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Nogometni klub Maribor () is a Slovenian professional football club based in Maribor, Slovenia. It competes in the Slovenian PrvaLiga, the top tier of the Slovenian football league system. Nicknamed "The Purples" ( Vijoličasti), the club was founded on 12 December 1960. They are regarded as a symbol of Slovenian football, particularly in their home region of Styria in northeastern Slovenia.
Maribor have won a record 16 Slovenian PrvaLiga titles, 9 Slovenian Cups and 4 Slovenian Supercups. The club won seven consecutive league titles between 1997 and 2003, and five consecutive titles between 2011 and 2015. Prior to Slovenia's independence in 1991, Maribor played in the Yugoslav football system. They won the Yugoslav second division in 1967 and were therefore promoted to the top-level Yugoslav First League, where they stayed until 1972. They are one of three Slovenian teams that participated in the Yugoslavia's highest division between the end of World War II in 1945 and the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991.
Maribor is the only Slovenian club that reached the group stages of the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League. In addition, the club is one of the two founding members of the Slovenian PrvaLiga (along with NK Celje) which have never been relegated from the league since the inaugural 1991–92 season.
The club have a long-standing rivalry with Olimpija from the capital Ljubljana, with whom they contest the Eternal derby. Other rivalries include those with NK Celje, dubbed as the Styrian derby, and the Prekmurje–Styria derby, contested between Maribor and Mura. Maribor's home ground is the Ljudski vrt stadium, which has a capacity of 11,709 seats. The traditional colours of the club are purple, yellow and white.
In the 1969–70 season, Maribor finished 10th out of 18 clubs, their highest ever ranking in Yugoslav football. Their last season in the top division was 1971–72, when the team finished dead last with just 20 points in 34 matches. Mladen Kranjc was Maribor's top scorer in each of the five Yugoslav top division seasons, scoring a total of 54 league goals, which eventually led to his transfer to one of the top Yugoslav clubs, Dinamo Zagreb. During their five-year stay in Yugoslav's top division, the club played a total of 166 league matches and achieved 40 wins, 57 draws and 69 defeats.
The period between 1973 and 1991 is one of the darkest in the club's history. In the following 1973–74 season, the club failed to stay near the top of the second division and finished the season in 13th place. In the 1974–75 season, Maribor were relegated to the third-tier Slovenian Republic League for the first time in 14 years, but the club immediately returned to the second division by being 15 points clear at the top of the Republic League table at the end of the 1975–76 season. The club nearly returned to the top tier in 1978–79 when they finished as runners-up of the second division, six points behind Bosnian side Čelik Zenica, but failed to win the promotion play-offs.
At the end of the 1980–81 season, after Maribor managed to avoid relegation from the second Yugoslav division, a bribery scandal emerged and caused the club to be relegated by the decision of the Football Association of Yugoslavia disciplinary committee. The club allegedly had a secret fund that served to bribe officials and opponents. The fund was abolished in 1968 after the club's promotion to the first division, but was later established again in 1976. After the scandal and the subsequent relegation, Maribor spent the following years bouncing between the second and third Yugoslav divisions until Slovenia's independence in 1991.
The 1996–97 season proved to be a turning point in the history of Maribor. The club won the league and became champions for the first time in their history. During the season, the average home attendance was 5,289 spectators, which is still a record . The final match of the season was played on 1 June 1997 against NK Beltinci in front of 14,000 spectators, which is also a joint-record of the Slovenian top division. In that season Maribor also won the 1996–97 Slovenian Cup, thus winning the domestic double, a feat they repeated in the 1998–99 season. After their first title in 1996–97, Maribor went on to win six more titles, bringing their total number to seven consecutive titles by 2003. In the 1999–2000 season, the club, led by head coach Bojan Prašnikar, defeated KRC Genk and Olympique Lyon in the qualifying rounds of the 1999–2000 UEFA Champions League and thus qualified for the group stage of the competition for the first time. Maribor were drawn into the group with Dynamo Kyiv, Bayer Leverkusen, and Lazio. They finished in last place with four points out of six games.
