FC Bunyodkor
Football Club Bunyodkor (Uzbek: Bunyodkor futbol klubi) is an Uzbek professional football club based in Tashkent that competes in the Uzbekistan Super League.
| Full name | Football Club Bunyodkor | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Uzbek: Qaldirg'ochlar The Swallows Uzbek: Osiyo Barselonasi Asian Barcelona | ||
| Short name | Bunyodkor | ||
| Founded | 2005 | ||
| Ground | Milliy Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 34,000 | ||
| Manager | Ivan Bubalo | ||
| League | Uzbekistan Super League | ||
| 2023 | Uzbekistan Super League, 8th of 14 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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Bunyodkor, a relatively unknown club at the time, made international headlines when it claimed to be close to signing world-famous Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o, although he did not eventually sign with them. On 25 August 2008, AEK Athens Brazilian superstar Rivaldo announced to the Greek press that he was joining Bunyodkor on a reported $14 million two-year contract.
The club finished second in the 2007 Uzbek League season and made the semi-finals of the 2008 AFC Champions League. In the beginning of August 2008, the club changed its name to Bunyodkor from PFC Kuruvchi to reflect the club's success on the pitch and its increasing professionalism off the pitch.
Bunyodkor competed in the AFC Champions League for 10 consecutive tournaments from 2008 to 2017. Only Pakhtakor has participated in more tournaments from the Uzbekistan Super League.