# NK Varaždin (1931–2015)

Varaždinski športski nogometni klub Varaždin (English: Varaždin Football Club), commonly referred to as VŠNK Varaždin or simply Varaždin, was a Croatian football club based in the city of Varaždin in the north of the country. For the majority of its existence between 1958 and 2010, the club was known as NK Varteks, honouring the name of its principal sponsor, a local textile factory.
The club spent its entire history in the Yugoslav era in lower-tier divisions. However, after Croatia's independence in 1991 and the formation of the Croatian First Football League Varteks established themselves as one of the stronger sides in the new national top level. Varteks spent the next 21 seasons in Croatia's top league, finishing third three times, and reaching the national cup final on six occasions.
During this period, the club also regularly played European football, with their biggest successes in the 1998–99 season, when they reached the quarter-final of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and in the 2001–02 season, when they knocked out England's Aston Villa in the first round of the UEFA Cup.
By the early 2010s both the club and the factory were in dire financial problems. In 2010 the club dropped the Varteks name, which led to angry fans forming their own club, the new NK Varteks, in 2011. In 2012 the club, now called Varaždin, were relegated from the league, and in 2013 they were suspended and sent to the third level. They languished there for two more seasons before finally folding in 2015.
The club played their home matches at the Stadion Varteks, which was renovated through the years and reached an all-seating capacity of 10,800 (further renovated to seat 8,800 by sometime before 2021).

## History

The club was founded on 3 June 1931 under the name of NK Slavija and existed under this name until 1941. During World War II, the club temporarily suspended operations and was then reorganised under the name of NK Tekstilac in 1945. The name NK Varteks was given to the club in 1958, to honour its main sponsor, the Varteks clothing factory (portmanteau of Varaždin Textile). In June 2010, when the Varteks factory did not renew its sponsorship, the club changed its name to NK Varaždin.
The club's first significant success came in 1938 when they qualified to participate in the premier league of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In SFR Yugoslavia, their biggest success was the advancement to the final of the Yugoslav Cup in 1961, but they lost the final game to Vardar Skopje from Macedonia.
In 1991, following the breakup of Yugoslavia and Croatia's independence, Croatian clubs withdrew from the Football Association of Yugoslavia, so Varteks was one of the 12 founding members of the new Croatian First Football League (Prva Liga), which operated under the auspices of the Croatian Football Federation (HNS).
The club did not win any Croatian national titles, but regularly placed near the top of the Prva Liga table and were also the runners-up in the Croatian Football Cup five times. In the spring of 1999, they had a significant international success when they advanced to the quarterfinals of the now defunct UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, where they held opponent Real Mallorca to a scoreless draw at home before losing the second-leg away match 3–1, and were eliminated from competition. They also attracted some international attention in 2001, when they eliminated Aston Villa from the UEFA Cup on away goals.
Serious financial troubles forced NK Varaždin into a period of bankruptcy, which eventually led to the suspension of the club by Croatian Football Federation before a scheduled 24 February 2012 match of the 2011–12 Prva Liga season. The club returned for its next five matches, but was suspended again before its 31 March 2012 match. Per the rules of the Federation, missing two league games in a season, even those due to suspension, meant that the club was immediately relegated to the lowest football level possible of the Croatian football league system, being the seventh-tier Third League of Varaždin County. The suspension was lifted in August 2013 and the club re-entered in the third-tier Croatian Third Football League.

