The war was not yet over when a group of young people in Belgrade set up a new club. Red Star Belgrade (Crvena zvezda) was founded on 4 March 1945, and on 4 March 2027 it turns 82 years old. Its red and white shirt travelled from a small city ground all the way to the top of Europe.

A club born in wartime

In February 1945 members of the United Antifascist Youth League of Serbia formed a youth physical education society. They were students and footballers, and within a few weeks the society had become a team. Its first president was Đorđe Paljić.

On the very day of its founding, 4 March, the new club also played its first match. It beat an army battalion 3-0, and the first goal in its history was scored by Kosta Tomašević. In its first year it played 36 matches and lost only one.

"Why not Star?"

The name did not come easily. Proposals on the table included "People's Star", "Blue Star", "Proleter", even "Stalin" and "Lenin". According to the story told in Belgrade, the two vice-presidents, Slobodan Ćosić and Zoran Žujović, simply suggested "Star".

Žujović added that the star had to be red. And so "Crvena zvezda" was born, a name that fitted the mood of the time perfectly.

From yellow shirts to stripes

Few people know it, but Red Star started out in yellow shirts with a red star, obtained from the club Slavija. In 1946 it switched to red shirts with white shorts. The famous red and white vertical stripes arrived in 1950.

The stripes had a history. They had been worn in 1943-44 by SK Jugoslavija, a pre-war Belgrade club that was dissolved in 1945. Red Star took over its ground, many of its players and fans, and its red and white colours, although it does not consider itself the club's successor.

The crest and the "Stars of Red Star"

The first crest was based on Jugoslavija's shield, with a red star added. Today the red five-pointed star with a white border sits on a red and white background inside a gold frame. Above it are three gold stars for its titles.

The club also has a lovely tradition. It officially names its greatest players "Stars of Red Star": the first was Rajko Mitić, the third Dragan Džajić, the record holder with 389 appearances, and the fifth Dragan Stojković.

The Marakana and the night in Bari

The club's stadium opened in 1963 and everyone calls it the Marakana, after Rio's Maracanã, because it once held about 110,000 spectators. Since 2014 it has carried the name of Rajko Mitić. In its stands the tone is set by the Delije, "the Braves".

The greatest night came on 29 May 1991 in Bari. The European Cup final against Marseille finished 0-0, and Red Star won the shoot-out 5-3, with Darko Pančev taking the last kick. A few months later it also won the Intercontinental Cup in Tokyo.

That team had talent for the whole of Europe. Dejan Savićević and Pančev shared second place in the 1991 Ballon d'Or, and Robert Prosinečki came third.

Celebrate with us

Yellow shirts, a name found at the last minute and stripes with a past. From these beginnings came the club that brought the European Cup to Belgrade.

Happy 82nd birthday, Red Star! May you shine in red and white forever.

See our Red Star Belgrade jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: the east stand of the Marakana, 2012 – Veliki Delija, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.