 | |||
| Full name | Odbojkarski klub OTP Banka Branik | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Bankirke (The Bankers) | ||
| Founded | 1946; 80 years ago (1946) (as Polet)[1] | ||
| Ground | Tabor Hall (Capacity: 3,261) | ||
| Chairman | Robert Senica | ||
| Manager | Žiga Kos | ||
| Captain | Iza Mlakar | ||
| League | Slovenian Volleyball League | ||
| 2024−25 | Regular season: 2nd Playoffs: Champions | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
| Uniforms | |||
| |||
| Championships | |||
| 1992, 1993, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2025 | |||
| Sports departments of Branik | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Odbojkarski klub OTP Banka Branik (English:OTP Banka Branik Volleyball Club), commonly referred to asOTP Banka Branik, is a professional women'svolleyball team based inMaribor that competes in theSlovenian Volleyball League. Formed in 1946, they are the most successful Slovenian women's volleyball team, winning the Slovenian League 17 times,Slovenian Cup 21 times and the regionalMEVZA League 4 times. Before Slovenia's independence in 1991, the team won theYugoslav Championship four times and reached the Yugoslav Cup final on eight occasions.
Branik's most notable international results include participation in the main phase of theCEV Women's Champions League, and reaching the final four tournament of theWomen's CEV Cup.
BeforeWorld War II, the city ofMaribor was known as the "cradle" of Yugoslav volleyball.[2] Volleyball in the city was firstly played by the gymnasts of the sport clubSokol-matica in 1924. In 1931, Maribor hosted the first national championship, where the women's senior selection of Sokol-matica won the title.[2] In the next years, the team won several more titles, including the last pre-war championship in 1940, when both the women's and men's selections won the national title.[2] In the 1930s, the women's volleyball selection became part of the1. slovenski športni klub Maribor (English:First Slovene Sports Club Maribor), or simply1. SSK Maribor, which is a predecessor of the Branik Sports Association, which still operates today.
After World War II in 1945, 1. SSK Maribor and Sokol-matica merged into a new sports organization, namedFizkulturno društvo Maribor or simplyFD Maribor.[3] The organization was renamed asFizkulturno društvo Polet on 27 September 1946.[3] In the same year, the women's volleyball selection of the club was formed. In 1945, the inaugural edition of theYugoslav Volleyball Championship was held. The Slovenian national team, which consisted mainly of players from Maribor, won the title in the women's edition.[4] The first proper club championship was held the following season in 1946, when Polet won its first Yugoslav national title.[1] In 1947 and 1948, Polet finished in second place behind another Slovenian team, Enotnost Ljubljana.[5] The team was renamed Branik in 1952, when the sports organizationSŠD Polet and theassociation football teamNK Branik Maribor merged into theMariborsko športno društvo Branik (English:Maribor's sports association Branik), or simply MŠD Branik.[6] In 1953, the team, which was a mixture of young and experienced players, won its second national title after finishing aboveŽOK Partizan.[7] In the next two years, Branik finished in second place before being relegated from the first division in 1959.[8]
The women's volleyball selection of MŠD Branik ceased to operate in 1968, after being unable to advance to the top division for several years.[9] After two years of inactivity, the volleyball selection was reformed, and was composed mostly of youth players.[9]
In 1976,SR Slovenia adopted a sports resolution known as thePortoroški sklepi (English:Portorož Conclusions), after which the sports associations in the country were reorganized. As a result, Branik merged with another team based in Maribor, Železničar.[10] The reorganization of the club marked a new era for the team; firstly, Branik was promoted to the second-highest division in Yugoslavia, where they finished second in the 1977–78 season.[11] After again finishing as the runners-up the following season,[12] Branik finally managed to finish in first place in the 1979–80 season. In the promotion play-offs, the team defeated Gradačac and earned a promotion to the Yugoslav top division.[13][14]
