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| Full name | Професионален Футболен Клуб Ботев АД Professional Football Club BotevAD (Botev Professional Football Club) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Канарчетата (The Canaries) Жълто-черните (The Yellow-Blacks) | |||
| Founded | 11 March 1912; 113 years ago (1912-03-11) (asHristo Botеv – Football Association) | |||
| Ground | Stadion Botev | |||
| Capacity | 18,777[1] | |||
| Owner | Club 1912 (99%) Association PFK Botev (1%) | |||
| Chairman | Vassil Bosneschki | |||
| Head coach | Dimitar Dimitrov | |||
| League | First League | |||
| 2024–25 | First League, 6th of 16 | |||
| Website | botevplovdiv | |||
 Current season | ||||
Profesionalen Futbolen Klub Botev AD, commonly referred to asBotev Plovdiv (Bulgarian:Ботев Пловдив,pronounced[ˈbɔtɛfˈpɫɔvdif]), or simplyBotev (within its associated city), is a Bulgarian professionalfootball club based inPlovdiv. It competes in theBulgarian Parva Liga, the top flight ofBulgarian football. Founded on 11 March 1912,[2] it is the country's oldest active football club.
PFC Botev is named after the Bulgarian poet, revolutionary and national hero –Hristo Botyov Petkov.[3] The club plays its home games atStadion Botev.
Throughout its history, the club has won 2national titles, 4national cups, 1supercup and 1Balkans Cup. Botev has also reached theCup Winners' Cup quarter-finals once. In addition, the club has been a runner-up in the domestic league twice and has reached theBulgarian Cup final thirteen times. In the years before theBulgarian championship was created, the team regularly participated in the local Plovdiv championship, claiming it six times. It is one of the most popular clubs in Bulgaria.
The club was founded on 11 March 1912 asHristo Botyov - Futbolno druzhestvo[4] (meaning "Hristo Botyov - Football Association") inPlovdiv by 22 students from Saint Augustine's French College and First Boys High School. The name was chosen in honor of the Bulgarian national heroHristo Botev, as proposed by the club's host - Tenyo Rusev. The club's first management board also included Stoyan Puhtev, serving as chairman, Nenko Penelov as vice-chairman and Petar Delev as both a secretary and cashier. Interestingly, the Botev Plovdiv's constituent assembly was held on Sunday, March 11, 1912, and received a juridical registration on the next day, Monday, March 12. Presently club fans celebrate the later date as a birthday.
In 1920, some members of the association split and founded a new football club, namedRekord. However, this did not deter Botev from winning the first unofficial urban championship. On 30 August 1925, Botev lost 2–6 to Turkish sideFenerbahçe, in its first international match. The following year, the team led by the playing coach and captain –Nikola Shterev, won the Plovdiv Cup.
Botev won its first national title in1929, defeatingLevski Sofia 1–0 in the final, with Nikola Shterev scoring the winning goal. The club became the first from Plovdiv to win theBulgarian Championship. Notable players from the period include Stancho Prodanov, Vangel Kaundzhiev and Mihail Kostov, who played for thenational team. In the following two years as well as in 1937 and 1940, Botev won the urban championship.
The club's name has been changed for political reasons several times:Botev (1912–1946),DNV(1947–51),DNA (1952–57),SKNA (1957),Botev (1957–1968) andTrakia (1968–1989). In 1951, Botev Plovdiv joined the newly createdBulgarian A PFG. Despite being relegated in 1953 to theBulgarian B PFG, in 1954 the club easily won promotion for the top division. 1956 was very successful for the team, which finished 3rd in the domestic league and qualified for the final of theBulgarian Cup, where Botev facedLevski Sofia. The final match was lost by the canaries with 2–5.
In the next few years, the local municipality decided to build a new venue for the sports club. The construction for the sports complex, started on July 21, 1959, and was built in a period of two years. The new stadium was namedHristo Botev, in honor of the national hero. The sport venue was inaugurated with a friendly match between Botev andSteaua București, which was won by the canaries with 3–0 in front of 20,000 spectators.
