CSM Reșița

The club was founded on 16 May 1926 from a merger between local teams Clubul Sportiv and Societatea Sportivă Muncitorească, the new team was named SS UDR (Sociatatea Sportivă a Angajaților Uzinelor de Fier și Domeniile din Reșița – "Sports Society of Employees of the Factories and Domains from Reșița"), the first coach of the team being native Ernest Loukota who also helped at the merger, the main starting 11 in the club's first year of activity being: Ștefan Czinczer – Szilágyi, Rech – Bundy, Andresz, Pecsenovszky – Grosz, Pázler, Lakatos, Adalbert Deșu, Keller.^[1]

In the 1930–31 season, UDR won the Romanian West League and qualified to the national finals, where it defeated with 2–0 Societatea Gimnastică Sibiu in the final after a double scored by Eugen Lakatos, coach Loukota using the following 11: Carol Damacsek – Alexandru Pomacsek, Györi – Sinko, Sepi, Jozsef Bundi – Fibișanu, Eugen Lakatos, Silviu Ploeșteanu, Jozsef Kilianovics, Moise.^[1][2] In the following season, the club reached again the championship final, losing it with 3–0 in front of Venus București, this time coach Loukota used the following players: Carol Damacsek – Iosif Czako, Györi – Sinko, Sepi – Jozsef Bundi, Kilianovics – Tudor, Silviu Ploeșteanu, Eugen Lakatos, Moise, Keller.^[1][3]

After World War II and the advent of the Communist regime, professional football was forbidden, UDR merged with a local labor union team, Locomotiva and was renamed Oțelul (Steel) Reșița and after several further name changes, it was ultimately branded Metalul Reșița.^[1]

The 1950s were a period of slow decline for the club. By 1954, Metalul Reșița was playing in the Romanian second division, Divizia B, finishing the season in 7th place, however, the season also brought the club's second trophy, in the form of the 1954 Cupa României, this being the first time that a team from Divizia B had won the trophy after defeating five Divizia A teams, Știința Timișoara (6th place at the end of the 1954 Divizia A season) 5–1, Locomotiva Tg. Mureș (10th place) 4–0, Locomotiva Timișoara (4th place) 2–0, and CCA București (2nd place) 1–0 and a 2–0 victory in the final with Ștefan Szeleș scoring twice in the 30th and 40th minutes against Dinamo București (3rd place), coach Mihai Zsizsik using the following players in the final: Iosif Zarici – Emil Chirilă, Valentin Teodorescu, Eugen Potoceanu – Mihai Munteanu, Ștefan Apro – Iosif Jojart II, Petru Mioc, Ștefan Urcan, Petre Iovan (replaced by Vida in the 70th minute), Ștefan Szeleș.^{[1][4][5][6][7]}

After relegation, FCM Reșița spent more than a decade in the second division, competing in Series III, finishing 3rd in 1978–79, 7th in 1979–80, 6th in 1980–81, and 10th in 1981–82. Renamed CSM Reșița in 1982, the club placed 7th in 1982–83, followed by back-to-back 3rd-place finishes in 1983–84 and 1984–85. It then finished 8th in 1985–86, 5th in 1986–87, and 5th again in 1987–88, a season in which it also enjoyed a notable Cupa României run, reaching the Round of 16 before losing 0–2 to Victoria București. Reșița narrowly avoided relegation in 1988–89, finishing 14th and surviving on goal difference, before improving to 4th place in 1989–90 and finishing 11th in 1990–91.^[8]

In the 1991–92 season, under head coach Carol Oțil, Reșița won Series II of Divizia B, finishing ahead of UTA Arad, which was deducted eight points following a match-fixing scandal related to the 24th-round match between Unirea Alba Iulia and UTA Arad, known as the ‘fur coat affair’, allowing the Red and Blacks to secure promotion to Divizia A after fourteen seasons in the second division.^[9][10]

In the 1999–2000 season, Reșița finished 17th and were relegated once again to the second division.^[11]

In Divizia B, Reșița competed in Series II and finished 3rd in the 2000–01 season, but growing financial difficulties led to businessman Dinel Staicu, who also owned Universitatea Craiova, taking control of the club by late 2001, a period during which Reșița finished 6th in 2001–02 and 11th in 2002–03.^[1] In August 2003, Staicu relinquished control of CSM Reșița, which was taken over by the Vatra trade union from the Reșița Steelworks.^[12][13] The club finished 14th in Series III of the 2003–04 season and was relegated to Divizia C.^[1] In 2004, as financial difficulties persisted, the club was dissolved, and its senior squad and Divizia C place were taken over by Universitatea Craiova’s reserve team.^[13]

