# NK Lokomotiva Zagreb

Nogometni klub Lokomotiva Zagreb (lit. 'Football Club Lokomotiva Zagreb'), commonly known as Lokomotiva Zagreb or simply Lokomotiva, is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. It competes in the Croatian First Football League, the country's top division. Founded in 1914, the club's only period of success came in the late 1940s and early 1950s before spending most of the following five decades in lower-level leagues.
Between 2007 and 2009 they won three consecutive promotions to rise from the fourth level to the first in the Croatian football league system. They hosted their home matches at Stadion Maksimir for a couple of years before moving to Stadion Kranjčevićeva, as their own ground Igralište na Kajzerici in the Novi Zagreb's Kajzerica neighbourhood is unsuitable for the top-level football.

## History

NK Lokomotiva was founded as ŽŠK Victoria (Željezničarski športski klub "Victoria") in 1914.
After World War I, the name of the club was changed to Željezničar, under which they competed between the two wars. At that time, they were mostly in the shadow of the city's bigger clubs Građanski, Concordia and HAŠK. They played in the first level only in the 1940–41 season.
In 1945, the club was renamed Lokomotiva and soon their most productive years followed. They continuously played for 8 seasons (1947–1955) in the Yugoslav First League with the best league result in 1952, when they finished third, behind Hajduk Split and Red Star Belgrade. Some of the players at that time were Vladimir Čonč, Vladimir Firm, Drago Hmelina, Franjo Beserdi and Oto Bobek, younger brother of legendary Stjepan Bobek. They won Yugoslav Second League in 1956, but were relegated again from the First League in the summer of 1957 and never returned to the Yugoslav top flight again. They played in the Yugoslav Second League until 1970 and then also in the Yugoslav Inter-Republic League in the last years before the dissolution of Yugoslavia.
After Croatian independence and the formation of the Prva HNL in 1991, Lokomotiva played in the lower leagues of Croatian football, mostly spending their time in the Treća HNL. In 2006, before relegation to the fourth division, Lokomotiva became the feeder team for Dinamo Zagreb. This sparked a story of one of the most incredible rises through the leagues in Croatian football. Lokomotiva gained promotion in each of the next three season, finishing first in the Četvrta HNL in the 2006–07 season, second in the Treća HNL in the 2007–08 season, and third in the Druga HNL in the 2008–09 season.
The promotion from the second to the first division of Croatian football in 2009 meant that in the 2009–10 season, Lokomotiva would be back in the top flight for the first time after 52 years. The side recovered from a poor start in the league and finished in a respectable 8th position out of 16 teams, with notable victories 4–2 away against NK Zagreb, home 3–0 over Rijeka, and 2–1 over Hajduk Split. Their top scorer, Nino Bule, finished with 14 goals.
Due to rules against second sides being in the same division, they legally split their connection to Dinamo Zagreb. To meet the criteria for the Prva HNL, they played their games at Stadion Maksimir before moving on to Stadion Kranjčevićeva which is now the club's home. The club's base and youth teams area are located in Kajzerica neighborhood, at a ground known as Igralište na Kajzerici, which itself was a prominent motorcycle speedway stadium in the 1960s.
The 2012–13 season was one of the best in recent history for Lokomotiva. They finished in second place ahead of clubs such as Rijeka, Hajduk Split and RNK Split. Young star Andrej Kramarić, on loan from Dinamo Zagreb, finished second in the scoring charts with 15 goals. With the second-place finish, Lokomotiva qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round. In their first European encounter, the side faced FC Dinamo Minsk, losing on the away goals rule after winning 2–1 away from home, but losing 3–2 at home.
Lokomotiva established itself as a 1. HNL side, finishing between 4th and 6th place for the next six seasons. The club managed its first European aggregate victory over Airbus UK Broughton F.C. in the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League and navigating three stages of qualifying rounds in the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League, before losing 4–2 to Belgian Pro League side K.R.C. Genk in the playoff round.
In the 2019–20 season, which was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Lokomotiva had the best season in its history, finishing in second place in the league and finishing as runners-up in the Croatian Football Cup, losing 1–0 to Rijeka in the final. With Croatia's improved UEFA Ranking, this meant that Lokomotiva went into the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds for the first time in its history, where it drew SK Rapid Wien in the second qualifying round.

