FK Železiarne Podbrezová
Slovak football club
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FK Železiarne Podbrezová (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈʐelezɪɐrɲe ˈpɔdbrezɔʋaː]) is a Slovak football team, based in the village of Podbrezová.
Horehronci (People from Upper Hron Region)
as RTJ Podbrezová
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| Full name | Futbalový klub Železiarne Podbrezová | |||
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| Nicknames | Železiari (Ironmongers) Horehronci (People from Upper Hron Region) | |||
| Founded | 1920 as RTJ Podbrezová | |||
| Ground | ZELPO Aréna | |||
| Capacity | 4,061 | |||
| Owner(s) | Železiarne Podbrezová a.s.[1] 35% Stanislav Lobotka 35% Other investors 30% | |||
| President | Július Kriváň | |||
| Manager | Štefan Markulík | |||
| League | Slovak First Football League | |||
| 2025–26 | Slovak First Football League, 6th of 12 | |||
| Website | www | |||
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History
Podbrezová was formed in 1920 as RTJ Podbrezová. The club is also particularly famous for its youth program that has produced many Slovak talents over the years, including Juraj Kucka, Michal Breznaník, Róbert Pich, Peter Štyvar and Marek Bažík. Podbrezová has been cooperating with the Italian club Inter, in a worldwide social project – Inter Campus (2002–2008). Argentine midfielder Pablo Podio, who played for Podbrezová, is a product of the Inter Campus project. Major achievements in the history of the club include: second place in the I. liga in the 2007/2008 season and the semifinals of the Slovak Cup in the 2001/2002 season. In 2009–10, the club withdrew from the Slovak First League.[2]
Slovak First Football League promotion
In 2013–14, Podbrezová were promoted to the top flight of Slovak football for the first time in their history. The success was born under the leadership of coach Jaroslav Kentoš. The keys players were Vratislav Greško, Blažej Vaščák, Jozef Hanák, Michal Pančík and others.
Events timeline
Affiliated clubs
The following clubs are affiliated with Podbrezová:
Kardemir Karabükspor (2017–)[5]
FK Poprad (2021–)
FC Nordsjælland (2019–)- FK Pohronie (2022–)[6]
- Baník Kalinovo (2022–2024)[7][8]
Honours
Transfers
FK have produced numerous players that have gone on to represent the Slovak national football team. Over the last period there has been a steady increase of young players leaving Podbrezová after a few years of first-team football and moving on to play football in bigger Slovak clubs (Juraj Kucka to MFK Ružomberok[9] in 2007, Michal Breznaník to ŠK Slovan Bratislava[10] in 2007, Mahmudu Bajo to Dunajská Streda[11] in 2024, Jakub Kiwior to MŠK Žilina[12] in 2019) and European clubs of a higher standard (Peter Kováčik to Italian Como 1907[13] in 2024 and Roland Galčík and Radek Šiler to Portuguese Rio Ave F.C.[14][15] in 2026). The same year moved also Patrik Blahút and Richard Ludha to Czech league 1. FC Slovácko[16] and FK Teplice.[17]. The top transfer was agreed in 2024 when 20 years old forward Moses Cobnan moved to Russian FC Krasnodar for a fee €1.75 million.[18]
Record transfers
| Rank | Player | To | Fee | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  Moses Cobnan |  FC Krasnodar | €1.75 million | 2023[19] |
| 2. |  Radek Šiler |  Rio Ave | €1.6 million | 2026[20] |
| 3. |  Alasana Yirajang |  Slovan Bratislava | €1 million | 2025[21] |
| 4. | Filip Mielke | FC Hradec Králové | €700.000 | 2026[22] |
| 5. | Peter Kováčik |  Como 1907 | €600.000 | 2024[23] |
| 6. | Ridwan Sanusi | MŠK Žilina | €450.000 | 2025[24] |
| 7. | Mahmudu Bajo | Dunajská Streda | €350.000 | 2024[25] |
| 8. |  Jakub Kiwior | MŠK Žilina | €250.000 | 2019[26] |
| 9. |  Mark Assinor |  LNZ Cherkasy | €230.000 | 2024[27] |
*-unofficial fee
Sponsorship
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 1998–1999 | Puma | none |
| 1999–2001 | ATAK Sportswear | |
| 2001–2002 | NIKE | Železiarne Podbrezová |
| 2002–2004 | ŽP Trade | |
| 2004–2005 | Puma | none |
| 2005–2006 | NIKE | ŽP Trade |
| 2006–2007 | ALEA | none |
| 2007–2010 | Jako | Železiarne Podbrezová |
| 2010–2022 | Adidas | |
| 2022–present | Niké |
Club partners
source[28]
- Železiarne Podbrezová
- Zaninoni
- ŽDAS
- SLOVRUR
- Moravia Steel
- REA-S
- Pipex Italia
Current squad
As of 21 September 2026 Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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For recent transfers, see List of Slovak football transfers summer 2026
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.
