Fixtures
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 01/30 11:00 | 12 |
FK Gabala vs
Baku Sporting FC
|
- | View | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 02/06 18:00 | 13 |
Difai FK
vs
FK Gabala
|
- | View | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 02/13 12:30 | 14 |
Imisli
vs
FK Gabala
|
- | View | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 02/19 18:00 | 15 |
Moik Baku
vs
FK Gabala
|
- | View | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 02/24 18:00 | 16 |
FK Gabala vs
FK Karvan
|
- | View | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 03/05 18:00 | 17 |
Cebrayil FK
vs
FK Gabala
|
- | View |
Results
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 12/24 10:00 | 11 |
[10] Energetik Mingechevir
v
FK Qabala [1]
|
W | 0-2 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 12/19 11:00 | 10 |
[1] FK Qabala v
Qaradag Lokbatan
[9] 
|
W | 3-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 12/13 11:00 | 9 |
[1] FK Qabala v
Cebrayil FK
[4]
|
W | 2-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Cup | 12/04 12:00 | 4 |
FK Qabala v
FK Qarabag
|
L | 0-2 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 11/28 10:30 | 8 |
[1] FK Karvan
v
FK Qabala [2]
|
W | 0-1 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 11/07 12:00 | 7 |
FK Qabala v
Moik Baku
|
W | 3-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Cup | 10/31 11:00 | 8 |
FK Qabala v
Baku Sporting FC
|
W | 4-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 10/26 11:30 | 6 |
[2] FK Qabala v
Imisli
[5]
|
D | 0-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 10/19 10:00 | 5 |
[3] FK Qabala v
Difai FK
[9]
|
W | 1-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 10/04 11:00 | 4 |
[6] Baku Sporting FC
v
FK Qabala [4]
|
W | 0-2 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 09/26 13:00 | 3 |
[3] FK Qabala v
Energetik Mingechevir
[6]
|
W | 2-0 | |
| Azerbaijan Division 1 | 09/19 12:00 | 2 |
[9] Qaradag Lokbatan
v
FK Qabala [6]
|
W | 0-5 |
Stats
| Total | Home | Away | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches played | 34 | 19 | 15 |
| Wins | 14 | 9 | 5 |
| Draws | 6 | 3 | 3 |
| Losses | 14 | 7 | 7 |
| Goals for | 47 | 25 | 22 |
| Goals against | 38 | 16 | 22 |
| Clean sheets | 15 | 11 | 4 |
| Failed to score | 9 | 7 | 2 |
Wikipedia - Gabala SC
Gabala SC (Azerbaijani: Qəbələ İK, pronounced [ɡæbæˈlæ]), also spelled Qabala, is an Azerbaijani professional football club based in Qabala, which have competed in the Azerbaijan Premier League since 2006. They will be an Azerbaijan First Division club in the 2024/25 Season following their relegation from the Azerbaijani Premier Division. Gabala has been the runner up in the Premier League three times and has won the national cup twice, in 2019 and 2023. Gabala is one of the 2 teams that started the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League for 2 seasons and managed to move on to the group stage.
History
The club was founded under the name of Goy Gol on 3 July 1995, based in Goy Gol. On 1 September 2005, Goy Gol was registered in Gabala by the Ministry of Justice, before the AFFA registered the team as professional on 5 September of the same year. In the summer of 2006, the team moved from Goygol to Qabala, before the club changed its name to Gilan PFK. Later, the club changed its name to Qəbələ PFK on 31 August 2007.
On 10 May 2010, former Arsenal defender Tony Adams was appointed as new manager after signing a £1 million per year deal with the club. In his first season in charge Gabala finished at 7th place in Azerbaijan Premier League. In November 2011, Adams resigned from being Gabala's coach due to family problems.
Despite the appointment of managers like Fatih Kavlak and Ramiz Mammadov, the club could not reach a satisfactory position in the league and was struggling in the middle of the table for many years. On 29 May 2013, Yuri Semin was appointed as new manager after signing a £1 million per year deal with the club. In the same year, the club qualified for European cups for the first time in their history but lost to Neftchi Baku on penalties in the final of the Azerbaijan Cup.
In the 2015–16 season of the Europa League, they became the 3rd club from Azerbaijan to qualify for the group stage after Qarabag and Neftçi Baku. They eliminated Dinamo Tbilisi, Čukarički, Apollon Limassol and surprisingly Panathinaikos. They came 4th in their tough group of Borussia Dortmund, PAOK and FC Krasnodar. They got two points both from 0–0 draws against PAOK.
Following their defeat to Keşla in the 2017–18 Azerbaijan Cup Final, Roman Hryhorchuk left Gabala after his contract was not extended. On 30 May 2018, Gabala announced that Sanan Gurbanov had been appointed as the club's new manager on a two-year contract. On 31 August 2019, Gurbanov resigned as manager following Gabala's 4–0 defeat at home to Keşla. On 2 September 2019, Elmar Bakhshiyev was appointed as Gabala's manager.
On 24 February 2024, Elmar Bakhshiyev resigned as Head Coach, with Kakhaber Tskhadadze being appointed the following day. On 27 May 2024, at the end of the 2023-24 season, Gabala extended their contract with Tskhadadze for an additional three-seasons.