## Seasons

| Season | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | Cup | European competitions | European competitions | Top league scorer | Top league scorer |
| Season | Division | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Pos | Cup | European competitions | European competitions | Player | Goals |
| 1992 | 1. HNL | 22 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 32 | 25 | 20 | 8th | DNQ | | | Igor Cvitanović | 9 |
| 1992–93 | 1. HNL | 30 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 38 | 47 | 29 | 7th | QF | | | Mirza Golubica | 8 |
| 1993–94 | 1. HNL | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 51 | 31 | 41 | 5th | QF | | | Davor Vugrinec | 17 |
| 1994–95 | 1. HNL | 30 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 35 | 27 | 43 | 6th | SF | | | Davor Vugrinec | 8 |
| 1995–96 | 1. HNL | 32 | 18 | 7 | 7 | 44 | 26 | 61 | 3rd | RU | | | Davor Vugrinec | 17 |
| 1996–97 | 1. HNL | 30 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 34 | 35 | 42 | 6th | QF | Cup Winners' Cup | R1 | Davor Vugrinec | 13 |
| 1997–98 | 1. HNL | 32 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 34 | 44 | 38 | 10th | RU | | | Marko Topić | 7 |
| 1998–99 | 1. HNL | 32 | 12 | 4 | 16 | 55 | 57 | 40 | 5th | QF | Cup Winners' Cup | QF | Miljenko Mumlek | 13 |
| 1999–2000 | 1. HNL | 33 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 32 | 44 | 40 | 7th | QF | Intertoto Cup | R3 | Damir Mužek, Vioresin Sinani | 5 |
| 2000–01 | 1. HNL | 32 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 56 | 56 | 45 | 4th | QF | | | Saša Bjelanović, Veldin Karić | 12 |
| 2001–02 | 1. HNL | 30 | 17 | 6 | 7 | 58 | 40 | 57 | 4th | RU | UEFA Cup | R2 | Saša Bjelanović | 17 |
| 2002–03 | 1. HNL | 32 | 18 | 3 | 11 | 52 | 38 | 57 | 3rd | SF | UEFA Cup | R1 | Veldin Karić | 10 |
| 2003–04 | 1. HNL | 32 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 33 | 42 | 38 | 5th | RU | UEFA Cup | R1 | Nikola Šafarić | 7 |
| 2004–05 | 1. HNL | 32 | 14 | 3 | 15 | 53 | 50 | 45 | 5th | SF | | | Nedim Halilović | 9 |
| 2005–06 | 1. HNL | 32 | 15 | 2 | 15 | 51 | 48 | 47 | 3rd | RU | Intertoto Cup | R3 | Leon Benko | 14 |
| 2006–07 | 1. HNL | 33 | 12 | 6 | 15 | 49 | 62 | 42 | 8th | R1 | UEFA Cup | QR1 | Enes Novinić | 15 |
| 2007–08 | 1. HNL | 33 | 11 | 7 | 15 | 46 | 53 | 40 | 7th | SF | | | Miljenko Mumlek | 9 |
| 2008–09 | 1. HNL | 33 | 10 | 5 | 18 | 41 | 55 | 35 | 10th | R2 | | | Goran Mujanović | 11 |
| 2009–10 | 1. HNL | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 36 | 43 | 36 | 10th | SF | | | Miljenko Mumlek | 11 |
| 2010–11 | 1. HNL | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 32 | 38 | 36 | 11th | RU | | | Filip Škvorc | 7 |
| 2011–12 | 1. HNL | 24 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 16 | 52 | 8 | 16th | R2 | UEFA Europa League | QR3 | Dominik Glavina | 5 |
| 2012–13 | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation | Club was suspended by Croatian Football Federation |
| 2013–14 | 3. HNL North | 30 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 66 | 32 | 49 | 7th | PR | | | Marko Rog | 17 |
| 2014–15 | 3. HNL East | 30 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 42 | 39 | 39 | 11th | R2 | | | Luka Ivanović | 11 |
    Key
    League: P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; Pts = Points won; Pos = Final position;
    Cup / Europe: PR = Preliminary round; QR = Qualifying round; R1 = First round; R2 = Second round; Group = Group stage; QF = Quarter-final; SF = Semi-final; RU = Runner-up; W = Competition won;

## European record
### Summary

| Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Last season played |
| UEFA Cup UEFA Europa League | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 48 | 34 | 2011–12 |
| UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 10 | 1998–99 |
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 21 | 2005 |
| Total | 44 | 21 | 9 | 14 | 85 | 65 |
Source: uefa.com, Last updated on 4 August 2011 Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against. Defunct competitions indicated in italics.

