Football in Kosovo is governed by theFootball Federation of Kosovo, which was created in 1946 (80 years ago) (1946), as a branch of theYugoslav Football Association.Prishtina is the club from Kosovo with most participations in theYugoslav First League. Football is the most popular sport in Kosovo. TheKosovo Superleague is the top division of football in Kosovo. The division was set up in 1945 as a regional league within theYugoslav football league system.
In 2008,Kosovo declared its independence fromSerbia. Until 2016, membership inUEFA andFIFA had been denied due to Kosovo's disputed recognition as an independent state. However, Kosovo was also not a member of theNF Board, which represents non-FIFA territories, including unrepresented cultural groups and unrecognized states. Some football clubs, especially fromNorth Kosovo, refuse to enter the Republic of Kosovo's institutions and continue to be part of theFootball Association of Serbia. On 3 May 2016, Kosovo became the 55th member of UEFA after a 28–24 vote in their favour, and on 13 May 2016, Kosovo gained FIFA membership after a 141–23 vote in their favour.
On 29 November 1942, Kosovo for the first time in its history played afriendly match as part of the celebrations for the 30th anniversary of the Independence of Albania againstTirana.[a][2][3][1]
On 8 November 1967, Kosovo, for the first time asautonomous province ofSFR Yugoslavia, played a friendly match againstYugoslavia and the match ended with a 3–3 home draw. For Yugoslavia this match was a pre-preparation before theUEFA Euro 1968 qualifying match againstAlbania.[3][1]
Eight years after the match against Yugoslavia, Kosovo in 1975 participated for the first and last time in the Brotherhood and Unity Tournament, which was held inPristina andPrizren, where they won in all four matches of this tournament againstMontenegro (2–0),Bosnia and Herzegovina (2–1),Slovenia (2–0) andMacedonia (1–0) and took first place, also its first and sole success under Yugoslavia for Kosovo.[3][1]
| Year | Round | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Brotherhood and Unity Tournament | Winner | 1st | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Total | Best: Winner | 1/1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
In September 2012,Albania internationalLorik Cana, along with Swiss internationalsGranit Xhaka,Valon Behrami andXherdan Shaqiri, all of them with Kosovo Albanian origin, wrote a declaration to FIFA PresidentSepp Blatter, asking him to allow Kosovo to play friendly matches. The declaration was also signed by eight other Albanian footballers hailing from Kosovo:Ahmed Januzi,Alban Meha,Armend Dallku,Burim Kukeli,Etrit Berisha,Fatmire Bajramaj,Lorik Cana,Mërgim Mavraj andSamir Ujkani.[4]On 6 February 2013, FIFA decided to allow Kosovan club teams to play friendly games against clubs from countries whose national teams were members of FIFA.[5] However, it was stipulated that Kosovan clubs and teams could not display national symbols such as the Kosovan flag, emblem, etc., or play the Kosovan anthem. On 5 March 2014, the Kosovan football team was allowed by FIFA to play itsfirst international friendly match, against Haiti. This match ended in a 0–0 draw.[6]After the match against Haiti, six more matches followed in 2014, againstTurkey,Senegal,Albania,Equatorial Guinea andOman respectively. Kosovo would secure their first win ever in an international football match after beating Oman 1–0 with a goal fromAlbert Bunjaku.[7]
In September 2015, at an UEFA Executive Committee meeting inMalta, the request from Kosovo for admission in UEFA was scheduled for deliberation in the next Ordinary Congress, to be held inBudapest.[8] On 3 May 2016, at the Ordinary Congress, Kosovo was accepted intoUEFA after members voted 28–24 in favour of Kosovo.[9][10] Ten days later, Kosovo was accepted inFIFA during their 66th Congress inMexico, with 141 votes in favour and 23 against.[11]
