PFC Levski Sofia
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PFC Levski Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional
association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
club based in
Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
, which competes in the First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was founded on 24 May 1914 by a group of high school students, and is named after
Vasil Levski Vasil Levski (, spelled in Reforms of Bulgarian orthography, old Bulgarian orthography as , ), born Vasil Ivanov Kunchev (; 18 July 1837 – 18 February 1873), was a Bulgarians, Bulgarian revolutionary who is, today, a Folk hero, national ...
, a Bulgarian
revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...
renowned as the national hero of the country. Levski have won a total of 74 trophies, including 26 national championships, 26 national cups and 3 supercups, as well as 13 domestic doubles and one treble. They are the only Bulgarian football club to have never been relegated from the top division since the establishment of the league system in 1937. On the international stage, Levski reached the quarter-finals of the
UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
twice and the quarter-finals of the
Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renamed the UEFA Cup Winne ...
three times. In addition, the club finished as runners-up of the Balkans Cup twice. In
2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...
, Levski became the first Bulgarian club to play in the group stage of the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
. The team's home kit colour is all-blue. Levskis home ground is the Georgi Asparuhov Stadium in Sofia, which has a capacity of 17,688 spectators. The club's fiercest rival is CSKA Sofia, and matches between the two capital sides are commonly referred to as the Eternal derby of Bulgaria. Levski also contests the Oldest capital derby with Slavia Sofia. The club is a regular member of the
European Club Association The European Club Association (ECA) is an organization that is officially recognised by both UEFA and FIFA as the sole, independent body for football clubs within Europe. History Formed on the merge of the G-14 group with the European Club Fo ...
and the
European Multisport Club Association The European Multisport Club Association (EMCA) is a sports organization representing the interests of multisport clubs in Europe. It was created with an initiative of the multisport club S.S. Lazio. EMCA is also a partner of the House of Sport a ...
.


History


1914–1969: Sports Club Levski

Sports Club Levski was founded in 1911 by a group of students from the Second Male High School in
Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
. The club's name was chosen in honour of the Bulgarian revolutionary
Vasil Levski Vasil Levski (, spelled in Reforms of Bulgarian orthography, old Bulgarian orthography as , ), born Vasil Ivanov Kunchev (; 18 July 1837 – 18 February 1873), was a Bulgarians, Bulgarian revolutionary who is, today, a Folk hero, national ...
, and the club was officially registered on 24 May 1914. In 1914, Levski lost its first official match against FK 13 Sofia with the score of 2–0. Between 1914 and 1920, football wasn't a popular sport in Bulgaria, and no additional information about the club exists. In the summer of 1921, the Sofia Sports League was established, which united ten clubs from Sofia and marked the beginning of organized football competitions in the city. Levski won the first match in the championship in the 1921–22 season, held on 18 September 1921, against Atletik Sofia with the score of 3–1. The team finished first in the league in 1923 after a 3–2 win over bitter rivals Slavia Sofia, and successfully defended the title in the following two seasons, in 1924 and 1925. The first
National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...
was held in 1924 with Levski representing Sofia. The team went on to win the title in 1933, 1937 and 1942, and established itself as the most popular football club in Bulgaria. In 1929, Levski became the first semi-professional football club in Bulgaria, after twelve players staged a boycott of the team in demand of financial remuneration and insurance benefits. The same year Levski met its first international opponents, losing to Gallipoli Istanbul 1–0 and winning against Kuban Istanbul 6–0. Between 1930 and 1932, Levski won the Ulpia Serdica Cup for three consecutive years and was permanently awarded the trophy as a result. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Levski became one of the two top clubs in Bulgaria. After winning the championship in 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950 and 1953, Levski would not capture the domestic title again until the mid-1960s. In 1949, the authorities changed the club's name to Dinamo following the Soviet traditions, but after the
de-Stalinization De-Stalinization () comprised a series of political reforms in the Soviet Union after Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, the death of long-time leader Joseph Stalin in 1953, and Khrushchev Thaw, the thaw brought about by ascension of Nik ...
of Bulgaria, it was reverted in 1957. The 1960s were marked with return to success both on the domestic and on the international stage. Levski's academy would become the most successful in national youth competitions for the years to come, and the results were first seen in the likes of Georgi Asparuhov, Georgi Sokolov, Biser Mihaylov, Kiril Ivkov, Ivan Vutsov, Stefan Aladzhov and Aleksandar Kostov, assisted by experienced veterans like Stefan Abadzhiev, Dimo Pechenikov and Hristo Iliev, which resulted in winning the championship in 1965, 1968 and 1970, including the 7–2 triumph over new bitter rivals CSKA Sofia in 1968. In the
1965–66 European Cup The 1965–66 European Cup was the 11th season of the European Cup, UEFA's premier club football tournament. The competition was won by Real Madrid, winners of the first five European Cups from 1956 to 1960, who beat Partizan 2–1 in a close fi ...
, Levski was eliminated in the first round by Benfica with 5–4 on aggregate.


1969–1985: Levski-Spartak

In January 1969, Levski was forcibly merged with
Spartak Sofia FC Spartak Sofia () was a Bulgarian football club based in Sofia, Bulgaria. The club was officially founded in 1947. The team plays in the Bulgarian Regional Division. The club's home colours are blue and white. Spartak's home ground is Rakovski ...
by the
Bulgarian Communist Party The Bulgarian Communist Party ( Bulgarian: Българска комунистическа партия (БΚП), Romanised: ''Bŭlgarska komunisticheska partiya''; BKP) was the founding and ruling party of the People's Republic of Bulgaria f ...
, and put under the auspice of the Ministry of Interior Affairs. The name of the club was once again changed, this time to Levski-Spartak. A new crop of youngsters in the likes of Kiril Milanov, Dobromir Zhechev, Pavel Panov, Stefan Pavlov, Yordan Yordanov, Stefan Staykov, Tomas Lafchis, Todor Barzov, Voyn Voynov, Georgi Tsvetkov, Plamen Nikolov, and Rusi Gochev not only found their place in the first team, but brought new league titles in 1974, 1977, 1979, 1984 and 1985. On the international stage, the team reached the quarter-finals of the
European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
in 1969–70 and 1976–77, and the quarter-finals of the
UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
in 1975–76. In the latter, Levski defeated
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
5–4 in the second leg, becoming one of the two European teams (joined by Bayern Munich in 2020) to have scored five or more goals in one match against the Spanish giants in official UEFA competitions. Additionally, Levski became the only Bulgarian club to eliminate a German champion after defeating
VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V. (), commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German professional sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's Association football, football team is currently part of Germany's f ...
in the first round of the 1984–85 European Cup. They also eliminated Stuttgart a year earlier in the first round of the
1983–84 UEFA Cup The 1983–84 UEFA Cup was the 13th season of the UEFA Cup, the third-tier club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The final was played over two legs at the Constant Vanden Stock Stadium, Brus ...
.


