User:Ratina1983/Ilves (football)

Ilves (football) Ilves is a football club from Tampere, Finland. Ilves has 4,800 members, of which 3,900 are active players. This makes Ilves the biggest football club in Finland. It is also one of the most successful, having won the Finnish Championship in 1983 and the Finnish Cup in 1979 and 1990. Ilves is currently playing in Kakkonen, the 3rd highest level in Finland. Ilves sports club also has one of the most successful ice-hockey teams in Finland.

History
Ilves was formed in Tampere in 1931 by Niilo Tammisalo. Initially, the club consisted mostly of his students from a school in the Pyynikki district of the city. The club grew steadily and was moderately successful in the 1930s and 1940s. Ilves played its first international match against the Danish side Boldklubben 1903 (now F.C. Copenhagen) in 1946, losing 0-3.

Thus far the most successful period in the history of the club started in 1979, when Ilves won the Finnish Cup during their first season in the top flight. The 80s were a very successful time for the club. Ilves won the Finnish Championship in 1983, bronze in 1984 and silver in 1985. In European cups the club played against Feyenoord, Glasgow Rangers and Juventus. The match against Juventus drew a record crowd of over 25,000 spectators toRatina Stadion. The golden decade ended in style with a Finnish Cup win in 1990.

In the 1990s the club ran into financial problems and was relegated from the top flight in 1996. The club is currently playing in Kakkonen and won their group in the 2010 season. However, Ilves lost the decisive play-off match against IFK Helsinki and failed to gain promotion to Ykkönen.

Honours

 * Mestaruussarja (now Veikkausliiga) : Winners (1)
 * 1983
 * Finnish Cup: Winners (2)
 * 1979, 1990

Stadium


Ilves plays in Tammela Stadion. The stadium was opened in 1931 and the first stand was built six years later in 1937. The stadium was last renovated in 2002 and the changes decreased the capacity to 5,000 spectators.

Ilves has also played in Ratina Stadion, where the club reached its attendace records for both domestic and international matches: 15,000 against KPV in the Finnish League and 25,000 against Juventus in European Cup.

2010 squad
{| {|
 * style="vertical-align: top;" |
 * style="vertical-align: top;" |
 * style="vertical-align: top;" |
 * style="vertical-align: top;" |

Notable players
Ari Hjelm Teuvo Moilanen Dean Thomas Valeri Popovitch Oleg Viktorovich Ivanov Toni Kuivasto Jussi Kujala Jusu Karvonen Henri Scheweleff Jussi Kuoppala