AC Sparta Prague
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| Full name | Athletic Club Sparta Praha Fotbal, A.S. |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
Železná Sparta (Iron Sparta) Rudí (The Reds/The Maroons) Letenští |
| Founded | 16 November 1893 |
| Ground |
Generali Arena, Prague |
| Capacity | 19,416 |
| Chairman | Daniel Křetínský |
| Manager | Tomáš Požár |
| League | Czech First League |
| 2015–16 | 2nd |
| Website | Club home page |
AC Sparta Prague (Czech: AC Sparta Praha [ˈaː ˈt͡sɛː ˈsparta ˈpraɦa]) is a Czech football club based in Prague. It is the most successful club in the Czech Republic and one of the most successful in Central Europe, winning the Central European Cup (also known as the Mitropa Cup) three times as well as having reached the semi-finals of the European Cup (now the UEFA Champions League) in 1992 and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1973. Sparta have also been successful on the international stage, winning the Pequeña Copa del Mundo de Clubes, the predecessor to the FIFA Club World Cup, in 1969. Sparta have won 36 domestic league titles, the Czech Cup (formerly Czechoslovak Cup) 27 times, also a record, and the Czech Supercup twice. Sparta was long the main source for the Czech Republic national football team, however lately this has ceased to be the case, as the best Czech players almost exclusively play in foreign leagues. Sparta play at Prague's Generali Arena, also known as Letná Stadium.
At the close of 1893, a small group of young people based around three brothers – Václav, Bohumil and Rudolf Rudl – had the idea of setting up a sports club. On 16 November, the founders' meeting approved the club's articles of association and one month later, on 17 December, the first annual general meeting took place. Soon after that, the Athletic Club Sparta came up with its tricolour, in which blue symbolises Europe, red is the symbol of the royal city, though the reason for the yellow is not known any more.
At the very beginning of the club's football history, the players used to wear black jerseys with a big "S" on the front. They then played for two years in black-and-white striped jerseys, which they returned to, wearing them as a reserve strip, for two years in 1996. In 1906, club president Dr. Petřík was in England where he saw the famous Arsenal play with their red jerseys and decided to bring one set to Prague. At that time, he did not realise he was setting up one of the club's greatest traditions. Together with the red jerseys, Sparta players wear white shorts and black socks.
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