CS Dinamo București

Since its inception in 1948, Fotbal Club Dinamo București spent its entire history in the top tier of Romanian football. They’ve won 18 Liga I titles, 13 Romanian Cups, and became the first Romanian club to reach the European Cup semi-finals. They have a long-standing rivalry with the neighboring Steaua București, and the derby between these teams is known as the “Eternal derby.” Dinamo plays in red-white kits and goes by the nickname “Red Dogs.” The club name CS Dinamo București is sometimes spelled FC Dinamo București, ("FC" stand for Fotbal Club", notice the spelling, and "CS" stand for Clubul Sportiv, "Sport Club" in English).

History

Rise to power

Dinamo was founded in 1948, when Unirea Tricolor MAI merged with Ciocanul București. During their first season in the Romanian national league (Liga I), they were represented by two separate teams: Ciocanul’s Dinamo A and Unirea’s Dinamo B. The two teams were separated in 1950, with Dinamo B transforming into FCM Bacău down the road. In 1955, Dinamo won its first Liga I title on the back of the league-best defense that conceded only 19 goals.

In the early-to-mid ‘60s, Dinamo established itself as the best team in Romania. They won four straight titles from 1961 to 1965, along with one Romanian Cup in 1964. This period also saw the club making a name for itself at the international scene. In their 1-3 defeat against the Di Stefano-led Real Madrid în București, they had the support of 100,000 spectators. Around this time, Dinamo also managed to defeat Inter Milan 2-1 on home turf.

Steady competence

The following decade saw Dinamo claim four more Liga I titles in 1971, 1973, 1975, and 1977. In the latter two seasons, the team’s star striker Dudu Georgescu managed to win the European Golden Shoe with 33 and 47 goals, respectively. The ‘80s started on a similar note, with Dinamo winning three titles in the first half of the decade. However, they ended up playing second fiddle to Steaua for the rest of the decade.

In 1984, Dinamo enjoyed its most successful European campaign to date. After dispatching Kuusysi and Hamburg in their first two rounds, they squeezed past Dinamo Minsk with a 1-0 victory in București. In the semi-finals, they were set to play against the eventual champions Liverpool. Following a close 0-1 loss at Anfield, Dinamo had no answers for Ian Rush, who scored a brace to take Liverpool to the finals.

Slowing down

The ‘90s started well enough for Dinamo, as they won two more Liga I titles in 1990 and 1992. However, this was followed by a dark period that saw the club languishing in mid-table for the rest of the decade. Still, a new squad led by players such as Florin Prunea, Cosmin Contra, and Cătălin Hîldan managed to put things on the right track. From 2000 to 2007, Dinamo claimed four additional Liga I titles.

After the successful 2006/07 season, Dinamo found itself stuck in another downward spiral. The following season saw them change four coaches, but they still finished in 3rd place. The disappointing results continued until 2013, when the team went through a change in ownership. In 2014, it successfully entered the insolvency process. The process was ended the following season, and Dinamo was able to return to European competitions.

By Martin Wahl

References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC_Dinamo_București
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_FC_Dinamo_București