In 1961 Botev finished 3rd in theA PFG, for second time in the club's history. This championship also marked the first appearance of the club's most important playerDinko Dermendzhiev and the beginning of Botev's golden age.Dermendzhiev holds Botev's overall appearances record, playing in 447 matches for the club. Second is Viden Apostolov with 429 matches and third is Petar Zehtinski with 351. Botev's all-time leading scorer is alsoDermendzhiev, who scored 194 goals at his period in the club.Kostadin Kostadinov is the Botev's second highest scorer with 106 goals and third isAtanas Pashev with 100 goals.
Under the leadership ofDinko Dermendzhiev, Botev won their firstBulgarian Cup in 1962, beatingDunav Rousse 3–0 atVasil Levski National Stadium inSofia on 12 August. In the 1962–63 season Botev reached the quarter-final of theCup Winners' Cup by eliminatingSteaua București andShamrock Rovers before losing toAtlético Madrid 1–5 on aggregate. In the same season the team finished runners-up inA PFG with 40 points, only 3 less than the first,Spartak Plovdiv.
The club claimed its second national title in1967. A few days later, political authorities merged two local clubs with Botev –Spartak andAkademik, creatingTrakia. The "new" club, continued playing its games on Hristo Botev Stadium and kept its players, colours, history and fans. The reasoning behind the merger was creating a team which would gather the best players in the city and contend with Sofia-based teams. However, only two players from recent rivals Spartak had joined the team.
The championship team featured several notable players, such as Viden Apostolov, Georgi Popov andRayko Stoynov, with Vasil Spasov as head coach. Botev represented Bulgaria in the1967–68 European Champions Cup where they lost in the first round toRapid București after 2–0 win in Plovdiv and 0–3 (a.e.t.) loss in Romania. A few years later, in 1981, the team became runners up of theBalkans Cup for the first time, playing against YugoslavianVelež Mostar after two spectacular final matches to finish second
In 1981, the club's forwardGeorgi Slavkov won the club's highest individual achievement, theEuropean Golden Shoe after finishing as Europe's top domestic scorer with 31 goals. The same year, the team won its secondBulgarian Cup, after a win againstPirin Blagoevgrad. This period was very successful for the club. Botev finished 3rd in theA PFG, in1981,1983,1985,1987,1988 and 2nd in1986. In this year the team finished with 41 points, only 2 less than the first,Beroe, in spite of the 8–1 win against Beroe in the direct match. Many of the club's most notable stars played around this time, such as Antim Pehlivanov, Dimitar Vichev,Atanas Pashev, Dimitar Mladenov,Zapryan Rakov, Blagoy Bangev andPetar Zehtinski were part of the rank and file of the notable Golden Team.
An important achievement of that period was the1985 Cup Winners' Cup campaign, when Botev qualified for the second round of the tournament. The team secured a 2–0 victory against the German powerhouseBayern Munich (withKlaus Augenthaler,Dieter Hoeneß,Søren Lerby,Lothar Matthäus andJean-Marie Pfaff in their squad). On November 7, 1984, in front of more than 45,000 spectators atPlovdiv Stadium,Atanas Pashev andKostadin Kostadinov scored for the win, but Botev were eliminated after losing 1–4 in the first-leg. Another memorable win is the 1–0 home victory overBarcelona in aCup Winners' Cup first-leg in 1981. On 29 November 1989, after 22 years of playing underTrakia, the club restored its authentic name –Botev.
In 1992, the club was bought by a conglomerate of brokers led by Hristo Alexandrov and Hristo Danov. They brought in players with experience in Bulgarian football, such asNasko Sirakov,Bozhidar Iskrenov,Kostadin Vidolov andBorislav Mihaylov. In this period, Botev signed the first foreign player in the club's history, theHungarian Roberto Szabay. These big investments however did not bring any significant results and the club only reached third place in theA PFG in 1993, 1994 and 1995.
On 19 March 1999 Botev was acquired by Dimitar Hristolov. This day marked the beginning of difficult years for the club. In the 2000–01 season, the team was relegated toB PFG, after playing 47 years in the A PFG. Botev spent one season in the second division and quickly returned to the top flight, but in 2004 the club was relegated for the second time. From 2005 to 2009 the club played in theA PFG, but in the second part of the league table.
