| Full name | Nogometni klub Čelik Zenica | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Crno-crveni (The Black-Reds) Starac (The Old Man) | ||
| Founded | 16 June 1945; 80 years ago (1945-06-16) | ||
| Ground | Bilino Polje Stadium,Zenica | ||
| Capacity | 15,293 | ||
| Chairman | Denis Mušović | ||
| Manager | Bojan Regoje | ||
| League | First League of FBiH | ||
| 2024–25 | First League of FBiH, 3rd of 15 | ||
| Website | www | ||
Nogometni klub Čelik Zenica (English:Football Club Čelik Zenica) is a professionalfootball club based inZenica,Bosnia and Herzegovina. The nameČelik meansSteel inBosnian, and it symbolizes the strength and power of the club in an industrial city well known for steel production. Throughout its history, the club has been known for the excellent support of its fans at itsBilino Polje Stadium , which hosts theBosnia and Herzegovina national team.
NK Čelik is one of the most prominent and successful football teams in Bosnia and Herzegovina, being one of only two Bosnian clubs to win the national championship three consecutive seasons (1994 to 1997). The club also won consecutive national cups in 1995 and 1996. During the time of the former Yugoslavia, Čelik had played 17 seasons in theYugoslav First League. Čelik won theMitropa Cup two times and was once a joint winner of theUEFA Intertoto Cup.
In addition, Čelik is the onlyfan-owned football club in Bosnia and Herzegovina where club members democratically elect its leadership.[1]
Today, Čelik is active in theFirst League of FBiH, having previously played in theBosnian Premier League before getting relegated in the2019–20 season.[2] To stabilise the club due to financial difficulties, its General Assembly voted to continue competing in the fourth tier-League of Zenica-Doboj Canton on 13 July 2020.[3]
The club was founded on 16 June 1945 by a group ofWorld War II veterans. The name of the club had been proposed by one of the founders, Zdenko Mazanek, to symbolize the strength of the club and its link to the workers of the city's metallurgical industry.[4]
Over the years, the club developed a strong identification with its hometown,Zenica, becoming one of its symbols. The club has produced many important international players, includingElvir Bolić,Mirsad Hibić andMladen Krstajić.
Čelik plays their home games at theBilino Polje stadium which is also the biggest stadium in the city. Over the years the club had changed four different stadiums settling at their current ground in 1972.

During the first few years of the club's existence, followingWorld War II, Čelik's stadium was located roughly on the place of the current Bilino Polje stadium, close to theBosna river. The ground was covered in clay, as was the practice of lower-level football grounds at the time. The stadium itself had one wooden stand, which was built over time, and the club often played in front of full capacity.
However, due to the increased popularity of the club and the need for a better surface, during the early 1950s, the club moved to the nearby Stadion Blatuša, which was located in the Blatuša neighborhood ofZenica. It was there that Čelik started its first run of successes when they had reached promotion to theYugoslav First League in 1966 and won theMitropa Cup in 1971 (the final was played on neutral ground inGorizia,Italy[5]).
Shortly after the first Mitropa Cup victory, plans were made for a new, modern stadium, built in place of Čelik's first stadium. The construction took 8 months to complete, and it was officially opened on 4 October 1972 for thesecond leg of the 1972 Mitropa Cup final whenFiorentina would unsuccessfully contest the 1971 title holder Čelik, 1–0. The attendance record of 35,000 still stands today due to the introduction of seats in the stadium over the years. The stadium went through a number of renovations and reconstructions, the most recent being in 2012.
From July to August 2012, the stadium went through another renovation where the pitch was changed withunder-soil heating installed. During the renovation, Čelik played twoBosnian Premier League matches as well as oneBosnian Cup match on the Stadion Kamberovića Polje, winning all of them. In the second part of the same season, the club played one more game there, which ended in a draw.
The youth squads of Čelik usually play their games at the smaller stadium Kamberovića Polje.

