PLOVDIV (A brief groundhopping guide)

This is an unusual write up, as far as this blog goes, in that there was no football involved. As mentioned in my previous entry for Ludogorets Razgrad, a week or so before my trip began a statement was put out by the Interior Minister to the effect of cancelling all football in Bulgaria because of the "inability to guard football meetings on the dates around the elections of 25 - 28 October".

It was far too late to change my plans as it was too costly to seek flights elsewhere at such a late stage. Having said that, there was a glimmer of hope with some regional leagues but even these disappeared in the 48 hours before they were due to be played. A groundhoppers nightmare.

Nonetheless I turned my attention to the wonderful city of Plovdiv, which is European Capital City of Culture 2019, and headed for the respective grounds I was going to plus a visit to a couple of others. So here is a brief, and in no way comprehensive, guide to football in Plovdiv.

Plovdiv is about 3 hours from Sofia by train, which is what I opted for rather than hang around for the next bus. I should have waited as it was cramped and very hot. Not a pleasant journey at all. I will definitely take a bus next time!

First port of call was to the Tor Diev Stadium, the home of Spartak Plovdiv 1947, a municipal stadium about a 5 minute walk from main train station. The stadium was opened in 1926 as a multi-sport venue and was the original home of Botev Plovdiv until 1949, when Spartak made it home. Spartak folded in 2016 but reformed a year later and now ply their trade in the regionalised Bulgarian fourth tier. 

Next on my list was a visit to Botev Plovdiv. My hotel was in the city centre and from there, bus numbers 1, 20, 27 all pass the Botev Stadium. This trip takes about 25 minutes and costs the standard price of 1lv (50p) per trip.

Botev Plovdiv are the oldest professional club in Bulgaria, having been founded in 1912. During its history, the club has won two Bulgarian championships, three Bulgarian Cups, one Bulgarian Supercup and one Balkans Cup. The club has also reached the Cup Winners' Cup quarter-finals once, in 1963.

The Botev Stadium was originally opened in 1961 and has undergone renovation over the years, the most recent in 2013. However the full redevelopment of the ground has yet to be completed as the club search for investors. It is hoped that when finally completed the ground will have a capacity of 18,000.

Returning to the city centre, I transferred onto bus 18, which takes you in the direction of Lomomotiv Plovdiv's ground, which is about a 10 minute ride.

Lokomotiv Plovdiv were founded in 1926 and, as you can guess from their name, the club have historical links to the railway and it's workers. The club have one Bulgarian championship to their name, having won the title in 2004. The club won the Bulgarian Cup for the first time this year, beating fierce rivals Botev 1-0 in the final.

The Stadion Lokomotiv is situated in Lauta Park and was inaugurated in 1982. The ground has a capacity of just over 13,000. The ground has been recently renovated to UEFA standards which allow the hosting of games up to the play-off round.

I must thank the guy on reception for opening up the stadium door for me to take a few photographs.

Returning to the city centre, if you take bus 18 in the other direction, crossing the river Maritsa, you will find your way to the football club which take their name from said river.

Maritsa Plovdiv, who ply their trade in the Bulgarian third tier. This is where footballing legend Hristo Stoichkov learnt his trade as a youth. The club was established in 1921, after the merger of the teams Vampir and Trite Konski Sili and it's highest achievement was reaching the Bulgarian top flight on four occasions. Each time though was for only the one season. The most recent was in 1996/97.

Maritsa folded in 2010 due to financial problems but the fans resurrected the club a year later, starting at the bottom rung of the ladder. The Maritsa Stadium is in the north of the city and has a capacity of around 4,000. This season Maritsa have been playing some home games at Botev's sporting complex.

That concludes my journey around the four major clubs in Plovdiv. Next time I visit I hope to actually get to see some action on the pitch! 

PFC LUDOGORETS RAZGRAD 1945 (Ludogorets Arena)

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE GROUP STAGE, LUDOGORETS RAZDRAD 0-1 ESPANYOL, ATTENDANCE: 10,334

When I booked my latest European excursion, this time to Bulgaria, the plan was to get three games in. A Europa League tie involving the Champions of Bulgaria, Ludogorets Razgrad, and Barcelona's other side, Espanyol, plus a top flight double featuring both of the Plovdiv sides. However things didn't quite go to plan to say the least!

The week before travelling, all games in Bulgaria, even low level fixtures, were cancelled because of elections. That another reason for a postponement to add to the list. Apparently the authorities called off the games due to their "inability to guard football meetings on the dates around the elections" so that was my raison d'être well and truly scuppered. Makes a change from a waterlogged pitch.

