On 3 May 1899, in the hall of a local society on Bakáts Square in Budapest, Ferencváros was founded. On 3 May 2027 "Fradi" turns 128 years old. It is the club with the most league titles in Hungary.

The boys of Mester Street

Before the founding, a group of boys from Mester Street, the "Gang of Eleven", played football on a plot of factory land. The Gabrovitz brothers, back from Prague, persuaded the young people of the district to start a club.

The first president was lawyer and city councillor Ferenc Springer, while the first patron was a baker, József Gráf. The football section was set up on 3 December 1900 and the first league title came as early as 1903.

In the 1900s the team finished on the podium in all eight championships held, with four titles. In 1911 it moved to Üllői út, its home ever since, and by 1913 it had won five titles in a row, a club record.

From Franzstadt to "Fradi"

The club took the name of Budapest's 9th district, Ferencváros. The pet name Fradi comes from the area's German name, Franzstadt.

The word "Torna" in the official name means gymnastics, because the club started with many sections: athletics, cycling, gymnastics, swimming and football. Fans also call the team "the greens" or the "Green Eagles".

Nine stripes and three Es

The colours are green and white, although the sources we found do not explain how they were chosen. The badge design was first published on 8 December 1901.

It has nine stripes, five green and four white, for the 9th district. Three Es recall the motto Erkölcs, Erő, Egyetértés, meaning Morality, Strength, Unity.

When green turned red

During the 1949-50 season the communist regime turned the club into the team of the food industry workers' union, ÉDOSZ, and replaced the green and white shirt with red and white. Stars such as Sándor Kocsis were moved to Honvéd, and in 1951 the team was renamed Kinizsi.

In November 1956, in the middle of the Hungarian Revolution, thousands of fans filled the Üllői út ground to celebrate the return of Ferencváros. The name and the green and white colours came back and have not changed since.

Turin 1965 and Flórián Albert

The greatest moment came in 1965, when the team beat Juventus 1-0 in Turin to win the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. The club regards it as the biggest achievement in the history of Hungarian club football.

The leader of that team, Flórián Albert, won the Ballon d'Or in 1967, the only Hungarian to do so, and the old stadium was later named after him. Before him, Imre Schlosser, who scored eight goals in one match in 1912, and György Sárosi had shone.

In 1968 it reached the Fairs Cup final again but lost to Leeds United. In 1975 it played in the Cup Winners' Cup final, and in 1995 it became the first Hungarian team in the Champions League group stage. Since 2014 it has played at the Groupama Aréna, which opened with a friendly against Chelsea.

Celebrate with us

From the boys of Mester Street to victory in Turin, Ferencváros has stayed loyal to green and white, even when they were taken away. Every shirt in those two colours is a reminder of where it all began.

Happy birthday, Fradi! May the Green Eagles fly high for many more years.

See our Ferencváros jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Groupama Aréna, home of Ferencváros – Michał Bulsa, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.