| Clubname: | Zimbru Chișinău |
| Fullname: | Fotbal Club Zimbru Chișinău |
| Nickname: | Galben-verzii (The Yellow-Greens) Zimbrii (The Aurochs) |
| Ground: | Zimbru Stadium |
| Capacity: | 10,104 |
| Chrtitle: | President |
| Chairman: | Nicolae Ciornîi |
| Mgrtitle: | Head Coach |
| Manager: | Lilian Popescu |
| League: | Super Liga |
| Season: | 2023–24 |
| Position: | Super Liga, 3rd of 8 |
| Current: | 2024–25 Moldovan Super Liga |
| Pattern La1: | _macronpolis1yg |
| Pattern B1: | _macronpolis1yg |
| Pattern Ra1: | _macronpolis1yg |
| Leftarm1: | FFFF00 |
| Body1: | FFFF00 |
| Rightarm1: | FFFF00 |
| Shorts1: | 008000 |
| Socks1: | 008000 |
| Pattern B2: | _macronrodders1g |
| Leftarm2: | 008000 |
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| Shorts2: | FFFF00 |
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| Website: | http://www.zimbru.md |
Fotbal Club Zimbru Chișinău, commonly known as Zimbru Chișinău or simply Zimbru, is a Moldovan professional football club based in Chișinău, which competes in the Super Liga, the highest tier of Moldovan football.
Founded in the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1947, Zimbru entered the Soviet Top League in 1956 and totaled eleven participations before their last relegation in 1983. The club remained the leader of Moldovan football during most of the Soviet period and was the only one that reached and played at the Soviet top tier. After the independence of Moldova in 1991, the team established itself as an early force in the country, winning all the first five national titles and eight of the first nine, but have not won since. Zimbru's honours also include six Moldovan Cups and one Moldovan Super Cup.
Zimbru play their home matches at the 10,104-seater Zimbru Stadium.
See also: List of FC Zimbru Chișinău seasons. Zimbru Chișinău was formed in 1947 in the Moldovan Soviet Republic (present day Republic of Moldova). 'Zimbru' is a Romanian word for a form of European bison, but the club also previously functioned under names such as Dinamo, Burevestnik, Moldova, Avântul, and Nistru. The Soviet Era was spent mostly in Class B of the regional league until eventual promotion to Class A. The club then flitted between Class A and Class B as well as spending time in the Soviet Top League and First League. In total, Zimbru spent 11 seasons in the Top League between 1956 and 1983. Zimbru had their biggest success in 1956 when they finished in 6th place out of 12 in the Soviet Top League and in 1963 when they reached the quarter-finals of the Soviet Cup.[1]
Zimbru's fortunes changed after the fall of the USSR and the establishment of the Republic of Moldova. The club won all five of the initial seasons of the Moldovan National Division (1992–96), and apart from finishing as runners-up to Chișinău rivals Constructorul Chișinău in 1996–97, won eight of the first nine championships. Zimbru have also won the Moldovan Cup six times, including a double in 1997–98 and the Moldovan Super Cup once.
Since its foundation, Zimbru's colours always was yellow and green. Throughout history, Zimbru Chișinău had many logos. Traditional colours were always present on club crests.
See main article: Zimbru Stadium.
| Stadium Name: | Zimbru Stadium |
| Native Name: | Stadionul Zimbru |
| Native Name Lang: | ro |
| Address: | 45 Dacia Boulevard |
| City: | Chișinău |
| Country: | Moldova |
| Owner: | Zimbru Chișinău |
| Operator: | Moldovan Football Federation |
| Seating Capacity: | 10,104[2] |
| Dimensions: | 111x |
| Surface: | Natural Grass |
| Scoreboard: | 1,600 lux |
| Construction Cost: | $11 million |
| Architect: | Ceproserving SA |
| Structural Engineer: | Inconex-Com SRL |
| Tenants: | Zimbru Chișinău (2006–present) Moldova national football team (2006–present) |
FC Zimbru's home ground is Zimbru Stadium, a football-specific stadium in Botanica sector of Chișinău. It was opened in 2006. The stadium has a natural grass playing surface, and its capacity is 10,104.[3]
In the 1990s (the first decade of Moldova's independence), Zimbru's rival was the other team from Chișinău, Constructorul Chișinău. Then Contructorul was dissolved. In 1997, a new team was founded in Tiraspol, Sheriff Tiraspol. In a few years, Sheriff was promoted to the first league and became a force in Moldovan football. Considering the strength of team and the tensions between Moldovans and separatist Transnistrians, the match between Zimbru and Sheriff became a derby, the most important match in country. Thus, it has been named "Derby of Moldova", being labelled even as "Moldovan El Clasico" (Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: El Clasico de Moldova).[4] [5] Another rivalry was established in the mid-2000s when Dacia Chișinău, another team from Chișinău, became one of Moldova's top teams. The match between them is known as "The Derby of the capital" (Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan: Derbiul capitalei).[6]
Zimbru players who received the award Moldovan Footballer of the Year:
| Year | Winner | |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Alexandru Spiridon | |
| 1993 | Alexandru Curtianu | |
| 1994 | Serghei Cleșcenco | |
| 1995 | Ion Testemițanu | |
| 1997 | Ion Testemițanu | |
| 1999 | Sergiu Epureanu | |
| 2002 | Boris Cebotari |
| Season | Division | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts | Cup | Europe | Top scorer (league) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Super Liga | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 22 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 40 | 15 | 35 | 1/4 | – |  Alexandru Spiridon Iurie Miterev – 8 | |
| 1992–93 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 30 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 66 | 17 | 50 | 1/8 | – | Alexandru Spiridon – 12 | ||
| 1993–94 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 30 | 25 | 2 | 3 | 86 | 22 | 52 | 1/2 | PR | Serghei Cleșcenco – 14 | ||
| 1994–95 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 26 | 21 | 4 | 1 | 69 | 10 | 67 | RU | UC | PR | Serghei Cleșcenco – 11 | |
| 1995–96 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 30 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 110 | 11 | 81 | 1/4 | UC | R2 | Vladislav Gavriliuc – 34 | |
| 1996–97 | align=center bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 30 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 112 | 21 | 70 | W | UC | PR | Iurie Miterev – 34 | |
| 1997–98 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 26 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 75 | 8 | 69 | W | CWC | QR | Serghei Cleșcenco – 25 | |
| 1998–99 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 26 | 18 | 7 | 1 | 43 | 9 | 61 | 1/4 | Q1 | Vladislav Gavriliuc – 10 | ||
| 1999–00 | align=center bgcolor=gold | 1st | 36 | 25 | 7 | 4 | 78 | 21 | 82 | RU | UCL UC | Q3 R1 | Victor Berco – 15 | |
| 2000–01 | align=center bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 28 | 20 | 6 | 2 | 46 | 15 | 66 | 1/2 | UCL UC | Q3 R1 | Iurie Miterev – 8 | |
| 2001–02 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 28 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 52 | 20 | 46 | 1/2 | UC | QR | Victor Berco – 12 | |
| 2002–03 | align=center bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 24 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 47 | 20 | 50 | W | UC | R1 |  Vladimir Shishelov – 13 | |
| 2003–04 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 28 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 40 | 23 | 49 | W | UC | R1 | Vladimir Shishelov – 15 | |
| 2004–05 | 5th | 28 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 29 | 15 | 43 | 1/4 | – | Sergiu Chirilov – 7 | |||
| 2005–06 | align=center bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 28 | 15 | 8 | 5 | 47 | 20 | 53 | 1/2 | – | Sergiu Chirilov – 11 | ||
| 2006–07 | align=center bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 36 | 21 | 8 | 7 | 63 | 23 | 71 | W | UC | Q2 |  Alexei Zhdanov – 14 | |
| 2007–08 | 5th | 30 | 13 | 13 | 4 | 43 | 21 | 52 | 1/2 | UC | Q1 | Alexei Zhdanov – 12 | ||
| 2008–09 | 4th | 30 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 42 | 30 | 46 | 1/2 | – | Oleg Andronic – 16 | |||
| 2009–10 | 4th | 33 | 17 | 8 | 8 | 47 | 29 | 59 | 1/4 | UEL | Q2 | Andrei Secrieru – 7 | ||
| 2010–11 | 4th | 39 | 22 | 10 | 7 | 56 | 20 | 76 | 1/8 | – | Oleg Andronic – 9 | |||
| 2011–12 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 33 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 47 | 24 | 61 | 1/4 | – | Oleg Molla – 14 | ||
| 2012–13 | 6th | 33 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 53 | 38 | 46 | 1/4 | UEL | Q2 | Oleg Molla – 7 | ||
| 2013–14 | 4th | 33 | 18 | 7 | 8 | 56 | 24 | 61 | W | – | Sergey Tsyganov – 13 | |||
| 2014–15 | 6th | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 23 | 19 | 27 | 1/4 | UEL | PO | Alexandru Dedov – 4 | ||
| 2015–16 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 27 | 15 | 4 | 8 | 42 | 26 | 49 | 1/4 | – | Rui Miguel – 9 | ||
| 2016–17 | 5th | 30 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 32 | 29 | 46 | 1/2 | UEL | Q2 | Hugo Neto – 6 | ||
| 2017 | 8th | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 17 | 21 | 19 | RU | – |  Jean Theodoro – 5 | |||
| 2018 | 5th | 28 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 28 | 37 | 36 | 1/2 | – | Ilie Damașcan Ion Nicolaescu – 5 | |||
| 2019 | 7th | 28 | 3 | 7 | 18 | 16 | 43 | 16 | 1/4 | – | Dan Pîslă – 5 | |||
| 2020–21 | 8th | 36 | 6 | 7 | 23 | 39 | 63 | 25 | 1/8 | – | Artur Pătraș – 10 | |||
| 2021–22 | 7th | 28 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 32 | 46 | 27 | 1/4 | – | Eugen Sidorenco – 5 | |||
| 2022–23 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 24 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 27 | 26 | 31 | 1/4 | – | Alexandru Dedov – 8 | ||
| 2023–24 | align=center bgcolor=#deb678 | 3rd | 24 | 13 | 3 | 8 | 33 | 23 | 42 | RU | ECL | Q2 |  João Paulino Emmanuel Alaribe – 7 | |
See main article: FC Zimbru Chișinău in European football.