1985–1989: Vitosha Sofia

The name of the team was changed to Vitosha by the authorities following the disruptions during and after the Bulgarian Cup final in
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
. The game ran on high emotions fuelled by the streak of consecutive victories of Levski over CSKA in the two years prior to the game. During the game, which CSKA won 2–1, there were confrontations both on the field and on the stands. By decree of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party, some of the leading players of both clubs were suspended from the sport for life. The championship title of the club for 1985 was suspended. However, the suspensions were lifted shortly after. Levski won another cup and league titles in 1986 and 1988, respectively. The fourth European quarter-final came in 1986–87, when Levski knocked out the 1985–86
Danish Cup The Danish Cup (; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "single-elimination tournament, knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will ...
winners
Boldklubben 1903 Boldklubben 1903 or B 1903 was a football club founded on 2 June 1903, located in Copenhagen, Denmark. Seven times winner of the Danish championship (introduced 1913) in 1920, 1924, 1926, 1938, 1969, 1970 and 1976 and twice winner of the D ...
and the 1985–86 Yugoslav Cup holders Velež Mostar, before losing to the 1985–86 Copa del Rey winners
Real Zaragoza Real Zaragoza, S.A.D. (), commonly referred to as Zaragoza, is a football club based in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, that currently competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish football league system, Spanish league system. Zarag ...
.


1989–2009: Return of Levski Sofia and the ''Blue Tale''

After the 1989–90 season, the club regained its original name. The team was made up of players such as Plamen Nikolov, Petar Hubchev, Tsanko Tsvetanov, Emil Kremenliev, Zlatko Yankov, Georgi Slavchev, Ilian Iliev, Daniel Borimirov, Stanimir Stoilov, Velko Yotov, Plamen Getov, Nikolay Todorov and
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
, and won three consecutive domestic national championships in 1993, 1994 and 1995. Levski have contributed a record seven players to the Bulgaria national team that finished fourth at the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States w ...
. In 2005–06, Levski reached the quarter-finals of the
2005–06 UEFA Cup The 2005–06 UEFA Cup, the 35th edition of the UEFA Cup, was won by Sevilla, beating Middlesbrough in the final. It was the first victory for Sevilla in a European competition, and the first appearance by Middlesbrough in a European final. The ...
after knocking out the 2004–05 Coupe de France winners
Auxerre Auxerre ( , , Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Auchoirre'') is the capital (Prefectures in France, prefecture) of the Yonne Departments of France, department and the fourth-largest city in the Burgundy historical region southeast of Par ...
in the first round, finishing above
SC Heerenveen Sportclub Heerenveen (; West Frisian language, West Frisian: Sportklub It Hearrenfean) is a Dutch professional association football, football club from Heerenveen. They currently play in the Eredivisie, the top level of football in the Netherla ...
, Dinamo București and the reigning title holders CSKA Moscow in the group stage, triumphing over Champions League participants Artmedia Bratislava and Udinese in the knockout stages, before being eliminated by Schalke 04. Levski, as the champions of Bulgaria, started their 2006–07 UEFA Champions League participation in the second qualifying round, where they eliminated Georgian champions Sioni Bolnisi, defeating them 2–0 both home and away. In the third round, Levski faced the Italian team Chievo Verona, which took part in the tournament because of other clubs' sanctions as part of the 2006 Serie A matchfixing scandal. Levski eliminated Chievo after a decisive 2–0 win in Sofia and a 2–2 draw in Verona, and thus became the first Bulgarian club to ever reach the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. There, they faced the title holders Barcelona,
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
champions Chelsea, and
Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
runners-up
Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen, Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, Werder are best known for their professional association foo ...
. They lost all six games and scored only one goal, in the second round against Chelsea. Levski's UEFA Cup run and the consequent participation in the Champions League group stage were considered the club's greatest European successes in the 21st century, hence the period of their occurrence (2005–2007) was informally called the ''Blue Tale''. Levski earned a place in the
2008–09 UEFA Champions League The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe's premier club football tournament and the 17th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy, on 27 May 2009. ...
after the Bulgarian league champions CSKA Sofia failed to obtain a UEFA license. Levski lost to BATE Borisov of Belarus in the third qualifying round.


