LASK
Full nameLinzer Athletik-Sport-Klub
Nickname(s)Die Schwarz-Weißen
(The Black-Whites),
Die Laskler
Founded7 August 1908 (1908-08-07) as Athletiksportklub Siegfried
GroundRaiffeisen Arena
Capacity19,080
OwnerLASK GmbH
PresidentSiegmund Gruber
Head coachThomas Sageder
LeagueAustrian Bundesliga
2022–23Austrian Bundesliga, 3rd of 12
WebsiteClub website

Linzer Athletik-Sport-Klub, commonly known as Linzer ASK (German pronunciation: [lask lɪnts] ) or simply LASK, is an Austrian professional football club based in Upper-Austrian state capital Linz. It is the oldest football club in that region, and plays in the Austrian Football Bundesliga, the top tier of Austrian football. The club's colours are black and white. The women's team plays in the second highest division of Austrian women's football.

It is one of the few clubs of the country's higher divisions that, since coming into existence, never exhibited a sponsor in the official club name.

In 1965, the club became the first team outside Vienna to win the Austrian football championship, with this being its only league title to date. The club currently plays its home games at the Raiffeisen Arena in Linz.

History

Historical chart of LASK league performance

In the winter of 1908, Albert Siems, head of the royal post-office garage at Linz, who had already been a member of an 1899-founded club for heavy athletics, Linzer Athletik Sportklub Siegfried, decided to establish a football club. At that time, the side already played in the black-and-white lengthwise-touched shirts.

The club's first name was Linzer Sportclub. During an extraordinary general meeting on 14 September 1919, the final change of name, to Linzer Athletik Sport-Klub (short form Linzer ASK) took place, its forerunner setting the example. Nevertheless, the public denomination of the team was largely LASK. The club first appeared in top-flight competition in the Gauliga Ostmark in 1940–41, coming last and being relegated. In 1949–50, LASK was promoted, becoming professional for the first time in its history. However, years in the top flight were tough, and the club was involved in a relegation battle most of the time, until it was finally relegated in 1953–54.

In 1957–58, LASK won the second division and was promoted again. In 1961–62, the club finished runner up to Austria Wien, their best position in history up to that time, and in 1962–63 they played their first cup final, losing 1–0 to Austria Wien. Two years later, LASK achieved its greatest success, winning the Austrian League in 1965. No club outside Vienna had ever won before. Additionally, the club won the Austrian cup that same year, completing a domestic double and becoming one of the only Austrian clubs to do so. In 1967, the club reached the cup final again, losing again to Austria Wien on a coin toss after extra time was played. Three years later the club reached the cup final again, losing to Wacker Innsbruck. The club spent most of the 70s in mid table, but were relegated in 1977–78, although achieving immediate promotion for the 1980–81 season.

In the 1985–86 UEFA Cup, the side beat European giants Internazionale Milan at home (1–0), on 23 October 1985, eventually bowing out 4–1 on aggregate (second round).

In 1995, the club slipped into a financial crisis, and filed for bankruptcy. The president fled to Ivory Coast with large chunks of money, leaving the club with severe debt, and forcing the sale of several key players. In May 1997, the club merged with city rivals FC Linz, and the new official name became LASK Linz, as officials wanted to bring out the city's name as a complement to the LASK designation, which had constituted itself as a brand name. The club name, colours, chairmen and members remained the same, effectively saving the club from dissolving. However, this merger angered many people, who believed that FC Linz were a more successful club than LASK.[1] Curiously, just ten days before the merger, FC Linz beat LASK 3–0 in the city derby. For the next few years, the players that LASK took from FC Linz made a big part of the starting lineup.[1]

Despite the financial struggles, the club still managed to steer away from relegation and qualify for the 1996 Intertoto Cup. In the Intertoto Cup, LASK had a great participation, finishing first in its group with no losses, with notable wins over Werder Bremen (3–1) and Djurgårdens (2–0). In the semi-finals, the club was eliminated 7–2 on aggregate by Rotor Volgograd. In the 1998–99 season they reached their fourth Austrian cup final, losing to Sturm Graz on penalties.

In 2000–01, the club was relegated, and at one point was close to being relegated to the third division. In August 2004, the club suffered an 8–0 home defeat to FC Kärnten. In 2007, after six years in the second division, they were promoted to the highest division again. However, just four years later, the club was relegated back to the second division, followed by relegation to the 3. Liga in 2012 due to a license withdrawal caused by bankruptcy. The club was taken over by a consortium of local entrepreneurs called "Friends of LASK" in December 2013. By this time the club was on the verge of being shut down, and the players received no salary. They could not afford the city stadium, so they moved to a stadium 50 km away. It was only because of the tremendous cohesion of the coach and the team that the club was able to keep the championship going at that time.

