Wisła Kraków

Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła Kraków Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Wisła Kraków (), is a Polish professional football club based in Kraków. They compete in the Ekstraklasa following promotion from the 2025–26 I liga. It ranks fourth in the number of national titles won (13), behind Górnik Zabrze, Ruch Chorzów (both on 14), and Legia Warsaw (15), and second in all-time victories. Wisła was founded in 1906 under the name TS Wisła (Polish: Towarzystwo Sportowe Wisła). The team plays its home matches at the Synerise Arena Kraków.

The club's coat of arms is a red crest crossed by a blue ribbon, with a white star centered on top.

Wisła Kraków was one of the most successful Polish football clubs of 2000s, winning eight league championships since 1999. Along with league titles, Wisła also won the Polish Cup on five occasions, including the first-ever edition in 1926, and are the current cup holders. Wisła also enjoyed some success in European competitions in the 1970s, reaching the quarter-finals in the 1978–79 European Cup.

History

thumb|left|1907 Wisła Kraków side

Wisła Kraków was founded in 1906 when students of the Second Practical School in Kraków, inspired by their professor Tadeusz Łopuszański, formed a football club.

In this first, historic season of the League, the fight for the championship was decided between two teams: Wisła Kraków and 1. FC Kattowitz. This rivalry was treated very seriously, not only by the two sides involved, but also by the whole nation. 1. FC was regarded as the team supported by the German minority, while Wisła, at the end of this historic season, represented ambitions of all Poles.

thumb|1927 Wisła Kraków side.

Some time in the fall of 1927 in Katowice, an ill-fated game between 1.FC and Wisła took place. Stakes were very high – the winner would become the Champion. Kraków's side won 2–0 and became the Champion. 1.FC finished second, third was Warta Poznań.

During the German occupation of Poland (World War II), the club operated secretly. Co-founder Franciszek Brożek and pre-war player Adam Obrubański were among Poles murdered by the Russians in the large Katyn massacre in April–May 1940.

In 1949, the club was renamed to Gwardia-Wisła Kraków. In 1955 the club returned to its original name, TS Wisła. In 1967, the club was once again renamed, to GTS Wisła, a name which held until 1990 when the club reverted to its original name, TS Wisła. In the late 1990s, the football section of the club was incorporated and was renamed Wisła Kraków SSA.

The club has had its ups and downs, winning national championships and earning European qualification. It was also relegated to the second division on three occasions. Since the football section has been bought by Tele-Fonika Kable S.A. in 1998, the team has been far and away the most successful club in Poland, winning seven national championships and finishing in second place three times, totalling ten top two finishes in 12 years.

At international level, Wisła has competed in all three of the European competitions. The club's greatest success came in the 1978–79 season, when Wisła was able to reach the quarter-finals of the European Cup, eventually to be knocked out by Malmö FF 3–5 on aggregate. Most recently, Wisła narrowly missed out on a chance to compete in the 2005–06 UEFA Champions League group stage, being defeated 4–5 by Panathinaikos after extra time.

Wisła also twice reached the second round of the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1967–68 and 1984–85, falling 0–5 and 2–3 by Hamburger SV and Fortuna Sittard, respectively. The White Star has competed in the UEFA Cup ten times.

On 15 May 2022, Wisła was relegated to the I liga for the first time since 1996, after losing 4–2 against Radomiak Radom.

On 2 May 2024, they won their fifth Polish Cup title after defeating Pogoń Szczecin 1–2 in extra time, becoming the fifth second division team to win this competition, and the first since Ruch Chorzów in 1996. Despite winning the cup, the White Star finished only 10th in the I liga – the lowest league placement in the club's entire history, considering the overall Polish football hierarchy. The result surpassed the club's previous historic low from 1987, when Wisła finished fourth in the second group of the second division. The 2023–24 campaign also marked the seventh consecutive season in which the club failed to improve its league position, setting another unwanted record, as no other major Polish club had previously endured such a prolonged run without league progression.

In the 2025–26 season, Wisła ended its four-year spell in the second tier and secured promotion back to the Ekstraklasa. Promotion was sealed on 8 May 2026 with a 2–0 victory over Chrobry Głogów.

