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Raków Częstochowa

For railway station in Częstochowa, see Częstochowa Raków railway station.
Raków Częstochowa
Full nameRobotniczy Klub Sportowy Raków Częstochowa Spółka Akcyjna
Nickname(s)Medaliki (Medallions)
Founded15 March 1921; 104 years ago (1921-03-15)
(as Racovia)
Groundzondacrypto Arena
Capacity5,500
OwnerMichał Świerczewski
ChairmanPiotr Obidziński
ManagerMarek Papszun
LeagueEkstraklasa
2024–25Ekstraklasa, 2nd of 18
Websiterakow.com
Current season

Robotniczy Klub Sportowy Raków Częstochowa Spółka Akcyjna (commonly referred to as Raków Częstochowa, or simply Raków) is a Polish professional football club, based in Częstochowa, that competes in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of national football league system.

History

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Poster advertising a friendly match between Raków Częstochowa and KKS Częstochowa, 1946

Sports club "Racovia" was established in 1921 in the village of Raków. The club dissolved in 1925 due to lack of registration. In 1927, the club was reactivated under the name of the Robotniczy Klub Sportowy (Workers Sports Club) Raków. A year later, the village became a district of Częstochowa.[1] The club operated under the patronage of the Polish Socialist Party and was financially supported by the Częstochowa steelworks. In 1937, the club was promoted to Klasa A (third level). During the German occupation (World War II), the club did not function. In the years 1951–1955, a Raków Municipal Stadium with an athletics track was built. In the years 1962–1966, the football team competed in the second league.

On 9 July 1967, Raków lost 0–2 to Wisła Kraków in their first Polish Cup final appearance. In 1972, Raków's players reached the semi-finals of the Polish Cup, which they lost to Legia Warsaw. In the years 1978–1980, 1981–1984 and 1990–1994 the club played in the second league. In 1993, the junior team took 2nd place in the Football Junior Championships of Poland.[2] In 1994, for the first time in club history, Raków were promoted to Ekstraklasa. They competed in the top-flight for four seasons until being relegated after the 1997–98 season. The club suffered back-to-back relegations in 1999–2000 and 2000–01, dropping down to the IV liga. The club finally made it to back to the Polish second division, I liga, in 2016.

Promotion and European football

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The club won the I liga in 2018–19, earning promotion to Ekstraklasa for the first time in 21 years.[3] In the same season, they impressed in the 2018–19 Polish Cup, reaching the semi-finals of the competition by beating the likes of Lech Poznań in the round of 32[4] and Legia Warsaw in the quarter-finals.[5] They finished the 2019–20 season in 10th place.

Match between Raków and Lechia Gdańsk

In the 2020–21 season, Raków finished the league season as runners-up. This was their highest ever league position in their history, and it secured their place in the newly formed UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers for the 2021–22 season, their maiden appearance in European football.[6][7] Further success followed when Raków won the 2020–21 Polish Cup, their first major trophy, defeating I liga side Arka Gdynia in the final 2–1 on 2 May 2021. On 17 July 2021, Raków Częstochowa defeated reigning Ekstraklasa title holders Legia Warsaw on penalties to win the 2021 Polish Super Cup.[8]

Their first ever appearance in European football was in the second qualifying round of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League, facing Lithuanian team Sūduva, with the game finishing 0–0 (4–3 pens) after both legs.[9] They faced Russian Premier League side Rubin Kazan in the third qualifying round, beating them 1–0 on aggregate score.[10] In the final qualifying round, they faced Belgian side Gent, which they beat 1–0 in the first leg,[11] but lost 0–3 in the second leg, losing 1–3 on aggregate,[12] eliminating them from the competition.

On 2 May 2022, Raków defeated Lech Poznań 3–1 and secured its second consecutive Polish Cup.[13] In the race for the league title that season, Raków lost out to the same opponents by just five points, with the champions being decided on the penultimate day of the season. On 9 July 2022, Raków won their second consecutive Polish Super Cup with a 2–0 win over Lech Poznań.[14] In the UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying phase, the team defeated FC Astana (6–0 agg.) and FC Spartak Trnava (3–0 agg.), but lost to Slavia Prague (2–3 agg.) in the play-off round.