2009–2020: Downfall

During the 2009–10 season, Levski's team started their European campaign with a 9–0 (on aggregate) win against UE Sant Julià in the second qualifying round of the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League. In the next round, Levski Sofia faced
FK Baku FC Baku (), founded as Dinamo Baku in 1997, was an Azerbaijani football club based in Baku that had been an amateur club since 2016. Prior to that, Baku played 18 seasons in the Azerbaijan Premier League, winning the championship twice and the N ...
, eliminating the team from Azerbaijan with 2–0 on aggregate. In the play-off round, Levski was eliminated by
Debrecen Debrecen ( ; ; ; ) is Hungary's cities of Hungary, second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain Regions of Hungary, region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the large ...
with 4–1 on aggregate. As one of the play-off losers, Levski qualified for the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League. In the group stage, Levski faced Villarreal,
Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...
and Red Bull Salzburg. Levski achieved only one win and five defeats. Levski won against Lazio in Italy, after Hristo Yovov scored the winning goal in the match. Levski started the 2010–11 season with a match against
Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...
, in a second qualifying round of the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League. Levski won the first match . In the return leg at Oriel Park, Levski defeated Dundalk 2–0 with two first half goals from Garra Dembélé. In the next round Levski played against Kalmar FF. The first match ended 1–1 in Sweden. In the return leg in Sofia, Levski won 5–2. In between, The Blues defeated their archrival CSKA Sofia in the Eternal derby with 1–0. Their next match in the Europa League saw them eliminate Swedish champions AIK 2–1 on aggregate, with goals scored by Daniel Mladenov and Garra Dembélé as Levski reached the Europa League group stage. Levski was drawn in
Group C Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with ''Group A'' for Touring car racing, touring cars and ''Group B'' for Grand tourer, GTs. It was designed to replace both Group 5 (motorspor ...
, facing Gent,
Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
and
Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,
. The first match was played against Gent at home, which Levski won 3–2 with the winning goal scored by Serginho Greene. With this win, Levski recorded eight consecutive games without a defeat in European competitions. After that, Levski lost to Sporting CP with 5–0, followed by another defeat against Lille. In Sofia, Levski played well against Lille and was leading 2–1 until Ivo Ivanov scored an own goal to make it 2–2. In the last match of the Group C, Levski took a win against Sporting CP with 1–0, with the winning goal scored by Daniel Mladenov. In the following 2011–12 season, in the third qualifying round of the Europa League, Levski were eliminated by Spartak Trnava of Slovakia, following a late game 2–1 win in Sofia, and a loss of the same scoreline in Trnava. The
penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
costed Levski a place in the play-off round. This caused an upset with the fans and players, and the team barely clinched the fourth place at the winter break in the Bulgarian league. Albeit only three points from the leaders Ludogoretz Razgrad, the acting manager Georgi Ivanov was sacked from the position, but remained at the club as a sporting director. Nikolay Kostov was appointed the new manager of the club, giving the supporters a sense of optimism, which, however, faded after a cup knock-out in the hands of
Lokomotiv Plovdiv PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv (), commonly known as Loko Plovdiv, is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Plovdiv. Lokomotiv's home ground is the Stadion Lokomotiv (Plovdiv), Lokomotiv Stadium which is situated in Lauta Park and ha ...
and a home defeat to Minyor Pernik. Kostov handed in his resignation, leaving the managerial post once again vacant. Sporting director Georgi Ivanov once again stepped in to help the club, and accepted being the manager until the summer break, when a new one would be appointed. During the summer of 2012, former player Ilian Iliev was appointed the new manager of the club. Under his management, Levski was knocked out from the Europa League by Bosnian side
FK Sarajevo Fudbalski klub Sarajevo ( sh-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Сарајево; , English language, English: Sarajevo Football Club), is a professional Association football, football Sports club, club based in Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosn ...
. Iliev led the team to 13 league victories and to the semi-finals of the Bulgarian Cup after eliminating Cherno More Varna and Litex Lovech on the
away goals rule The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...
. Iliev however was sacked after a 1–1 away draw against Pirin Gotse Delchev. Assistant manager Nikolay Mitov took over the team until the end of the season. Under his management Levski won the derby clashes against Litex, CSKA and Ludogorets but failed to win the title after a 1–1 home draw against Slavia Sofia. Levski also reached their first Bulgarian Cup final since 2007, but lost on penalties against Beroe Stara Zagora. Despite the missed opportunity of winning a trophy, Mitov's contract was renewed for the 2013–14 season. However, the team made another disappointing performance in Europa League, being eliminated by the Kazakh side Irtysh Pavlodar. As a result, Nikolay Mitov resigned as manager. In July 2013, Slaviša Jokanović was appointed as the new manager of the team. Despite losing only two matches in twelve games, Jokanović was released in October 2013. Ivaylo Petev was announced as his successor but during his introduction a few Levski supporters interrupted it, stating that they would not accept his appointment. The next day, Petev refused to take charge of the team and Antoni Zdravkov was named as the new manager. Under his reign the team suffered a heavy 3–0 loss against rivals CSKA, but managed to knock them out in the Bulgarian Cup in December 2013 after penalties. Due to the difficult financial situation, a few key players, such as Antonio Vutov and Garry Rodrigues, were sold to Udinese and
Elche Elche (, ; , , , ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2024's data, Elche has a population of 234,800 inhabitants,
, respectively, during the winter break. This reflected on the team's performance and Levski finished fifth and got knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Bulgarian Cup by Botev Plovdiv. Antoni Zdravkov was sacked in March 2014, and Levski legend Elin Topuzakov took charge as a caretaker until the end of the 2013–14 season. The club did not participate in European competitions for the first time since 1990–91. On 23 May 2014, the club supporters organized a
friendly game An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...
against Lazio, marking the 100th anniversary of the club. Club icons like Georgi Ivanov, Dimitar Ivankov, Aleksandar Aleksandrov, Hristo Yovov, Elin Topuzakov and many other former players and celebrities took participation by playing in the game, as well as donating money for the event's organization. The next day, Levski marked 100 years since its founding. The following years were arguably the darkest in the club's history. League-wise, Levski managed to finish higher than third place only once (runners-up in 2015–16), and achieved its lowest ever ranking (seventh place in 2014–15, followed by eighth in 2020–21). On the stage of the Bulgarian Cup, the club lost two more finals, in
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
to Cherno More and in
2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
to Slavia Sofia. In European competitions, Levski faced some of its most unexpected eliminations – against Liechtenstein side FC Vaduz and Cypriot AEK Larnaca, the latter inflicting the largest ever European defeat on aggregate for Levski . These years were turbulent not only on the football pitch, but at the higher hierarchy of the club. In June 2015, the long-time president Todor Batkov stepped down and the club was taken over by Ivo Tonev, Aleksandar Angelov and Nikolay Ivanov. From this point onwards, Levski began to experience financial problems. Tonev, Angelov and Ivanov's reign was short-lived and in August 2016, they transferred their shares to businessman Spas Rusev. Under his governance, Levski signed players like Gabriel Obertan and Jordi Gómez, as well as coach Delio Rossi, in an attempt to return the club's glory. However, Rusev's financing was dubious, and there were complaints for delayed wages. In February 2017, Rusev admitted the club was "practically bankrupt". On 9 February 2019, Rusev stepped down as owner of Levski, leaving the club with more than 30 million BGN in debt. Four days later, businessman and former owner of archrivals CSKA Vasil Bozhkov took over the club. He attempted to stabilize Levski's financial situation by immediately covering the most urgent obligations and selling or releasing the players with the highest wages, investing around 25 million BGN in total throughout his tenure. In February 2020, Bozhkov stepped down as his main business, 7777.bg (National Lottery), had its license withdrawn by the Bulgarian government. The club being left with no financing whatsoever and in a full-scale financial crisis, sparkled an unprecedented support campaign amongst the fans, who engaged in various donation initiatives, raising 2.6 million BGN in the span of five months. In 2021, former owner Vasil Bozhkov admitted that he was forced to take over Levski under the threat of business closure by prime minister Boyko Borisov. Bozhkov's confession was somewhat of a confirmation of the insinuation that the reason behind Levski's financial problems and occasional ownership changes was Borisov's idea of using the club as an instrument for political influence.


2020–present: Return of Sirakov and Stoilov

In the summer of 2020, club legend Nasko Sirakov took charge of the majority of shares and the club made some financial cuts, forcing a big part of the players (mainly foreigners) to leave. Levski also changed its transfer policy, signing mainly Bulgarian and homegrown players with lower salaries, allowing the club to start paying off some of the debt accumulated throughout the years. Sirakov set a target for the club to clear most of the debt by 2023, mostly through sponsorship deals, outgoing transfers, television rights and the fans' financial support. On 1 September 2021, Sirakov announced the return of the club's most successful manager in the 21st century, also known as the "author" of the ''Blue Tale'', Stanimir Stoilov. At that time, Levski was in 10th place in the league standings with four defeats and two wins in the first six games. With his arrival, Stoilov released three players – Simeon Slavchev, Valeri Bojinov and Hristofor Hubchev, and signed José Córdoba from Etar and Dimitar Kostadinov from Septemvri Sofia. Under his management, the team managed to improve promptly, earning 20 points by the end of the half-season with 5 wins, 5 draws, and 3 defeats. On 15 May 2022, Levski won the Bulgarian Cup by defeating its biggest rivals CSKA 1–0 in the
final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
, thus ending the club's longest ever trophyless period (13 years). It was a record 26th cup for the Blues. By winning the cup, the team earned a place in the UEFA Europa Conference League qualifications. In the second qualifying round, they faced
PAOK PAOK (, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινοπολιτών, ''Panthessalonikeios Athlitikós Ómilos Constantinopoliton'', ''Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans''), commonly ...
, who reached the quarter-finals of the same competition the previous season. Despite being considered underdogs, Levski managed to eliminate the Greek team 3–1 on aggregate. However, Levski crashed out of the tournament in the third qualifying round after an upsetting home defeat on penalties at the hands of Maltese side Ħamrun Spartans.


