Full name | Associação Naval 1º de Maio |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | Navalistas (Those who support Naval) |
Founded | 1893 |
Ground |
José Bento Pessoa, Figueira da Foz, Portugal |
Capacity | 12,630 |
Chairman | Aprígio Santos |
Manager | Mário Serpa |
League | Campeonato de Portugal |
2015–16 | Serie F, 5th |
Website | Club home page |
Associação Naval 1º de Maio, commonly known as Naval, is a Portuguese football club based in Figueira da Foz, Coimbra District. Founded on 1 May 1893, it currently plays in the Campeonato de Portugal, holding home games at Estádio Municipal José Bento Pessoa, with a capacity for 12,630 spectators.
Naval is one of the main teams from the Centro Region, alongside Académica de Coimbra, S.C. Beira-Mar and União de Leiria.
After several years in the second division, Naval first promoted to the first level in 2005, after finishing in second position behind F.C. Paços de Ferreira. In its first season in the top flight, the club finished in 13th position, finally moving up to 12th after the resolutions on the Mateus Affair, which involved Gil Vicente F.C. and C.F. Os Belenenses.
In the following three years, Naval ranked between places 11–13, also reaching the Portuguese Cup quarterfinals twice. In 2009–10, former Sporting Clube de Portugal, F.C. Porto and Portugal great Augusto Inácio led the Figueira da Foz team to its best season ever, an eight-place finish in the league and the semifinals of the domestic cup, a 1–3 aggregate loss against G.D. Chaves.