U.D. Leiria

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União de Leiria
União de Leiria.png
Full nameUnião Desportiva de Leiria
Nickname(s)Os Lis
(The ones from the Lis river)
Founded1966
GroundEstádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa
Capacity23,164
ChairmanAlexandru Tolsticov
ManagerHélder Pereira
LeagueCampeonato de Portugal
2019–20Serie C, 12th

União Desportiva de Leiria, commonly known as União de Leiria (pronounced [uniˈɐ̃w̃ dɨ lɐjˈɾiɐ]), is a Portuguese football club based in Leiria, central Portugal. Founded on 6 June 1966, it currently plays in the Campeonato de Portugal, holding home matches at Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, with a 24,000-seat capacity.

History[]

Leiria's biggest rivals in Portugal are S.C. Beira-Mar, Associação Naval 1º de Maio and Académica de Coimbra, which belong to the same geographical region. In 1979–80, the club first competed in the top division, finishing in 13th position and being the first team inside the relegation zone.

A heavy contender in the battle to reach European competitions in the 2000s, the club was relegated in 2007–08 to the second level, after finishing last. The team would be immediately promoted back, coming in second after champions S.C. Olhanense.

On 23 August 2004, União de Leiria reached the UEFA Intertoto Cup final with Lille. After getting a 0–0 in France in the first leg, the whole city thought it would be possible for the club to win a European competition. However, in the second leg, after another 0–0 draw at their home stadium, the team would lose the game in extra time by 0–2, mostly due to the excessive fatigue. For the history, it was the first Portuguese team to reach the final of this competition.

The 2011–12 season was lived amongst serious financial difficulties, with the squad not being paid their wages for several months,[1][2] as three coaching moves also happened during the campaign[3][4] and president João Bartolomeu resigned amongst accusations of ingratitude towards the players.[5] On 29 April 2012, after most of the squad rescinded their contracts, only eight players took the pitch for the league match at home against C.D. Feirense in an eventual 0–4 home loss.[6][7] The side played the last two matches, against S.L. Benfica and C.D. Nacional, with a complete team, but three players came from the juniors.[8][9]

After failing to meet the deadline to register the team in Division Two, Leiria were automatically relegated to the third level.[10] Overwhelmed with the task of rebuilding a squad from scratch, the organization hired several players in an attempt to return to the professionals,[11][12][13] as a second senior team also begun competing in the Leiria regional leagues, coached by former club player Luís Bilro.[14] On 28 June 2013, the UD Leiria SAD was declared bankrupt in a meeting of creditors, which demanded the payment of a debt amounting to €13.5 million, with the Portuguese state abstaining for demanding a debt of over €3.6 million.[15] The second senior team that competed in the regional league took the place of the SAD by buying their sports rights for €1,000, with the club returning to the Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa after playing their home matches at other grounds for two seasons.[16][17]

In February 2015, at an extraordinary general assembly, UD Leiria would vote for the creation of another SAD, opening doors to the arrival of Alexander Tolstikov, who after João Bartolomeu would become the new "Lord" of Leiria. The club would have already had a SAD between 1999 and 2013, having been extinguished in the face of its high debt value. The SAD's initial share capital is 40% owned by UD Leiria and 60% owned by DS Investment LLP, of which Alexander Tolstikov is one of those responsible. Thus, DS Investment started to control the main Football team and also the junior team.

Currently, the club is competing in the Campeonato de Portugal (National Third Division).

Current squad[]

As of 14 September, 2021

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK North Macedonia MKD Tomás Bozinoski
2 DF Portugal POR João Dias
3 DF Portugal POR Dénis Martins
4 DF Portugal POR Benny
5 MF Cape Verde CPV Babanco
6 MF Brazil BRA Ragner
7 FW Portugal POR Leandro Antunes
8 MF Portugal POR Afonso Caetano
9 FW Portugal POR Gonçalo Gregório
11 FW Brazil BRA Jair
14 MF Portugal POR Bernardo Gomes
15 DF Portugal POR Kaká
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF Portugal POR Pedro Henriques
21 FW Portugal POR Renato Alexandre
23 DF Portugal POR João Vitor
29 GK Portugal POR Fábio Ferreira
44 DF Brazil BRA Diego Galo
52 DF Ivory Coast CIV Habib Sylla
55 MF Brazil BRA Paulinho
74 GK Venezuela VEN Luis González
84 FW Portugal POR Bryan Rosa
88 MF Portugal POR Marcos Silva (on loan from Marítimo)
89 FW Portugal POR Nuninho
99 FW Paraguay PAR Aníbal (on loan from Palmeiras)