League and cup history
| Season | League | Azerbaijan Cup | Top goalscorer | Managers | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Div. | Pos. | Pl. | W | D | L | GS | GA | P | Name | League | |||
| 2005–06 | 2nd | 1st | 30 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 72 | 14 | 72 | Last 16 | R.Ahmadov | 18 | Faig Jabbarov |
| 2006–07 | 1st | 11th | 24 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 17 | 47 | 16 | Last 16 | Vusal Garaev | 4 | Ramiz Mammadov |
| 2007–08 | 1st | 6th | 26 | 11 | 3 | 12 | 33 | 36 | 36 | Semi-finals | Vitali Balamestny | 8 | |
| 2008–09 | 1st | 10th | 26 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 28 | 21 | 33 | Semi-finals | Kanan Karimov | 6 | |
| 2009–10 | 1st | 6th | 42 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 42 | 48 | 56 | 1st round | Tomasz Stolpa | 7 | |
| 2010–11 | 1st | 7th | 32 | 13 | 12 | 7 | 31 | 18 | 51 | Quarter-finals | Deon Burton | 9 | Tony Adams |
| 2011–12 | 1st | 5th | 32 | 15 | 7 | 10 | 43 | 32 | 52 | Quarter-finals | Dodô Yannick Kamanan |
9 | Tony Adams Fatih Kavlak |
| 2012–13 | 1st | 6th | 32 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 32 | 40 | 38 | Quarter-finals | Victor Mendy Assis |
6 | Fatih Kavlak Ramiz Mammadov Luis Aragón |
| 2013–14 | 1st | 3rd | 36 | 18 | 7 | 11 | 48 | 36 | 61 | Runners-up | Danijel Subotić | 12 | Yuri Semin |
| 2014–15 | 1st | 3rd | 32 | 15 | 9 | 8 | 46 | 35 | 54 | Quarter-finals | Javid Huseynov | 11 | Dorinel Munteanu Roman Hryhorchuk |
| 2015–16 | 1st | 3rd | 36 | 16 | 11 | 9 | 44 | 28 | 59 | Semi-finals | Oleksiy Gai | 10 | Roman Hryhorchuk |
| 2016–17 | 1st | 2nd | 28 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 48 | 21 | 52 | Runners-up | Filip Ozobić | 11 | |
| 2017–18 | 1st | 2nd | 28 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 43 | 26 | 49 | Runners-up | Bagaliy Dabo | 13 | |
| 2018–19 | 1st | 4th | 28 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 31 | 33 | 36 | Champions | James Adeniyi | 10 | Sanan Gurbanov |
| 2019–20 | 1st | 8th | 20 | 5 | 4 | 11 | 25 | 35 | 19 | Semi-finals | Davit Volkovi | 5 | Sanan Gurbanov Elmar Bakhshiyev |
| 2020–21 | 1st | 7th | 28 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 44 | 26 | Quarter-finals | Raphael Utzig | 5 | Elmar Bakhshiyev |
| 2021–22 | 1st | 4th | 28 | 12 | 9 | 7 | 38 | 34 | 45 | Semi-finals | Isnik Alimi | 8 | |
| 2022–23 | 1st | 4th | 36 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 47 | 47 | 50 | Champions | Isnik Alimi | 9 | |
| 2023–24 | 1st | 10th | 36 | 7 | 5 | 24 | 30 | 64 | 26 | Semi-finals | Osama Khalaila | 9 | Elmar Bakhshiyev Kakhaber Tskhadadze |
European record
- As of match played 3 August 2023
| Competition | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Europa League | 38 | 10 | 7 | 21 | 36 | 55 |
| UEFA Europa Conference League | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| Total | 42 | 11 | 7 | 24 | 42 | 67 |
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q | Široki Brijeg | 0–2 | 0–3 | 0–5 |
| 2015–16 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q | Dinamo Tbilisi | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 |
| 2Q | Čukarički | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | ||
| 3Q | Apollon Limassol | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | ||
| PO | Panathinaikos | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 (a) | ||
| Group C | Borussia Dortmund | 1–3 | 0–4 | 4th | ||
| PAOK | 0–0 | 0–0 | ||||
| Krasnodar | 0–3 | 1–2 | ||||
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q | Samtredia | 5–1 | 1–2 | 6–3 |
| 2Q | MTK Budapest | 2–0 | 2–1 | 4–1 | ||
| 3Q | Lille | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | ||
| PO | Maribor | 3–1 | 0–1 | 3–2 | ||
| Group C | Anderlecht | 1–3 | 1–3 | 4th | ||
| Saint-Étienne | 1–2 | 0–1 | ||||
| Mainz 05 | 2–3 | 0–2 | ||||
| 2017–18 | UEFA Europa League | 2Q | Jagiellonia Białystok | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| 3Q | Panathinaikos | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–3 | ||
| 2018–19 | UEFA Europa League | 1Q | Progrès Niederkorn | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 |
| 2019–20 | UEFA Europa League | 2Q | Dinamo Tbilisi | 0–2 | 0–3 | 0–5 |
| 2022–23 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 2Q | Fehérvár | 2–1 | 1–4 | 3–5 |
| 2023–24 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 2Q | Omonia | 2–3 | 1–4 | 3–7 |
- Notes
- 1Q: First qualifying round
- 2Q: Second qualifying round
- 3Q: Third qualifying round
- PO: Play-off round
- Group: Group stage
FK Gabala has a strong fan base and plays their home matches at the Gabala City Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 3,500. The team's colors are red and white, and their mascot is a wolf.
Over the years, FK Gabala has established itself as a competitive force in Azerbaijani football, consistently finishing in the top half of the league table. The team has also had success in domestic cup competitions, winning the Azerbaijan Cup in 2019.
FK Gabala has a reputation for developing young talent and has produced several players who have gone on to represent the Azerbaijani national team. The team is known for its attacking style of play and passionate supporters who create a lively atmosphere at home matches.
Overall, FK Gabala is a respected and well-supported club in Azerbaijani football, with a bright future ahead as they continue to strive for success both domestically and in European competitions.