### Name changes

* ŽŠK Victoria (1914–1919)
* ŠK Željezničar (1919–1941)
* HŽŠK (1941–1945)
* FD Lokomotiva (1945–1946)
* FD Crvena Lokomotiva (1946–1947)
* NK Lokomotiva (1947–present)

## Honours
### Croatian football league system

* Croatian First League
** Runners-up (2): 2012–13, 2019–20
* Croatian Second League
** Third place (1): 2008–09
* Croatian Cup
** Runners-up (2): 2012–13, 2019–20

### Yugoslav football league system

* Yugoslav First League
** Third place (1): 1952
* Yugoslav Second League
** Champions (1): 1955–56
** Runners-up (2): 1957–58, 1958–59

## Crest and colours
### Kit manufacturers and shirt sponsors

| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| 2014–15 | Nike | - |
| 2015–17 | Nike | Crodux |
| 2017–19 | Nike | - |
| 2019–22 | Adidas | - |
| 2022–23 | Macron | - |
| 2023–24 | Macron | Favbet |

## Players
### Current squad

    As of 14 February 2025
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 2 | DF | FRA | Mody Mamadou Boune |
| 3 | DF | SEN | Cheikh Mbacke Diop |
| 4 | DF | ARG | Leonardo Sigali |
| 6 | MF | BIH | Blaž Bošković |
| 7 | MF | CRO | Silvio Goričan |
| 8 | MF | CRO | Robert Mudražija |
| 9 | FW | SRB | Komnen Andrić (on loan from Rijeka) |
| 10 | MF | CRO | Domagoj Antolić |
| 11 | MF | CRO | Denis Bušnja |
| 12 | GK | CRO | Krunoslav Hendija |
| 13 | DF | AUS | Fran Karačić |
| 14 | DF | CRO | Moreno Živković (on loan from Dinamo Zagreb) |
| 15 | DF | KOS | Art Smakaj |
| 16 | DF | CRO | Luka Dajčer |
| 17 | DF | CRO | Marko Pajač |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 18 | FW | CRO | Antonio Baždarić |
| 19 | MF | CRO | Matija Subotić |
| 20 | DF | CRO | Denis Kolinger |
| 21 | MF | CRO | Luka Vrbančić (on loan from Dinamo Zagreb) |
| 22 | DF | CRO | Marin Leovac |
| 23 | MF | ALB | Feta Fetai |
| 24 | MF | CRO | Ivan Katić |
| 25 | FW | CRO | Mirko Sušak |
| 27 | DF | CRO | Marko Vranjković |
| 28 | FW | CRO | Ivan Canjuga |
| 29 | MF | CRO | Jakov-Anton Vasilj |
| 30 | FW | MNE | Dušan Vuković |
| 31 | GK | CRO | Zvonimir Šubarić |
| 32 | GK | CRO | Luka Savatović |

### Other players under contract

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | DF | CRO | Fran Žilinski |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | CRO | Fabijan Krivak |

### Dual registration

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 26 | DF | CRO | Ante Utrobičić (at Karlovac 1919) |

### Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 19 | MF | CRO | Ivan Krolo (at Dugopolje until 26 June 2025) |
| — | DF | CRO | Viktor Damjanić (at Jedinstvo Ub until 29 June 2025) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | DF | BRA | Pedro Oliveira (at Rudeš until 26 June 2025) |
| — | FW | CRO | Carlo Mateković (at Jarun until 26 June 2025) |

## Recent 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 |
| 2006–07 | 4. HNL | 30 | 25 | 2 | 3 | 94 | 31 | 77 | 1st ↑ | | | | Jurica Jeleć | 16 |
| 2007–08 | 3. HNL | 34 | 28 | 2 | 4 | 105 | 32 | 86 | 2nd ↑ | | | | Robert Mesić | 34 |
| 2008–09 | 2. HNL | 30 | 18 | 5 | 7 | 50 | 30 | 59 | 3rd ↑ | | | | Mateo Poljak | 8 |
| 2009–10 | 1. HNL | 30 | 12 | 6 | 12 | 35 | 38 | 42 | 8th | | | | Nino Bule | 14 |
| 2010–11 | 1. HNL | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 33 | 14th | R1 | | | Nino Bule | 11 |
| 2011–12 | 1. HNL | 30 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 33 | 33 | 44 | 7th | | | | Andrej Kramarić | 5 |
| 2012–13 | 1. HNL | 33 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 54 | 38 | 57 | 2nd | RU | | | Andrej Kramarić | 15 |
| 2013–14 | 1. HNL | 36 | 15 | 7 | 14 | 57 | 59 | 52 | 5th | | Europa League | QR2 | Ante Budimir | 14 |
| 2014–15 | 1. HNL | 36 | 13 | 7 | 16 | 59 | 68 | 46 | 4th | QF | | | Domagoj Pavičić | 8 |
| 2015–16 | 1. HNL | 36 | 16 | 4 | 16 | 56 | 53 | 52 | 4th | QF | Europa League | QR2 | Franko Andrijašević | 12 |
| 2016–17 | 1. HNL | 36 | 12 | 8 | 16 | 41 | 38 | 44 | 5th | QF | Europa League | PO | Josip Ćorić | 6 |
| 2017–18 | 1. HNL | 36 | 14 | 9 | 13 | 47 | 48 | 51 | 5th | SF | | | Lovro Majer | 11 |
| 2018–19 | 1. HNL | 36 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 51 | 43 | 49 | 6th | QF | | | Dejan Radonjić | 8 |
| 2019–20 | 1. HNL | 36 | 19 | 8 | 9 | 57 | 38 | 65 | 2nd | RU | | | Lirim Kastrati Marko Tolić | 11 |
| 2020–21 | 1. HNL | 36 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 60 | 30 | 8th | R2 | Champions League | QR2 | Josip Pivarić | 6 |
| 2020–21 | 1. HNL | 36 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 60 | 30 | 8th | R2 | Europa League | QR3 | Josip Pivarić | 6 |
| 2021–22 | 1. HNL | 36 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 55 | 50 | 49 | 5th | QF | | | Marko Dabro | 13 |
| 2022–23 | 1. HNL | 36 | 11 | 10 | 15 | 45 | 50 | 43 | 7th | QF | | | Sandro Kulenović | 9 |
| 2023–24 | 1. HNL | 36 | 12 | 15 | 9 | 52 | 45 | 51 | 5th | SF | | | Duje Čop | 12 |