On 7 May 2023, Raków won the Ekstraklasa championship for the first time in their history,[15] and thus qualified for the Champions League, where they reached the last qualifying round and faced FC Copenhagen from Denmark. Raków subsequently played in the Europa League that season, where they were knocked out in the group stages.

Players and pupils

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Raków Częstochowa players before match vs Aris Limassol FC in 2023

The club's alumni include Jakub Błaszczykowski, Jerzy Brzęczek and Jacek Magiera. Former Polish internationals such as Jacek Krzynówek and Tomasz Kiełbowicz also played for the club.

Players

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Current squad

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As of 20 August 2025[16]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Poland POL Kacper Trelowski
2 DF Poland POL Ariel Mosór
4 DF Greece GRE Stratos Svarnas
5 MF Croatia CRO Marko Bulat
6 MF Poland POL Oskar Repka
7 MF Croatia CRO Fran Tudor
8 MF Poland POL Tomasz Pieńko
9 FW Poland POL Patryk Makuch
10 MF Spain ESP Ivi
11 MF Brazil BRA Adriano Amorim
17 FW Portugal POR Leonardo Rocha
18 FW Norway NOR Jonatan Braut Brunes
19 MF Poland POL Michael Ameyaw
20 MF Brazil BRA Jean Carlos
23 MF Poland POL Karol Struski
No. Pos. Nation Player
24 DF Croatia CRO Zoran Arsenić (captain)
25 DF Romania ROU Bogdan Racovițan
26 DF Kenya KEN Erick Otieno
28 MF Colombia COL Jesús Díaz
30 MF Ukraine UKR Vladyslav Kocherhin
31 GK Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH Muhamed Šahinović
39 GK Poland POL Jakub Mądrzyk
48 GK Poland POL Oliwier Zych (on loan from Aston Villa)
66 DF Greece GRE Apostolos Konstantopoulos
80 FW France FRA Lamine Diaby-Fadiga
88 MF Hungary HUN Péter Baráth
91 FW Poland POL Tomasz Walczak
97 MF Senegal SEN Ibrahima Seck
99 FW Poland POL Adam Basse
— MF Poland POL Jakub Myszor

Out on loan

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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
14 MF Serbia SRB Srđan Plavšić (at Baník Ostrava until 30 June 2026)
21 MF Poland POL Antoni Burkiewicz (at Polonia Bytom until 30 June 2026)
No. Pos. Nation Player
27 MF Poland POL Kacper Nowakowski (at Chrobry Głogów until 30 June 2026)
76 GK Poland POL Jakub Rajczykowski (at Świt Szczecin until 30 June 2026)

Retired numbers

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See also: List of retired numbers in association football

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
13 MF Poland POL Piotr Malinowski (2015–21)

Notable players

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Players who have appeared for their respective national team at any time. Players whose name is listed in bold represented their countries while playing for Raków.

Player records

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Most goals

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# Nat. Name Goals
1 Poland Zdzisław Sławuta 106
2 Poland Waldemar Żebrowski 98
3 Poland Sławomir Palacz 87
4 Poland Jan Spychalski 77
5 Poland Piotr Malinowski 74[17]
6 Poland Tomasz Czok 71[17]
7 Poland Grzegorz Skwara 69
8 Poland Czesław Kusal 59[17]
9 Spain Ivi 57
10 Poland Maksymilian Rogalski 52

Players whose name is listed in bold are still active.

Top goalscorers

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Season Name G
2002–03 IV liga Poland Tomasz Czok 15
2004–05 IV liga Poland Tomasz Czok 23
2021–22 Ekstraklasa Spain Ivi 20

Honours

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League

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Cups

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Raków Częstochowa in European football

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Home game with F.C. Copenhagen in the 2023–24 UEFA Champions League play-off round
As of match played on 21 August 2025
Competition Games Wins Draws Losses GS GA GD
UEFA Champions League 8 5 2 1 12 6 +6
UEFA Europa League 6 1 1 4 3 10 –7
UEFA Conference League 17 10 4 3 23 8 +15
Total 31 16 7 8 38 24 +14

