 | A LIFE ON ITS OWN is what PMR has been living for 17+ years. Can the clock be turned back now, or is it best to just move forward? [more] |  | | |  | THE OPPOSITION is a majority in parliament. Now pro-government parties are taking to the streets to try to win back voter support. [more] |
| ||||||
Regional football champion FC Sheriff turns 10
Tiraspol's leading football club is celebrating its 10th birthday today. Founded on 4 April 1997, the club wasn't sure if it would still live in an independent country ten years later. But to celebrate its staying power (and that of Pridnestrovie) it is now leaving behind its former Moldovan Internet domain.
The region's #1 team, FC Sheriff based in Tiraspol (PMR), is celebrating its 10th birthday todayTIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - Happy Birthday, champs! FC Sheriff, the undisputed #1 football (soccer) club of South Eastern Europe, is turning ten years old today.
The pro football club was officially founded on 4 April 1997. When the club wad founded, it was less than five years after neighboring Moldova had attacked, and the economy was still ravaged by the aftermath of war.
Although Pridnestrovie had declared independence, there was an uncertainty at the time over the future.
" - But here we are, ten years later," says a spokesman for the club. "And so is Pridnestrovie, stronger than ever."
Within just ten years, it became the top club in the region. It quickly became the number one football club in Pridnestrovie (which is also known as Transnistria or Transdniester, among several other unofficial names). From there, it went on to become the leading club in Moldova, beating 'Zimbru' for the previously held top spot, as well as in a number of CIS tournaments.
In 2006, FC Sheriff Tiraspol repeated a string of victories, becoming the club with the most victories in different tournaments. It already left Division "B" to go on to victories in the Championship, the Cup, the Supercup and the Cup of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), made up of countries from the ex-Soviet Union.
10 years old, the football club FC Sheriff Tiraspol was founded 4 April 1997.
Pridnestrovie, although not yet recognized diplomatically, is one of the new countries on the ex-Soviet space. The republic, which declared independence in 1990, was part of the former Moldavian SSR, but was never part of the later Republic of Moldova.
- Brazilian soccer players in Tiraspol
In Pridnestrovie, FC Sheriff is the only club which has won trophies abroad. The club is home to professional contract players from Argentina, Brazil, as well as from a number of European and African countries.
The club's motto is "Ubi Concordia, Ibi Victoria" and it is a leitmotif both for its fans and for Pridnestrovie in general, the little country that is determined to see victory.
The club is owned by Sheriff Ltd, a homegrown company, native to Pridnestrovie. By some estimates is considered the second largest company in the new and emerging country. In addition to the football club, the conglomerate also owns gas stations, super markets, a private TV and radio station, and a number of other companies.
Sheriff itself - the company - is owned by an Viktor Gushan, a Ukrainian, and Ilya Kazmaly, who was born in Moldova and who is today a PMR citizen. Kazmaly is also a member of parliament for the opposition party Renewal. Despite Moldovan claims to the contrary, there is no ownership by Igor Smirnov or either of his two sons. The Renewal party, which Kazmaly forms part of, is seen as the most serious counterweight to Igor Smirnov's presidency.
- New website cuts ties to Moldova
Giving itself a birthday present, the team unveiled a brand new website - www.fc-sheriff.com - at midnight today. The new site has interactive fan areas and a large countdown to the next match. It also features players' blogs and a password-protected area only for members of the FC Sheriff fanclub. The site will soon be available in English as well.
The club's previous website, fc.sheriff.md, was taken off the air during the 10th anniversary celebration Tuesday, turning over a new leaf in the club's history. It ended in ".md", the letters owned by Moldova, and now the club thinks it is time to leave behind Moldova for good.
" - Quite frankly, we didn't like having an .md domain. It stands for Moldova, and Pridnestrovie is not part of Moldova," says one of the club's players.
" - My country declared independence in 1990. We are not yet recognized internationally, so unfortunately we don't have our own Internet country-code at this point in time. But be that as it may, we certainly don't want to be forced to use the domain of Moldova. It is not realistic to think that the two sides of the Dniester river will join within a single country anymore."
The switch away from a Moldovan Internet name to an international name which has no ties to Moldova is sending a symbolic message to all fans of the club: Pridnestrovie has decided on its independence, and is cutting all ties to Moldova.
And what might the future have in store? To hear FC Sheriff tell it, you can expect more and more victories...
See also:
» German FIFA referee for Tiraspol's stadium
On the web:
» Official website: www.fc-sheriff.com
| more about sports | |||||
| |||||
With four goals against Tiligul's zero, FC Sheriff Tiraspol now heads to the UEFA Champions League with four games to spare. Despite neither of them wanting to be part of Moldova, the two teams had to battle it out for supremacy in the Moldovan National League. FC Sheriff has held the title uninterrupted for the past eight years. . . 