In May 2008, Maribor played their first match at the renovated stadium in front of over 12,000 spectators. In the same month, Darko Milanič, who later became the most successful manager in the club's history, was appointed as manager. Under his leadership, Maribor won the league in the 2008–09 season, their first title in six years. The following season, they failed to retain the league title, finishing second behind FC Koper. However, they won the cup title after beating Domžale 3–2 in the final, as well as their first ever Slovenian Supercup title after beating NK Interblock.
At the end of 2010, the club celebrated its 50th anniversary, and also secured its ninth Slovenian league title during the course of the season. In the following years, Maribor won four more consecutive titles, bringing the total championship tally to 13, before finally losing the title in 2016 to their biggest rivals Olimpija Ljubljana. In 2012, Maribor also obtained a record number of points (85). Furthermore, Maribor also won two back-to-back doubles in this period, beating NK Celje on both occasions in the 2012 and 2013 Slovenian cup finals.
In 2011, Maribor made a breakthrough in international competitions. They eliminated Rangers in the UEFA Europa League play-offs and qualified for the group stage, their first group stage appearance in European competitions in more than a decade. They obtained one point in six matches, holding Braga to a 1–1 draw at home. In the next season, they again qualified for the group stage, and managed to win four points after defeating Panathinaikos and drawing with Tottenham Hotspur, both at home.
In their third consecutive appearance in the group stage, in 2013–14, Maribor advanced to the knockout phase of the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League for the first time. In the round of 32, they were eliminated by the eventual winners of the competition, Sevilla, 4–3 on aggregate. Their successful European run was upgraded in the 2014–15 season, when Maribor finally qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage for the second time in their history, after eliminating Celtic in the play-offs. They were drawn into Group G with Chelsea, Schalke 04, and Sporting CP. After a draw and a defeat against each team, Maribor won three points in six matches.
In 2015–16, Maribor failed to win the league title for the first time in six years, but reclaimed the throne the following season, winning their 14th national title. As Slovenian champions, Maribor represented Slovenia in the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League, and for the third time in the club's history reached the group stage. Maribor competed in Group E, along with Spartak Moscow, Sevilla, and Liverpool. The club again obtained three points in six matches, the same as in 2014, after drawing with Sevilla at home and twice against Spartak. Their 7–0 defeat to Liverpool was the club's heaviest home defeat in European competitions, and their second highest European defeat overall. In the same season, Maribor failed to win a trophy for the first time since 2007–08, losing the league title to Olimpija on head-to-head record after finishing with the same number of points. Olimpija also eliminated Maribor in the quarter-finals of the national cup, and therefore Maribor failed to reach the semi-finals of the competition for the first time since 2002–03.
In 2018–19, Maribor won its 15th national title under the guidance of Milanič, who won his sixth league title with the club and became the most successful manager in the Slovenian top division. However, Milanič and Zahovič left the club in March 2020 after a series of poor results. During Zahovič's era, Maribor won eight league titles and reached the UEFA Champions League group stages twice.
When NK Maribor was established, some of the club officials were in favour of red and white colours, inspired by the coat of arms of the city of Maribor. However, because many football teams in Yugoslavia already wore red and white jerseys, Maribor officials decided for a new and fresh combination. They decided to follow the example of ACF Fiorentina and their purple and white combination. Oto Blaznik, the first captain of the club, was the one who suggested the combination after seeing the Italian team in La Gazzetta dello Sport. Since it was almost impossible to get purple kits in Yugoslavia in 1961, the players painted them themselves. The club's secondary colours are yellow and white.