## European record
### Summary

| Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| UEFA Champions League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| UEFA Cup UEFA Europa League | 15 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 27 | 28 |
| Total | 16 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 27 | 29 |
Source: uefa.com, Last updated on 7 September 2022 Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against. Defunct competitions indicated in italics.

### Record by season

| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Agg |
| 2013–14 | UEFA Europa League | QR2 | Dinamo Minsk | 2–3 | 2–1 | 4–4 (a) |
| 2015–16 | UEFA Europa League | QR1 | Airbus UK Broughton | 2–2 | 3–1 | 5–3 |
| 2015–16 | UEFA Europa League | QR2 | PAOK | 2–1 | 0–6 | 2–7 |
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | QR1 | UE Santa Coloma | 4–1 | 3–1 | 7–2 |
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | QR2 | RoPS Rovaniemi | 3–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 |
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | QR3 | FC Vorskla Poltava | 0–0 | 3–2 | 3–2 |
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | PO | KRC Genk | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–4 |
| 2020–21 | UEFA Champions League | QR2 | Rapid Wien | 0–1 | | |
| 2020–21 | UEFA Europa League | QR3 | Malmö FF | | 0–5 | |

## Personnel
### Coaching staff

| Position | Staff |
| Coach | Silvijo Čabraja |
| Assistant coaches | Damir Ferenčina Renato Šaka |
| Goalkeeping coach | Darko Horvat |
| Fitness Coach | Marko Sukreški |
| Doctors | Miroslav Gluhinić Frane Bukvić |
| Technical director | Igor Cvetković |
| Physiotherapists | Igor Bartolović Marko Grubić Ivan Rendulić |
Last updated: 31 July 2021 Source: NK Lokomotiva official website

## Historical list of coaches

* Bogdan Cuvaj (1946–1952)
* August Bivec
* Slavko Kodrnja
* Mirko Kokotović
* Hermenegildo Kranjc
* Ivan Medarić
* Sreten Ćuk (2007 – Dec 30, 2008)
* Ilija Lončarević (Jan 1, 2009 – Mar 6, 2009)
* Željko Pakasin (C) (Mar 7, 2009 – Apr 29, 2009)
* Roy Ferenčina (Apr 29, 2009 – Oct 3, 2010)
* Ljupko Petrović (Oct 3, 2010 – Mar 14, 2011)
* Krunoslav Jurčić (Mar 14, 2011 – May 26, 2011)
* Marijo Tot (Jun 1, 2011 – Oct 29, 2011)
* Ante Čačić (Oct 31, 2011 – Dec 23, 2011)
* Tomislav Ivković (Dec 23, 2011 – May 11, 2015)
* Marko Pinčić (C) (May 11, 2015 – Jun 3, 2015)
* Ante Čačić (Jun 3, 2015 – Sep 21, 2015)
* Sreten Ćuk (Sep 21, 2015 – May 30, 2016)
* Valentin Barišić (May 30, 2016 – Jul 6, 2016)
* Mario Tokić (C) (Jul 6, 2016 – Jul 25, 2016)
* Tomislav Ivković (Jul 25, 2016 – Nov 14, 2016)
* Mario Tokić (Nov 14, 2016 – Dec 5, 2017)
* Draženko Prskalo (C) (Dec 5, 2017 – Dec 27, 2017)
* Goran Tomić (Dec 27, 2017 – Jan 9, 2021)
* Jerko Leko (Jan 9, 2021 – Mar 13, 2021)
* Samir Toplak (Mar 14, 2021 – May 28, 2021)
* Silvijo Čabraja (Jun 8, 2021 –