Widzew Łódź

RTS Widzew Łódź () is a Polish football club based in Łódź. Formed in 1922, it later named itself the successor of the TMRF Widzew founded in 1910. Its official colours are red and white, hence their nicknames Czerwona Armia (Red Army) and Czerwono-biało-czerwoni (Red-white-reds). They compete in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of the Polish football league system, since the 2022–23 season. Widzew is one of only two Poland clubs to have participated in the UEFA Champions League group stage.

History

TMRF Widzew, the first club based in Widzew (district of Łódź), was formed on 25 November 1910 by Polish workers and German industrialists who were employees of the Widzew textile manufactory called WIMA. Initially, the club was called the Widzew Society of Physical Development Enthusiasts (in Polish: Towarzystwo Miłośników Rozwoju Fizycznego Widzew), - at that time Łódź was under the rule of the Russian Tsar, and the adjective "workers'" (in Polish: Robotniczy) could not be used in the club's name. After the First World War, Poland regained its independence and a separate entity was founded in 1922 under the name of Robotnicze Towarzystwo Sportowe Widzew Łódź (Workers' Sports Association Widzew Łódź). The club's mottos are "Together We Create Power" (in Polish Razem Tworzymy Siłę) and "Always 12" (in Polish Zawsze w 12), which suggests that its fans are the twelfth player of the team. The club plays its matches at the Widzew Łódź Stadium, located in Łódź at 138 Marshal Józef Piłsudski Avenue. The stadium bears the unofficial but commonly used name of the "Heart of Łódź" (in Polish Serce Łodzi).

During World War II, three pre-war players of Widzew Łódź, Joachim Schreer, Mirosław Wągrowski and Aleksander Żadziłko, were among Poles murdered by the Russians in the large Katyn massacre in April–May 1940.

Widzew is a four-time Polish league champion in seasons 1980–81, 1981–82, 1995–96 and 1996–97, as well as the winner of the 1985 Polish Cup.

After winning back-to-back championships in 1980–81 and 1981–82, Widzew reclaimed the league crown 14 years later after a record season once again. During the successful 1995–96 season, Widzew conceded only 22 goals in 34 matches, the least out of all teams in the league. They were also proficient in attack, scoring 84 goals and securing 88 points across the campaign. Thanks in part to the great performance of their goalkeeper Andrzej Woźniak, the team remained unbeaten for the whole season.

In the following 1996–97 season, the team enjoyed another great season. For the second time in the club's history, they secured back-to-back championships, scoring 74 goals across the season and conceding only 21.

They have appeared in 117 matches in European Cups, of which they won 42. Widzew knocked European giants Manchester United out of the 1980–81 UEFA Cup, although their biggest achievement was reaching the semi-final of the 1982–83 European Cup, eliminating then three-time winners Liverpool along the way.

Recent history At the beginning of the 2007–08 season, Widzew was purchased by one of the wealthiest men in Poland, Sylwester Cacek.Historia Widzewa

In January 2008, while playing in the second division, the Polish Football Association ruled that Widzew Łódź should be relegated due to their involvement in a corruption scandal. However, Widzew became champions that year and were allowed to stay in the second division, which was renamed I liga before the start of the 2008-09 season. Despite being deducted six points as a penalty, Widzew won the I Liga again in the 2009-10 season, and were promoted to the Ekstraklasa. However, Widzew were once again relegated at the end of the 2013–14 season after four seasons.

Due to financial problems, Widzew finished last at the end of the 2014–15 season, and subsequently went bankrupt.

Local businessmen Marcin Ferdzyn and Grzegorz Waranecki decided to take on amateur status as a new association called Stowarzyszenie Reaktywacja Tradycji Sportowych Widzew Łódź (Association of the Reactivation of the Sports Traditions of Widzew Łódź),Jest nowy Widzew! Reaktywacja Tradycji Sportowych Widzew Łódź which continues the tradition of the old RTS Widzew Łódź. The new association was registered in a Polish court on 2 July 2015, and within a few weeks of summer 2015, they managed to hire a new coach Witold Obarek and gather a new roster, which started the 2015–16 season in the fifth tier of Polish football. In their first season in IV liga, Widzew won promotion. In the 2016–17 season, Widzew achieved third place in III liga, behind Drwęca Nowe Miasto Lubawskie and ŁKS Łódź, but next season yielded promotion to II liga. In the 2018–19 season, they finished in fifth place with 55 points. In the 2021–22 season, Widzew finished 2nd, one point ahead of Arka Gdynia, and returned to Ekstraklasa for the first time since the 2013–14 season.

