HISTORY
In the coming year 2023, the Football Club Drava Ptuj will celebrate its 90th anniversary.
The
historical outlines of football in Slovenia tell us that football was first
played in schools, and from there it quickly spread among youth.
The
Yugoslav Football Association was founded in September 1919 and was admitted to
FIFA as a permanent member in 1923. During the Second World War, almost all
sporting activities stopped.
After
1945, football was included in general sports and so-called
"physical-cultural" associations were formed. In 1948, the Football
Association of Slovenia was founded, consisting the areas of Gorica, Maribor,
Ljubljana, Celje, Dolenjska, Gorenjska and Prekmurje.
The
first records of football in Ptuj can be traced back to the beginning of the
20th century.
The diaries of the Ptuj grammar school testify
that in 1899 we can see a big increase in the hours of physical education at school.
In 1904, the municipality of Ptuj passed a
decision and granted the Ptuj student's dormitory next to the railway line to
be turned into a sports field.
In 1913, youth in Ptuj founded a football club
called »Dravski orel«. Ludvig Nedog was its first president, Loschania was its
general secretary and Paulitsch was its captain.
In
1919, the Sports Club Ptuj was founded, consisting of various sections. The
football section was founded in 1920.
Sports
club Ptuj (Sport klub Pettau) had mainly German members, although there were
also some Slovenian players.
It is worth mentioning the women's team, who had their first women's football match in 1936.
On
May 14, 1933, the Football Sports club Ptuj was founded, which together with
the old German SK Ptuj (Pettau) played under the Maribor district league until
1941.
The
first president of the Drava football club was a veterinarian, dr. Aleš
Lešnik.
During the occupation period (1941-1945), the club
ceased to function, the club property was confiscated and all officials were
sent into exile.
After World War II
After the Second World War, football revived again and
already in 1946 a series of competitions took place at the federal and
republican level.
In Slovenia, football was organized by regions and so-called
"zones" until 1949.
A native, Slavo Komac, as the president of the
physical and cultural club, gathered officials and players and revived the work
of the Drava sports club.
On September 16, 1948, the association split into the Ptuj
Gymnastics Association and the Drava Sports Association.
In 1950, the sports club was renamed the Drava Ptuj Football
Club (NK Drava Ptuj).
In the 1950s, football spread in the villages around Ptuj,
and football clubs sprang up everywhere in the then Ptuj district: in Hajdina
(1946), Markovci (1953), Dornava and Gorišnica (1954) and many others.
The first major club in Strnišče, NK/FC Aluminij, was
founded.
After the independence of Slovenia, the first president of
the Drava Football Club was Alojz Kavčič, followed by Mitja Omulec, Peter
Vesenjak and Boris Perger.
The board of directors has always consisted of several
well-known personalities from Ptuj, such as Miroslav Luci, Miran Vuk, Milan
Petek, Drago Žlender, Martin Vogrinec, Marjan Pongrac, Jože Maučec, Simon
Starček, Mirko Majhenič...
The major sponsorship contract was signed by club president
Boris Perger and director of Asfalti Ptuj, Marjan Pongrac.
Robert Furjan was the next president of the club, and with
his leadership, Drava managed to break into the first league, where he stayed
for several years.
Many coaches and players came and went, and the most
important people in the management of the board were Mirko Majhenič, Fredi
Kmetec, Berhard Majhenič, Marjan Ostroško, Marjan Pongrac and Martin Vogrinec,
while Peter Lugarič successfully dealt with important organizational and
technical issues for years.
Drava
played in the first league for seven years.
In
the beginning, the club was called Kumho Drava, for the next four years it was
known as Drava Ptuj, while with the arrival of the new president, Franc Gajšek,
it was renamed to Labod Drava Ptuj.
Despite
the crisis, the club was still in the first league, but the debts were
increasing, which meant the departure of the best players and, as a result,
relegation to the second league.
On
the basis of licensing criteria, Slovenia's Football Association moved Drava Football Club to the lowest level of the competition.
Ptuj's team first played in the Štajerska League, then in the Super League, and in the season 2013/2014, played in the third Slovenian football league - East.
In
the last period, under the name of Football School Drava Ptuj, it was led by
president Igor Šoštarič, who was replaced by the very active Aleš Luci, who
brought the team to the third league.
Marcel
Rojko continued Luci's work as president, and at the end of 2013, Fredi Kmetec
became president.
Football
school
The football school Drava Ptuj was founded on December 1, 2004, under the leadership of Marjan Pongrac. The first head of the school was Dušan Čeh, followed by Boris Emeršič, who remained in the position until 2012, when Franc Fridl took over.
The
school was intended for children from the age five and had as many as 450
children since its inception.
In
three sports seasons, two youth teams played in the first national league.