Wisła's stay in the I liga between 2022 and 2026 became the longest absence from the top tier league in the club's 120-year history. Although regarded as one of the darkest and most difficult periods in the club's history, the era also saw major organizational and commercial transformation under owner Jarosław Królewski. During these years, Wisła strengthened its media presence and commercial reach, attracted new sponsors and partners, expanded its use of data-driven football analysis and technological infrastructure, and collaborated with former Liverpool and EA Sports executive Peter Moore in advisory and promotional roles. The club consistently recorded some of the highest attendances in Polish football, surpassing most Ekstraklasa teams despite competing in the second tier, while its matches regularly generated record television audiences for the I liga. The era also cemented the status of Spanish forward Ángel Rodado as one of the club's modern icons, while a growing number of academy graduates established themselves in the first team. Wisła returned to the Ekstraklasa in 2026 under manager Mariusz Jop, concluding a period that significantly reshaped the club's sporting and institutional identity.

Stadium

Henryk Reyman Stadium, currently known as Synerise Arena Kraków for sponsorship reasons, is located at 22 Reymonta Street in Kraków. The stadium was originally built in 1953 and currently has a capacity of 33,326. The stadium was renovated in 2010, being upgraded to UEFA elite standards. The Wisła Stadium was also chosen as a reserve venue for the UEFA Euro 2012 tournament, jointly held in Poland and Ukraine. The record attendance of 45,000 at Wisła Stadium came on 29 September 1976 when Wisła defeated Celtic 2–0. The venue has been a fortress for Wisła, where the team is especially difficult to defeat. Wisła holds the all-time Polish football record for consecutive league home games without a loss. The streak began following a loss on 16 September 2001 to KSZO Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, and ended more than five years later on 11 November 2006, when GKS Bełchatów defeated Wisła 4–2. The number of matches without a loss was then settled at 73, overcoming the former Polish record of 48 which belonged to Legia Warsaw. During the 2008–09 season, Wisła lost points at home only twice, drawing with ŁKS Łódź and being defeated by Lech Poznań.

Supporters and rivalries

Fan friendlies

Wisła fans formerly had long friendships relations with Lechia Gdańsk and Śląsk Wrocław, known as the "Three Kings of Great Cities" alliance until 2016, when their alliance fell apart. They formed a new group with Ruch Chorzów and Widzew Łódź (and by extension Elana Toruń, Slovan Bratislava and KKS Kalisz), which divided Wisła fans.

The fans have an amicable relationship with Polonia Przemyśl. Although Garbarnia Kraków, Puszcza Niepołomice and Kmita Zabierzów have no organised fan movements they are known to have local Wisła fans attend their games. Kmita was founded initially as Wisła Zabierzów as a local branch of the Wisła sports club.

The club also has close relations with Italian side Lazio since their Rome derby match in 2015.

The fans formerly held relations with Unia Tarnów, Jagiellonia Białystok, Siarka Tarnobrzeg, Resovia Rzeszów and Zagłębie Wałbrzych.

Rivalries

With Cracovia

thumb|Friendly match with [[KS Cracovia (football)|KS Cracovia in 1909]]

The term "Holy War" refers to the intense rivalry between the two Kraków-based teams; Wisła and KS Cracovia, one of the oldest and most violent football rivalries in Central Europe. Originating in 1906 with the creation of Kraków's first football clubs, the rivalry quickly evolved beyond sport and became deeply rooted in local identity, social divisions and supporter culture. The term "Holy War" was first used to describe the rivalry of Kraków's Jewish teams, Makkabi and Jutrzenka. A Jutrzenka defender, Ludwik Gintel, who later joined the Cracovia side referred to the derby match against Wisła as the "Holy War". The phrase was incorporated into a song and has since been popular amongst both Wisła and Cracovia fans.

The first recorded Kraków Derby was contested on 20 September 1908 and ended in a 1–1 draw. One of the earliest landmark meetings came on 8 May 1913, when Cracovia defeated Wisła 2–1 in what is regarded as the first officially sanctioned Polish championship match recognized by FIFA. Another iconic encounter took place on 5 December 1948, when the clubs finished level on points after the first post-war season and met in a title-deciding play-off at a neutral venue, won 3–1 by Cracovia. The rivalry also produced numerous symbolic moments beyond league competition, including the annual "Herbowa Tarcza Krakowa" matches played in the 1970s, which regularly attracted huge crowds despite the clubs competing in different divisions. As of May 2022, the Kraków derby game between Wisła and Cracovia has been contested 203 times, with Wisła winning 91 times, tying 48 times and Cracovia winning 64 times.

The rivalry between Wisła and Cracovia is one of the oldest and most culturally significant in Polish football. The fixture reflects not only sporting competition, but also deep historical, social and identity-based divisions within Kraków. A long-standing symbolic dispute concerns which club should be recognized as the oldest football club in Kraków. Both Wisła and Cracovia trace their origins to spring 1906, but the question remains difficult to resolve conclusively due to contradictory archival material, disputed interpretations of early organizational activity and the fragmented nature of surviving historical records. The issue remains unresolved and continues to form part of the derby's mythology.