Honours

Domestic League

Ekstraklasa (First Division) Champions: 1980–81, 1981–82, 1995–96, 1996–97 Runners-up: 1976–77, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1994–95, 1998–99 I liga (Second Division) Champions: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10

Cup Polish Cup Winners: 1984–85 Polish Super Cup Winners: 1996 Runners-up: 1997 Polish League Cup Runners-up: 1977

Europe UEFA Champions League/European Cup Semi-finalists: 1982–83 Copa del Sol Runners-up: 2013

Youth teams Polish U19 championship Runners-up: 1995

League history

TierSeasonsFirstLastPromotionsRelegationsMost consecutive seasonsEkstraklasa (tier 1)3919482025–26 14 times to Europe 515 (1975–1989)Second tier2819262021–22 5 313 (1926–1938)Third tier1719242019–20 3 28 (1959–1966)Fourth tier1119222017–18 4never4 (1955–1958, 1966–1970)Fifth tier12015–162015–16 1never1

Results in Ekstraklasa SeasonPositionMatchesPointsGoalsW.-D.-L.1194814 (relegation)2613 pts.31–995–3–1821975–7653032 pts.33–3310–12–831976–7723038 pts.46–3114–10–641977–78103028 pts.34–409–10–1151978–7923039 pts.37–2614–11–561979–8023036 pts.47–3913–10–771980–8113039 pts.39–2514–11–581981–8213039 pts.45–3114–11–591982–8323038 pts.50–3013–12–5101983–8423042 pts.43–2515–12–3111984–8533038 pts.34–1613–12–5121985–8633041 pts.40–2515–11–4131986–8763036 pts.34–2914–7–9141987–8853031 pts.28–248–15–7151988–89 73029 pts.27–279–12–9161989–9015 (relegation)3017 pts.22–394–12–14171991–9233443 pts.48–2817–9–8181992–9353443 pts.60–4216–11–7191993–9463439 pts.45–3312–15–7201994–9523445 pts.48–2517–11–6211995–9613488 pts.84–2227–7–0221996–9713481 pts.74–2025–6–3231997–9843461 pts.53–3418–7–9241998–9923056 pts.50–3318–2–10251999–200073040 pts.48–5411–7–12262000–01123036 pts.33–409–9–12272001–02Autumn round – group A:81411 pts.9–243–2–9Spring round – g. relegation:21431 pts.19–86–7–1282002–0393037 pts.29–3910–7–13292003–0414 (relegation)2619 pts.25–524–7–15302006–07123028 pts.27–487–7–16312007–0815 (relegation)3026 pts.27–425–11–14322010–1193043 pts.41–3411–10–9332011–12113039 pts.25–269–12–9342012–13133033 pts.30–418–9–13352013–1415 (relegation)3722 pts.36–598–9–20362022–23123441 pts.38–4711–8–15372023–2493446 pts.45–4613–7–14382024–25133440 pts.38–4911–7–16392025–26143442 pts.41–4112–6–16

Widzew in Europe Season Competition Round Club Score1977–78UEFA Cup1R Manchester City2–2, 0–02R PSV Eindhoven3–5, 0–11979–80UEFA Cup1R AS Saint-Étienne2–1, 0–31980–81UEFA Cup1R Manchester United1–1, 0–02R Juventus FC3–1, 1–3 p. 4–13R Ipswich Town0–5, 1–01981–82European Cup1R RSC Anderlecht1–4, 1–21982–83European Cup1R Hibernians FC4–1, 3–12R SK Rapid Wien1–2, 5–31/4F Liverpool F.C.2–0, 2–31/2F Juventus FC0–2, 2–21983–84UEFA Cup1R IF Elfsborg0–0, 2–22R Sparta Prague1–0, 0–31984–85UEFA Cup1R Aarhus Gymnastik Forening2–0, 0–12R Borussia Mönchengladbach2–3, 1–03R FC Dinamo Minsk0–2, 1–01985–86European Cup Winners' Cup1R Galatasaray SK0–1, 2–11986–87UEFA Cup1R LASK Linz1–1, 1–02R Bayer 05 Uerdingen0–0, 0–21992–93UEFA Cup1R Eintracht Frankfurt2–2, 0–91995–96UEFA CupQ Bangor City FC4–0, 1–01R FC Chornomorets Odesa1–0, 0–1 p. 5–61996–97UEFA Champions LeagueQ Brøndby IF2–1, 2–3GR Borussia Dortmund1–2, 2–2GR Atlético Madrid1–4, 0–1GR Steaua București0–1, 2–01997–98UEFA Champions League1Q Neftchi Baku2–0, 8–02Q Parma FC1–3, 0–4UEFA Cup1R Udinese Calcio1–0, 0–31999–00UEFA Champions League2Q Litex Lovech4–1, 1–4 p. 3–23Q ACF Fiorentina1–3, 0–2UEFA Cup1R Skonto FC0–1, 2–02R AS Monaco FC1–1, 0–2