| Year | Position |
|---|---|
| 1981 | 6th[15] |
| 1982 | 5th[16] |
| 1983 | 3rd[17] |
| 1984 | 3rd[18] |
| 1985 | 1st |
| 1986 | 1st |
In 1982, the team was renamedPaloma Branik due to the sponsorship agreement with the localtissue paper company Paloma fromSladki Vrh. In the 1984–85 season, Paloma Branik managed to win the Yugoslav national title for the third time in their history, the club's first national title in 32 years. The decisive match was played against Partizan in the newly builtTabor Hall, in front of 4,000 spectators, where Branik won 3–0.[19] The following season, Paloma Branik defended the title and won their fourth and final Yugoslav national title before thebreakup of the country.[20] Between 1983 and 1991, Paloma Branik reached the final of the Yugoslav Cup eight times, but lost on all eight occasions. In the 1980s, the team began competing in international competitions governed by theEuropean Volleyball Confederation. In 1985–86 and 1986–87, Paloma Branik represented Yugoslavia in theCEV Champions Cup. The club was eliminated in the first round on both occasions, byCSKA Moscow and CSKA Sofia, respectively.[1][21]
In 1991, Slovenia gained independence from SFR Yugoslavia. In 1992, Paloma Branik became the first champions of the newly establishedSlovenian Volleyball League.[22] In the same season, the team also won the inaugural Slovenian Volleyball Cup.[23] As the national champions, Branik qualified for the 1992–93 CEV Champions Cup, where the team was eliminated in the first round by the Hungarian team Tungsram SC.[24][25] In the 1996–97 and 1999–2000 seasons, Branik reached the main phase of the competition, but failed to obtain a single win, finishing in the last place in their group on both occasions.[26][27]
In the 2000–01 season, Branik reached the semi-finals of theCEV Women's Top Teams Cup, the second-tier continental competition for women's volleyball clubs of Europe. In the final four tournament, held inVienna, the team was eliminated by the home sideSVS Post Schwechat with a score of 3–1.[28] Branik later lost against Dynamo Odessa from Ukraine in a third-place playoff, finishing the competition in fourth place.[29]
In the first decade after Slovenia's independence, Branik was the most successful team in the country, winning eight out of eleven championships between 1992 and 2002.[22] However, after 2002, the team declined for several years and did not win the next national title until 2009.[22] In the 2010s, Branik became the dominant force of Slovenian volleyball for the second time, winning seven out of nine national championships between 2011 and 2019.[22]
In 2010, Branik won the regionalMiddle European League for the first time.[30] The team went on to win three more regional titles in 2012, 2013 and 2015.[30][31]
Club names through history:
From 1984 to 2006, the club played its home matches atTabor Hall inMaribor.[32] In the 2006–07 season, they moved to the newly built Lukna Sports Hall, also located in Maribor, which can accommodate 2,100 spectators.[33] After nearly 20 years of playing at Lukna, OTP Banka Branik permanently returned to the 3,261-capacity Tabor Hall in early 2025.[34][35]
| Number | Name | Birthyear | Height (cm) | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Iza Mlakar | 1995 | 188 | Opposite |
| 2 | Klara Milošič | 2002 | 191 | Middle blocker |
| 3 | Gaja Dragšič | 2008 | 170 | Wing spiker |
| 4 |  Sydney Jolie Palazzolo | 2003 | 188 | Wing spiker |
| 6 | Eva Kneževič | 2006 | 178 | Wing spiker |
| 7 | Ronja Štampar | 2002 | 183 | Middle blocker |
| 8 | Sara Hutinski | 1991 | 188 | Middle blocker |
| 9 | Maša Mlinar | 2007 | 178 | Wing spiker |
| 10 |  Nika Jularić | 2000 | 180 | Wing spiker |
| 11 | Pia Senekovič | 2004 | 178 | Opposite |
| 12 | Urška Cikač | 2004 | 167 | Libero |
| 13 | Anja Farkaš | 2004 | 174 | Setter |
| 14 | Isa Ramić | 2004 | 189 | Wing spiker |
| 17 | Lorena Kešelj | 2007 | 190 | Middle blocker |
| 18 | Žana Ivana Halužan Sagadin | 2004 | 178 | Setter |
| Head coach: Žiga Kos |
| Assistant coach: Dejan Pušnik |
Source:Volleyball Federation of Slovenia
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