Club symbols


Names and crests

The first club crest was designed by Mircho Kachulev in 1922. Initially in the size of a square with a blue background, it was intentionally written in a stylized letter "Л" (Bulgarian letter "L"; shortened for Levski). The inner space of the letter was filled vertically equally in yellow and red colours. In a later period of time, the Cyrillic letters "С" (Sport) and "К" (club) were added at the top of the square, while the bottom side was inscribed with the name "Sofia". This badge was used by the club until 1949, when it was renamed to Dinamo. From 1949 to 1956, the emblem of the club was an irregular hexagon filled with vertical red, white, blue and yellow colours, with an inscribed handwritten Cyrillic letter "Д", alongside a five-pointed red star above it and the word "Sofia" underneath. From 1957 to 1968 the original logo of the club was restored, however the letters "C" and "К" were replaced with "Ф" (Athletic) and "Д" (union). After the merger with Spartak Sofia in 1969, the club crest has been a shield in blue and white with a horizontal red bar above. The shield spawned the letters "Л" and "C", an abbreviation of the new name Levski-Spartak. The football club used this crest until 1985, when it was renamed Vitosha. Vitosha's crest was in the form of a stylized letter "C" surrounding the football in the upper curve of the letter, coloured in blue and white. In January 1990, the club restored its original name and original logo, and the letters "C" and "K" in the upper corner of the blue square were replaced with the initials "Ф" (football) and "K" (club). However, due to legal issues with the ownership of the rights to the historic crest, the club was forced to change it in 1998, when a brand new shield logo was introduced, entirely in blue. At its centre, an inscription of the letter "Л" was introduced, alongside the year of establishment – 1914. The dome of the shield was labelled "PFC Levski". After winning the legal dispute for the rights to the historic emblem in 2006, the club decided to use the two different crests simultaneously for a brief period of time. Later that year, the shield crest was replaced by the classic square emblem. The
Cyrillic The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...
letter ''Л'' (L) is used today as the club's kit crest and on its social media channels. File:Levski sofia 1914-1934.JPG, First crest (1922) File:Levski Sofia logo (1923-1944).png, Sports Club Levski Sofia (1923–1944) File:Levski sofia 1944-1949.JPG, Professional Athletic Union Levski Sofia (1944–1949) File:Levski sofia 1949-1957.JPG, Dinamo Sofia (1949–1957) File:Levski sofia 1957-1969.JPG, Athletic Union Levski Sofia (1957–1969) File:Levski sofia 1969-1985.JPG, State Athletic Union Levski-Spartak (1969–1985) File:Levski sofia 1985-1989.JPG, Vitosha Sofia (1985–1989) File:Levski sofia 1989-1990.JPG, Levski-Spartak (1989–1990) File:Levski sofia 1990-1992.JPG, Levski Sofia (1990–1992, 2006–2014) File:Levski sofia 1992-1998.JPG, Levski 1914 (1992–1998) File:PFC Levski logo 1998-2006.png, PFC Levski 1914 (1998–2006) File:Levski92.png, Centenary crest (2014) File:Levski L Logo big.png, Official kit crest


Club anthem

The first anthem of Levski was written by renowned Bulgarian poet Dimcho Debelyanov and composed by Lyubomir Pipkov. Since 1999, the club anthem is "Само Левски шампион" (''Only Levski, the champion''), composed by Stefan Dimitrov.


Stadium

Initially, the club did not possess a field of its own and training was held on an empty space called ''The Hillock'' (''Могилката/Mogilkata''), where the National Palace of Culture was built later. In 1924, the Sofia Municipality provided the club with the rights to an empty field on what were then the outskirts of the city, and a decade later the stadium named Levski Field was finally completed. It provided for 10,000 spectators and was regarded as the finest sport facility in the city. In 1949, the stadium was nationalized and later the
Vasil Levski National Stadium Vasil Levski National Stadium (), named after Bulgarian Folk hero, national hero and revolutionary Vasil Levski (1837–1873), is the country's second largest stadium. The stadium has 43,230 seats and is located in the centre of Sofia, on the te ...
was built on the site. The team played in various locations (including the nearby Yunak Stadium) before moving to the Dinamo ground, which was located at the site of the modern Spartak swimming complex. In 1961, after districting, the team moved to Suhata Reka neighborhood, where a new stadium was built by 1963, which was later renamed in 1990 in honour of former Levski player Georgi Asparuhov. In 1999, the stadium underwent extensive reconstruction with a capacity of 29,000 spectators. The field measures 105 x 68 metres. However, the team plays most of its important international matches on the national stadium Vasil Levski. On one occasion, the former club president Todor Batkov had demanded that Levski should receive Stadion Rakovski on loan. The demand was on grounds that the first club stadium was nationalized and Levski had never been repaid. In October 2012, it was announced that Levski would be renovating their stadium. The first phase of the planned reconstruction was to be completed in 2014, on the centennial of the club's foundation. As of 2013, the capacity was reduced to 19,000 due to the undergoing reconstruction of the main stand. On 5 July 2013, the first step was made in the construction of the main stand, which has a capacity of 6,000 spectators and meets all the requirements of UEFA for the convenience of fans. The stadium's main stand was officially opened on 23 April 2016 at a special ceremony. Since 2019, the Museum of Glory of Levski Sofia is also located at the stadium.


Supporters

Historically, Levski Sofia fans gathered in the south stand of the stadium. This tradition is believed to have its roots in the Sofia Derby, when Levski fans would meet before matches in an area near the southern end of the
Vasil Levski National Stadium Vasil Levski National Stadium (), named after Bulgarian Folk hero, national hero and revolutionary Vasil Levski (1837–1873), is the country's second largest stadium. The stadium has 43,230 seats and is located in the centre of Sofia, on the te ...
. Due to the orientation of the stadium and the naming conventions of the stands in most Bulgarian stadiums, Sector B has become synonymous with Levski fans. Recently, fans in Sector B have been seen as part of the ultras movement, which is popular in the Balkans. Today, Sector B initiates most of the songs, choreographies and pyrotechnics at Levski's matches. Levski supporters are organized by fan clubs, most notably the National Supporters Club, which assists and coordinates fans from all over Bulgaria and supports the organization of events. There are also notable groups from Sofia (Sofia-West, South Division, Blue Junta, HD Boys, LSL and more) and other cities across Bulgaria and globally. Ultras Levski have a long-standing friendship with Lazio fans. According to a study performed for
UEFA The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
, Levski is the most popular Bulgarian club and share the sixth position in Europe with
Juventus Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
, by percentage of support in its own country (31%).


Players


First team

''For recent transfers, see transfers summer 2025.''