Best results in European competitions SeasonAchievementNotesEuropean Cup1982–83Semi-finallost to Juventus 0–2 in Turin, 2–2 in ŁódźUEFA Cup1980–81Round of 16lost to Ipswich Town 0–5 in Ipswich, 1–0 in Łódź1984–85Round of 16lost to Dinamo Minsk 0–2 in Łódź, 1–0 in Tbilisi

Players Current squad

Out on loan

Retired numbers

Notable players

Tadeusz Błachno Daniel Bogusz Henryk Bolesta Uli Borowka Zbigniew Boniek Stanisław Burzyński Wiesław Cisek Marek Citko Ryszard Czerwiec Jacek Dembiński Bartłomiej Drągowski Dariusz Dziekanowski Marek Dziuba Dariusz Gęsior Andrzej Grębosz Rafał Grzelak Leszek Iwanicki Paweł Janas Waldemar Jaskulski Tomasz Łapiński Sławomir Majak Radosław Michalski Józef Młynarczyk Andrzej Możejko Arkadiusz Onyszko Kazimierz Przybyś Rafał Siadaczka Włodzimierz Smolarek Michał Stasiak Tadeusz Świątek Maciej Szczęsny Mirosław Szymkowiak Mirosław Tłokiński Artur Wichniarek Jerzy Wijas Przemysław Wiśniewski Roman Wójcicki Paweł Wojtala Andrzej Woźniak Wiesław Wraga Zbigniew Wyciszkiewicz Marcin Zając Władysław Żmuda Andriy Mikhalchuk Alexandru Curtianu

Managers

Zygmunt Otto (1948) Vančo Kaménař (1948) Wacław Pegza (1949) Władysław Król (1950–51) Leszek Jezierski (1969–76) Janusz Pekowski (1976) Paweł Kowalski (1976–77) Bronisław Waligóra (1977–78) Stanisław Świerk (1979) Jacek Machciński (1979–81) Władysław Jan Żmuda (1981–84) Bronisław Waligóra (1984–86) Orest Lenczyk (1987–88) Andrzej Grębosz (1988) Bronisław Waligóra (1988–90) Jan Tomaszewski (1990) Czesław Fudalej (1990) Paweł Kowalski (1990–92) Władysław Jan Żmuda (1992) Leszek Jezierski (1993) Marek Woziński (1993) Władysław Stachurski (1993–95) Ryszard Polak (1995) Franciszek Smuda (1995–98) Andrzej Pyrdoł (1998) Wojciech Łazarek (1998) Marek Dziuba (1999) Grzegorz Lato (1999) Orest Lenczyk (1999–2000) Andrzej Pyrdoł (caretaker) (2000) Jan Żurek (2000) Petro Kushlyk (2000–01) Marek Koniarek (2001) Marek Kusto (2001) Dariusz Wdowczyk (2001–02) Franciszek Smuda (2002) Petr Němec (2002–03) Tomasz Muchiński (caretaker) (2003) Franciszek Smuda (2003) Andrzej Kretek (2003) Tomasz Łapiński (caretaker) (2003) Jerzy Kasalik (2003–04) Tomasz Łapiński (caretaker) (2004) Stefan Majewski (2004–06) Michał Probierz (2006–07) Marek Zub (2007–08) Janusz Wójcik (2008) Waldemar Fornalik (2008–09) Paweł Janas (2009–10) Andrzej Kretek (2010) Czesław Michniewicz (2010–11) Radosław Mroczkowski (2011–13) Rafal Pawlak (2013–14) Artur Skowronek (2014) Włodzimierz Tylak (2014) Rafał Pawlak (2014) Wojciech Stawowy (2014–15) Witold Obarek (2015) Marcin Płuska (2015–16) Tomasz Muchiński (2016) Przemysław Cecherz (2016–17) Franciszek Smuda (2017–18) Radosław Mroczkowski (2018–19) Jacek Paszulewicz (2019) Zbigniew Smółka (2019) Marcin Kaczmarek (2019–20) Enkeleid Dobi (2020–21) Marcin Broniszewski (2021) Janusz Niedźwiedź (2021–23) Daniel Myśliwiec (2023–25) Patryk Czubak (caretaker) (2025) Željko Sopić (2025) Patryk Czubak (2025) Igor Jovićević (2025–26) Aleksandar Vuković (2026) Mateusz Stolarski (2026–present)

Stadium

The club's home stadium was the Municipal Stadium () opened in 1930. The stadium, which was owned by the city of Łódź, had a capacity of 10,500 seats. In early 2015, it was demolished to make way for a new stadium with 18,000 seats. It was intended the new stadium would be completed by November 2016.

In the 2014–15 season, Widzew played their home matches in Byczyna near Poddębice, 40 km west of Łódź.Byczyna dla Widzewa. Jest umowa. Władze klubu dogadały się z gminą Poddębice