In the first season after the takeover, LASK finished first in the Regionalliga Central Division, and qualified for the promotion playoffs, but lost 5–0 on aggregate to FC Liefering and had to stay another season in the third division.

Promotion to the 2. Liga was secured on 5 June 2014 after a 2–1 victory on aggregate over Parndorf 1919 in front of 13,000 fans at the Linzer Stadion. On 21 April 2017, the club returned to the Bundesliga with six rounds to go after a 3–0 victory over Liefering. During this time, head coach Oliver Glasner and Vice President Jürgen Werner constructed a team with an unmistakable style of play.

In 2016, the club moved to Pasching after disagreements with the city council. In 2018, the club returned to the European competitions, but they were eliminated from the Europa league qualifiers after a 2–1 win against Beşiktaş in the second leg due to the away goals rule.

In the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League, LASK had an excellent campaign, topping their group which consisted of European champions Sporting Lisbon and PSV Eindhoven. LASK began their campaign with a 1–0 win over Rosenborg, and later beat PSV 4–1, concluding their group stage campaign with a 3–0 home victory against Sporting on 12 December 2019. In the round of 32, LASK faced Dutch club AZ Alkmaar. The first leg finished 1–1, but in the second leg LASK had a stellar performance, winning 2–0 and qualifying to the round of 16, where they were eliminated by Manchester United with a 7–1 aggregate score.[2] Although LASK were eliminated with a large score margin, this was their best European campaign and the club gained attention as an underdog after their victories against PSV and Sporting

On 24 February 2023, LASK officially opened their new stadium called Raiffeisen Arena in a victory against Austria Lustenau.

Logos

In 2017, the club removed the "Linz" part of their name and returned it to LASK. The merger with FC Linz has long fallen apart and the club have now removed "Linz" from the name.[3][4]

Players

Current squad

As of 8 January, 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Austria AUT Tobias Lawal
2 DF United States USA George Bello
4 DF Ukraine UKR Maksym Talovyerov (on loan from Slavia Prague)
5 DF Germany GER Philipp Ziereis
6 DF Austria AUT Philipp Wiesinger
7 MF Austria AUT Rene Renner
8 MF Austria AUT Peter Michorl
9 FW Croatia CRO Marin Ljubičić
10 MF Austria AUT Robert Žulj (captain)
11 FW Senegal SEN Moussa Koné
14 MF Kosovo KOS Valon Berisha
15 FW Austria AUT Tobias Anselm
16 DF Panama PAN Andrés Andrade
17 FW Nigeria NGA Moses Usor (on loan from Slavia Prague)
18 MF Serbia SRB Branko Jovičić
19 FW France FRA Lenny Pintor
No. Pos. Nation Player
21 MF Austria AUT Ivan Ljubic
22 DF Montenegro MNE Filip Stojković
23 FW Ghana GHA Ibrahim Mustapha
24 FW Austria AUT Elias Havel
25 DF Germany GER Sanoussy Ba (on loan from RB Leipzig)
26 MF Czech Republic CZE Filip Twardzik
27 MF Austria AUT Thomas Goiginger
28 GK Austria AUT Jörg Siebenhandl
29 FW Austria AUT Florian Flecker
30 MF Austria AUT Sascha Horvath
31 DF French Guiana GUF Yannis Letard
33 DF Austria AUT Felix Luckeneder
36 GK Austria AUT Lukas Jungwirth
44 FW France FRA Adil Taoui
55 MF The Gambia GAM Ebrima Darboe (on loan from Roma)
MF Austria AUT Husein Balić

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
GK Austria AUT Nikolas Polster (at SV Horn until 30 June 2024)
DF Austria AUT Sebastian Kapsamer (at Amstetten until 30 June 2024)
DF Austria AUT Luca Wimhofer (at SV Horn until 30 June 2024)
No. Pos. Nation Player
MF Austria AUT Marco Sulzner (at Amstetten until 30 June 2024)
FW Austria AUT Dominik Weixelbraun (at Amstetten until 30 June 2024)

Club Officials

Position Staff
PresidentAustria Siegmund Gruber
Vice PresidentsAustria Christoph Königslehner
Austria Barbara Niedermayr
Chief Financial OfficerAustria Hans Jürgen Jandrasits
Sporting DirectorSerbia Radovan Vujanović
Head CoachAustria Thomas Sageder
Assistant Head CoachAustria Maximilian Ritscher
First-Team CoachAustria Manfred Nastl
Goalkeeper CoachAustria Philip Großalber
Athletic CoachAustria Jan Kollmann
Video AnalystAustria Daniel Rozsa
Sports CoordinatorCroatia Dino Buric
Senior Team DoctorAustria Mag. Dr. Rainer Hochgatterer
Team DoctorAustria Dr. David Haslhofer
Austria Dr. Matthias Kirchmayr
PhysiotherapistSerbia Ivan Porobija
Austria Julia Berger
Austria Elisabeth Kasbauer
MasseurAustria Michael Spreitzer
Slovakia Vernes Sijak
Head of Physical Condition and RehabilitationSouth Africa Divan Augustyn
KitmanAustria Michael Foissner
Bus DriverAustria Gerhard Gruber
Team ManagerAustria Thomas Gebauer