In September2009, Botev Plovdiv set an unusual record after fielding seven Italian players in the 1–2 away loss againstLitex Lovech, becoming the firstA PFG club to feature that many foreigners from the same nationality.[5]
On 24 February 2010, Botev Plovdiv were administratively relegated fromA PFG due to financial difficulties.[6] Botev's opponents were awarded 3–0 wins by default during the second half of the season.
Following the financial collapse in 2010, Botev Plovdiv were relegated to the third level of Bulgarian football, the amateurV Group for the2010–11 season. The club was completely rebuilt on an administrative level, several Bulgarian players with first league and international experience helped the team return toB Group, such as strikerAtanas Kurdov, midfielderTodor Timonov, captainNikolay Manchev, and goalkeeperArmen Ambartsumyan. The club went unbeaten and won their regional third league, and thus gained promotion to thesecond level of Bulgarian football.[7]
A new coach was hired for the2011–12 B Group season.Petar Houbchev, who had previous international experience both as a player and manager, succeededKostadin Vidolov. The lack of good results, however, saw Hubchev sacked from his position in October 2011. Botev Plovdiv then reached an agreement with a new head coach –Milen Radukanov, who didn't show good results either. Therefore,Kostadin Vidolov returned at the helm of the club and succeeded in gaining promotion to thefirst level of Bulgarian football, after a 2–0 win againstSportist Svoge in the play-offs.[8]
In the2012–13 A Group season, the club showed good performance and finished fourth. Botev Plovdiv was allowed to participate in the2013–14 UEFA Europa League, taking the place of the then financially strugglingCSKA Sofia,[9] this marked the return of the team in Europe, after 18 years of absence.[10] The club defeated the likes ofAstana andZrinjski Mostar, before being eliminated byStuttgart in thethird qualifying round.[11] In2013–14, Botev Plovdiv finished fourth once more and also reached the2013–14 Bulgarian Cup final, where they lost 0–1 toLudogorets Razgrad.[12] The club faced the same opponents in the2014 Bulgarian Supercup match, which was lost 1–3.[13] On the European front, the team participated in2014–15 UEFA Europa League, where they managed to eliminateLibertas, before losing toSt. Pölten. The following seasons, the club frequently secured places in the middle of the table.
On 24 May 2017, Botev Plovdiv won their3rd Bulgarian cup title in a 2–1 win againstLudogorets Razgrad,[14][15][16] by doing so the club secured a spot in the2017–18 UEFA Europa League,[17] where they metPartizani Tirana andBeitar Jerusalem, before being knocked out byMarítimo in thethird qualifying round.[18] On 9 August 2017, the club won its firstBulgarian Supercup title, beatingLudogorets Razgrad 5–4 on penalties, following a 1–1 draw in regular time.[19] In June 2021, the establishment of a reserve team,Botev Plovdiv II, was announced.[20] In July 2021, the club was acquired by formerReading Football Club ownerAnton Zingarevich.[21][22] The club won the2024 Bulgarian Cup final by beating Ludogorets to claim their fourth domestic cup.[23]
Botev Plovdiv's kit colours were adopted in August 1917, during a board meeting. The yellow colour represents the club's founders fromSaint Augustine's Catholic College andThrace's golden grain fields, while the black colour symbolises the black earth of the fertile soil as well as the Orthodoxy of the club's other founders from First Boys High School.[24]
A following board meeting, held in September 1917, replaced the club's crest, which was an encircledCyrillic letter "Б", an abbreviation for "Ботевъ", the club's full name. The new approved crest (used today) was a red circle, with a green rectangle situated centrally above, with the name of the club inscribed inside. Above the rectangle was a yellow and black striped shield, while the club's year of establishment was displayed underneath it.[25]
The crests' white, green and red colours embody the tricolour of theKingdom of Bulgaria. Simultaneously, they symbolise the blood of the heroes, the pureness of the souls, and Bulgaria's fertility. The shield is a symbol of the brave while the infinite circle suggests eternity.
Botev Plovdiv's motto isKrasota, vyara i borba (Bulgarian:Красота, вяра и борба,pronounced[crɐsɔtɐ,vʝarɐibɔrbɐ], meaningBeauty, faith and fight).