Reserve team and Youth Academy


Out on loan


Other players under contract


Foreign players

Up to twenty foreign nationals can be registered and given a squad number for the first team in the
Bulgarian First League The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...
, however only five non-EU/EEA nationals can be used during a match day. Those non-EU/EEA nationals with European ancestry can claim citizenship from the nation their ancestors came from. If players are not of European origin, they can claim Bulgarian citizenship after five years of playing in Bulgaria. Note: ''For a complete list of Levski Sofia players, see :PFC Levski Sofia players.''


Honours

* * Shared record


European record


Recent seasons


League positions

ImageSize = width:1600 height:70 PlotArea = left:10 right:10 bottom:30 top:10 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/07/1948 till:01/07/2025 ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:2 start:1949 Colors = id:First_tier value:green legend:First_tier id:Second_tier value:white legend:Second_tier id:Third_tier value:red legend:Third_tier id:Fourth_tier value:yellow legend:Fourth_tier id:Fifth_tier value:blue legend:Fifth_tier id:Does_not_exist value:black legend:Does_not_exist PlotData= bar:Position width:20 color:green align:center from:01/07/1948 till:01/07/1949 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1949 till:01/07/1950 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1950 till:01/07/1951 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1951 till:01/07/1952 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1952 till:01/07/1953 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1953 till:01/07/1954 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1954 till:01/07/1955 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1955 till:01/07/1956 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1956 till:01/07/1957 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1957 till:01/07/1958 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1958 till:01/07/1959 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1959 till:01/07/1960 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1960 till:01/07/1961 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1961 till:01/07/1962 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1962 till:01/07/1963 shift:(0,-4) text:6 from:01/07/1963 till:01/07/1964 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1964 till:01/07/1965 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1965 till:01/07/1966 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1966 till:01/07/1967 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1967 till:01/07/1968 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1968 till:01/07/1969 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1969 till:01/07/1970 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1970 till:01/07/1971 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1971 till:01/07/1972 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1972 till:01/07/1973 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1973 till:01/07/1974 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1974 till:01/07/1975 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1975 till:01/07/1976 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1976 till:01/07/1977 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1977 till:01/07/1978 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1978 till:01/07/1979 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1979 till:01/07/1980 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1980 till:01/07/1981 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1981 till:01/07/1982 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1982 till:01/07/1983 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1983 till:01/07/1984 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1984 till:01/07/1985 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1985 till:01/07/1986 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1986 till:01/07/1987 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1987 till:01/07/1988 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1988 till:01/07/1989 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1989 till:01/07/1990 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1990 till:01/07/1991 shift:(0,-4) text:6 from:01/07/1991 till:01/07/1992 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1992 till:01/07/1993 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1993 till:01/07/1994 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1994 till:01/07/1995 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1995 till:01/07/1996 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1996 till:01/07/1997 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1997 till:01/07/1998 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1998 till:01/07/1999 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1999 till:01/07/2000 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2000 till:01/07/2001 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2001 till:01/07/2002 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2002 till:01/07/2003 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2003 till:01/07/2004 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2004 till:01/07/2005 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2005 till:01/07/2006 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2006 till:01/07/2007 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2007 till:01/07/2008 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2008 till:01/07/2009 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2009 till:01/07/2010 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2010 till:01/07/2011 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2011 till:01/07/2012 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2012 till:01/07/2013 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2013 till:01/07/2014 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/2014 till:01/07/2015 shift:(0,-4) text:7 from:01/07/2015 till:01/07/2016 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1948 till:01/07/2016 color:green shift:(0,14) text: " A Group" from:01/07/2016 till:01/07/2017 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2017 till:01/07/2018 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2018 till:01/07/2019 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2019 till:01/07/2020 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/2020 till:01/07/2021 shift:(0,-4) text:8 from:01/07/2021 till:01/07/2022 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/2022 till:01/07/2023 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/2023 till:01/07/2024 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/2024 till:01/07/2025 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2016 till:01/07/2024 color:green shift:(0,14) text: " First League" ;Key * G = Games played * W = Games won * D = Games drawn * L = Games lost * GS = Goals scored * GA = Goals against * P = Points


Club officials


Board of directors


First team

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" , - !colspan="2", Technical staff , - , align=left, Head coach , align=left, Julio Velázquez , - , align=left rowspan="2", Assistant coaches , align=left, Fernando Gaspar Laborie , - , align=left, Darko Tasevski , - , align=left, Goalkeeper coach , align=left, Bozhidar Mitrev , - , align=left, Fitness coach , align=left, José Antonio Morga , -


Academy

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" , - !colspan="2", Technical staff , - , align=left, B team coach , align=left, Yordan Petkov , - , align=left, Under-17 coach , align=left, Stoyan Dimov , - , align=left, Under-16 coach , align=left, Danail Ivanov , - , align=left, Under-15 coach , align=left, Dimitar Andonov , - , align=left, Under-14 coach , align=left, Iliyan Ivanov , - , align=left, Under-13 coach , align=left, Stanislav Bogdanov , -


Youth academy

Levski's youth academy has developed some of the most successful Bulgarian footballers. Notable academy graduates are Georgi Asparuhov,
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
, Bozhidar Iskrenov, Bozhin Laskov, Georgi Sokolov, Asen Peshev,
Borislav Mihaylov Borislav Biserov Mihaylov (; born 12 February 1963) is a Bulgarian former professional footballer, who played as a goalkeeper, and Former President of the Bulgarian Football Union (2005 – 2019; 2021 – 2023). He is the longest-serving presid ...
, Emil Spasov, Nikolay Iliev, Hristo Yovov, Dimitar Ivankov, Hristo Iliev, Aleksandar Kostov, Tsvetan Veselinov,
Zdravko Zdravkov Zdravko Stoyanov Zdravkov (; born 4 October 1970 in Sofia) is a former Bulgarian football goalkeeper. He ended his career at the end of 2006–07 season. Club career On the club level, Zdravkov has played for Levski Sofia (1989–1995), I ...
, Voyn Voynov,
Nikolay Mihaylov Nikolay Borislavov Mihaylov (; born 28 June 1988) is a Bulgarian former professional association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Personal life Mihaylov's father is former goalkeeper Borisl ...
and many others. At the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States w ...
, in which
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
reached the semi-finals, the Bulgarian team included four players who went through Levski's youth academy, making it the most represented club in the Bulgarian squad. In 2020, Levski was included in the CIES Football Observatory annual rankings, which ranks the clubs that trained the most players active in 31 top divisions of
UEFA The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
member associations. In these countries there were 33 footballers from Levski's youth academy, and Levski was ranked 35th in Europe.