League and cup history[]

Season Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA P Cup Europe Notes
1970–71 2DN 3 26 11 8 7 40 34 30
1971–72 2DS 3 30 14 7 9 50 29 35
1972–73 2DS 5 30 17 5 8 50 27 39
1973–74 2DS 7 38 16 9 13 52 49 41
1974–75 2DS 13 38 12 10 16 50 56 34
1975–76 2DS 17 38 11 12 15 42 52 34
1976–77 2DC 11 30 10 8 12 26 31 28
1977–78 2DC 8 30 11 8 11 34 42 30
1978–79 2DC 1 30 20 6 4 56 20 46 Promoted
1979–80 1D 13 30 6 9 15 26 49 21 Relegated
1980–81 2DC 1 30 19 7 4 56 21 45 Promoted
1981–82 1D 16 30 8 4 18 25 50 20 Promoted
1982–83 2DC 3 30 17 10 3 44 17 44
1983–84 2DC 9 30 10 8 12 35 25 28
1984–85 2DC 2 30 17 7 6 42 27 41
1985–86 2DC 9 30 10 8 12 33 49 28
1986–87 2DC 12 30 10 7 13 28 40 27
1987–88 2DC 4 38 18 11 9 64 43 47
1988–89 2DC 10 34 9 13 12 42 44 31
1989–90 2DC 3 34 20 9 5 61 18 49
1990–91 2H 9 38 14 13 11 45 35 41
1991–92 2H 8 34 13 9 12 34 32 35
1992–93 2H 8 34 13 8 13 36 37 34
1993–94 2H 2 34 19 7 8 46 19 45 Promoted
1994–95 1D 6 34 13 10 11 41 44 36
1995–96 1D 7 34 14 5 5 38 50 47 IC GS
1996–97 1D 17 34 8 6 20 25 53 30 Relegated
1997–98 2H 1 34 20 10 4 73 32 70 Promoted
1998–99 1D 6 34 14 10 10 36 29 52 last 16
1999–00 1D 10 34 10 12 12 31 35 42
2000–01 1D 5 34 15 11 8 46 41 56 Best classification ever
2001–02 1D 7 34 15 10 9 52 35 55
2002–03 1D 5 34 13 10 11 49 47 49 final IC 1st round
2003–04 1D 10 34 11 12 11 43 45 45 last 16 UC 1st round
2004–05 1D 15 34 8 14 12 29 36 38 last 32 IC runner-up
2005–06 1D 7 34 13 8 13 44 42 47 last 64 IC 3rd round
2006–07 1D 7 30 10 11 9 25 27 41 last 32
2007–08 1D 16 30 3 7 20 25 53 16 last 32 IC
UC 		Winner
1st round 		Relegated
2008–09 2H 2 28 15 9 6 46 29 53 last 64 Promoted
2009–10 1D 9 30 9 8 13 35 41 35 last 32
2010–11 1D 10 30 9 8 13 25 38 35 last 64
2011–12 1D 16 30 5 4 21 25 56 19 last 64 Relegated
2012–13 2DS 7 30 13 7 10 36 31 46 last 32
2013–14 3 3 32 17 8 7 43 33 24 last 64
2014–15 3 3 30 16 7 7 57 35 39 2nd rd
  • 1D: Primeira Liga and predecessors (1st level)
  • 2H: Liga de Honra (2nd level)
  • 2DN, 2DC, 2DS, 3: Portuguese Second Division, Northern Zone, Central Zone, Southern Zone (pre-1991: 2nd level; post 1991: 3rd level), renamed Campeonato Nacional Seniores in 2013
  • UC: UEFA Cup; IC: UEFA Intertoto Cup

Honours[]

Stadium[]

Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa

The Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa was built for UEFA Euro 2004 in 2003, hosting during the competition Croatia's matches against Switzerland (0–0) and France (2–2). It also hosted the 2006 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira final between FC Porto and Vitória de Setúbal, as well as the following (Sporting CP 1–0 Porto).