In 1959, the authorities allowed the construction of a new club stadium at the place of the old field in the neighborhood of Kamenitza. The first building works began on 21 July 1959. Two years later, Botev Plovdiv returned to The college. On May 14, 1961, the reconstructed stadium was inaugurated. The prime minister – Anton Yugov – attended the celebrations together with the deputy-minister of the defenceDobri Djurov and most of the communist leaders. The celebrations ended with a friendly match againstFC Steaua București won by the yellow-blacks with 3:0.
For more than 30 years, no big repairs were done on the college. In 1993, during the presidency of Hristo Danov, some serious repairs were made. The visitors' changing room was moved to the eastern part of the stadium. A tunnel under the East and the North stand was built to connect the visitors' changing room with the field and the capacity of the stadium was reduced. In 1995 electric lighting was put in, but ironically it did not reach the standards of theBulgarian Football Union.
In the years from 1926 to 1947, Botev played six international games on the ground – two wins, three losses and one draw. The matches were played againstAdmira Vienna (1:7),Kecskemét (3:2 and 2:4),Beşiktaş (0:0),Bohemians Prague (1:3) and the famous "Wonderteam" ofAustria Vienna (sensational win with 5:4) respectively. The attendance record was set on February 27, 1963, during the quarter-final of the Cup Winner's Cup againstAtlético Madrid (1:1) – 40,000 people. The record for the Bulgarian championship was set in 1966 againstLevski Sofia(0:1) – 37,000 people, but because of the riots between the fans and the rush of fans on the field, Botev Plovdiv was forced to play its derbies at "The Big House" – theCity Stadium.
Several times, the stadium was used for football matches from the city rivals fromLokomotiv Plovdiv. During the second half of the 1980/81 season, "The Smurfs" (Lokomotiv Plovdiv) played their home matches on The college (which was followed by a relegation in the second division) as well as one match in the 2003/04 season (when Lokomotiv won theA PFG for the first time).Spartak Plovdiv also used the stadium for several matches during the 1995/1996 season. The stadium has also hosted theBulgarian Cup final in 2000, whenLevski Sofia won the cup after 2:0 againstNaftex Burgas.
In the summer of 2008, the stadium underwent renovations to meet the requirements of the Football Union, the Central Stand was renovated and the new visitors' changing room was built under it.
On March 26, 2012, began a major reconstruction of the stadium, starting with conceptual design by architect Georgi Savov and supported by the new owner of the teamTzvetan Vassilev. According to estimates construction will consume about 15 million euro, and the facility must be ready for operation by mid 2015 just in time to host matches at the2015 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. The reconstruction will be carried out in two phases, the first starting from the end of March 2012 and will last four months. The first stage consists in the replacement of the field, which will have modern drainage system and heating system . The field will be measuring 68x105 meters. Second stage consists of the demolishing of the four old tribunes and building of new ones closer to the football field.
On home matchdays, Botev Plovdiv's players traditionally enter the pitch to the Blue Canary tune (by Marisa Fiordaliso andCarlo Buti) before the start of a game.
Botev Plovdiv has maintained a strong fan base over the years and in terms of the popularity is staged as the third most supported club in Bulgaria. There is no unique umbrella organization embracing all fans of the Plovdiv Canaries. The club'sultras are known asbultras[26], located in the South stand (Juzhna Tribuna) of the homeStadion Botev.
Botev's eternal rival is the neighbouring city club ofLokomotiv Plovdiv, and both form the localPlovdiv derby. The two teams are the most supported ones in the second largest city in Bulgaria – Plovdiv – and the matches between them are well known to the Bulgarian football community, and also considered to be one of the fiercest rivalries in the world.[27] Botev is the country's oldest continuously existing team, whereas Lokomotiv grew popular fanbase in the 70s.[citation needed] Traditionally, Lokomotiv's team drew support from the lower working class of society[citation needed], whereas Botev's fanbase consisted mainly of the middle and upper classes, although that no longer applies.[28]
Botev's regional cross-city rival isBeroe. The match between the two clubs was dubbed as the "Thracian Derby" over the years.