In 2005, football was re-established in the city after the third division side Universitatea Reșița acquired the Divizia B place of Tricotaje Ineu, leading to the formation of FCM (Fotbal Club Municipal) Reșița.^[14][15] The team finished 5th in Series III of the 2005–06 season, under head coach Alexandru Pelici, and reached the Round of 32 in the Cupa României, where it was eliminated 0–1 by Rapid București at Stadionul Mircea Chivu Stadium. Following the restructuring of the second tier, Reșița was moved to Series II, where it finished 12th in the 2006–07 season and 15th in the 2007–08 season, resulting in relegation. In the 2008–09 season of Liga III, Reșița competed in Series V but was excluded in October 2008 due to severe financial difficulties and was subsequently dissolved.^[16][17]

In the summer of 2009, the local Clubul Sportiv Școlar (School Sports Club) from Reșița established a senior team under the name FC Școlar Reșița, which was directly enrolled in the 2009–10 Liga III season by the Romanian Football Federation to fill vacant places created by teams withdrawing due to financial difficulties, finishing in 8th place under player-coach Lucian Dobre.^[18][19]

In the summer of 2010, the club was taken over by the Reșița Local Council and reorganised as a public institution, changing its name to CSM Școlar Reșița.^[19] It continued to compete in Series V of Liga III, finishing 8th in both the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons. In the summer of 2012, the club was renamed again, reverting to the historical name FCM Reșița, and appointed Gheorghe Barbu as the new head coach. However, he resigned after eight rounds and was replaced by Roco Sandu, who led the team to a 3rd-place finish in Series IV of the 2012–13 season.^[20][21]

In the summer of 2013, Damila Măciuca relocated to Reșița and was rebranded as Metalul Reșița, while the municipality of Reșița chose to support the new project. Following a 2013–14 season in which FCM Reșița finished 10th in the Series IV regular season and 8th after the series play-out stage, the club withdrew from Liga III due to the loss of financial support and was subsequently reformed in Liga IV Caraș-Severin County under the name CSM Școlar Reșița for the 2014–15 season, in which it finished as runners-up, two points behind Voința Lupac.^[22]

In 2015, relations between Metalul and the Municipality of Reșița cooled and the latter resumed its financial support for CSM Școlar. Metalul moved to Snagov in 2016 and was renamed a year later to Sportul Snagov. On the other hand, CSM Școlar was promoted back to Liga III at the end of the 2015–16 season, winning the Liga IV Caraș-Severin and the promotion play-off 6–1 away in the first leg and by forfeit in the second leg against Pandurii Cerneți, Mehedinți County winners.^[23][24] The squad, led by Dan Potocianu in the first half of the season and by Leontin Doană after the winter break, included, among others, Petruț, Domăneanț, Szijj, Banac, Covăsală, Coviț, Negrei, Costescu, Al. Ciucur, Breșneni, Bloju, Costachi, Liuba, V. Marcu, C. Doană, Țoțu, Beloescu, and Curelea.^[25][26]

In Liga III, Școlar Reșița competed under Leontin Doană and finished runners-up in Series IV in the 2016–17 season, just one point behind leaders Ripensia Timișoara. In the 2017–18 season, Roco Sandu was appointed as the new head coach.^[27] However, poor results led to his replacement by Daniel Oprița, who guided the team to another runners-up finish in Series IV, this time behind Șirineasa, and also led them to the Round of 32 of the Cupa României, where they faced Viitorul Constanța and lost 2–4.^[28][29]

In the 2018–19 season, Octavian Benga took charge of CSM Școlar Reșița, but after poor results that saw the Valea Domanului side drop from promotion contenders in Series IV closer to the relegation zone, he resigned after nine rounds and was replaced by Leontin Doană.^[30][31][32] Doană led the team to overcome the eight-point gap from before the winter break behind first-placed Șoimii Lipova, ultimately finishing two points ahead and securing promotion to the second tier after an eleven-year absence. The club also regained its traditional logo and name, being renamed CSM Reșița in the summer of 2019.^[33]

