 | |||
| Full name | Lions Gibraltar Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short name | Lions | ||
| Founded | 1966 | ||
| Ground | Victoria Stadium, Winston Churchill AvenueGibraltar | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Chairman | Mark Palmer | ||
| Manager | Raymond Alexander | ||
| League | Gibraltar Football League | ||
| 2024–25 | 6th | ||
| Website | www | ||
Lions Gibraltar is a professional football club in Gibraltar. They play in the country's top-level league, theGibraltar Football League.
They were created by a merger ofGibraltar United F.C. and Lions FC in 2011.[1] Aside from their first team, they also run an intermediate (under-23) team, several youth teams,futsal teams anda women's team.
Lions Gibraltar was founded as Lions Football Club in 1966 when a group of friends decided to take up a team after the euphoria of England winning the 1966 World Cup, thus the three lions on its club badge. After a quiet 45-year history, the club merged with league giantsGibraltar United in 2011 to create a much stronger side.
Their time together saw the side consistently compete in theGibraltar Premier Division, and the side continued this upon the GFA's admittance toUEFA in 2013. The 2013–14 season, their final season united with Gibraltar United, saw them narrowly avoid a relegation playoff with a 6th-place finish. After this, Gibraltar United joined theGibraltar Second Division and Lions restructured, with English coachJeff Wood appointed manager with ambitions to challenge the top sides and qualify for theUEFA Europa League. In February 2015 the club announced plans to become a feeder club withPremier League clubSwansea City, although these plans eventually fell through.
However, after a disappointing season in which the club finished bottom of the league (avoiding relegation due to the league's expansion), the club announced in July 2015 that it was to be taken over by Hercules Sports Promotion, Ltd, headed by Andrew Flowers (who had previously attempted to purchaseLeeds United in 2013). Significant investment by the new ownership meant that Lions would now become a semi-professional club with the aim of topplingLincoln Red Imps' dominance.[2] The following season saw immediate improvement, with the club finishing 4th, however they remained significantly off the pace compared to the region's top two sidesLincoln Red Imps andEuropa.
On 31 May, the board announced former national team coachDavid Wilson as their new manager for the 2016–17 season. However, after the collapse of the club owners' other companies left Lions' future uncertain, Wilson resigned before the beginning of the season to take over atFCB Magpies and the previous season's co-caretakerRafael Bado was announced as manager. A season spent primarily in the bottom two ended in safety, however, after an upturn in form from the beginning of 2017 despite only winning one game in the first 4 months of the season.
On 28 January 2024, it was announced thatSolihull Moors CEO Mark Palmer had purchased a controlling stake in the club, becoming owner and chairman.[3]
On 5th June 2024, Lions Gibraltar FC announced The Online Betting Guide,OLBG as their lead partner and front-of-shirt sponsor on a multi-year deal.[4]
| Season | Division | League record | Rock Cup | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Pos | |||
| 2013–14 | Premier | 14 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 23 | 33 | 14 | 6th | Semi-final |
| 2014–15 | Premier | 21 | 1 | 5 | 15 | 9 | 48 | 8 | 8th | Quarter-final |
| 2015–16 | Premier | 27 | 14 | 3 | 10 | 49 | 44 | 45 | 4th | Semi-final |
| 2016–17 | Premier | 27 | 4 | 9 | 14 | 17 | 54 | 21 | 8th | Quarter-final |
| 2017–18 | Premier | 27 | 6 | 5 | 16 | 27 | 63 | 23 | 8th | Second round |
| 2018–19 | Premier | 27 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 17 | 77 | 9 | 9th | Quarter-final |
| 2019–20 | National | 20 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 13 | 33 | 16 | 6th[a] | Quarter-final |
| 2020–21 | National | 20 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 13 | 33 | 16 | 6th | First round |
| 2021–22 | National | 18 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 13 | 45 | 8 | 11th | Quarter-final |
| 2022–23 | GFL | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 25 | 37 | 19 | 8th | First round |
| 2023–24 | GFL | 20 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 16 | 50 | 13 | 10th | Quarter-final |
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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| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Club Management | |
| Head coach |  David Wilson |
| Assistant coach |  Peter Hyde |
| Head Physio |  Kopi Godri |
| Sports Therapist | Luke Henshaw |
| Team delegate |  Ángel Luis Chozas |
| Board | |
| Chairman CEO |  Mark Palmer |
| Director | James Pickering Darryl Eales |
| Sporting Director | Neale Marmon[6] |
| Club Secretary | Kadrian Bugeja |
| Head of Operations | Alex Grech |
| Head of Communications | Sharon Millar |
| Head of Facilities | Daniel Buhagiar |
| National teams | |
|---|---|
| League system | |
| Domestic cups | |
| Defunct competitions | |
| Futsal | |
