1930)
  • Iceland Reidar Sörensen (1933–35)
  • Scotland Murdo MacDougall (1935–37)
  • Scotland Murdo MacDougall & Scotland Robert Jack (1937–38)
  • Scotland Murdo MacDougall (1938)
  • Scotland Joe Devine (1939), (1948)
  • Iceland Hermann Hermannsson (1955)
  • Iceland Óli B. Jónsson (1967–31 Dec 1968)
  • Soviet Union Yuri Illichev (July 1, 1973–June 30, 1974), (July 1, 1976–June 30, 1978)
  • Hungary Nemes Gyula (1978–79)
  • Germany Volker Hofferbert (1980)
  • Germany Klaus-Jürgen Hilpert (1982)
  • Germany Claus Peter (1982–83)
  • Scotland Ian Ross (Jan 1, 1984–Dec 31, 1987)
  • Iceland Hörður Helgason (Jan 1, 1988–Aug 1, 1989)

References

  1. ↑ "Saga - Knattspyrnufélagið Valur" (in Icelandic). valur.is. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  2. ↑ "Saga - Knattspyrnufélagið Valur" (in Icelandic). valur.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  3. ↑ "Valsmenn kynna ný íþróttamannvirki" (in Icelandic). ruv.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Knattspyrnudeild - Titlar" (in Icelandic). valur.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Handknattleiksdeild - Titlar" (in Icelandic). valur.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "HSÍ meistaraskrár" (in Icelandic). hsi.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  7. ↑ "Körfuknattleiksdeild - Titlar" (in Icelandic). valur.is. Retrieved 2009-10-04.

External links