Aarhus Gymnastikforening


Aarhus Gymnastikforening, is a professional sports club based in Aarhus, Jutland, Denmark; one of the oldest in the country Founded in 1880, the club mainly featured gymnastics and fencing as its main sports. However, AGF is mostly known for its football department, which was established in 1902. Currently, the club's first team plays in the Danish Superliga, the top flight of the Danish football league system.
AGF has won 5 Danish Football Championships and a record 9 Danish Cups. In 1961, AGF reached the quarter-finals of the European Cup where they were knocked out by later winners, Benfica. In 1989, AGF again reached a European quarter-final. This time in the European Cup Winners' Cup, where they lost 0-1 on aggregate to later winners FC Barcelona.

History

AGF played its first football match against Aarhus Idrætsklub Olympia in November 1902, a 2–5 loss. Six years later, the club won the Jutland Football Championship by winning 3–2 over Ringkøbing IF in the final. AGF won the Jutland Football Championship seven times and was in three finals of the Danish Football Championship before AGF became a member of the newly founded Denmark Tournament in 1927.
In 1911, AGF got its own clubhouse after which the club bought the pitches at Dalgas Avenue. In 1920, AGF began to play its home matches at the newly built Aarhus Stadium, where the club has played ever since. In 1941, the club moved from the clubhouse at Dalgas Avenue to Fredensvang in the suburb of Viby J.
For three seasons in a row from 1949–51 AGF finished in third place in the top division. After spending the 1952–53 season in the 2. division, AGF returned strongly to the 1. division and in the next 12 seasons won four Danish Football Championships and five Danish Cups. AGF also participated in the first edition of the European Cup, where it lost to French club Stade de Reims. In 1961, AGF reached the quarter-final in the same tournament where it lost to eventual tournament winners Benfica. AGF was relegated to the 2. division in 1968 and in 1973 but returned to the 1. division in 1976. This was the start of 30 years in the top division.
The introduction of professional football in Denmark had a big influence on the success AGF experienced from the late 1970s and forward until 1998. With the former Real Madrid star Henning Jensen on the team was AGF close at winning the Danish Football Championship in 1982. AGF played 2–2 against B 93 in the last game of the season sending the championship to Odense Boldklub. In 1984 AGF was again close to clinching the championship but lost it by a single point to the rivals from Vejle Boldklub. Finally in 1986 AGF won its fifth Danish Football Championship. Flemming Povlsen, Jan Bartram and John Stampe was the profiles in the team. In 1987, 1988 and 1992 AGF also won the Danish Cup.
In 1996, with players like Stig Tøfting and Håvard Flo, was AGF again close at winning the Danish Football Championship but AGF was overtaken by Brøndby IF in the second last round of the tournament. AGF got revenge by winning the final of the Danish Cup against Brøndby IF in the same season.
In 1998, AGF finished third in the Danish Superliga but financial problems resulted in some poor results the following years. In 2000, Peter Rudbæk was fired after seven years as manager. From 2000 onwards, the club experienced some of its worst ever results, which led to relegations in the 2005–06, 2009–10 and 2013–14 season. Each time, however, the club secured a quick return to the top-flight.
In the summer of 2014, AGF appointed Jacob Nielsen as its new director. Nielsen had been successful as director of Randers where he had managed to secure fine economic results. AGF also hired a new sporting director and Morten Wieghorst as manager. On 6 December 2015, however, Nielsen announced that Wieghorst was fired and that former Danish champion Glen Riddersholm was hired as his replacement.
With Glen Riddersholm as manager AGF finished the 2015–16 season in tenth place having won 3 games, drawn 7, and lost 5 in the remainder of the season. AGF qualified for 2016 cup final losing 2–1 to FC Copenhagen. In the 2016–17 season AGF finished 11th after having played relegation play-off matches in the new league structure introduced that season.
On 30 September 2017 Riddersholm was fired due to inconsistent results. At that point AGF was 7th in the league having started the 2017–18 season with 4 wins, 5 defeats, and 2 draws. Riddersholm's last match was a 5–1 win against FC Helsingør. New manager was David Nielsen who started with 4 consecutive league defeats but finished the season in 7th place after losing a European play-off final against FC Copenhagen 4–1.

Stadium

Their home ground is Aarhus Stadium, renamed Ceres Park for sponsorship reasons since 2015, which has a capacity of 19,433.

Honours

National honours

Sources:

International honours

Current squad

Out on loan

Youth players in use

Retired numbers

12 – AGF Fanclub Aarhus

List of AGF managers

Since 1927, AGF has played 68 seasons at the highest level in Danish football, which is a record.

Other records

AGF's first competitive European match was on September 21, 1955, in the 1955-56 European Cup, dropping a 0–2 decision to France's Stade Reims, eventually losing on aggregate 2–4 in the first round. Since then, the club has participated in numerous UEFA competitions, advancing as far as the quarter-finals of the 1960-61 European Cup and 1988-89 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.