FC Haka

Last updated
Haka
FC Haka logo.svg
Full nameValkeakosken Haka
NicknameHaka
Founded1934
Ground Tehtaan kenttä, Valkeakoski
Capacity3,516
Chairman Olli Huttunen
Manager Kari Martonen
League Veikkausliiga
2024 Veikkausliiga, 6th of 12
Website fchaka.fi
Tehtaan kentta, home of Haka on a matchday Tehtaan kentta valkeakoski Finland.jpg
Tehtaan kenttä, home of Haka on a matchday

FC Haka, originally Valkeakosken Haka, commonly known as Haka, is a Finnish professional football club based in the industrial town of Valkeakoski. The club was founded in 1934 and competes in Finland's premier division, the Veikkausliiga. It is one of the most successful clubs in Finland, with nine Finnish championships and 12 Finnish Cup wins.

Contents

History

Haka has historically had close ties with the paper industry in the Valkeakoski area, and is still sponsored by UPM Kymmene.

The club was founded as Valkeakosken Haka in 1934, with significant support from paper entrepreneur Juuso Walden. In 1949 it was promoted to Finland's top division Mestaruussarja (now known as Veikkausliiga), and in 1955 won the inaugural Finnish Cup.

The 1960s was the most successful era in Haka's history, with the club winning both the league and cup three times, including the first double in Finnish football history in 1960. The club was relegated in 1972, but came straight back, and won the double again in 1977.

The club's name was changed to FC Haka in the early 1990s. Haka won the title again 1995, but was relegated the next season. Keith Armstrong was hired as the new coach, and the club came straight back again, winning three straight championships from 1998 to 2000. [1] Goalkeeping legend Olli Huttunen succeeded Armstrong as coach in 2002, and led the club to the championship (2004) and two cups (2002 and 2005).

Haka's best performance in UEFA competition was in the 1983–1984 season when they reached the quarterfinals of the Cup Winners' Cup, losing to eventual champions Juventus 0–2 on aggregate. The club was involved in European competition every year between 1998 and the 2008–2009 season.

In subsequent years the club's financial situation deteriorated on two occasions, like many other small market teams in Veikkausliiga. The first was the 2008–09 season when a group of investors led by local businessman and restaurateur Sedu Koskinen (owner and founder of a nationwide night-club chain) formed FC Haka Oy to help an essentially bankrupt team to finish the season. In 2010 Sedu Koskinen left, after having invested around €1 million of his own money in the club.

Since then the club's operations have been reformed to make it financially sounder. The team, having been one of the most successful and prestigious in Finland, ran at a loss for several years during the 2000s. At the same time the overall global economic situation and sponsorship payments from UPM Kymmene diminished. This forced the club to rationalize its operations and adopt a new role as one of the smaller clubs in Finnish top flight football. The situation at the start of 2012 Finnish football season was described by the chairman and board members as difficult but stable.

These times of financial struggles saw the club move from perennial championship challengers to a team usually poised for relegation. In both 2011 and 2012 pre-season media predictions placed the club in the bottom three. Haka finished last in the standings in 2012 and were relegated to the second tier (then known as Ykkönen, but rebranded in 2023 as Ykkösliiga). The club finally won promotion back to the Veikkausliiga for the 2020 season following a near perfect campaign in the 2019 Ykkönen, where they dropped only 7 points and finished 19 points ahead of second-place TPS.