Theultras supporter group of Čelik, established in 1988 inZenica, is calledRobijaši (The Convicts in English) because Zenica is famous forits prison. Widely known for their fanatic support, they have been fighting to preserve the club and support it through difficult financial times.[6]
| Season | League | Cup | Europe | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Pos | ||||||
| 1994–95 | First League Zenica Group | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 3 | 9 | 1st | Winners | ||||
| First League Final Play-off | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 9 | 1st | ||||||
| 1995–96 | First League | 30 | 21 | 5 | 4 | 65 | 23 | 68 | 1st | Winners | ||||
| 1996–97 | First League | 30 | 17 | 7 | 6 | 57 | 23 | 58 | 1st | SF | ||||
| 1997–98 | First League Bosniaks First League | 30 | 16 | 8 | 6 | 48 | 30 | 53 | 2nd | 1/8 | ||||
| First League Play-off | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 6th | ||||||
| 1998–99 | First League | 30 | 13 | 3 | 14 | 47 | 47 | 42 | 9th | 1/8 | ||||
| 1999–2000 | First League | 30 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 45 | 36 | 55 | 9th | 1/8 | ||||
| Current format ofPremier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina | ||||||||||||||
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 42 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 75 | 40 | 73 | 4th | QF | ||||
| 2001–02 | Premier League | 30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 39 | 30 | 43 | 6th | SF | UEFA Intertoto Cup –R2 | |||
| 2002–03 | Premier League | 38 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 61 | 33 | 58 | 5th | 1/16 | ||||
| 2003–04 | Premier League | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 42 | 43 | 37 | 12th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2004–05 | Premier League | 30 | 13 | 2 | 15 | 29 | 37 | 41 | 13th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2005–06 | Premier League | 30 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 33 | 45 | 35 | 14th | 1/16 | ||||
| 2006–07 | Premier League | 30 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 29 | 35 | 39 | 14th | SF | ||||
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 30 | 16 | 4 | 10 | 38 | 32 | 52 | 3rd | 1/8 | ||||
| 2008–09 | Premier League | 30 | 12 | 5 | 13 | 29 | 32 | 41 | 10th | 1/16 | UEFA Intertoto Cup –R1 | |||
| 2009–10 | Premier League | 30 | 10 | 5 | 10 | 33 | 36 | 50 | 13th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2010–11 | Premier League | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 30 | 30 | 40 | 10th | Runners-up | ||||
| 2011–12 | Premier League | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 31 | 39 | 34 | 9th | QF | ||||
| 2012–13 | Premier League | 30 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 44 | 30 | 51 | 4th | QF | ||||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 30 | 10 | 13 | 7 | 35 | 32 | 43 | 7th | Runners-up | ||||
| 2014–15 | Premier League | 30 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 34 | 35 | 66 | 7th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 30 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 35 | 28 | 46 | 6th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2016–17 | Premier League | 32 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 28 | 39 | 35 | 10th | 1/16 | ||||
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 32 | 8 | 4 | 20 | 30 | 61 | 28 | 11th | 1/8 | ||||
| 2018–19 | Premier League | 33 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 30 | 49 | 43 | 7th | 1/16 | ||||
| 2019–20[nb 1] | Premier League | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 33 | 17 | 11th ↓ | 1/16 | ||||
| 2020–21 | League of Zenica-Doboj Canton[nb 2] | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 65 | 5 | 50 | 1st ↑ | |||||
| 2021–22 | Second League of FBiH - Center | 30 | 21 | 6 | 3 | 79 | 21 | 66 | 3rd | |||||
| 2022–23 | Second League of FBiH - Center | 30 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 92 | 12 | 81 | 1st ↑ | 1/8 | ||||
| 2023–24 | First League of FBiH | 30 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 40 | 31 | 46 | 4th | 1/16 | ||||
| 2024–25 | First League of FBiH | 28 | 13 | 6 | 9 | 40 | 29 | 45 | 3rd | 1/8 | ||||
| Competition | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 |
| Total | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 |
P = Matches played;W = Matches won;D = Matches drawn;L = Matches lost;GF = Goals for;GA = Goals against;GD = Goals difference. Defunct competitions indicated in italics.
| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Agg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1R | 1–0 | 5–3 | 6–3 | |
| 2R | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | |||
| 2008 | UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1R | 3–2 | 1–2 | 4–4 (a) |
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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| Dates | Name | Honours |
|---|---|---|
| 1970–1971 | 1970–71 Mitropa Cup | |
| 1971–1972 | 1971–72Mitropa Cup | |
| 1974–1975 | 1975 Intertoto Cup (Joint Winner) | |
| 1992–1996 | 1994–95 Bosnian Championship 1994–95Bosnian Cup 1995–96 Bosnian Championship 1995–96 Bosnian Cup | |
| 1996–1997 | 1996–97 Bosnian Championship |