The club also has a strong rivalry withLevski Sofia as the two are the most popular teams in their respective cities and their animosity is continuation of the Sofia-Plovdiv (Serdica-Trimontium) enmity.
Botev Plovdiv fans have friendly and supportive relations withAris fans. In January 2020 a group of Botev fans that attended a game between Aris and their rivalPAOK Thessaloniki was attacked by PAOK fans. One Botev fan was killed by a car.[29] Two individuals were arrested and charged with murder.[30]
Somebultra groups are connected in a friendship with the hardcore supporters of the Italian clubInter and the Dutch clubPSV.
As of 1 November 2025[update]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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For recent transfers, seeList of Bulgarian football transfers summer 2025.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Up to twenty foreign nationals can be registered and given a squad number for the first team in theBulgarian First League, however only five non-EU nationals can be used during a match day. Those non-EU nationals with European ancestry can claim citizenship from the nation their ancestors came from. If a player does not have European ancestry he can claim Bulgarian citizenship after playing in Bulgaria for 5 years.
EU Nationals | EU Nationals (Dual citizenship) | Non-EU Nationals
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12 –Dedicated to the club's supporters
Had international caps for their respective countries, held any club record, or have more than 100 league appearance. Players whose name is listed inbold represented their countries.
| Competition | S | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inter-Cities Fairs Cup | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 9 | - 5 |
| Balkans Cup | 2 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 25 | 25 | 0 |
| UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | 3 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 23 | 18 | + 5 |
| Intertoto Cup | 2 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 19 | 17 | + 2 |
| European Cup /UEFA Champions League | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 | - 3 |
| UEFA Cup /UEFA Europa League | 10 | 34 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 53 | 39 | + 14 |
| UEFA Europa Conference League | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | - 2 |
| Total | 22 | 76 | 28 | 16 | 32 | 129 | 118 | + 11 |
As of the2017 UEFA club coefficient.[update][31][32]
| Rank | Club | Coeff |
|---|---|---|
| 271 |  Ermis Aradippou FC | 4.710 |
| 272 |  PFC Beroe Stara Zagora | 4.675 |
| 273 | PFC Botev Plovdiv | 4.675 |
| 274 |  Aalesunds FK | 4.665 |
| 275 |  NK Olimpija Ljubljana | 4.625 |
| Name | Position |
|---|---|
| Management and board[33] | |
| Vassil Bosneschki | Board Member / CEO |
| Ilko Koparanski | Board Member |
| Kolyo Petrov | Board Member |
| Ilian Filipov | Custodian |
| Dimitar Dimitrov-Hero | Sporting Director |
| Coaching staff | |
| Todor Kiselichkov | First Coach |
| Lachezar Baltanov | Assistant Coach |
| Georgi Chakarov | Hosting Support |
| Youth academy staff[34] | |
| Ivan Tsvetanov | Academy director |
The table below is a list of the recent BPFC's managers.
| Name | Nat. | From | To | Honours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azrudin Valentić |  SWE | 8 January 2021 | 29 July 2022 | |
| Artur Hovhannisyan* |  ARM | 29 July 2022 | 2 August 2022 | |
| Željko Kopić |  HRV | 3 August 2022 | 6 December 2022 | |
| Bruno Baltazar |  POR | 3 January 2023 | 23 May 2023 | |
| Stefan Stoyanov* | BGR | 25 May 2023 | 6 June 2023 | – |
| Stanislav Genchev | BGR | 8 June 2023 | 22 August 2023 | – |
| Rafael Ferreira* |  BRA | 22 August 2023 | 3 September 2023 | – |
| Dušan Kerkez |  BIH | 4 September 2023 | 31 May 2025 | 1 Bulgarian Cup |
| Nikolay Kirov | BGR | 29 June 2025 | 25 September 2025 | – |
| Ivan Tsvetanov* | BGR | 26 September 2025 | 8 November 2025 | – |
| Dimitar Dimitrov | BGR | 17 November 2025 | – |
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Note:For a complete list of Botev Plovdiv players, seeCategory:Botev Plovdiv players.
| League competitions | |
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| Cup competitions | |
| Defunct competitions |
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| National teams | |
| Regional Amateur Football Groups | |
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