In the following campaign, Reșița reached the Round of 32 of the Cupa României, where it was eliminated by Universitatea Craiova after a 0–1 loss at Ion Oblemenco Stadium, with a lineup that included Zimmermann, L. Acka, Ehmann, Vasiu (Vlădia 67′), Banac, Săulescu, Danci, Cristea (Poiană 55′), Vădrariu, Dat (Cioablă 58′), and D. Ene.^[34] In the 2019–20 Liga II season, with the team in the relegation zone after sixteen rounds, Reșița parted ways with Leontin Doană, who was replaced by former Romanian international Dorinel Munteanu. Munteanu led the team to 15th place before the league was interrupted in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[35]

Munteanu left Reșița during the summer of 2020,^[36] and Alexandru Pelici took charge for the 2020–21 campaign, but resigned after eight rounds due to poor results.^[37][38] He was replaced by Alin Minteuan,^[39] who in turn stepped down before the final round of the regular season, in which the team finished in 17th place. Subsequently, Adrian Falub was appointed as head coach, and after placing second from bottom in Group B of the play-out stage, Reșița returned to the third tier after two seasons in Liga II.^[40]

After relegation, Reșița appointed former Romanian international Dan Alexa as head coach for the 2021–22 Liga III campaign, aiming for a quick return to the second tier.^[41][42] The team won Series VII, finishing ten points clear at the end of the regular season and extending the gap to twenty points after the series play-off stage ahead of 2nd-placed Deva. Reșița qualified for the promotion play-offs, where it eliminated Ghiroda in the first round (1–0 away and 1–1 at home).^[43] In the decisive tie for promotion, however, the team was eliminated by Dumbrăvița, losing 2–4 on penalties after a 0–0 away draw and a 1–1 result at home, ending a season in which they went unbeaten in regular time.^[44][45]

Alexa did not continue as head coach and was replaced by Călin Cheregi.^[46][47] Under Cheregi, the Rossoneri reached the play-off round of the Cupa României but were eliminated after a 0–4 defeat to Mioveni.^[48] During the 2022–23 Liga III season, they went on to win Series VIII and qualified for the promotion play-offs, where they eliminated Filiași in the first round (2–2 away and 5–0 at home).^[49] In the decisive tie for promotion, Reșița defeated Deva with two 3–2 victories, securing promotion to the second tier after two years.^[50][51]

In the 2023–24 campaign, Reșița had a poor start to the season, losing both of their opening Liga II matches, and was also unexpectedly eliminated in the third round of the Cupa României after a 0–1 defeat to third-tier side Phoenix Buziaș, after which Călin Cheregi resigned. Flavius Stoican was subsequently appointed as head coach and led the team to 10th place in the regular season and first place in Group A of the play-out stage.^[52][53]

Reșița had a strong 2024–25 campaign, finishing 5th in the regular season and advancing to the promotion play-off stage, where it eventually finished 6th. The team also reached the group stage of the Cupa României, won Group D, and advanced to the quarter-finals for the first time in twenty-five years, where it was defeated 0–4 by Hermannstadt. The squad included, among others, Dincă, Goga, Élton, Dudea, Erico, Dolghi, Bocșan, Chera, Salhi, Tucaliuc, Cioiu, Gașpăr, Negru, Jerdea, Doană, Lascu, Samaké, Florescu, Fărăgău, and R. Burlacu.^[54][55][56]

In the 2025–26 season, the Red and Blacks were eliminated in the third round of the Cupa României after a 0–1 defeat to Liga III side Știința Poli Timișoara. Flavius Stoican left Reșița after nearly three years in charge following a 1–3 home defeat to Corvinul Hunedoara and the failure to secure a place in the top-six promotion play-off. Stoican was replaced by former Reșița player and club legend Leontin Doană, who guided the team to a 3rd-place finish in Group B of the play-out, concluding a disappointing campaign.^{[57][58] [59]}

CSM Reșița plays its home matches at Mircea Chivu Stadium, a sports complex named after manager Mircea Chivu, who was also the father of player Cristian Chivu. With a capacity of 12,500 seats, the stadium is located in the Domanului Valley neighbourhood. It was opened in the 1920s and has been renovated several times, most recently in 2018 and 2020.^[60][61]

The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level and/or significant caps for CSM Reșița.