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Staff
Current technical staff
- As of 6 July 2024
| Staff | Job title |
|---|---|
| Štefan Markulík |
Manager |
| Kamil Wilczek |
Assistant manager |
| Boris Godál |
Assistant manager |
 Dominic Rajna |
Assistant manager |
| Miroslav Poliaček |
General Manager |
| František Kunzo |
Team Leader |
| Miroslav Seman |
Goalkeeping coach |
| Ernest Caban |
Team Doctor |
| Richard Horňák |
Fitness coach |
| Dárius Kolodzej |
Masseur |
Club officials
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| President | Július Kriváň |
| Vice president | Marián Kurčík |
| Vice president | Vladimír Soták ml. |
Results
League and Cup history
Slovak League only (1993–present)
| Year | Division (name) | Position | Domestic cup | Top scorer (goals) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–04 | (III) 2. liga | 1 | Round 1 | ? |
| 2004–05 | (II) 1. liga | 4th | Round 1 | ? |
| 2005–06 | (II) 1. liga | 9/16 | Round 2 | ? |
| 2006–07 | (II) 1. liga | 8/12 | Round 1 | ? |
| 2007–08 | (II) 1. liga | 2/12 | Round 1 | Róbert Tomko (13) |
| 2008–09 | (II) 1. liga | 3/12 | Round 2 | ? |
| 2009–10 | (II) 1. liga | 12/12 | Round 2 | ? |
| 2010–11 | (III) 2. liga | 1/12 | Round 3 | ? |
| 2011–12 | (II) 2. liga | 2/12 | Round 2 | Hector Tubonemi (11) |
| 2012–13 | (II) 2. liga | 2/12 | Round 2 | Hector Tubonemi (12) |
| 2013–14 | (II) 2. liga | 1/12 | Round 2 | Blažej Vaščák (13) |
| 2014–15 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 11/12 | Round 3 | Blažej Vaščák (7) |
| 2015–16 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 8/12 | Round 4 | 4 players (5) |
| 2016–17 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 5/12 | Round 4 |  Endy Opoku (7) |
| 2017–18 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 9/12 | Round 5 | Endy Opoku (5) |
| 2018–19 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 12/12 | Round of 16 | Dávid Leško (8) |
| 2019–20 | (II) 2.liga | 4/16 | Round 3 | Martin Pribula (5) |
| 2020–21 | (II) 2.liga | 4/15 | Round 4 | Roland Galčík (11) |
| 2021–22 | (II) 2.liga | 1/16 | Round 4 | Daniel Pavúk (16) |
| 2022–23 | (I) Fortuna Liga | 4/12 | Semi-finals | Moses Cobnan (9) |
| 2023–24 | (I) Niké Liga | 6/12 | Semi-finals | Ridwan Sanusi (7) |
| 2024–25 | (I) Niké Liga | 6/12 | Round of 16 | Alasana Yirajang (9) |
| 2025–26 | (I) Niké Liga | 6/12 | Semi-finals | Radek Šiler (13) |
Player records
Most goals
| # | Nat. | Name | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
Roland Galčík | 50 |
| 2 | |
Daniel Pavúk | 34 |
| 3 | |
Peter Kováčik | 28 |
| 4 | |
Blažej Vaščák | 22 |
| 5 | |
Michal Breznaník | 21 |
Players whose name is listed in bold are still active.
Notable players
Had international caps for their respective countries
For full list, see Category:ŽP Šport Podbrezová players
Marius Alexe
Mahmudu Bajo- David Depetris
- Michal Faško
- Roland Galčík
- Vratislav Greško
- Filip Hlohovský
- Martin Chrien
- Juraj Chvátal
Jakub Kiwior- Peter Kováčik
- Ján Krivák
- Juraj Kucka
Milan Nemec- Branislav Niňaj
Kevor Palumets- Michal Pančík
Dejan Peševski- Štefan Rusnák
- Pavol Šafranko
Siradji Sani- Samuel Štefánik
- Peter Štyvar
Séverin Tatolna
Samson Tijani- Blažej Vaščák
- Mateusz Zachara
Notable managers
- Milan Nemec (1998–2001)
- Ladislav Kuna (2001–04)
- Anton Jánoš (15 August 2006 – 31 May 2008)
Raffaele Quaranta (1 June 2008 – 11 October 2010)- Jaroslav Kentoš (2011 – February 2015)
- Jozef Mores (February 2015 – June 2015)
- Zdenko Frťala (15 June 2015 – 22 September 2015)
- Marek Fabuľa (22 September 2015 – 25 April 2017)
- Karol Praženica (25 April 2017 - 20 September 2017)
- Marek Fabuľa (20 September 2017 – 21 November 2018)
- Gergely Geri (21 November 2018 – 4 January 2019)
- Vladimír Veselý (4 Jan 2019 – 26 August 2019)
- Jozef Mores (26 August 2019 – 6 March 2020)
- Martin Poljovka (6 March 2020 – 1 June 2020)
- Vladimír Cifranič (1 June 2020 – 4 December 2020)
- Mikuláš Radványi (17 December 2020 – 28 May 2021)
- Roman Skuhravý (28 May 2021 – 6 July 2024)
- Vladimír Cifranič (12 July 2024-2 September 2024)
- Štefan Markulík (2 September 2024-)