Full name | Knattspyrnufélagið Valur |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | Valsarar |
Founded | 11 May 1911 |
Ground |
Hlíðarendi Reykjavík Iceland |
Capacity | 1,524 |
Club Chairman | Þorgrímur Þráinsson |
Manager | Ólafur Jóhannesson |
League | Úrvalsdeild |
2016 | 5th |
Knattspyrnufélagið Valur is an Icelandic athletic club based in Reykjavík, Iceland. The club is situated close to the city centre, in the east side of town, on the former farmland of Hlíðarendi. The club was originally formed as part of the local YMCA to play association football, but later incorporated handball and basketball. The club is the most victorious club in Iceland's history winning over 110 national and cup titles amongst both men and women in the three biggest local ball sports: football, handball and basketball. Valur's handball section reached the EHF Champions League final in 1980. It has won the Icelandic league 22 times, more than any other N1 deildin team.
The club was founded on 11th May 1911, as a subdivision of KFUM, the Icelandic YMCA. Later that year its name was changed to Valur, which is an Icelandic word for gyrfalcon. In 1930 the club won its first national title, and it has been amongst the best football teams in the country ever since. In 1939 Valur bought the farmland of Hlíðarendi which retains its name even today, where they now have a football field and an indoor arena.
Originally Valur played only football, but around 1940 the club got involved in more sports, starting with men's handball. They won their first national handball title in 1940, and reached the final of the EHF Champions League in 1980. In the post-war era (1948), a women's handball division was started at Valur, and in the 1970s a women's football division was added. In 1970, Körfuknattleiksfélag Reykjavíkur (Reykjavík Basketball Club, KFR) joined Valur and became their basketball division.