FC Copenhagen, FCK to the Danes, were founded on 1 July 1992 through the union of two historic clubs from the capital. On 1 July 2027 the "Lions" turn 35. Their roots, however, go back to 1876.

Two historic clubs in a tight spot

Kjøbenhavns Boldklub (KB) was founded in 1876 and added football in 1878, which is why it is often cited as the oldest football club in continental Europe. B 1903 had won seven Danish championships. By the late 1980s, however, both had financial problems.

KB had not won the league since 1980, while the businessman backing B 1903 could not guarantee his support for much longer. So their first teams joined forces in a new club. FCK took B 1903's place in the Superliga and KB became the reserve team.

White shirt, blue lion

According to the club, B 1903 played in black and white, while KB's main colours were blue and white. FCK's first shirt, in the 1992-93 season, was all white with blue trim. The away kit was red or blue.

The round 1992 badge shows the head of a blue lion in profile, together with red lines, and keeps the traditional colours on every shirt. The team's nickname is "Løverne", the Lions. In the 2024-25 identity update a lioness joined the lion, representing the men's and women's teams.

Parken, Denmark's home

FCK play at Parken, Denmark's national stadium, built in 1992, the same year the club was founded. In the late 1990s the club became its owner. It holds more than 38,000 spectators.

From a first title to Europe's last 16

The new team wasted no time: in its very first season, 1992-93, it won the league one point ahead of Odense. In 2001 the second title came with Roy Hodgson on the bench. Sibusiso Zuma's bicycle kick against Brøndby from that season is still remembered.

In 1998-99 the team reached the Cup Winners' Cup quarter-finals, where Chelsea stopped them. In 2005 and 2006 they won the Royal League twice, the competition for Scandinavia's top clubs.

In 2006-07 FCK reached the Champions League group stage for the first time and at Parken beat Manchester United 1-0 and Celtic 3-1. In 2010-11 they became the first Danish team to reach the last 16, where Chelsea knocked them out.

The main characters

Norwegian Ståle Solbakken played for FCK and survived a heart attack in 2001. He later became the club's most successful coach, over two spells (2006-2011 and 2013-2020). Senegalese striker Dame N'Doye is the all-time top scorer with 118 goals in 217 games, and Jesper Grønkjær also wore the shirt.

FCK hold the record with 16 Danish championships and 10 Danish Cups. In 2024-25 they won the double, and in 2025-26 they played in the Champions League league phase. Today they play in the Superliga, Denmark's top flight.

Celebrate with us

Out of two tired historic clubs came the team that dominated Denmark and made Parken shake. Happy 35th birthday to FC Copenhagen, always with the lion on the chest!

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Parken during FC Copenhagen's Europa League match against Marseille – Guillaume Baviere, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0.