KK Red Star Belgrade

	KK Red Star Belgrade
Nickname	Zvezda ("Star" or "The Star"), ; Crveno-Beli ("Red-Whites" or ; "The Red-Whites")
Founded	March 4, 1945
Hall	Aleksandar Nikolić Hall (5,878 seats) ; Štark Arena (18,386 seats)
Homepage	kkcrvenazvezda.rs
president	Nebojša Čović
Trainer	Dragan Šakota
league	Adriatic Basketball League (ABA League) ; 2018/19: Champion; 1st place
	Basketball League of Serbia (KLS) ; 2018/19: Champion; 1st place
Colours	Red & white
home	Away
	successes
	European Cup Winners 'Cup (1) ; Finalist of the European Cup Winners' Cup (2) ; Master ABA League (4) ; Semi-finalist of the ULEB Eurocup (1) ; Finalist of the Korać Cup (1) ; Semi-finalist of the Korać Cup (4) ; Yugoslavian and Serbian champions ( 20) ; Finalist of the ABA League (1) ; Final Four or semi-finals of the ABA League (5) ; Yugoslavian and Serbian Cup winners (9)

The KK Crvena zvezda (officially on Serbian : Кошаркашки клуб Црвена звезда - звезда KK Црвена, Košarkaški club Crvena Zvezda - KK Crvena zvezda , German basketball club Red Star ), commonly known as Crvena zvezda , pronounced [tsřʋena zʋěːzda] ( "Red Star"), In its short form Zvezda ("star") or in German-speaking countries also known as Red Star or Red Star Belgrade , is the basketball department of Red Star Belgrade , a Serbian sports club from the Belgrade district of Stari Grad that was founded in 1945 .

The capital club plays in the Adriatic Basketball League (ABA League) and the Basketball League of Serbia (KLS) and has spent its entire history in the top tier of Yugoslav and Serbian basketball. He is the only Serbian basketball club that has never been relegated. The club won a total of 28 trophies, including 18 national championships and nine national cups. In the all-time table of the 1st league of socialist Yugoslavia he occupies 1st place. At club level, Red Star Belgrade recorded its greatest success in 1974 when it won the European Cup Winners' Cup , what was once the second most important European Cup. Previously, the final in this competition was already in 1972 and again in 1975. In the final of the Korać Cup , formerly the third most important European Cup, the club was able to move in 1984 and 1998; the semi-finals had already been reached in 1981, 1985 and 1988.

The last major European success came in 2014 , when the club reached the semi-finals of the ULEB Eurocup and the top 16 of the 2014/15 season of the ULEB Euroleague . In addition, Red Star was runner-up in the ABA league in 2013. Already in all seasons between 2003 and 2006, as well as in 2009, the club was able to reach the final four or semi-finals there. In 2015 he finally won the ABA league. This makes Red Star the second most successful basketball club in Serbia behind city rivals Partizan Belgrade and one of the most successful in the former Yugoslavia and in Europe.

With the city rival Partizan, Red Star has one of the most famous rivalries in sport and one of the most famous basketball derbies worldwide. This encounter is known as the Eternal Derby . The club has played its home games in the Štark Arena since 2013 , and before that in the Pionir Hall since 1973 . With a capacity of up to 25,000 seats, the Štark Arena is one of the five largest multi-purpose halls in Europe.

history

1945–1955: The golden era

The Red Star Belgrade basketball club was founded on March 4, 1945, the same day as the Red Star Belgrade sports club. The first manager of the basketball department was Mira Petrović, but Mirko Aksentijević-Bata soon took over the helm. Due to the wounds Aksentijević-Bata had sustained during the Second World War , he could not take part in the game himself, which is why Aksentijević-Bata devoted most of his time to organizational and work tasks. Soon Nebojša Popović joined him. Together they intensified the advancement of Red Star. In the first months of its existence, investments were mainly made in the infrastructure ; Among other things, the playing field was reconstructed, new baskets were installed, and jerseys were also purchased. Soon a selection of players was found who would win numerous titles.