Kosovo began to make their debut in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification, inGroup I where Kosovo was assigned withCroatia,Finland,Iceland,Turkey andUkraine.[12] Kosovo created its first major surprise, by drawing against the host Finland with a 1–1 draw, thanks to a penalty scored byValon Berisha,[13] but this it turned to be the lone point of Kosovo during the qualification, as the team lost the remaining games and finished last. Despite that Kosovo had some better results during this Period, they were able to turn an 0–2 result around asAtdhe Nuhiu were able to score a goal also in the 49th Minute but it was offside, butin the 53rd Minute he were able to close the result, despite that the Dardanians whould still lose this Match at the end.[14]
After a disappointing 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification, Kosovo would than go on to be pretty successful at the2018–19 UEFA Nations League in which they finished in first place inGroup D, in League D in which they facedAzerbaijan,Faroe Islands andMalta. Kosovo secured thea promotion after notably beating Azerbaijan at home with 4–0 in the last game. Kosovo finished the league unbeaten (with four wins and two draws) and secured theirfor themselves aplay-off spot forin theUEFA Euro 2020.[15] After the successful Nations League encounter, Kosovo entered theUEFA Euro 2020 qualifying inGroup A facingEngland,Czech Republic,Bulgaria andMontenegro respectively.[16] Kosovo was able to upset the opponents after managing their first win againstBulgaria away inSofia with 2–3,[17] followed by a surprising win against theCzech Republic with 2–1 at theFadil Vokrri Stadium in Prishtina.[18] Though the game againstEngland away saw Kosovo taking an early lead in the match to surprise, by a goal fromValon Berisha, they went on to lose 3–5 at the end of the match ending the longest unbeaten run of 15 matches in the football history of Kosovo.[19] In the following match, Kosovo would win once more this time defeatingMontenegro with 2–0.[20] After that, they faced the Czech Republic away. Despite a surprising lead by a header fromAtdhe Nuhiu they were not able to hold on the result and eventually lose close with 2-1 the decider for theUEFA Euro 2020 campaign. Kosovo finished their qualifying campaign in third place with eleven points.[21] In theUEFA Euro 2020 qualifying play-offs Kosovo facedNorth Macedonia in theToše Proeski Arena inSkopje. The match itself was very close but North Macedonia would win this match unfortunately, ending Kosovo's dreams for a debut participation at theUEFA Euro 2020 for them.[22]
The most popular sport in Kosovo isfootball. The playing of football inKosovo is documented since at least 1914. However, only inIn 1922 were the two first football clubs were formed,: FC Gjakova andFC Prishtina. Until 1926 the clubs competed within the several levels of theBelgrade Football Subassociation, and after 1926, clubs from Kosovo were integrated into the newly formedSkopje Football Subassociation. The subassociations organised different levels of leagues which served as qualification leagues for the Yugoslav championship.[23] From 1945 until 1991, football in theformer Yugoslavia advanced so fast that in 1946 theFootball Federation of Kosovo was formed as a subsidiary of the Football Federation of Yugoslavia. The most successful team from Kosovo in the first league of Yugoslavia was FC Prishtina, whileKF Trepça was part of the league for one year. In 1991 the Football Federation of Kosovo was refounded after all football players from Kosovo were banned from the First League in Yugoslavia. The first game was held inKF Flamurtari's stadium on 13 September 1991 inPristina, which also marked the start of the first independent championship in Kosovo. The governing body in Kosovo is mainly responsible for thenational team and for most of the main cup competitions.[24]
The two main clubs in football areFC Prishtina andKF Trepça who have achieved great success in football. The football club Prishtina FC was founded in 1922, while KF Trepça was founded ten years later in 1932. KF Trepça was part of the 1977–78 championship in theformer Yugoslavia League in football. One year later they reached huge success since they were able to play in the finals for the formerYugoslavia Cup againstHNK Rijeka in which they lost close.[25] They became the only Kosovan Football club ever to reach the finals in theYugoslav Cup.[26] FC Prishtina became the first member of the league in 1983, and it achieved an impressive victory after beatingRed Star inBelgrade with 3–1.