From the 1990s through the 2010s, the rivalry became infamous far beyond football due to the extreme violence of hooligan groups associated with both clubs. Clashes involving Wisła Sharks and Cracovia-affiliated firms frequently involved knives, machetes, axes and baseball bats, while murders, retaliatory attacks and organized ambushes linked to the conflict repeatedly shocked Poland. Among the most notorious incidents was the 2011 daylight killing of senior Cracovia hooligan Tomasz "Człowiek" C., who was rammed off the road in Kraków's Kurdwanów district before being attacked by over a dozen masked men armed with machetes and clubs.

With Legia Warsaw

thumb|Away game with [[Legia Warsaw in the 2014–15 Ekstraklasa]]

The match contested between Wisła Kraków and Legia Warsaw, dubbed the "Derby of Poland", is commonly recognized as one of the greatest rivalries in Polish club football. Historically, the two sides have been among the most successful and widely supported clubs in the country, occupying leading positions in the all-time Ekstraklasa table. The rivalry is further intensified by the historic and cultural competition between Kraków and Warsaw, Poland's former and current capitals respectively. One of the most infamous matches between the two clubs took place on 16 June 2001, when Wisła defeated Legia 2–1 in Warsaw to secure the Polish championship. The match was overshadowed by major crowd disturbances, including riots, stone-throwing and a fire that damaged significant part of Legia's stadium at Łazienkowska Street. The events became deeply embedded in Wisła supporters' culture and were later referenced in the famous fan chant "Biała Gwiazda na niebie się mieni", whose lyrics include the line "Płonie ognisko na Łazienkowskiej, stadion Legii pali się..." ("A fire burns at Łazienkowska, Legia's stadium is burning...").

With Hutnik Kraków

The other Kraków derby is contested against Hutnik, historically the third team in Kraków representing Nowa Huta. Owing to Hutnik's lack of recent sporting success, the rivalry is mostly off-pitch and with Wisla's reserve team or in other sports sections of both clubs.

A notable recent example occurred in the 2025 Polish Cup Round of 16, played at Hutnik's ground, where Wisła won 1–0. The match itself was overshadowed by incidents in the stands: home supporters burned Wisła scarves, displayed offensive banners and used explicit anti-rival symbolism, prompting security interventions and subsequent disciplinary proceedings by the Polish Football Association.

Other rivalries

Other rivalries are with Lech Poznań, Arka Gdynia and Tarnovia Tarnów, an extension of the fierce rivalry with Cracovia as all three maintain good friendships with them.

Fans of Zagłębie Sosnowiec, Korona Kielce, GKS Katowice, and Polonia Warsaw are also inter-regional fierce rivals.

Other teams

In addition to the professional team, Wisła Kraków also runs a reserve team, currently playing in group IV of the III liga, and youth teams competing in the Central Junior League.

Current squad

Out on loan

Coaching staff

{| class="wikitable"

| Manager

| Mariusz Jop

| Assistant coaches

| Bartosz Bąk<br /> Kazimierz Kmiecik<br /> Michał Siwierski

| Fitness coach

| Kazimierz Piechnik

| Strength and conditioning coach

| Karol Baran

| Goalkeeping coach

| Łukasz Załuska

| Head of Analytics

| Mariusz Kondak

| Analyst

| Krzysztof Siłka

| Physiotherapists

| Bartłomiej Grzegorczyk<br /> Marcin Sapalski

| Team doctor

| Mariusz Urban

| Team manager

| Kamil Binda

| Kit manager

| Daniel Bigaj

Honours

Domestic

Ekstraklasa
Champions: 1927, 1928, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1977–78, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11
Runners-up: 1930, 1931, 1936, 1948, 1965–66, 1980–81, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2005–06, 2009–10

Radosław Sobolewski (2022–23)
Mariusz Jop (2023)
Albert Rudé (2023–24)
Kazimierz Moskal (2024)
Mariusz Jop (2024–present)

Other sections

Esports

Wisła Kraków also had an esports division, with teams in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and FIFA 20.

Women's basketball

The women's basketball section are one of the most successful clubs in the country, winning 25 national championships, 12 vice-championships, 13 Polish Cups and continental runners-up in 1970.

References

External links

Official Wisla Supporters' website
Club history. Wisła Encyclopedia.