FC Samtskhe Akhaltsikhe
| Founded | 2019 |
|---|---|
| Ground | Mikheil Iadze Stadium, Akhaltsikhe, Georgia |
| Manager | Davit Merabishvili |
| Coach | Ucha Sosiashvili |
| League | Regionuli Liga |
| 2024 | 3rd of 13, Regionuli Liga B |
FC Samtskhe (Georgian: საფეხბურთო კლუბი სამცხე) is a Georgian association football club based in Akhaltsikhe, which currently competes in Regionuli Liga, the fifth tier of Georgian football.
The club is governed by the local municipality.[1]
History
[edit]Samtskhe was established in 2019 on the basis of Akhaltsikhe Sport School.[2] The next year they joined Regionuli Liga as the second team of the city along with Meskheti.
Due to COVID and relevant restrictions related to it the season consisted of 13 games only. The debutants prevailed in their very first game over Tori and overall performed well enough not only to retain their place in the league, but also to finish in the top five, four points short of the promotion spot.[3]
In March 2021, the team eliminated Liga 4 side Sulori from the national cup.[4] In the regular season the start was dodgy with the initial 15 winless games, although the club significantly improved in the autumn.[5]
In 2024, Samtskhe seemed poised for another promotion attempt. Amid a tight competition with two other rivals, the team finished behind group leaders Iveria, sharing the second place with Aragvi-2 but due to disadvantage in goal difference they failed to reach the playoffs.[6]
The club was faced with unfavorable conditions a year later, unable to host their rivals at home[7] and forced to play in Kaspi, located 160 km away from Akhaltsikhe. However, by half season of 2025, Samtskhe turned out the only team across five national divisions who won every single official game. Apart from knocking out three opponents, including two Liga 3 sides, from the 2025 Georgian Cup, the team went on a rampage against their league rivals in blistering goalscoring form (+53).[8]
Seasons
[edit]| Year | League | M | W | D | L | GF–GA | Pts | Pos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Regionuli Liga, East A | 13 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 21–20 | 23 | 5th of 14 |
| 2021 | Regionuli Liga, East A | 23 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 35–42 | 22 | 19th of 24 |
| 2022 | Regionuli Liga, East A | 26 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 40–54 | 28 | 11th of 14 |
| 2023 | Regionuli Liga, East B | 20 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 48–30 | 36 | 5th of 11 |
| 2024 | Regionuli Liga, East B | 24 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 76–21 | 57 | 3rd of 13 |
| 2025 | Regionuli Liga, East B |
Stadium
[edit]The multi-functional central stadium is named after Mikheil Iadze, the local self-taught artist of XX century. In July 2015, the authorities announced that the arena was no longer suitable for matches and needed a thorough reconstruction, although as of the summer of 2025 work has not yet started.[9]
Name
[edit]Samtskhe is a synonym of Meskheti and represents the western part of Samtskhe-Javakheti.
References
[edit]- ^ ""ახალციხეში ახალი სტადიონები აშენდება, ეს საინტერესო პროექტია"" [Ucha Sosiashvili: "The construction of new stadiums in Akhaltsikhe is an interesting project"] (in Georgian). Lelo. 25 May 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ^ "რეგიონ ლიგაში სამცხე–ჯავახეთიდან 4 გუნდი იასპარეზებს – სეზონი იწყება". sknews.ge (in Georgian). 14 August 2020. Retrieved 1 Dec 2021.
- ^ "Regional league in 2020". gff.ge.
- ^ "ახალციხის საფეხბურთო კლუბმა "სამცხემ" ვანის "სულორი" 3:2 დაამარცხა" [Akhaltsikhe football club Samtskhe defeated Sulori Vani 3–2] (in Georgian). tv9news.ge. 23 March 2021. Retrieved 1 Dec 2021.
- ^ "2021 in Regional league". gff.ge.
- ^ "Regionuli Liga, 2024". Tbilisi Football Federation. Retrieved 27 November 2024.
- ^ "თამაში დაზიანებულ სტადიონზე და დაპირება, რომელიც ყოველწლიურად ნახლდება" [Games at the damaged stadium and promises made annually] (in Georgian). toktv.ge. 4 July 2025. Archived from the original on 27 April 2025. Retrieved 2 July 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "რეგიონული ლიგა "ბ" ჯგუფი (2025წ.)" [Regionuli Liga B group (2025)]. tbff.com.ge (in Georgian). Retrieved 2 July 2025.
- ^ "როდის დაიწყება ახალციხის ცენტრალური სტადიონის რეაბილიტაცია?" [When will the reconstruction of Akhaltsikhe central stadium begin?]. tv9news.ge (in Georgian). 9 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2025.