Vejle Boldklub
Full name | Vejle Boldklub | ||
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Nickname(s) | De Røde (The Reds) Jyllands Rubin (Ruby of Jutland) | ||
Short name | VB | ||
Founded | 3 May 1891[1] | ||
Ground | Vejle Stadium | ||
Capacity | 11,060 (7,567 seated) | ||
Owner | Andrei Zolotko | ||
Head Coach | Ivan Prelec | ||
League | Danish Superliga | ||
2022–23 | 1. Division, 1st of 12 (promoted) | ||
Website | Club website | ||
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Vejle Boldklub is a Danish professional
VB is famous for being the only Danish club to develop a
The club is based in the northern part of the city with the club's homeground being Vejle Stadium built in 2008. The stadium is located in Nørreskoven (the northern forest) which VB has called home since 1922. The club has played in red shirts and white shorts since 1911. The main rivals of Vejle Boldklub are AGF and AC Horsens.
On 28 June 2016, Vejle Boldklub got new ownership. Moldovan Andrew Zolotko took over the majority of shares in the club, while Klaus Eskildsen kept the remaining shares. Andrew Zolotko himself has been club chairman since 2017. In addition to the two owners – Zolotko and Eskildsen – the club's match record holder Gert Eg also sits on the board.
History
The club was founded by 23 men from Vejle on 3 May 1891 as a cricket club. Football first became a part of the club's activities in 1902.
The first golden age
The period from 1910 to 1920 is often referred to[by whom?] as Vejle Boldklub's first golden age. In this period the club took part in the Jutland championship final seven times and won it four times in 1912, 1913, 1914 and 1915.
The 1950s: A golden decade
About 15,000 people were seated at Vejle Stadium on 22 May 1952, when Vejle Boldklub secured promotion to the second best Danish league in a match against Odense KFUM. One of the central players in the Vejle team was Bent Sørensen, who later went on to become the club's first national team player.
On 10 May 1956, VB in front of 25,000 people in
In 1958 the club won its first
Normally 15,000–20,000 people attended the matches in Vejle those days. K.B. were beaten 8–3 and Odense Boldklub were sent home with a 7–2 defeat. The manager was Frits Gotfredsen and he was the man who started developing the attacking style of play that made VB the most popular club in Denmark in this period.
The 1959 season also offered great moments for the history books. The biggest triumph was without a doubt the cup win against AGF. 33,000 people came to the national arena to watch the match between the two great clubs from Jutland. VB won the game 1–0, but it has never been decided who scored the winner. Both the ball, Henning Enoksen and a couple of AGF players were in the net. However, it was a goal and VB could celebrate the club's second cup win in two years.
At the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960 four VB players were selected in the Danish side which sensationally won a silver medal. The four VB players were:
The 1970s: A triumphal march
In
Danish football followers were impressed with the new top side in Danish football and thousands of people came to Vejle to enjoy the charming football of Vejle Boldklub. Among the many stars in the team were Allan Simonsen and Flemming Serritslev. The manager was once again Frits Gotfredsen. He ended his amazing career in Vejle Boldklub after this big triumph.
In the 1972 season VB went on to prove that the team was now on top of Danish football. The Danish championship in 1971 was followed up by another cup triumph and once again the
The title was won even more convincingly than the year before after ten straight victories in the spring half of the season. It was simply VB and the others. After the 1972 season VB's biggest star,
In the 1975 season VB did not live up to the huge expectations in the league. However, the club delivered some great attacking football in the
The 19 May 1977 Vejle Boldklub won its third cup final in only six years. The fifth cup triumph was won with a 2–1 victory against
Vejle reached the quarter-finals of the European Cup-Winners' Cup in the 1977–78 campaign.
In the following season, 1978, Vejle Boldklub underlined its top position in Danish football by winning the
The 1980s: The trophies are brought to Vejle
In
However, at the start of the decade VB continued in the footsteps of the successful 1970s teams. On 28 May 1981 Boldklubben Frem was beaten 2–1 in the cup final. This meant that the beautiful trophy – which Danish clubs had been fighting for since 1955 – was brought to Vejle permanently and placed in the club house in Nørreskoven.