### By season

| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Agg. |
| 1996–97 | Cup Winners' Cup | QR | Union Luxembourg | 2–1 | 3–0 | 5–1 |
| 1996–97 | Cup Winners' Cup | R1 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 (a) |
| 1998–99 | Cup Winners' Cup | R1 | Rudar Velenje | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 |
| 1998–99 | Cup Winners' Cup | R2 | Heerenveen | 4–2 (aet) | 1–2 | 5–4 |
| 1998–99 | Cup Winners' Cup | QF | Mallorca | 0–0 | 1–3 | 1–3 |
| 1999–2000 | Intertoto Cup | R1 | Lokomotiv-96 Vitebsk | 2–2 | 2–1 | 4–3 |
| 1999–2000 | Intertoto Cup | R2 | Brann | 3–0 | 0–3 | 3–3 (5–4 p) |
| 1999–2000 | Intertoto Cup | R3 | Rostselmash | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–2 (a) |
| 2001–02 | UEFA Cup | QR | Vaduz | 6–1 | 3–3 | 9–4 |
| 2001–02 | UEFA Cup | R1 | Aston Villa | 0–1 | 3–2 | 3–3 (a) |
| 2001–02 | UEFA Cup | R2 | Brondby | 3–1 | 0–5 | 3–6 |
| 2002–03 | UEFA Cup | QR | Dundalk | 5–0 | 4–0 | 9–0 |
| 2002–03 | UEFA Cup | R1 | Midtjylland | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| 2003–04 | UEFA Cup | QR | Levadia Tallinn | 3–2 | 3–1 | 6–3 |
| 2003–04 | UEFA Cup | R1 | Debrecen | 1–3 | 2–3 | 3–6 |
| 2005–06 | Intertoto Cup | R1 | Dinamo Tirana | 4–1 | 1–2 | 5–3 |
| 2005–06 | Intertoto Cup | R2 | Inter Turku | 4–3 | 2–2 | 6–5 |
| 2005–06 | Intertoto Cup | R3 | Lens | 1–1 | 1–4 | 2–5 |
| 2006–07 | UEFA Cup | QR1 | KF Tirana | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 |
| 2011–12 | Europa League | QR1 | Lusitanos | 5–1 | 1–0 | 6–1 |
| 2011–12 | Europa League | QR2 | Iskra-Stal | 3–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 |
| 2011–12 | Europa League | QR3 | Dinamo București | 1–2 | 2–2 | 3–4 |

## Honours

* Croatian Football Cup:
** Runners-up (6): 1995–96, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2010–11
* Yugoslav Cup:
** Runners up (1): 1960–61
* DCM Trophy:
** Winners (1): 1993

### Player records

* Most appearances in UEFA club competitions: 27 appearances
** Miljenko Mumlek
* Top scorers in UEFA club competitions: 17 goals
** Miljenko Mumlek

## Notable players

To appear in this section a player must have:
* Played at least 150 league games for the club;
* Scored at least 50 league goals for the club; or
* Played at least one international match for their national team while playing for NK Varaždin.
Years in brackets indicate their spells at the club.
| Zlatko Dalić (1992–1996, 1998–2000) Davor Vugrinec (1992–1997, 2010–2012) Samir Toplak (1988–1998, 2002–2005) Marijan Mrmić (1993–1996, 1998–1999, 2000) Miljenko Mumlek (1992–1999, 2000–2003, 2007–2010) Andrija Balajić (1992–1996, 1997–2000, 2001–2002, 2007–2010) Krunoslav Gregorić (1992–1999, 2002–2003) Dražen Madunović (1992, 1993–2001) Silvester Sabolčki (1998–2003) Mladen Posavec (1992–2000) Robert Težački (1992–1998, 1999–2001) | Danijel Hrman (1997–2003, 2006–2007, 2007–2008) Veldin Karić (1997–2004) Nikola Šafarić (1998–2007, 2010–2011) Zoran Kastel (1998–2005) Vioresin Sinani (1999–2001) Nedim Halilović (2001–2006) Leon Benko (2003–2006) Ivan Režić (1997–1998, 1999–2004) Marko Topić (1997–1998) Devi Muka (2000–2002) Vladimir Vasilj (2004) Dražen Ladić (1980–1984) |

## Managerial history

| Branko Ivanković (July 1991 – June 1995) Luka Bonačić (1995–1996) Dražen Besek (1998–1999) Luka Bonačić (December 1999 – April 2000) Branko Janžek (April 2000 – May 2000) Ivan Katalinić (May 2000 – April 2001) Branko Janžek (April 2001 – May 2002) Dražen Besek (May 2002 – September 2003) Miroslav Blažević (September 2003 – May 2005) | Zlatko Dalić (May 2005 – May 2007) Josip Kuže (June 2007 – August 2007) Dražen Besek (August 2007 – December 2009) Damir Jagačić (January 2010 – March 2010) Samir Toplak (March 2010 – August 2011) Tomica Kocijan (August 2011 – October 2011) Branko Janžek (October 2011 – July 2012) Ivica Solomun (July 2012 – January 2015) |