During this timeFadil Vokrri impressed all with his talent as he was part of so-called "Golden Generation" of Prishtina.[citation needed] They would finish their first season in 8th place. FC Prishtina in the same season played in theMitropa Cup, in which they came runners up toEisenstadt from Austria. In the following seasons Prishtina were able to compete in the league until their last season in 1988. In the1987–88 Yugoslav Cup Prishtina reached the semifinals, in which they would lose againstBorac Banja Luka after penalties.
Currently, Kosovo has a football league system which incorporates a number of clubs. The top division, theRaiffeisen Super League, has 12 teams.[27] The league was founded in 1945 and is organized by theFootball Federation of Kosovo.[24] The other three professional divisions are the first league which includes 16 teams, and the second and third league. There are also semi-professional and amateur football clubs that are active as well. The main cup competition in Kosovo is theRepublic of Kosovo Cup, which is open to every men's football team that is part of theFootball Federation of Kosovo. The most successful clubs are FC Prishtina (twenty championship titles),KF Vëllaznimi (eight championship titles),KF Trepça (seven championship titles),KF Liria (five championship titles), andKF Besa (three championship titles).[28]FC Ballkani being the most recent champion to win (three back to back Championship titles) from the season2021-22,2022-23 until the2023-24 saison to win for the third time straight, in the history of the football club from Suhareka.[29][30] Another notable Football club of Kosovo isFC Drita from Gjilan, who won theSuperleague of Kosovo four times most recently in the saison2024-25.[31]
The first unofficial Championship in Kosovo was held in 1991 in which 12 clubs participated.[32] After some years without UEFA Club European football Kosovo was finally recognized by theUEFA in 2016.[33]FC Ballkani became the first Kosovan football Club to qualify for an UEFA Competition, as they beatKF Shkupi in theplay-off round away and home to take place for the Groupstage of the2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League.[34][35] In Group G Ballkani faced in Prishtina in the debutCFR Cluj from Romania. They drew their first ever UEFA Club competition game with 1-1 thanks to a goal fromArmend Thaqi, securing Kosovo's first ever points in a UEFA club competition.[36] After a close loss toSlavia Prague away from home, Ballkani would than secure Kosovo, maiden win in a UEFA competition as they beat Turkish sideSivasspor with an entertaining 3–4 win away in Turkey.[37] Despite some good performances Ballkani could not progress further as they secure only four points in the process, finishing in last place. It is still Kosovo's highest European club football success, in the history of the country.[38]
Ballkani also secured its first ever win for the Country in theUEFA Champions Leaguequalifying after beating in the first leg Bulgarian Football ChampionsLudogorets Razgrad with 2–0 inPristina.[39] After they lost to Ludogorets Razgrad away from home. Ballkani were able to win their next five matches in a row in the2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying againstLarne F.C. 3-1[40] and away with 4-0[41] as well. They beatLincoln Red Imps F.C. in the following third round from Gibraltar with 2–0 at home and 3–1 away, to qualify for the Playoffs for the second year running.[42] In thePlayoffs Ballkani were able to beatBate Borisov from Belarus at home in the first leg with 4-1 despite the loss away from home with 0-1 they would qualify still for the2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League for the second straight time as a Football Club in the history of Kosovo.[43][44] They won their second Match in the Club History after BeatingGNK Dinamo Zagreb at home 2–0 to secure Kosovo's most recent win at this competition.[45]
In Europe FC Drita is known for their great results at previous seasons, as they nearly overcome the well known sideFeyenoord Rotterdam in two legs, losing away with 2–3 in the2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying phase and play-off round despite leading with goals fromMarko Simonovski andAstrit Fazliu in the process.[46] Kosovo strongest encounter in recent history. FC Drita impress the following year again, as they draw away from home against the well known Czech Republic side ofViktoria Plzeň in the2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying.[47] Drita reached the second round of thesecond round after Beating Differdange the round prior.FC Drita qualifiedIn this years Conference League after beatingFC Differdange 03 again in the Playoffs 3–1 on aggregate. FC Drita made history as the second Kosovan Football to qualify for the UEFA Conference League in their country's club Football History.[48][49]