Coach history

As of 10 June 2023[5]

Honours

League

Austrian League[6]

Austrian Second Division

Cups

Austrian Cup

European competition history

As of match played 1 December 2023
Season Competition Round Country Club Home Away Aggregate
1963–64 European Cup Winners' Cup 1 Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Dinamo Zagreb 1–0 0–1 2–2 c (po 1–1 (a.e.t.))
1965–66 European Cup PR Poland Górnik Zabrze 1–3 1–2 2–5
1969–70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 1 Portugal Sporting CP 2–2 0–4 2–6
1977–78 UEFA Cup 1 Hungary Újpest 3–2 0–7 3–9
1980–81 UEFA Cup 1 Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Radnički Niš 1–2 1–4 2–6
1984–85 UEFA Cup 1 Sweden Östers IF 1–0 1–0 2–0
2 Scotland Dundee United 1–2 1–5 2–7
1985–86 UEFA Cup 1 Czechoslovakia Baník Ostrava 2–0 1–0 3–0
2 Italy Inter Milan 1–0 0–4 1–4
1986–87 UEFA Cup 1 Poland Widzew Łódź 1–1 0–1 1–2
1987–88 UEFA Cup 1 Netherlands Utrecht 0–0 0–2 0–2
1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup Group 6 Scotland Partick Thistle 2–2 2nd
Croatia NK Zagreb 0–0
Iceland Keflavík 2–1
France Metz 0–1
1996 UEFA Intertoto Cup Group 2 Sweden Djurgårdens IF 2–0 1st
Faroe Islands B68 Toftir 4–0
Cyprus Apollon Limassol 2–0
Germany Werder Bremen 3–1
Semi-finals Russia Rotor Volgograd 2–2 0–5 2–7
1999–2000 UEFA Cup 1 Romania Steaua București 1–3 0–2 1–5
2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup 1R Israel Hapoel Petah-Tikva 3–0 1–1 4–1
2R Czech Republic FC Marila Pribram 1–1 2–3 3–4
2018–19 UEFA Europa League 2QR Norway Lillestrøm 4–0 2–1 6–1
3QR Turkey Beşiktaş 2–1 0–1 2–2 (a)
2019–20 UEFA Champions League 3QR Switzerland Basel 3–1 2–1 5–2
PO Belgium Club Brugge 0–1 1–2 1–3
UEFA Europa League Group D Portugal Sporting CP 3–0 1–2 1st
Netherlands PSV Eindhoven 4–1 0–0
Norway Rosenborg 1–0 2–1
R32 Netherlands AZ 2–0 1–1 3–1
R16 England Manchester United 0–5 1–2 1–7
2020–21 UEFA Europa League 3QR Slovakia DAC Dunajská Streda 7−0
PO Portugal Sporting CP 4−1
Group J England Tottenham Hotspur 3–3 0–3 3rd
Bulgaria Ludogorets Razgrad 4–3 3–1
Belgium Antwerp 0–2 1–0
2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League 3QR Serbia Vojvodina 6–1 1–0 7–1
PO Scotland St Johnstone 1–1 2–0 3–1
Group A Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv 1–1 1–0 1st
Armenia Alashkert 2–0 3–0
Finland HJK 3–0 2–0
R16 Czech Republic Slavia Prague 4–3 1–4 5–7
2023–24 UEFA Europa League PO Bosnia and Herzegovina Zrinjski Mostar 2–1 1–1 3–2
Group E England Liverpool 1–3 0–4
Belgium Union Saint-Gilloise 3–0 1–2
France Toulouse 0–1

References

  1. 1 2 "20 Jahre Fusion: Als der FC Linz begraben wurde" [20 years of merger: When FC Linz was buried]. nachrichten.at (in German). 19 May 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  2. "Man. United 2–1 LASK". UEFA. 5 August 2020. Archived from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  3. "Zurück in die Zukunft: Neues Wappen für den LASK". Nachrichten.at. 4 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 June 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  4. "LASK bekommt neues Wappen" (in German). Skysportaustria.at. Archived from the original on 6 June 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  5. "LASK Linz " Manager history". worldfootball.net. Archived from the original on 1 July 2016. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  6. "LASK Linz – Results, fixtures, squad, statistics, photos, videos and news". Soccerway. 29 August 2012. Archived from the original on 21 February 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
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