FC Arsenal Kyiv
| Full name | Football Club Arsenal Kyiv |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Cannoneers |
| Founded | 1925 |
| President | Oleksiy Kikireshko |
| Head coach | Serhiy Litovchenko |
| League | Ukrainian First League |
| 2015-16 | 6th in Second League |
| Website | Club home page |
Football Club Arsenal Kyiv (Ukrainian: Футбо́льний Клуб Арсена́л Ки́їв) is a Ukrainian football club based in Kiev. The original club was established in 1925, to which today's club traces its roots.
Created on July 14, 1925, as a multi-sports club of the Arsenal Factory in Kiev, before World War II the club played mostly in regional competitions or amateur competitions for factory workers. In 1936 Arsenal Kiev took part in the Soviet Cup in football where it was eliminated after the first round of competition after a replay.
After World War II the club played in the Ukrainian Soviet competitions under the name of FC Mashynobudivnyk Kiev (the SC Arsenal Kyiv also used to have a hockey team, HC Zenit Kiev). In 1958 Mashynobudivnyk won the competitions and was accepted to the Soviet Class B under the name of FC Arsenal Kiev. In 1959–1964 the club played in the Soviet Class B. During its last season in 1964 the club was renamed into FC Temp Kiev. After the season Arsenal was dissolved, while its players became part of Dynamo Kyiv.
In 1958 they won the Ukrainian SSR Championship under that name and were accepted to the Soviet Class B under the name of FC Arsenal Kiev. In 1959–1964 the club played continuously in the Soviet Class B. During its last season in 1964 the club was renamed into FC Temp Kiev. After the season, in 1964, Arsenal was dissolved, while its players became part of Dynamo Kyiv, the club was replaced by Dynamo-2 Kyiv in the Soviet Second League and ceased to exist.
The origin of the contemporary Arsenal club is disputed; some consider it to be part of the CSKA Kyiv heritage, others – of FC Boryspil. In 1994 CSKA merged with FC Boryspil under the name CSKA-Borysfen Boryspil (soon thereafter – CSKA-Borysfen Kyiv). After a series of successful seasons FC Boryspil made its way from the Ukrainian Third League to the Ukrainian First League before the merge, while CSKA prior to that was relegated in two seasons from the Ukrainian First League to the Ukrainian Third League. The original CSKA team became a farm team (CSKA-2) of the merged CSKA-Borysfen. The newly merged team advanced to the top flight (from the First League to the Higher League) in one season. Since the 1995–96 season, the club has continuously competed in the top flight.
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