In March 1973, the name of the sponsor first appeared on Maribor kits. Since Slovenia's independence in 1991, the main kit sponsors have been Pivovarna Laško, OTP Bank (Nova KBM prior 2024) and Zavarovalnica Sava (Zavarovalnica Maribor prior 2016).
| –1995 | Erreà |
| 1996–2006 | Nike |
| 2007–2011 | Zeus Sport |
| 2011–present | Adidas |
After the war, the ground was renovated and opened in 1952, but the main grandstand was not built until the early 1960s. On 25 June 1961, Maribor played its first match at the stadium, against Mladost Zabok, when the grandstand was still under construction.
Ljudski vrt is the only stadium in Maribor that is located on the left bank of the river Drava. It is considered a natural, cultural, architectural and sports landmark of the city and is named after a public park previously located in the area. A prominent feature of the grandstand is the 129.8 metres long and 18.4 m high concrete arch. In 1994, floodlights were installed and the stadium hosted its first match at night. Since then, the stadium went through several renovations. The most notable was the one between 2006 and 2008, when three of the four stands (South, East and North) were demolished and completely rebuilt. The West Stand was completely renovated in 2021, bringing the stadium's current capacity to 11,709 seats.
In addition to being the home ground of Maribor, the stadium also occasionally hosts matches of the Slovenia national football team. The record attendance of the stadium is 20,000 spectators, achieved in 1973 when Maribor played against Proleter Zrenjanin in the Yugoslav Second League promotion play-offs, while the record for a Slovenian League match is 14,000 spectators, achieved in the last round of the 1996–97 Slovenian PrvaLiga season.
The club has an ultras group called Viole Maribor, established in 1989. An Apoliticism, they are located on the South Stand of the stadium. The record for the most travelling fans in domestic competitions was in 2001, when 3,000 Maribor supporters gathered in Ljubljana, while the most fans gathered abroad was in 2017 during the club's UEFA Champions League campaign, when over 2,400 supporters travelled to Liverpool.
Since the establishment of the Slovenian First League in 1991, Maribor has had the highest average home attendance in 28 out of 34 seasons. The highest average league attendance was in the 1996–97 season, when on average 5,289 people attended Maribor's home matches, which is a record in Slovenian club football. In addition, Maribor is the first team to gather more than two million people at Slovenian First League matches.
| +Maribor's average league attendance over a five-year interval | ||
| 1991–92 | 1,512 | |
| 1996–97 | 5,289 | +249.85% |
| 2001–02 | 2,947 | –44.29% |
| 2006–07 | 1,944 | –34.05% |
| 2011–12 | 3,800 | +95.45% |
| 2016–17 | 4,222 | +11.11% |
| 2021–22 | 3,053 | –27.68% |
In 2005, the old Olimpija was dissolved due to financial difficulties. In the same year, a phoenix club was established under the name NK Bežigrad, and was later renamed as NK Olimpija Ljubljana. The first derby between Maribor and the newly formed club was played on 24 October 2007 in the quarter-finals of the Slovenian Cup. When Olimpija was promoted to the Slovenian First League in 2009, the rivalry came back to life.
Maribor also developed a rivalry with another Styrian club, NK Celje, dubbed the Styrian derby ( Štajerski derbi). Maribor and Celje contested in three Slovenian Cup finals, all of which were won by Maribor, and also competed for the national title in the 2002–03 season, when Maribor defeated Celje 2–1 in the decisive match with two late-game goals, clinching their seventh consecutive title.
Another rival of Maribor is Mura from Prekmurje, with whom they contest the Prekmurje–Styria derby ( Štajersko-prekmurski derbi). In the 2020–21 season, Maribor and Mura contested the title-deciding match on the final day of the season. A draw was enough for Maribor, but Mura won 3–1 and clinched their first-ever title.
Maribor have also temporarily retired three squad numbers: 22, in honour of Martin Milec, 26, in honour of Aleksander Rajčević, and 28, in honour of Mitja Viler. The latter two were retired in 2020 and will remain unassigned until 2030, while Milec's number was retired in 2025 and will remain unassigned until 2035.