UEFA & IFFHS rankings


Club coefficients

This is the current 2024–25
UEFA coefficient In European football, the UEFA coefficients are statistics based in weighted arithmetic means used for ranking and seeding teams in club and international competitions. Introduced in 1979 for men's football tournaments (country rankings only), ...
: {, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" , - ! Rank !! Team !! Coefficient , - , 308, , align=left, Progrès Niederkorn, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 309, , align=left,
Floriana Floriana ( or ''Il-Floriana''), also known by its title Borgo Vilhena, is a Floriana Lines, fortified town in the Port Region, Malta, Port Region area of Malta, just outside the capital city Valletta. It has a population of 2,205 as of March 2014 ...
, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 310, , align=left, Velež Mostar, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 311, , align=left, Bala Town, , align=center, 4.500 , - style="background:#ffc;" , 312, , align=left, Levski Sofia, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 313, , align=left, Europa, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 314, , align=left, Shakhtyor Soligorsk, , align=center, 4.500 , - , 315, , align=left, Bravo, , align=center, 4.068 , - , 316, , align=left, Domžale, , align=center, 4.068
Full list


Club world ranking

These are the
IFFHS The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) is an organisation that chronicles the history and records of association football. It was founded in 1984 by Alfredo Pöge in Leipzig. The IFFHS was based in Abu Dhabi for so ...
club's points as of 31 January 2025: {, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" , - ! Rank !! Team !! Points , - , 435, , align=left, Cherno More, , align=center, 59,25 , - , 436, , align=left, Derry City, , align=center, 59,0 , - , 437, , align=left,
Machida Zelvia commonly known as is a Japanese professional football club based in Machida, Tokyo. They currently play in the J1 League, following promotion as J2 League champions in 2023. History Formation and election to the Prefectural League (1989–2 ...
, , align=center, 58,75 , - , 437, , align=left,
Kashima Antlers The are a professional association football, football club based in Kashima, Ibaraki, Japan. They currently play in the J1 League, the top tier of Japanese professional football leagues. The club has financial backing from Mercari, a Japanese ...
, , align=center, 58,75 , - style="background:#ffc;" , 437, , align=left, Levski Sofia, , align=center, 58,75 , - , 440, , align=left, Rivers United, , align=center, 58,5 , - , 440, , align=left,
Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; ) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 94,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech R ...
, , align=center, 58,5 , - , 442, , align=left,
Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club based in East Belfast, Northern Ireland, that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and has since won more than 130 major honours. They are one of three Northern Iris ...
, , align=center, 58,25 , - , 443, , align=left, Maniema Union, , align=center, 58,0
Full list


Shirt sponsors and manufacturers

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" , - !Period !Kit manufacturer !Shirt sponsor , - , 1976–1991 , ,
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
, , ''None'' , - , 1991–1992 , , Diadora , ,
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
, - , 1992–1994 , rowspan=4, Adidas , , Balkanbank , - , 1994–1996 , , Balkanbank / Bulstrad , - , 1996–1998 , , VIS-2 , - , 1998–1999 , , ''None'' , - , 1999–2000 , , Reusch , rowspan=4, Mtel , - , 2000–2005 , Diadora , - , 2005–2010 ,
Uhlsport Uhlsport GmbH is a German Sports equipment, sporting goods manufacturer. Originally established in 1948 as "Haase & Uhl OHG" and later renamed "Karl Uhl GmbH", the company became "uhlsport GmbH" in 1994. It is an international company which has i ...
, - , 2010–2012 , , Nike , - , 2012–2014 , , Puma , , VTB Capital / Mtel , - , 2014–2015 , rowspan=2, Joma , , Lev Ins / Mtel , - , 2015–2018 , rowspan=2, Vivacom / Strabag / efbet , - , 2018–2019 , rowspan=2, Nike , - , 2019–2020 , , 7777.bg , - , 2020–2022 , rowspan=2, Joma , , Strabag / PalmsBet , - , 2022–2023 , rowspan=2, PalmsBet , - , 2023– , Adidas , -


Club records

''As of 2025'' * Biggest league win: 10–0 vs Chernomorets Burgas Sofia (3 March 2007) — 2006–07 * Biggest league defeat: 1–6 vs
Botev Plovdiv Profesionalen Futbolen Klub Botev AD, commonly referred to as Botev Plovdiv (, ), or simply Botev (within its associated city), is a Bulgarian professional Association football, football club based in Plovdiv. It competes in the First Professiona ...
(7 July 1962) — 1961–62 * Biggest
cup A cup is an open-top vessel (container) used to hold liquids for drinking, typically with a flattened hemispherical shape, and often with a capacity of about . Cups may be made of pottery (including porcelain), glass, metal, wood, stone, pol ...
win: 12–1 vs Knyaz Kiril Sofia —
1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...
* Biggest cup defeat: 0–5 vs Spartak Plovdiv1961–62 * Biggest European competition win: 12–2 vs Reipas Lahti (16 September 1976) —
European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
, first round first leg, 1976–77 * Biggest European competition defeat: 0–5 vs
AZ Alkmaar Alkmaar Zaanstreek (), better known internationally as AZ Alkmaar, or simply and most commonly as AZ () in the Netherlands, is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan#The Zaan district, Zaan district. ...
(4 November 1980) —
UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
, second round second leg, 1980–81
vs
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
(12 September 2006) —
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
, group stage, 2006–07
vs
Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,
(30 September 2010) —
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
, group stage, 2010–11 * Biggest European competition win on aggregate: 19–3 vs Reipas Lahti —
European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European association football, football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renam ...
, 1976–77 * Biggest European competition defeat on aggregate: 0–7 vs AEK Larnaca
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
, 2019–20 * Most consecutive league games unbeaten at
home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
: 203 — from 1966 to 1985 * Most consecutive league games unbeaten: 27 — from 10 September 1948 to 13 May 1950 * Most consecutive league games won: 14 — from 3 April 2004 to 19 September 2004 * Most league points in a season: : 3 for win: 79 — 1994–95 : 2 for win: 50 — 1969–70, 1971–72 * Most league goals in a season: 96 — 2006–07 * Record league home attendance: 60,000 vs Pirin Blagoevgrad (16 September 1973) — 1973–74 * Record European competition home attendance: 55,000 vs
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
(17 March 1976) —
UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
, quarter-finals second leg, 1975–76 * Record incoming transfer: Georgi Chilikov from Naftex Burgas for €1,500,000 * Record outgoing transfer: Georgi Ivanov to
Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...
for €4,100,000


Player records

''As of 2025''


Most appearances

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" , - !No. !Name !Career !Appearances , - , 1 , align="left", Stefan Aladzhov , , 469 , - , 2 , align="left", Emil Spasov , 1974–1990 , 429 , - , 3 , align="left", Pavel Panov , 1969–1981 , 382 , - , 4 , align="left", Kiril Ivkov , 1967–1978 , 374 , - , 5 , align="left", Elin Topuzakov , 1996–2008
2009–2010 , 347 , - , rowspan=2, 6 , align="left", Hristo Iliev , 1954–1968 , rowspan=2, 330 , - , align="left", Aleksandar Kostov , 1956–1971 , - , 8 , align="left", Dimitar Telkiyski , 1999–2008
2009–2010 , 313 , - , 9 , align="left", Plamen Nikolov , 1977–1992 , 310 , - , 10 , align="left", Hristo Yovov , 1995–1997
2004–2007
2009–2013 , 306