Results

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Season Competition Round Opponent Home Away Aggregate
2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League 2Q Lithuania Sūduva 0–0 (a.e.t.) 0–0 0–0 (4–3 p)
3Q Russia Rubin Kazan 0–0 1–0 (a.e.t.) 1–0
PO Belgium Gent 1–0 0–3 1–3
2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League 2Q Kazakhstan Astana 5–0 1–0 6–0
3Q Slovakia Spartak Trnava 1–0 2–0 3–0
PO Czech Republic Slavia Prague 2–1 0–2 (a.e.t.) 2–3
2023–24 UEFA Champions League 1Q Estonia Flora 1–0 3–0 4–0
2Q Azerbaijan Qarabağ 3–2 1–1 4–3
3Q Cyprus Aris Limassol 2–1 1–0 3–1
PO Denmark Copenhagen 0–1 1–1 1–2
UEFA Europa League GS Italy Atalanta 0–4 0–2 4th
Portugal Sporting CP 1–1 1–2
Austria Sturm Graz 0–1 1–0
2025–26 UEFA Conference League 2Q Slovakia Žilina 3–0 3–1 6–1
3Q Israel Maccabi Haifa 0–1 2–0 2–1
PO Bulgaria Arda 1–0

UEFA Team ranking

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See also: UEFA coefficient

As of 19 April 2025.[20]

Rank Team Points
184 Montenegro Budućnost Podgorica 8.000
185 Slovakia Dunajská Streda 8.000
186 Poland Raków Częstochowa 8.000
187 Azerbaijan Neftçi 8.000
188 Krasnodar 8.000

Coaches and managers

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Marek Papszun is Raków's most successful coach.

References

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  1. ^ Rozporządzenie Rady Ministrów z dnia 14 marca 1928 r. o zmianie granic miasta Częstochowy w powiecie częstochowskim, województwie kieleckiem., Dz. U., 1928, vol. 40, No. 391
  2. ^ "Portal Kibiców Rakowa Częstochowa:Historia". rakow.com.pl (in Polish). 30 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Fortuna 1 Liga. Sezon 2018/19 w statystykach. Zobacz, kto najczęściej posiadał piłkę, a kto najwięcej dryblował". Gol24 (in Polish). 27 May 2019. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  4. ^ "Raków Częstochowa - Lech Poznań. Niespodzianka! Kolejorz odpada z Pucharu Polski!". Sport.pl (in Polish). 30 October 2018. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  5. ^ "Puchar Polski. Raków wyeliminował Legię! [ZAPIS RELACJI] Piłka nożna - Sport.pl". www.sport.pl. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  6. ^ a b "Football: Raków Częstochowa beat Arka Gdynia in Polish Cup final". Polskie Radio. 2 May 2021. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
  7. ^ "TABELA PKO BANK POLSKI EKSTRAKLASY 2020/2021". Ekstraklasa (in Polish). Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  8. ^ "Raków z Superpucharem". 90 Minut (in Polish). 17 July 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  9. ^ UEFA.com. "Raków-Sūduva". UEFA. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  10. ^ UEFA.com. "Rubin-Raków". UEFA. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  11. ^ UEFA.com. "Raków-Gent". UEFA. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  12. ^ UEFA.com. "Gent-Raków". UEFA. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  13. ^ "Raków zdobył Puchar Polski". 90minut.pl (in Polish). 2 May 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Raków z Superpucharem". 90minut.pl (in Polish). 9 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Raków mistrzem Polski! Zdobył tytuł dwie godziny po meczu". sport.pl (in Polish). 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  16. ^ "Current squad". Raków Częstochowa. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  17. ^ a b c In the case of Piotr Malinowski and Tomasz Czok, not all goals scored in the Polish Cup competitions were taken into account, and in the case of Czesław Kusal, not all goals scored in the 1947 and 1948 seasons were taken into account.
  18. ^ Mogielnicki, Paweł (11 May 2018). "Poland – List of Cup Finals". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
  19. ^ "Walka o Superpuchar trwa nadal! Śledź relację! [NA ŻYWO]" [The fight for the Super Cup continues! Follow the report! [LIVE]]. sport.tvp.pl (in Polish). 17 July 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  20. ^ "Club coefficients". UEFA.
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