| Season | Round | Opponents | Home leg | Away leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | PR |  Beitar Jerusalem | 1−1 | 0–2 | 1–3 |
| 1998–99 | Q1 |  Újpest | 1–0 | 1–3 | 2–3 |
| 1999–00 | Q1 | St Patrick's Athletic | 5–0 | 5–0 | 10–0 |
| Q2 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 | |
| Q3 | PSV Eindhoven | 0−0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | |
| 2000–01 | Q1 |  KF Tirana | 3–2 | 3–2 | 6–4 |
| Q2 | Maribor | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | |
| Q3 |  Sparta Prague | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | |
| Season | Round | Opponents | Home leg | Away leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994–95 | PR | Budapest Honvéd | 0–1 | 1–4 | 1–5 |
| 1995–96 | PR | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 2–0 | 0−0 | 2–0 |
| R1 | RAF Jelgava | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | |
| R2 | Sparta Prague | 0–2 | 3–4 | 3–6 | |
| 1996–97 | PR | Hajduk Split | 0–4 | 1–2 | 1–6 |
| 1999–00 | R1 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0−0 | 0–3 | 0–3 |
| 2000–01 | R1 | Hertha BSC | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–4 |
| 2001–02 | QR |  Gaziantepspor | 0−0 | 1–4 | 1–4 |
| 2002–03 | QR |  IFK Göteborg | 3–1 | 2−2 | 5–3 |
| R1 |  Real Betis | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–4 | |
| 2003–04 | QR | Litex Lovech | 2–0 | 0−0 | 2–0 |
| R1 | Aris | 1−1 | 1–2 | 2–3 | |
| 2006–07 | Q1 |  Qarabağ | 1−1 | 2–1 (aet) | 3–2 |
| Q2 |  Metalurh Zaporizhya | 0–0 | 0–3 | 0–3 | |
| 2007–08 | Q1 |  Artmedia Bratislava | 2–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 (a) |
| Season | Round | Opponents | Home leg | Away leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009–10 | Q1 |  Okzhetpes | 1–2 | 2–0 | 3–2 |
| Q2 | Paços de Ferreira | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | |
| 2012–13 | Q1 | Bangor City | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 |
| Q2 | Young Boys | 1–0 (aet) | 0–1 | 1–1 (1–4 pen.) | |
| 2014–15 | Q1 | FK Shkëndija | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 |
| Q2 |  CSKA Sofia | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 (a) | |
| Q3 |  SV Grödig | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 (a) | |
| PO | PAOK | 1–0 | 0–4 | 1–4 | |
| 2016–17 | Q1 |  Chikhura Sachkhere | 0–1 | 3–2 | 3–3 (a) |
| Q2 | Osmanlıspor | 2–2 | 0–5 | 2–7 |
| Season | Round | Opponents | Home leg | Away leg | Aggregate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023–24 | Q1 |  La Fiorita | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | |
| Q2 | Fenerbahçe | 0–4 | 0–5 | 0–9 | ||
| 2024–25 | Q2 |  Ararat-Armenia | 0–3 | 1–3 | 1–6 |
For the 2024/25 European season, Zimbru Chișinău is ranked 343rd in the UEFA club coefficient rankings, up from 350th the previous season.
| Rank | Team | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 341 | Ilves | 3.000 | |
| 342 | Torpedo Kutaisi | 3.000 | |
| 343 | Zimbru Chișinău | 3.000 | |
| 344 | Valur | 3.000 | |
| 345 | Aktobe | 3.000 |
As of 11 July 2023[9]
| Role | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| Head coach | Lilian Popescu | |
| Assistant coach | Dumitru Arabadji | |
| Goalkeeping coach | Vladimir Mura | |
| Masseur | Petru Caraman | |
| Club doctor | Mihail Mudrenco | |
| Administrator | Dumitru Mahortov |
As of 11 July 2023[10]
| Role | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| President | Nicolae Ciornîi | |
| General director | Sergiu Topor | |
| Sporting director | Alexei Popa |