GBK Kokkola

Gamlakarleby Bollklubb (GBK)
Full nameGamlakarleby Bollklubb
(Kokkola Ball Club)
NicknameGBK
Founded1924 (1924)
GroundKokkolan keskuskenttä
Capacity3,000
ChairmanÅström Robert
ManagerHohenthal Miika
LeagueKakkonen
2025Kakkonen, Group C – 2nd of 10
Websitehttps://www.gbk.fi/

Gamlakarleby Bollklubb is a Finnish football club from Kokkola (Gamlakarleby in Swedish). It currently plays in Kakkonen, which is the fourth-highest level in Finnish football. GBK play their home games at the Keskuskenttä in Kokkola, which has the capacity to accommodate around 3,000 people.

GBK is a bilingual club that organises its activities in both Finnish and Swedish.

History

Year 1920 IV (Idrottens vänner) and GUIK (Gamlakarleby Ungdomsförenings Idrottsklubb) joined their teams, and the new club Gamlakarleby Idrottsförenig (GIF) was founded.

In the year 1921, the sponsor of GIF, August Kyntzell, had visited England and seen Stoke City playing in their red and white striped dress. Kyntzell became fond of the costumes and decided that his team (GIF and later GBK) would play in the same colours. In the summer of 1921, GIF appeared in red and white striped costumes.

On 19 February 1924, GIF changed its name to GBK, and it is therefore one of Finland's oldest football clubs. GBK's activity is currently focused on football, but the club has also played ice hockey and bandy until the 1950s. The ice hockey club Kokkolan Hermes (now Hermes HT) was formed in 1953, when GBK and KPV ice hockey sections amalgamated.

The club has a long tradition and has played 5 seasons (1959, 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1976) in the top division of the Finnish Championship (Veikkausliiga). They have also played 39 seasons at the second tier and 34 seasons in the third tier. The club secured promotion to the Ykkönen in September 2006, but their return to the second tier was short-lived as they were relegated at the end of the 2007 season. From 2008 to 2023, they have been playing in the third tier of the championship pyramid, until the championship tier reformation, which resulted in them ending up in the fourth tier of the pyramid in 2024.[1]

In 2000, GBK became the first women's beach soccer champion in Finland, and the following year became a new championship team.

Kokkola Cup

The football tournament known as the Kokkola Cup is organised by GBK and is held in mid-July each year. This four-day tournament attracts about 300 teams to Kokkola and is recognised as Finland's second biggest football tournament after the Helsinki Cup.

The Kokkola Cup was initiated in 1981 by Lars-Erik Stenfors and the tournament has grown from 50 teams to 330 teams at its peak. Current professional players who have participated in the Kokkola Cup include Andy Marshall, Jimmy Nielsen, Craig Bellamy, Adam Drury, Danny Mills, Simon Davies and Matthew Etherington.

Domestic History

Current squad

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  FIN Olli Nylund
2 MF  FIN Jussi Roiko
3 MF  USA Lawrence Smith
4 MF  FIN Petteri Jokihaara
5 DF  POL Brela Mateusz
6 MF  RUS Shelenskiy Nikol
7 FW  POL Kochanowski Jakub
8 DF  USA Chris Corcoran
9 FW  FIN Benjamin Storbacka
10 MF  FIN Niko Tukeva
11 FW  SWE David Carlsson
12 MF  FIN Miika Hohenthal
13 GK  FIN Jonas Holm
14 FW  FIN Deng Malwal
15 MF  FIN Tom Åstrand
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 MF  FIN Paul Adour
17 MF  FIN Juho Alasuutari
18 DF  FIN Tatu Mäki
19 FW  FIN Tobias Wentin
20 MF  FIN Kim Ågren
21 MF  FIN Alfred Söderman
22 MF  FIN Aaro Hedman
23 FW  FIN Atte Henttu
24 FW  FIN Linus Sandell
25 DF  FIN Ville Jylhä
26 DF  FIN Tomi Björklund
27 MF  FIN Angilo Lado
28 GK  FIN Oskari Wikström
29 GK  RUS Byeskiy Vityuslav
30 MF  BRA Toró

Honours

League

References and sources

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Finland – Divisional Movements 1930–2009". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Archives. 2010. Retrieved 3 April 2010.
  2. ^ "Home". finlandfootball.net.
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