Since the establishment of Maribor's youth system in its present form in 1990, the academy has been one of the most successful in the country in terms of titles won. The under-19 team holds the national record for most titles, having won the under-19 league eight times. The same team has also won five Youth Cups. Other teams are equally successful as both the under-17 and under-15 teams holds the record for the most titles in their category. In addition, Maribor's youth selections were the first in the country to win championship titles in the four highest youth classes (under-13, under-15, under-17 and under-19) during the same season. In 2012, a record eight Maribor players were called to the Slovenian under-17 national team for the 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship.
In 2016, the youth team of Maribor participated in the fourth edition of the international children's social programme Football for Friendship, the final events of which took place in Milan. The team won the tournament by defeating Debreceni VSC 1–0 in the final.
| { class="wikitable" |
| Lubomir Kubica |
| Dejan Mezga |
| Elvedin Džinić |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Jasmin Handanović |
| Marcos Tavares |
| Saša Ivković |
| Rok Kronaveter |
| Aljoša Matko |
| Ognjen Mudrinski |
| Martin Milec |
| Ažbe Jug |
| Hillal Soudani |
| { class="wikitable" | |
| President | Drago Cotar |
| Vice presidents | Matjaž Kirbiš Uroš Mlakar |
| Management board | Rok Moljk Jure Struc Jure Bračko Miha Pitamic Valentino Mendek Andrej Plos |
| Head of football operations | Cem Başgül |
| Director | Bojan Ban |
| Academy director | Sebastijan Harc |
| Academy sporting director | Boštjan Kreft |
| Secretary | Uroš Jurišič |
| Assistant secretary | Tadej Zajmi |
| { class="wikitable" | |
| Head coach | Tuğberk Tanrıvermiş |
| Assistant coaches | Albin Sheqiri João Salgado |
| Goalkeeping coaches | Jasmin Handanović Mitja Pirih |
| Fitness coaches | Srđan Prodanović Milan Vulović |
| Performance analyst | Tadej Pirtovšek |
| Doctors | Matjaž Vogrin Zmago Krajnc Igor Mijatović |
| Physiotherapists | Mirzet Sprečo Jure Horvat Sani Nasif |
| Equipment managers | Janko Veselič Robert Knuplež Tatjana Fiedler |
| Marijan Bloudek | 1989–1993 1994–1995 | 1991–92 Slovenian Cup |
| Branko Horjak | 1993–1994 1995 2004–2005 2007–2008 | 1993–94 Slovenian Cup |
| Bojan Prašnikar | 1996–2000 2001–2002 | 1996–97 Slovenian Championship 1996–97 Slovenian Cup 1997–98 Slovenian Championship 1998–99 Slovenian Championship 1998–99 Slovenian Cup 2001–02 Slovenian Championship |
| Matjaž Kek | 2000 2001 2002–2004 | 1999–2000 Slovenian Championship 2002–03 Slovenian Championship 2003–04 Slovenian Cup |
| Ivo Šušak | 2000–2001 | 2000–01 Slovenian Championship |
| Darko Milanič | 2008–2013 2016–2020 | 2008–09 Slovenian Championship 2009 Slovenian Supercup 2009–10 Slovenian Cup 2010–11 Slovenian Championship 2011–12 Slovenian Championship 2011–12 Slovenian Cup 2012 Slovenian Supercup 2012–13 Slovenian Championship 2012–13 Slovenian Cup 2015–16 Slovenian Cup 2016–17 Slovenian Championship 2018–19 Slovenian Championship |
| Ante Čačić | 2013 | 2013 Slovenian Supercup |
| Ante Šimundža | 2013–2015 2023–2024 | 2013–14 Slovenian Championship 2014 Slovenian Supercup 2014–15 Slovenian Championship |
| Radovan Karanović | 2021–2022 | 2021–22 Slovenian Championship |
The club's most recent trophy came in May 2022, when they won their 16th Slovenian First League title.
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