Most goals scored

{, class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" , - !No. !Name !Career !Goals !Appearances !Goals per game , - , 1 , align="left",
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
, 1981–1994 , 209 , 264 , , - , 2 , align="left", Pavel Panov , 1969–1981 , 177 , 382 , , - , 3 , align="left", Georgi Asparuhov , 1959–1971 , 153 , 239 , , - , 4 , align="left", Georgi Ivanov , 1997–2009 , 135 , 238 , , - , 5 , align="left", Hristo Iliev , 1954–1959
1961–1968 , 132 , 330 , , - , 6 , align="left", Emil Spasov , 1974–1985
1987–1988
1989–1990 , 114 , 429 , , - , 7 , align="left", Mihail Valchev , 1981–1986 , 109 , 177 , , - , 8 , align="left", Dimitar Yordanov , 1956–1965 , 100 , 201 , , - , 9 , align="left", Hristo Yovov , 1995–1997
2004–2007
2009–2013 , 87 , 306 , , - , rowspan=2, 10 , align="left", Asen Peshev , 1924–1937 , rowspan=2, 86 , 99 , , - , align="left", Daniel Borimirov , 1990–1995
2004–2008 , 297 ,


Managerial history

* Boris Vasilev (1921–23) * Mihail Borisov (1923–24) * Boris Vasilev (1924–27) * Ivan Kachev (1927–32) * Tsvetan Genev (1932–33) * Ivan Radoev (1933) * Georgi Karaivanov (1934) * Rudolf Löwenfeld (1934–35) * Ivan Radoev (1936) * Kiril Yovovich (1936–37) * Ivan Radoev (1937–38) * Dimitar Mutafchiev (1938–39) * Asen Panchev (1939–40) * Miloš Strużka (1940–41) * Asen Panchev (1941–44) * Ivan Radoev (1944–48) * Rezső Somlai (1948–49) * Ivan Radoev (1950–51) * Liubomir Petrov (1952) * Dimitar Mutafchiev (1953) * Vasil Spasov (1954–56) * Georgi Pachedzhiev (1956–60) * Kotse Georgiev (1960–61) * Krastio Chakarov (1961–64) * Hristo Mladenov (1964–65) * Rudolf Vytlačil (1965–66) * Krastyo Chakarov (1966–69) * Vasil Spasov (1969) * Rudolf Vytlačil (1969–70) * Yoncho Arsov (1971–73) * Dimitar Doychinov (1973–75) * Ivan Vutsov (1975–76) * Vasil Spasov (1976–77) * Ivan Vutsov (1977–80) * Hristo Mladenov (1980–82) * Dobromir Zhechev (1982–83) * Vasil Metodiev (1983–85) * Kiril Ivkov (1985–86) * Pavel Panov (1986–87) * Vasil Metodiev (1988–89) * Dobromir Zhechev (1989) * Pavel Panov (1989–90) * Vasil Metodiev (1991) *
Dinko Dermendzhiev Dinko Tsvetkov Dermendzhiev (; 2 June 1941 – 1 May 2019), nicknamed Chico was a Bulgarian footballer and coach. Club career Dinko Dermendzhiev began his youth career in Maritsa Plovdiv. Initially, he played as a goalkeeper, although later he ...
(1991) * Ivan Vutov (1992–93) * Georgi Vasilev (1993–95) * Ivan Kyuchukov (1995–96) * Georgi Tsvetkov (1996–97) * Stefan Grozdanov (1997) * Mihail Valchev (1998) * Vyacheslav Hrozny (1998) * Angel Stankov (1999) * Ljupko Petrović (1999–00) * Dimitar Dimitrov (2000) * Vladimir Fedotov (2000) * Ljupko Petrović (2000–01) * Georgi Todorov (2001) * Rüdiger Abramczik (2002) * Slavoljub Muslin (2002–03) * Georgi Todorov (2003) * Georgi Vasilev (2003–04) * Stanimir Stoilov (1 June 2004 – 6 May 2008) * Velislav Vutsov (2008) * Emil Velev (16 August 2008 – 23 July 2009) * Ratko Dostanić (23 July 2009 – 19 October 2009) * Georgi Ivanov (19 October 2009 – 30 June 2010) * Antoni Zdravkov (2009–10) * Yasen Petrov (1 July 2010 – 28 May 2011) * Georgi Ivanov (1 June 2011 – 3 November 2011) * Antoni Zdravkov (2011) * Nikolay Kostov (3 November 2011 – 27 March 2012) * Georgi Ivanov ''(interim)'' (27 March 2012 – 8 April 2012) * Yasen Petrov (7 April 2012 – 30 May 2012) * Ilian Iliev (1 July 2012 – April 2013) * Nikolay Mitov (12 April 2013 – 12 July 2013) * Slaviša Jokanović (15 July 2013 – October 2013) * Ivaylo Petev (8 October 2013 – 9 October 2013) * Antoni Zdravkov (10 October 2013 – 19 March 2014) * Elin Topuzakov (20 March 2014 – June 2014) * José Murcia (June 2014 – 4 August 2014) * Georgi Ivanov (4 August 2014 – 22 December 2014) * Stoycho Stoev (22 December 2014 – 15 May 2016) * Ljupko Petrović (16 May 2016 – 22 October 2016) * Elin Topuzakov (22 October 2016 – 2 March 2017) * Nikolay Mitov (2 March 2017 – 4 August 2017) * Delio Rossi (4 August 2017 – 25 July 2018) * Todor Simov ''(interim)'' (25 July 2018 – 31 July 2018) * Slaviša Stojanovič (31 July 2018 – 21 January 2019) * Georgi Dermendzhiev (21 January 2019 – 29 April 2019) * Georgi Todorov ''(interim)'' (29 April 2019 – 30 May 2019) * Petar Hubchev (30 May 2019 – 11 June 2020) * Georgi Todorov (11 June 2020 – 24 October 2020) * Zhivko Milanov ''(interim)'' (24 October 2020 – 9 November 2020) * Slaviša Stojanovič (10 November 2020 – 23 May 2021) * Zhivko Milanov (2021) * Todor Simov ''(interim)'' (2021) * Stanimir Stoilov (2 September 2021 – 8 April 2023) * Elin Topuzakov ''(interim)'' (10 April 2023 – 13 June 2023) * Nikolay Kostov (13 June 2023 – 28 May 2024) * Stanislav Genchev (28 May 2024 – 16 December 2024) * Julio Velázquez (5 January 2025 – present)


