FC Maritsa Plovdiv
Maritsa (Bulgarian: Марица) is a Bulgarian association football club based in Plovdiv, that plays in the Second League, the second level of Bulgarian football league system.
| Full name | Football Club Maritsa Plovdiv | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1921 | ||
| Ground | Maritsa Stadium, Plovdiv | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Chairman | Hristo Hristov | ||
| Manager | Nikolay Dimitrov | ||
| League | Second League | ||
| 2022–23 | Second League, 7th | ||
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It was established in 1921, after the merger of the teams Vampir and Trite Konski Sili. The club plays its home games at Maritsa Stadium, located in the city's northern district. The team's biggest success is playing in Bulgaria's top division four times, in 1967–68, 1969–70, 1970–71 and 1996–97. They have also reached the semifinals of the Bulgarian Cup once, in 1996–97.
The club is particularly famous for its renowned youth program that has produced many Bulgarian talents over the years – Hristo Stoichkov, Dinko Dermendzhiev, Aleksandar Aleksandrov. Bulgarian national first-team players Georgi Georgiev, Kostadin Vidolov, Krassimir Chomakov, Valeri Domovchiyski, Yordan Todorov, Asen Nikolov had also came through the ranks at Maritsa.
The team is named Maritsa after the river of the same name, which flows past Plovdiv.