In 1983
After some indifferent seasons VB was in 1988 taken over by four local businessmen. Once again the club started dreaming about titles and the fans were excited by the signings of star players such as Preben Elkjær, John Larsen and Keld Bordinggaard. However, the new manager Ebbe Skovdahl could not get the team to work together even though he had several star players in his side.
1991: A dark year
Vejle Boldklub's centenary was celebrated in the worst possible manner with relegation to the second tier for the first time since 1956. Many star players went to play for other clubs and a sad atmosphere of crisis descended upon Vejle. The four businessmen left the club, but ensured on their way out that it was not in dire straits. To turn things around VB hired their old star player Allan Simonsen as new manager. However, it was a thankless task for Simonsen, who started his managerial career with a defeat.
In 1994 the successful manager from 1981, Ole Fritsen, was named as the new manager of Vejle Boldklub. As a former youth coach in the club, Ole knew all about the many talented young players in VB, amongst which were Kaspar Dalgas and Peter Graulund. Ole started to build up a new team around these young players.
Vejle Boldklub was back in the top Danish league in 1995. Ole Fritsen's young team played impressive, charming and attacking football, which earned them runners-up medals in 1997 and qualification for the
2000s: Crises and rebuilding
At the beginning of the new millennium, VB was relegated from the Danish super league for the second time in the club's history. They were back after only one season in the first division, but it turned out to be a short respite as the club was relegated the same season. This proved to be the beginning of a serious crisis. In 2004, VB was almost relegated to the third tier division and the club was threatened with bankruptcy. This resulted in desperate attempts to save the club through amalgamations with clubs in the north, south, east and west.
But, in late 2004, another turning point was reached when a group of visionary businessmen reconstructed the club's finances and launched the so-called four point plan: A new stadium, promotion to the Danish super league, income through business other than football and a new sponsor strategy. In 2006, VB was back in the first division. However, the club made a dreadful start to the season with nine defeats in a row. But a successful second half of the season pointed it in the right direction and optimism returned.
Today, VB draws together the most successful businesses in south-east Jutland, which makes the club potentially one of the wealthiest in Danish football. And where the club earlier had to look in vain for local support, today it is seen as an attractive investment.
In spring 2008, Vejle Boldklub opened the gates to its new modern stadium. It retains the name of Vejle Stadium and is still located in Nørreskoven.
On 5 June 2008, VB achieved a record in scoring the highest number of points to win the Danish 1st Division. Promotion to the Superliga was secured with 78 points from 30 matches.
By the 32nd round of the 2008–09 season, it was clear VB would be relegated to play in the Danish 1st Division during the 2009–10 season.
2010–12: Merger with Kolding FC
On 8 December 2010, Vejle Boldklub announced that the club known as Vejle Blodklub would merge with Kolding FC and from July 2011 would be known as Vejle Boldklub Kolding. This would mark an end for Vejle Boldklub and the beginning of yet another Danish fusion club.[2]
2012: Resurrection
In November 2012 Kolding IF withdrew from the agreement with Vejle Boldklub.[3] This resulted in the dissolution of Vejle Boldklub Kolding, and Vejle Boldklub inherited the merger club's licence in the Danish 1st Division for the upcoming 2013–14 season.[4]
2013–16: Fighting to return to the Danish Superliga
From the start of the season in the summer of 2013, Vejle Boldklub once again played under the name VB in the Danish tournament. After four seasons in the 1st division the club was still chasing a promotion to the Danish Superliga, but neither the seasons 2013–14 and 2014–15 were any great success. In the first season, VB built a new team under head coach Tonny Hermansen, but was only able to secure a middle position. A couple of players from outside the club came in the following season, but the results did not improve and VB changed coach in the autumn of 2014. Swedish Klebér Saarenpää got better results and what for a long time looked like a bad position in the lower half, was saved with a good spring. Especially the Faroese Jóan Símun Edmundsson became a great player for VB and he secured the club many points in the spring.
