Racing Club (Arabic: نادي الراسينغ), known as Racing Beirut or simply Racing, is a football club based in Achrafieh, a district in Beirut, Lebanon, that competes in the Lebanese Premier League.[1] They play their home matches at the Fouad Chehab Stadium and are primarily supported by the Greek Orthodox Christian community.[4][5]
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Full name | Racing Club | ||
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Nickname(s) | القلعة البيضاء (The White Castle)[1] سندباد الكرة اللبنانية (The Sinbad of Lebanese Football)[2] | ||
Short name | Racing | ||
Founded | 1934 | ||
Ground | Fouad Chehab Stadium | ||
Capacity | 5,000 | ||
Chairman | Paula Faraoun Rizk[3] | ||
Manager | Vladimir Vujović | ||
League | Lebanese Premier League | ||
2023–24 | Lebanese Premier League, 6th of 12 | ||
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Racing Beirut won the Lebanese Premier League three times, the Lebanese Challenge Cup twice, and the Lebanese Second Division four times. They also finished runners-up in the Lebanese FA Cup twice.
History
Early history
The club was founded in 1934 by several locals from the Achrafieh and Gemmayzeh districts of Beirut, Lebanon.[6] The club's name is inspired from French football club Racing Paris, who the club's presidents supported.[6] Racing played five years in the Lebanese Second Division, and got its first promotion to the Lebanese Premier League in 1940.[6]
In 1953, Albert Kheir was elected as the club's president.[6] He sought to heighten the club's status in the country, by buying 20-year-old Joseph Abou Murad from Intissar Chayyah, Said Haidar from Al Nahda, and Yuguslavian coach Ljubiša Broćić.[6]
Racing Beirut played international friendly games against a variety of famous clubs and selections during the 1970s, including one against the Brazil national under-23 team.[7]
Recent history
The match between Ahed and Racing Beirut in the first matchday of the 2023–24 Lebanese Premier League, on 6 August 2023, was the first to test the use of video assistant referee (VAR).[8]
Club rivalries
Historically, during the 1960s and 1970s, Racing's main rivals were Nejmeh, also from Beirut.[6] Racing plays the Achrafieh derby with Sagesse.[9]
Players
Squad
- As of 1 March 2024[10]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Shirt manufacturers
Honours
League
Cup
- Lebanese Challenge Cup (defunct)
- Lebanese FA Cup
- Runners-up (2): 1944–45, 1947–48
Managerial history
- Ljubiša Broćić (1955)
- Ion Bogdan (1967–1970)
- Dorian Marin (2004–2005)
- Libor Pala (2012–2015)
- Eugen Moldovan (2015–2016)
- Moussa Hojeij (2016–2017)
- Roda Antar (2017–2019)
- Jalal Radwan (2019–2020)
- Said Jraidini (2020–2021)
- Ismail Kortam (2021–2023)
- Vladimir Vujović (2023–present)
See also
References
- ^ a b "racing club beirut". abdogedeon.com. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "الراسينغ "سندباد الكرة اللبنانية" - صورة من الماضي". نداء الوطن. 4 July 2019. Archived from the original on 4 February 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Maugendre, Axel (31 August 2018), "Ethnography of the Lebanese Football Clubs" (PDF), Athens Journal of Sports, 5 (3): 213–226, doi:10.30958/AJSPO.5-3-3, archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2019
- ^ Montague, James (24 October 2007). "In Lebanon, even soccer is tainted by sectarian strife". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f "الراسينغ: نادي الأشرفية ومحيطها... يعاند التاريخ". asasmedia.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ "RACING CLUB BEIRUT". abdogedeon.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
- ^ Khaled, Nasser (26 July 2023). تقنية الفيديو حاضرة في لقاء العهد والراسينغ [Video technology will be present in the match between Ahed and Racing]. Kooora (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
- ^ "مبارتا دربي اﻷشرفية!". Archived from the original on 23 May 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- ^ "Racing Club Bayrūt". Global Sports Archive. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.