Notable players


Bulgarian players

''Players with at least one appearance for the Bulgaria national team.'' * Kiril Yovovich * Konstantin Maznikov * Geno Mateev * Tsvetan Genev * Dimitar Mutafchiev * Nikola Mutafchiev * Ivan Radoev * Aleksandar Hristov * Petar Ivanov * Mihail Lozanov * Asen Panchev * Asen Peshev * Bozhin Laskov * Amedeo Kleva * Vasil Spasov * Georgi Pachedzhiev * Yordan Tomov * Lyubomir Hranov * Apostol Sokolov * Stefan Abadzhiev * Yoncho Arsov * Hristo Iliev * Boris Apostolov * Dimitar Yordanov * Aleksandar Kostov * Georgi Sokolov * Stefan Aladzhov * Georgi Asparuhov * Tsvetan Veselinov * Ivan Vutsov * Georgi Kamenski * Yanko Kirilov * Nikola Kotkov * Biser Mihaylov * Mihail Gyonin * Todor Barzov * Krasimir Borisov * Voyn Voynov * Milko Gaydarski * Georgi Tsvetkov * Dobromir Zhechev * Kiril Ivkov * Kiril Milanov * Vasil Mitkov * Pavel Panov * Emil Spasov * Stefan Staykov * Ivan Stoyanov * Emil Velev * Mihail Valchev * Rusi Gochev * Nikolay Iliev * Bozhidar Iskrenov * Krasimir Koev * Petar Kurdov *
Borislav Mihaylov Borislav Biserov Mihaylov (; born 12 February 1963) is a Bulgarian former professional footballer, who played as a goalkeeper, and Former President of the Bulgarian Football Union (2005 – 2019; 2021 – 2023). He is the longest-serving presid ...
* Plamen Nikolov * Petar Petrov *
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
* Georgi Slavchev * Georgi Yordanov * Plamen Getov * Georgi Donkov * Velko Yotov * Aleksandar Aleksandrov * Daniel Borimirov * Ilian Iliev * Emil Kremenliev *
Zdravko Zdravkov Zdravko Stoyanov Zdravkov (; born 4 October 1970 in Sofia) is a former Bulgarian football goalkeeper. He ended his career at the end of 2006–07 season. Club career On the club level, Zdravkov has played for Levski Sofia (1989–1995), I ...
* Plamen Nikolov * Petar Mihtarski * Petar Aleksandrov * Tsanko Tsvetanov * Zlatko Yankov * Petar Hubchev * Georgi Ivanov * Nikolay Todorov * Marian Hristov * Stanimir Stoilov * Predrag Pažin * Elin Topuzakov * Dimitar Telkiyski * Hristo Yovov * Lúcio Wagner * Igor Tomašić * Georgi Ivanov * Emil Angelov * Stanislav Angelov * Nikolay Dimitrov * Vladimir Gadzhev * Valeri Domovchiyski * Dimitar Ivankov * Milan Koprivarov * Zhivko Milanov *
Nikolay Mihaylov Nikolay Borislavov Mihaylov (; born 28 June 1988) is a Bulgarian former professional association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Personal life Mihaylov's father is former goalkeeper Borisl ...
* Mariyan Ognyanov * Georgi Petkov * Ilian Stoyanov * Georgi Markov * Ivan Tsvetkov * Georgi Chilikov * Zahari Sirakov * Plamen Iliev * Veselin Minev * Stanislav Kostov * Valeri Bojinov * Aleksandar Kolev * Iliyan Stefanov


Foreign players

''Foreign players with at least 30 games for the club or that were internationally capped. Players who were internationally capped for their country are listed in bold.'' Europe * Dalibor Dragić * David Jablonský * Cédric Bardon * Gabriel Obertan * Péter Kabát * Hólmar Örn Eyjólfsson * Milan Mijatović * Serginho Greene * Nigel Robertha * Darko Tasevski * Gjoko Zajkov * Cristóvão Ramos * João Silva * Nuno Reis * Sergiu Buș * Konstantin Golovskoy * John Inglis * Miloš Cvetković * Bojan Jorgačević * Miodrag Pantelić * Saša Simonović * Roman Procházka * Rene Mihelič * Añete * Jordi Gómez * Miguel Bedoya * Simon Sandberg * Davide Mariani North and Central America * Dustley Mulder * José Córdoba South America * Zé Soares * Joãozinho * Paulinho * Welton Felipe * Jean Deza Africa * Cédric Hountondji * Garry Rodrigues * Noah Sonko Sundberg * Basile de Carvalho * Serge Yoffou * Garra Dembélé * Chakib Benzoukane * Mehdi Bourabia * Youssef Rabeh * Garba Lawal * Omonigho Temile * Justice Christopher * Richard Eromoigbe * Ekundayo Jayeoba * Tunde Adeniji * Khaly Thiam * Ricardo Nunes


Bulgarian Footballer of the Year

* 1931 – Asen Peshev * 1942 – Lyuben Stamboliev * 1948 – Vasil Spasov * 1965 – Georgi Asparuhov * 1970 – Stefan Aladzhov * 1974 – Kiril Ivkov * 1975 – Kiril Ivkov * 1977 – Pavel Panov * 1984 – Plamen Nikolov * 1986 –
Borislav Mihaylov Borislav Biserov Mihaylov (; born 12 February 1963) is a Bulgarian former professional footballer, who played as a goalkeeper, and Former President of the Bulgarian Football Union (2005 – 2019; 2021 – 2023). He is the longest-serving presid ...
* 1987 – Nikolay Iliev * 1999 – Aleksandar Aleksandrov * 2000 – Georgi Ivanov * 2001 – Georgi Ivanov


First division top goalscorers

* 1940 – Yanko Stoyanov (14 goals) * 1950 – Lubomir Hranov (11 goals) * 1957 – Hristo Iliev (14 goals) * 1960 – Dimitar Yordanov (12 goals) * 1965 – Georgi Asparuhov (27 goals) * 1974 – Kiril Milanov (19 goals) * 1976 – Pavel Panov (18 goals) * 1977 – Pavel Panov (20 goals) * 1979 – Rusi Gochev (19 goals) * 1982 – Mihail Valchev (24 goals) * 1984 – Emil Spasov (19 goals) * 1987 –
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
(36 goals) * 1988 –
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
(28 goals) * 1992 –
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
(26 goals) * 1993 – Plamen Getov (26 goals) * 1994 –
Nasko Sirakov Nasko Petkov Sirakov (; born 26 April 1962) is a Bulgarian retired professional Association football, footballer who played mainly as a forward (association football), striker. He is the major shareholder of PFC Levski Sofia, Levski Sofia. Par ...
(30 goals) * 2001 – Georgi Ivanov (21 goals) * 2003 – Georgi Chilikov (22 goals) * 2011 – Garra Dembele (26 goals) * 2013 – Basile de Carvalho (19 goals) * 2015 – Añete (14 goals) * 2019 – Stanislav Kostov (24 goals)


See also

* Levski Sofia (sports club) * Bulgarian Footballer of the Year * ECA and EMCA


References


External links

Official websites *
Levski Academy

UEFA team profile
Fan websites
Sector B website

Levski Sofia – statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levski Sofia Association football clubs established in 1914 1914 establishments in Bulgaria Football clubs in Sofia