The architect who designed the stadium was Tomás Taveira, who also designed stadiums for Euro 2004, including Beira-Mar's Estádio Municipal de Aveiro and Sporting CP's Estádio José Alvalade. The grounds belong to the municipality of Leiria.

Due to an excessive rent, Leiria relocated to the Estádio Municipal in the nearby town of Marinha Grande, for 2011–12. For the following season, the club moved to Campo da Portela in Santa Catarina da Serra, home of U.D. Serra.[19]

After the SAD bankruptcy, the club returned to play its home matches at the Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa.

Managers[]

Fans[]

União's fans are called Leirienses, and their main group of supporters is Frente Leiria ("Leiria Front").

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ João Bartolomeu: "Se não conseguirmos pagar aos jogadores, paciência" (João Bartolomeu: "If we can't pay the players, tough luck") Archived 2015-04-27 at the Wayback Machine; Relvado, 9 December 2011 (in Portuguese)
  2. ^ Presidente da SAD confirma ordenados em atraso e saída do diretor geral (Chairman confirms due wages and departure of general manager); SAPO Desporto, 9 December 2011 (in Portuguese)
  3. ^ Uniao de Leiria swap coaches... again Archived November 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine; PortuGOAL, 26 September 2011
  4. ^ Cajuda out, Dominguez in at Leiria; PortuGOAL, 14 March 2012
  5. ^ João Bartolomeu demitiu-se: "São 25 anos a aturar isto" (João Bartolomeu resigned: "It's 25 years putting up with this"); Diário de Notícias, 13 April 2012 (in Portuguese)
  6. ^ Vieira, Dominic. "União de Leiria, the first club to play a 4–3–0". About a Football Report. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
  7. ^ Situação leiriense correu o Mundo (Leiriense plight talked abroad) Archived 2012-05-02 at the Wayback Machine; Record, 30 April 2012 (in Portuguese)
  8. ^ Benfica-U. Leiria, 1–0 (crónica) (Benfica-U. Leiria, 1–0 (report)); Mais Futebol, 5 May 2012 (in Portuguese)
  9. ^ U. Leiria-Nacional, 2–3 (destaques) (U. Leiria-Nacional, 2–3 (highlights)); Mais Futebol, 12 May 2012 (in Portuguese)
  10. ^ U.Leiria fora dos Campeonatos profissionais (U. Leiria out of professional competitions) Archived 2012-09-03 at the Wayback Machine; Record, 25 May 2012 (in Portuguese)
  11. ^ Reforços para Leiria SAD (Reinforcements for Leiria SAD); O Derbie, 7 August 2012 (in Portuguese)
  12. ^ Duo no Leiria (Duo joins Leiria); O Derbie, 25 August 2012 (in Portuguese)
  13. ^ Clube chegou a acordo com o treinador Ricardo Moura (Club reaches agreement with coach Ricardo Moura); SAPO Desporto, 24 July 2012 (in Portuguese)
  14. ^ Clube inscreve equipa nas distritais (Club signs team in regional divisions) Archived 2012-06-22 at the Wayback Machine; SAPO Desporto, 19 June 2012 (in Portuguese)
  15. ^ "Abstenção do Estado decisiva para liquidação da SAD da União de Leiria" [State abstention decisive in the bankruptcy of SAD]. desporto.sapo.pt. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original on 1 July 2013.
  16. ^ "SAD declara insolvência e clube sobe ao Nacional de Séniores" [SAD declares bankruptcy and club climbs to Campeonato Nacional]. rr.sapo.pt. 18 July 2013.
  17. ^ "União de Leiria garante direitos desportivos da SAD por mil euros" [União de Leiria assures sports rights from SAD for 1000 euros]. agentedesportivo.com. 17 July 2013. Archived from the original on 25 August 2013.
  18. ^ The UEFA Intertoto Cup: Past Winners. Listed are all 11 teams that won the Intertoto Cup, qualifying for the UEFA Cup.
  19. ^ U. Leiria SAD jogará no Campo da Portela (U. Leiria SAD will play in Campo da Portela); O Derbie, 1 August 2012 (in Portuguese)

External links[]

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