In the 2015–16 season, it was again the ambition was yet again to fight for promotion. Despite the strengthening of the team with several new players up to the season, the Vejlensers chased after
2016–present: Zolotko era
On 28 June 2016, Vejle Boldklub got a new owner. Moldovan Andrew Zolotko took over the majority of shares in the club, while Klaus Eskildsen kept the remaining shares. In the summer of 2016, Swedish
Italian Adolfo Sormani took over as head coach in Nørreskoven in the summer of 2017 and with the experienced Italian also came a sporting upgrade. Jacob Krüger was hired in the position of technical director and he put a strong squad together around the Italian coaching staff. Defensive profiles like Mads Greve and Rasmus Lauritsen came from competing 1st division clubs, midfielder Ylber Ramadani came from Albanian football. Tunisian Imed Louati and Brazilian Allan Sousa, who had joined VB in February 2017, had gradually become accustomed to Danish football and the two offensive players, together with Dominic Vinicius, played a major role in the coming season. VB started strongly in the new season and took a top position all fall.
During the winter break, the first player sales came under the new owners, when Vejle Boldklub made a transfer of four players. They were
After a nine-year absence, Vejle Boldklub made a comeback to the Superliga in the 2018–19 season. After a great start to the season with five points in the first three games, the team came down to earth during the autumn season. Before the season, the Swedes Gustaf Nilsson and Melker Hallberg, the Irishman Sean Murray, young Adam Jakobsen, while Vladlen Yurchenko and Nathan Oduwa joined during the autumn. VB was good in many matches, but after the autumn was the team had only won four matches.
The squad was strengthened during the winter break with
In February 2020, Vejle Boldklub presented a record profit of 11.5 million for the financial year 2019. The impressive result came after the relegation to the 1st division. A number of player sales, in particular, helped to create a substantial result. In 2019, VB sold players such as Rasmus Lauritsen, Gustaf Nilsson, Bubacarr "Steve" Trawally and youth player Andreas Jungdal, but CEO Henrik Tønder pointed out that there was also growth in core areas such as sponsorship and matchday income.
Vejle Boldklub quickly put aside the disappointment of the relegation, and began the work of creating a potential top-tier team. Contracts were extended with profiles such as Jacob Schoop, Kjartan Finnbogason, Tobias Mølgaard and Sergiy Gryn after the relegation, while the squad was strengthened with Diego Montiel, Indy Groothuizen and Lucas Jensen. After the first few rounds, the Finn Juhani Ojala was brought in. The results were fluctuating in July and August, but as the autumn progressed, VB was the best and most stable team in the league. In November, Viborg FF and Vejle met for a showdown in Viborg and the last match of the decade was also one of the most memorable. Down 0–2, VB won 4–3 in a true fireworks display and ended the fall at the top of the second-tier NordicBet LIGA. The fine results continued in the spring season, which ended with 13 matches in two months after the resumption of the NordicBet LIGA after the corona break in Danish football.
Honours
- Danish Championship
- Danish Cup
- Winners (6): 1957–58, 1958–59, 1971–72, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1980–81
- Runners-up: 1967–68
Europe
1973 was the year when Vejle Boldklub made its debut in the European Champion Clubs' Cup. Vejle was put up against one of the biggest clubs in Europe at the time: Anderlecht from Belgium. Vejle gave the Belgians a good match, but the reds could not keep Anderlecht from progressing in the tournament.