Between 1946 and 1955 the club won ten Yugoslav championships in a row. It was probably the most successful epoch of Red Star, when the club and its then playing field Mali Kalemegdan in Yugoslavia was synonymous with absolute basketball. One of the most loyal spectators of that period was the Nobel laureate Ivo Andrić , who was later offered the club presidency. The most influential players of that time were Nebojša Popović, Tulio Roklicer and Aleksander Gec as well as Ladislav Demšar and Srđan Kalember. The latter won a total of nine championships together with his teammate Milan Bjegojević, an unbroken record to this day. A decree of the government at the time probably also contributed to this , according to which all players who were members of the military had to join the ranks of the city rival Partizan , which was then considered a club of the Yugoslav People's Army . The best-known players who made such a club change include the brothers Šaper and Ratko Vlahović as well as Braco Alagić and Aleksandar Nikolić.

1955–1974: An era comes to an end

The winning streak of ten league titles in a row was broken in 1956 by Proleter Zrenjanin . It was the beginning of a crisis of 13 seasons without a championship. Between 1956 and 1968, Red Star only managed one runner-up in 1959, while OKK Belgrade , Olimpija Ljubljana and KK Zadar made up the championship among themselves. During this time, the club's squad changed completely. Among other things, coach Nebojša Popović sorted out the then club icons Aleksander Gec and Milan Bjegojević. The results varied from a 3rd place in 1957 and 1958 to an 8th place in 1962 and 1963, and finally a third place again in 1964. In 1962 and 1963, the former “inviolable champion” even fought against relegation. One reason for this was that the Yugoslav league developed into one of the strongest basketball beds in the world in the 1960s, producing 15 European Cup winners and 11 European Cup finalists before it broke up in the early 1990s.

But soon a new generation followed, which should play for the title again, led by players like Vladimir Cvetković and Zoran Slavnić as well as Ljubodrag Simonović and Dragan Kapičić. Finally, Red Star won his eleventh championship in 1969 with Milan Bjegojević as coach. Dragiša Vučinić and Jovan Sarjanović played a particularly important role in the first title after 14 years. After the subsequent runner-up in 1970, the 12th championship in 1972 and a second second place in 1973 followed. The title from 1972 should then remain the last championship until the collapse of socialist Yugoslavia. The championship went to clubs such as KK Zadar, Bosna Sarajevo , Cibona Zagreb and especially Jugoplastika Split and Partizan Belgrade for the next 19 years . Even so, Red Star continued to be a major factor in the league, especially in the 1980s when the championship was narrowly missed several times.

Club successes

European Cup Winners' Cup : 1974
European Cup Winners' Cup finalist: 1972, 1975
Champion of the ABA League : 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019
Runner-up in the ABA League : 2013, 2018
Semi-finalist of the ULEB Eurocup : 2014
Korać Cup finalist : 1984, 1998
Semi-finalist of the Korać Cup: 1981, 1985, 1988
Final Four of the ABA League: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009
National champions: 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1969, 1972, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019
State cup winners: 1971, 1973, 1975, 2004, 2006, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017

Well-known coaches and players

Star of the star

Every year, the fan communities in cooperation with the club choose the star of the team. So far, eight players have had the title Zvezdine zvezde (Stars of the Star):

Former known players

Web links

Commons : KK Crvena zvezda - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

swell

↑ Монографија 50 година СД Црвена звезда, p. 107.
↑ Занимљивости из историје КК Црвена звезда . mojacrvenazvezda.net. September 27, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
↑ Dobitnik nagrade za delo životno - Nebojša Popović . Ukts.rs. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved December 21, 2014. @1@ 2

↑ Александар Милетић: Андрићу нуђено да буде председник Звезде . Politika.rs. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

^ O Klubu . kkcrvenazvezda.rs. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

↑ Званичан Media Guide КК Црвена звезда - сезоне 2002/2003, p. 138

↑ Историја КК црвена звезда 1 део . Ukts.rs. July 26, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

[1] Монографија 50 година СД Црвена звезда, p. 107.

[2] Занимљивости из историје КК Црвена звезда . mojacrvenazvezda.net. September 27, 2012. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

[3] Dobitnik nagrade za delo životno - Nebojša Popović . Ukts.rs. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved December 21, 2014. @1@ 2

[4] Александар Милетић: Андрићу нуђено да буде председник Звезде . Politika.rs. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

[5] O Klubu . kkcrvenazvezda.rs. Retrieved December 21, 2014.

[6] Званичан Media Guide КК Црвена звезда - сезоне 2002/2003, p. 138

[7] Историја КК црвена звезда 1 део . Ukts.rs. July 26, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2014.