NK Domžale

Nogometni Klub Domžale (English: Domžale Football Club), commonly referred to as NK Domžale or simply Domžale, is a Slovenian football club that plays in the town of Domžale. They have won both the Slovenian League and the Slovenian Supercup twice and the Slovenian Cup once.

History

NK Domžale was formed in 1921 and is one of the oldest Slovenian football clubs. Their current stadium (Domžale Sports Park) was built in 1948. It was renovated and modernized in 1997 and 1999. Work on the new western stand started in October 2003 and was finished in April 2004. On 29 June 2006 the stadium received reflectors, mounted on 4 concrete towers and strategically placed at each corner of the stadium. There are 120 in total, allowing matches to be played in the evening.

The club's golden age began in summer of 2002, when Slaviša Stojanovič became head coach. He brought Domžale into the 1. SNL. In the 2005–06 season, they advanced through the first two qualifying rounds of the UEFA Cup before being eliminated in the First Round by Stuttgart. They played in the 2006–07 qualifying rounds, but were eliminated by Hapoel Tel Aviv. After a 4–0 away win against Primorje on 13 May, Domžale were confirmed as league champions for the first time. This win makes the club only the fifth to claim the title since the independent league's formation in 1991–92.

Domžale

Domžale (Slovene pronunciation: [dɔmˈʒàːlɛ];German: Domschale) is a town and the seat of Municipality of Domžale. The town lies near the foothills of the Kamnik Alps and is crossed by the Kamnik Bistrica River. It includes the hamlets of Zgornje Domžale (pronounced [ˈzɡóːɾnjɛ dɔmˈʒàːlɛ];German: Oberdomschale), Spodnje Domžale (pronounced [ˈspóːdnjɛ dɔmˈʒàːlɛ];German: Untersomschale), and Študa. Domžale is known today for its small businesses, agriculture, and light industry.

Name

Domžale was attested in written sources circa 1200–1230 as Domsselsdorf (and as Vnheilden dorf in 1260, Vnsselsdorf in 1302, Vnsersdorf in 1322, Dumsel in 1490, and Damschale in 1558, among other variations.) The medieval German name Unser(s)dorf is derived from (D)unselsdorf, which was presumably borrowed from the Slovene name and from which the initial D- was lost because it was reanalyzed as a definite article. The Slovene name could be reconstructed as *Domžaľe, based on a Slavic personal name such as *Domožalъ and referring to an early inhabitant of the place. Alternatively, the Slovene name may be borrowed from Middle High German Domsell(sdorf), based in turn on a Slavic name such as *Domoslavъ. In the local dialect, the town is referred to as Dumžale. In the past the German name was Domschale.