The highlight of Vejle Boldklub's European history came in 1978, when the club went all the way to the quarter-finals in the
In the
The last time Vejle Boldklub played in Europe was in
Champions | Cup Winners
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UEFA Cup
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Intertoto Cup |
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1985–86
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1981–82
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1998–99
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1967, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975,
1978, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 |
Squad and players
Current squad
- As of 13 March 2024[5]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Youth players in use 2023-2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
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1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
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Recent history
Season Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Cup Notes 1996–97 SL 2 33 14 12 7 57 38 54 1997–98 SL 4 33 16 4 13 53 51 52 1998–99 SL 6 33 14 5 14 54 48 47 1999–00 SL 11 33 7 11 15 38 68 32 5th round Relegated 2000–01 1D 2 30 17 8 5 73 37 59 5th round Promoted 2001–02 SL 11 33 6 10 17 38 72 28 4th round Relegated 2002–03 1D 5 30 15 4 11 65 58 49 5th round 2003–04 1D 12 30 8 6 16 44 59 30 3rd round 2004–05 1D 5 30 14 7 9 59 51 49 3rd round 2005–06 1D 1 30 19 6 5 62 32 63 3rd round Promoted 2006–07 SL 11 33 6 7 20 35 64 25 3rd round Relegated 2007–08 1D 1 30 25 3 2 80 24 78 Quarter-finals Promoted 2008–09 SL 11 33 4 13 16 30 59 25 3rd round Relegated 2009–10 1D 10 30 7 12 11 33 34 33 Semi-finals 2010–11 1D 3 30 14 10 6 49 32 52 2nd round 2011–12 1D 3 26 12 8 6 58 32 44 Quarter-finals 2012–13 1D 3 33 16 10 7 46 29 58 4rd round 2013–14 1D 7 33 12 11 10 49 38 47 Quarter-finals 2014–15 1D 5 33 11 12 10 41 46 45 3rd round 2015–16 1D 5 33 16 5 12 56 46 53 2nd round 2016–17 1D 9 33 10 11 12 49 46 41 2nd round 2017–18 1D 1 33 18 11 4 47 24 65 2nd round Promoted 2018–19 SL 13 32 6 10 16 34 53 28 4rd round Relegated 2019–20 1D 1 33 20 8 5 63 31 68 2nd round Promoted 2020–21 SL 10 32 9 11 12 42 50 38 Quarter-finals
Note: SL = Danish Superliga, 1D = Danish 1st Division
Achievements
- 43 seasons in the Highest Danish League
- 17 seasons in the Second Highest Danish League
- 9 seasons in the Third Highest Danish League
Coaches 1990–present
- Ebbe Skovdahl (1990–1991)
- Allan Simonsen (1991–1994)
- Ole Fritsen (1994–1999)
- Poul Erik Andreasen (2000)
- Keld Bordinggaard (2001–2002)
- Frank Petersen (2002–2003)
- Henrik Brandenborg (2003)
- Steen Thychosen (2003)
- Jens Tang Olesen (2004)
- Hans Lauge and Mogens Nielsen (2004)
- Frank Andersen (2004–2005)
- Lasse Christensen and Jesper Søgaard (2005)
- Kim Poulsen (2006–2007)
- Ove Christensen (2007–2009)
- Lasse Christensen and Ole Schwennesen (2009)
- Mats Gren (2009–2011)
- Viggo Jensen (2011)
- Nicolai Wael (2011–2013)
- Kim Brink (2013)
- Tonny Hermansen (2013–2014)
- Klebér Saarenpää (2014–2016)
- Steen Thychosen (2016)
- Andreas Alm (2016–2017)
- Adolfo Sormani (2017–2019)
- Constantin Gâlcă (2019–2021)
- Carit Falch (2021)
- Peter Sørensen (2021–2022)
- Ivan Prelec (2022–)
Captains 2003–present
- Klaus Eskildsen (2003)
- Peter Degn (2003)
- Carsten Hemmingsen (2004)
- Steffen Kielstrup (2005)
- Jakob Bresemann (2005–2006)
- Bora Zivkovic(2006)
- Klebér Saarenpää (2007)
- Bora Zivkovic(2007–2008)
- Jimmy Nielsen (2008–09)
- Steffen Kielstrup (2010–2012)
- Jens Berthel Askou (2012–2013)
- Henrik Bødker (2013–2015)
- Niels Bisp Rasmussen (2015–2016)
- Steffen Kielstrup (2016–2017)
- Jacob Schoop (2017–2022)
- Denis Kolinger (2022)
- Raúl Albentosa (2022-present)
References
- ^ "Historien – Vejle Boldklub". vejle-boldklub.dk (in Danish). Vejle Boldklub. Archived from the original on 29 July 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
- ^ "Vejle Boldklub Kolding – Topfodbold i regionen". vejle-boldklub.dk. Archived from the original on 2013-12-15. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
- ^ "Kolding IF får licensen tilbage fra VBK". bold.dk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ "KVB Alliancen bliver til Vejle Boldklub". bold.dk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ "A-truppen – Vejle Boldklub". Archived from the original on 2017-07-30. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
External links
- (in Danish) Official website