| Level | Leagues/Divisions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kosovo Superleague (10 clubs) | ||||||
| 2 | Kosovo First League (18 clubs) | ||||||
| 3 | Kosovo Second League (16 clubs) | ||||||
| 4 | Kosovo Third League – Group A (16 clubs) | Kosovo Third League – Group B (18 clubs) | |||||
| Dukagjini Plain's Group A (8 clubs) | Kosovo Plain's Group A (8 clubs) | Dukagjini Plain's Group B (10 clubs) | Kosovo Plain's Group B (8 clubs) | ||||
| Level | Leagues/Divisions | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kosovo Superleague (Various by season, currently 8) | |
| 2 | Kosovo First League (Various by season, currently 5) | |
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There are several ethnicAlbanians from Kosovo who have played, or are playing, football for other national teams.Lorik Cana, who last played for French sideNantes, and represented theAlbanian national football team.Valon Behrami is aKosovo-bornSwiss international who played forUdinese Calcio.Shefki Kuqi, who last played forPremier League sideNewcastle United, is a naturalized citizen ofFinland.Xhevat Prekazi, best known for his career with Turkish sideGalatasaray S.K., is a naturalized citizen ofTurkey.Xherdan Shaqiri is an ethnicAlbanian born inKosovo who plays for the Swiss national team and played for Premier League sideLiverpool,Granit Xhaka is aSwiss-born footballer who plays for the Swiss national team and Bundesliga sideBayer Leverkusen, originally fromKosovo ofAlbanian descent.
The most famous player in women's football from Kosovo is the formerGerman internationalFatmire Alushi, who last played for French sideParis Saint-Germain, she is married toEnis Alushi, a formerKosovo international.
Naim Kryeziu born inMitrovica in Kosovo started his long footballing career in SK Tirana where he played for six seasons winning four Kategoria Superiore between 1934 and 1939 as well as one Albanian Cup title in 1938–39. He then played for Roma between 1939 and 1947 scoring 27 goals and winning with them the 1941–42 Serie A title. His biggest achievement in his football career. Being the first Albanian footballer to win a Serie A title. He later would play successfully for S.S.C. Napoli scoring in five seasons 39 goals for the Gli Azzurris. Before retiring his footballing career in 1954. He scored 68 goals in the Seria A and is still even to this day one of the most successful Albanian footballers in the football history in Europe.
He later started a coaching career, serving also as AS Roma head coach for a short time during the 1963–64 season as a replacement for Alfredo Foni. he would coach A.S. Roma once more between 1970 and 1973 in his career.
Riza Lushta is a well known footballer from Kosovo. He started his football career in KF Tirana where he won the Kategoria Superiore four times in six seasons, he played with. He would then play for Seria A side S.S.C. Bari for the upcoming season. Where he scored three times in sixteen matches. His performances with Bari attracted the interest of Juventus Turin who he joined in 1940 after just one year with Bari. He would play for the Old Lady for five seasons. His most successful season came in the 1941–42 Serie A where he scored 15 goals for Juve being the highest foreigner goalscorer in the Seria in that particular season. Lushta made history as he won with Juventus Turin the 1941–42 Coppa Italia. Where he is known for his hattrick he scored against A.C. Milan in the second leg of the finals. Riza Lushta would be the first Albanian footballer to be a record goalscorer in the Coppa Italia with 8 goals in 6 matches
The average attendance per top-flight football league season and the club with the highest average attendance:
| Season | League average | Best club | Best club average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-24 | 751 | KF Llapi | 1,989 |
| 2022-23 | 815 | KF Llapi | 1,483 |
Source:[52]
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