FC Mretebi Tbilisi
Encyclopedia
FC Mretebi Tbilisi was a Georgian
football
club based in Tbilisi
. Mretebi were founded on 3 February 1988 by Vazha Chkaizadze, a football coach and theatre director. At that time, major football clubs in the Soviet Union
were professional in practice, but were officially regarded as amateur. For example, Lokomotiv
players were officially classed as railway workers. Mretebi were founded as an openly professional club, the first Soviet club to do so.
Amid the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgian football established an independent football league system in 1990. Mretebi reached the last sixteen of the Georgian Cup
in 1990, and won the Second Division in 1991. Winning the Second Division meant a playoff for promotion
to the Umaglesi Liga
, the highest level of Georgian football. Mretebi's opponents in the playoff were Iveria Khashuri, who had finished bottom of the Umaglesi Liga. Mretebi won 3–2 after extra time, and gained promotion. In their first season in the top division, Mretebi finished in mid-table with 48 points.
During this period of relative success Mretebi's star player was teenage midfielder Georgi Kinkladze, and in the 1992 close season reigning champions FC Dinamo Tbilisi
agreed a transfer fee of one million roubles for the player. However, once Kinkladze's transfer was complete, Dinamo disputed the fee on the grounds that he had previously been a member of the Dinamo youth system.
Mretebi fared less well the following season, finishing sixteenth out of seventeen teams, and in 1994 they were relegated after winning only three matches all season. The club subsequently had league finishes in the lower reaches of the Second Division. In 1995 former Mretebi player Kinkladze joined Manchester City
of the English Premier League from Dinamo Tbilisi for £2 million. As part of the deal which took Kinkladze to Dinamo, Mretebi were entitled to a proportion of any sell-on fee, but Dinamo refused to pay. A lengthy dispute in which the matter was referred to the Georgian Football Federation
and FIFA
followed, with Mretebi claiming $875,000 in unpaid fees. A decision by FIFA in 2000 ordered Dinamo to pay $300,000. Dinamo paid this sum in 2001, but the cost of the case and that of subsequent claims and appeals meant that Mretebi, by now playing in the lower echelons of the Georgian football system, suffered financial collapse and withdrew from the league in 2002. An appeal to the European Court of Human Rights
was dismissed in 2007.
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
club based in Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
. Mretebi were founded on 3 February 1988 by Vazha Chkaizadze, a football coach and theatre director. At that time, major football clubs in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
were professional in practice, but were officially regarded as amateur. For example, Lokomotiv
Lokomotiv (sports society)
Lokomotiv is the Russian sports club and a member of the International Railway Sports Association.Lokomotive traces its history to the All-Union Voluntary Sports Society of rail transport workers' Trade Unions, one of the first sports societies of workers of the USSR. Established in 1936, it...
players were officially classed as railway workers. Mretebi were founded as an openly professional club, the first Soviet club to do so.
Amid the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgian football established an independent football league system in 1990. Mretebi reached the last sixteen of the Georgian Cup
Georgian Cup
The Georgian Cup is the main "knockout" cup competition in Georgian football.The competition is a knockout tournament.Previous winners are:-Soviet era cup winners:* 1944: Team of Sukhumi* 1945: Dinamo Sukhumi...
in 1990, and won the Second Division in 1991. Winning the Second Division meant a playoff for promotion
Promotion and relegation
In many sports leagues around the world, promotion and relegation is a process that takes place at the end of each season. Through it, teams are transferred between divisions based on their performance that season...
to the Umaglesi Liga
Umaglesi Liga
The Georgian Top League is the top division of football in Georgia. Since 1990, it has been organized by the Professional Football League of Georgia and Georgian Football Federation. From 1927 to 1989, the competition was held as a regional tournament within the Soviet Union...
, the highest level of Georgian football. Mretebi's opponents in the playoff were Iveria Khashuri, who had finished bottom of the Umaglesi Liga. Mretebi won 3–2 after extra time, and gained promotion. In their first season in the top division, Mretebi finished in mid-table with 48 points.
During this period of relative success Mretebi's star player was teenage midfielder Georgi Kinkladze, and in the 1992 close season reigning champions FC Dinamo Tbilisi
FC Dinamo Tbilisi
FC Dinamo Tbilisi is a Georgian football team, based in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia.Dinamo Tbilisi was one of the most prominent clubs in Soviet football and a major contender in the Soviet Top League almost immediately after it was established in 1936...
agreed a transfer fee of one million roubles for the player. However, once Kinkladze's transfer was complete, Dinamo disputed the fee on the grounds that he had previously been a member of the Dinamo youth system.
Mretebi fared less well the following season, finishing sixteenth out of seventeen teams, and in 1994 they were relegated after winning only three matches all season. The club subsequently had league finishes in the lower reaches of the Second Division. In 1995 former Mretebi player Kinkladze joined Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
of the English Premier League from Dinamo Tbilisi for £2 million. As part of the deal which took Kinkladze to Dinamo, Mretebi were entitled to a proportion of any sell-on fee, but Dinamo refused to pay. A lengthy dispute in which the matter was referred to the Georgian Football Federation
Georgian Football Federation
The Georgian Football Federation was founded in 1936. It was part of the Football Federation of Soviet Union from 1936 to 1989. The Independent Georgian Football Federation was established on 15 February 1990. It is the governing body of football in Georgia. It organizes the football league, the...
and FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
followed, with Mretebi claiming $875,000 in unpaid fees. A decision by FIFA in 2000 ordered Dinamo to pay $300,000. Dinamo paid this sum in 2001, but the cost of the case and that of subsequent claims and appeals meant that Mretebi, by now playing in the lower echelons of the Georgian football system, suffered financial collapse and withdrew from the league in 2002. An appeal to the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
was dismissed in 2007.