Regardless I ploughed on and I flew from Luton to the Black Sea resort of Varna. I didn't hang around to say 'hola' as the Espanyol staff and players were not for behind me when I landed around 2pm local time. Bus 409 runs to the city centre, every 15 minutes, and costs 1 lev (approximately 50p and is the standard price for a single bus trip). However make sure your bus is going in the direction of the city and not the other way as I nearly made that mistake!

I had a walk around the centre and down to the seafront before heading back to town to seek out the beer ticks. In one of the bars, I met an Irish couple, who said they have been coming to Varna for 20 years, and they implored me to avoid the trains and take the bus as they are generally quicker and a lot more comfortable. Apparently trains between big cities are ok but otherwise avoid. Having taken both over the course of this trip I can confirm this to be true. (The five hour ride from Razgrad was more pleasant than a 3 hour train journey from Plovdiv). Whatever the mode of transport, I made a mental note that one day I must return to the city and watch PFC Cherno More Varna in action.

It was by bus that I made the trip from Varna to Razgrad (in the direction of Ruse). It cost around £5 and took about 90 minutes. The city of Razgrad in the North East of the country and is 65 miles south of Bucharest. This is a other option for a route in. Hindsight is wonderful thing but I wish I'd gone that way then I may have been to get some Romanian games in.

Razgrad is built upon the ruins of the Ancient Roman town of Abritus so prior to game I a stroll out to the Abritus National Archaeological Reserve to have a look at the remains of a Roman military camp (pictured above). In terms of things to do from a tourist perspective, there isn't a lot to see. I spent the pre-match in a cafe on the main street having a couple of beers and watching the world go by. 

Some of the sights of Razgrad including the

famous clock tower, built in 1864.

The Professional Football Club Ludogorets are a recent phenomenon, despite the club having 1945 on their badge. The club was formed in 2001, replacing the old club which was eventually dissolved in 2006, and adopting their name soon afterwards. The original club had spent most of history in the lower reaches of Bulgarian football.

The Eagles of Razgrad's modern history began in 2009 when the club achieved promotion to the second division. When businessman Kiril Domuschiev took over the club in September 2010, the second division title was won that later season and the club achieved top flight status for the first time. In their debut season in the top flight the club won the league title, along with Bulgarian Cup and the Bulgarian Supercup to complete a domestic treble.

The club have won every league title since, that's eight in a row, wrestling away power from the traditional Sofia based clubs. They also won the treble once again in 2014. These recent successes have resulted in qualification for European football.

It was these subsequent European adventures are what placed Ludogorets firmly on my bucket list, especially with them having played Welsh opposition this season, beating The New Saints 9-0 on aggregate in the Europa League qualifying stages. They have also played Liverpool in the Champions League (in 2014) where they famously earned a 2-2 draw in Bulgaria and narrowly lost 2-1 in the away game. In 2016 Arsenal comprehensively beat them 6-0 at The Emirates and 3-2 in Bulgaria.

The clubs best European performance came in the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League, when the team topped their group ahead of PSV Eindhoven, Chornomorets Odessa and Dinamo Zagreb to become the first Bulgarian team to win a UEFA Europa League group. They beat Lazio 4-3 on aggregate round of 32, which included a famous 1-0 away win in Rome, before being eliminated by Spanish giants Valencia in the round of 16.

The view from my hotel

The games were played in Sofia as their home ground failed to meet UEFA standards. However the Ludogorets Stadium has been converted into a modern stadium that now meets the UEFA requirements. Three sides of the ground have been completely rebuilt to bring the capacity up to 10,444.

A record attendance equals big queues!

Anticipating a high demand for this game, I got in touch with the club to buy a ticket via bank transfer and it was waiting for me at their box office just down the road from the stadium.

Tonight a ticket in the central section cost 25 lev rather than the normal 15 lev. There were 10,334 in attendance this evening which is a new record for the stadium.

I counted 14 away fans in the corner, plus a couple in the VIP section, and apparently the tickets were provided to Spanish supporters free of charge by the club by way of a thank you.

These hardy souls were rewarded with a 1-0 victory for Espanyol. The game was hardly a classic but an early goal from Victor Campuzano ensured the team from Barcelona top the group at the midway stage. 

It was an early start for me so I retired to my hotel, which happened to be next to the ground, rather than follow the crowd into the city for a nightcap. A great "tick" but sadly the last action on this trip.