Honours

European campaigns

SeasonCompetitionRoundCountryClubScoreAgg.
1961–62 European Cup First round Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Standard Liège 1–5, v 0–21–7
1963–64 European Cup Preliminary round Flag of Luxembourg.svg Jeunesse d'Esch 4–1, v 0–44–5
1964–65 European Cup Winners' Cup First round Flag of Norway.svg Skeid Fotball 0–1, v 2–02–1
Second round Flag of Italy.svg AC Torino 0–1, v 0–50–6
1966–67 European Cup First round Flag of Belgium (civil).svg RSC Anderlecht 1–10, v 0–21–12
1970–71 European Cup Winners' Cup First round Flag of Bulgaria.svg CSKA Sofia 0–9, v 1–21–11
1977–78 UEFA Cup First round Flag of Poland.svg Górnik Zabrze 3–5, v 0–03–5
1978–79 European Cup First round Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Dynamo Kiev 0–1, v 1–31–4
1981–82 UEFA Cup First round Flag of Sweden.svg IFK Göteborg 2–3, v 0–42–7
1983–84 European Cup Winners' Cup First round Flag of Ireland.svg Sligo Rovers 1–0, v 3–04–0
Second round Flag of Sweden.svg Hammarby IF 1–1, v 2–1(aet)3–2
Quarter-finals Flag of Italy.svg Juventus 0–1, v 0–10–2
1986–87 European Cup Winners' Cup First round Flag of the Soviet Union.svg FC Torpedo Moscow 2–2, v 1–33–5
1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup First round Flag of Hungary.svg Ferencvárosi TC 1–5, v 1–12–6
1996–97 UEFA Cup First qualifying round Flag of Estonia.svg FC Flora Tallinn 2–2, v 1–03–2
Second qualifying round Flag of Poland.svg Legia Warszawa 0–3, v 1–11–4
1998–99 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Qualifying round Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Bangor City 2–0, v 1–03–0
First round Flag of Greece.svg Panionios FC 0–2, v 1–31–5
1999–2000 UEFA Champions League First qualifying round Flag of the Faroe Islands.svg HB Tórshavn 1–1, v 6–07–1
Second qualifying round Flag of Scotland.svg Rangers 1–4, v 0–31–7
2000–01 UEFA Champions League First qualifying round Ulster Banner.svg Linfield 1–2, v 1–02–2 (a)
Second qualifying round Flag of Slovakia.svg Inter Bratislava 0–0, v 0–1(aet)0–1
2001–02 UEFA Champions League First qualifying round Flag of Malta.svg Valletta FC 0–0, v 5–05–0
Second qualifying round Flag of Israel.svg Maccabi Haifa 0–1, v 3–0 [2] 3–1
Third qualifying round Flag of England.svg Liverpool 0–5, v 1–41–9
2001–02 UEFA Cup First round Flag of Germany.svg 1. FC Union Berlin 1–1, v 0–31–4
2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup First round Flag of Yugoslavia (1992-2003); Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006).svg FK Obilić 2–1, v 1–13–2
Second round Flag of England.svg Fulham 0–0, v 1–11–1 (a)
2003–04 UEFA Cup Qualifying round Flag of Croatia.svg Hajduk Split 2–1, v 0–12–2 (a)
2004–05 UEFA Cup First qualifying round Flag of Luxembourg.svg Etzella Ettelbruck 2–1, v 3–15–2
Second qualifying round Flag of Norway.svg Stabæk IF 1–3, v 1–32–6
2005–06 UEFA Champions League First qualifying round Flag of Armenia.svg Pyunik F.C. 1–0, v 2–23–2
Second qualifying round Flag of Norway.svg Vålerenga IF 0–1, v 1–41–5
2006–07 UEFA Cup First qualifying round Flag of Estonia.svg Levadia Tallinn 0–2, v 1–01–2
2007–08 UEFA Cup First qualifying round Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Rhyl 1–3, v 2–03–3 (a)
Second qualifying round Flag of Denmark.svg FC Midtjylland 1–2, v 2–53–7
2008–09 UEFA Cup First qualifying round Flag of Ireland.svg Cork City 2–2, v 4–06–2
Second qualifying round Flag of Denmark.svg Brøndby IF 0–4, v 0–20–6
2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League First qualifying round Ulster Banner.svg Crusaders 2–2, v 0–12–3

Divisional movements

Season to season

Current squad

As of 13 July 2025 [5]

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.NationPlayer
1 GK Ulster Banner.svg  NIR Liam Hughes
2 DF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Nikolas Talo
3 DF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Niklas Friberg
4 DF Flag of Scotland.svg  SCO Jordan Houston
5 DF Flag of Brazil.svg  BRA Nicolas Gianini Dantas
6 MF Flag of Venezuela (state).svg  VEN Elías Romero
7 FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Jean-Pierre Da Sylva
8 MF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Simon Lindholm
9 FW Flag of England.svg  ENG James Akintunde
10 FW Flag of Brazil.svg  BRA Lucas Cini
12 GK Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Anton Lepola
13 MF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Oskari Sallinen
No.Pos.NationPlayer
15 DF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Mikael Almén
16 FW Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Danila Bulgakov (on loan from Ilves)
17 FW Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Kalle Multanen
18 MF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Eetu Mömmö (on loan from Lecce)
19 MF Flag of Ghana.svg  GHA Abraham Okyere
20 MF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Roni Rautio
21 FW Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Akusti Jalasvaara
26 MF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Akseli Lehtomäki
30 DF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Valentin Purosalo
64 FW Flag of Bermuda.svg  BER Djair Parfitt
66 DF Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Riku Selander
99 MF Flag of Kosovo.svg  KOS Arlind Sejdiu
— FW Flag of Argentina.svg  ARG Juan Lescano

Out on loan

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.NationPlayer
— GK Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Oliver Heino(at Jazz until 31 December 2025)
No.Pos.NationPlayer
— GK Flag of Finland.svg  FIN Kasperi Silen(at Vaajakoski until 31 December 2025)

Management and boardroom

Management

As of 15 February 2021 [6]

NameRole
Head Coach
Flag of Portugal (official).svg Sander GuerreiroCoach
Flag of Finland.svg Mikko ManninenCoach
Flag of Finland.svg Pauli JussilaGoalkeeping Coach
Flag of Spain.svg Alejandro Peris MoraFitness Coach
Flag of Finland.svg Janne HannuFitness Coach
Flag of Finland.svg Jonna KauppinenTeam Manager
Flag of Finland.svg Jari JalavaKit Manager
Flag of Finland.svg Juuso NiemenpääDoctor
Flag of Finland.svg Kalle MyyräMasseur

Boardroom

As of 15 February 2021 [7]

NameRole
Flag of Finland.svg Marko LaaksonenChairman
Flag of Finland.svg Olli Huttunen CEO

Managers

References

  1. ↑ Karel Stokkermans (17 June 2018). "English Energy and Nordic Nonsense". RSSSF . Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  2. ↑ The original result of the second leg was a 4-0 victory to Maccabi Haifa, but Haka were awarded a 3–0 walkover victory after it was determined that Haifa had fielded two ineligible players.
  3. ↑ "Finland – Divisional Movements 1930–2009". RSSSF . 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-17.
  4. ↑ "Football Archive - Index of SPL Finnish League Suomen Cup Seasons".
  5. ↑ "Edustusjoukkue". fchaka.fi/ (in Finnish). FC Haka. Retrieved 6 February 2025.
  6. ↑ "Hakan edustusjoukkue" (in Finnish). FC Haka. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  7. ↑ "Yhteystiedot". FC Haka (in Finnish). Retrieved 15 February 2021.
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