SK Úvaly (Czech Republic)

SK Úvaly

Ground: Stadium SK Úvaly

Capacity: 500

Club Founded: 1919

League: 6. Liga, Skupina B - 6th Tier (current level)

SK Úvaly represents the Czech town located eleven miles east of Prague. The club was founded following a meeting at Hotel Křovák, where it was decided to collect subscriptions to try to buy a football.

About SK Úvaly

The title Sports Club Kubalech was soon changed to Sportovní Klub Ouvaly. By October 19th 1919, the club had raised enough money to rent some land for a pitch near the forest on the edge of town. In the opening game, SK Pečky were defeated 8-2, in front of 300 fans.

The club struggled to survive in the first part of the 1920s before regathering, renting a new ground and changing the club title to SK Úvaly in 1928, as well as joining local competition rather than playing friendly games.

In 1929, the street where the club was located was named in honour of Guth-Jarkovského, who had been the club chairman. A new clubhouse was completed the following year. The team competed in the 1B class of local competition.

Úvaly reached the regional championship in 1964, the third tier of football in the republic. The ground was improved with the construction of a grandstand, before the team dropped down the divisions in a period of decline.

By 2000, the club committee decided to try to restore the club to its former glory. They managed to attain a place in the Prague Championship before dropping back down after a terrible opening season at the new level.

The club decamped to play matches at Škvorec for a year while a new pitch with drainage was laid and cultivated, and new changing room blocks were constructed. 

The 2004-05 season saw the first team lift the 1A title, returning to the Prague Championship, known locally as the Pražský přebor. The youth teams at the club continued to show promise, to set up a sound base.

The club continued to consolidate and improve its facilities for handball and tennis in 2010, as well as reconstructing the grandstand. The hard work paid dividends as the club reached the fourth tier of Czech football for the 2012-13 season.

Úvaly consolidated their place over the next few seasons, before a final eleventh placed slot saw them stave off the fear of relegation in 2015-16 before an even narrower escape took place the following season.

The club disappeared from football for a couple of seasons before returning to the Central Bohemian Region competition for 2019-20, where they were placed in the seventh-tier 1B Class Group B. 

The side finished as runners-up in 1B Třída Skupina B (its local name) in 2021-22. Three seasons later, the side dropped back down to the sixth-tier division. 

My visit

Match Postponed - Sunday 13th March 2016

My weekend in Prague was going really well, and I was in good form after attending the Viktoria Žižkov Sunday morning match. I decided to walk into the city before heading out for my afternoon’s entertainment, which was to be between SK Úvaly in the fourth-tier Divize B.

To reach Úvaly, I needed to catch a train from Praha Masarykovo Nádraží station. I paid for my ticket on board, which cost around £3 return. The journey took around twenty minutes. On alighting, I walked through the quiet streets, which I noticed had loud hailers attached to assorted telegraph poles.

Just before heading down Klánovická, I bumped into a fellow groundhopper. This chap was from Germany and was walking away from the ground. He broke the bad news that the game was off. This was extremely disappointing as the weather seemed fine, even if rain was forecast later.

Regardless, I continued on to have a look at Stadion SK Úvaly, where I found a tidy venue with a small stand backing onto Guth-Jarkovského. The rest of the ground was flat, standing areas with tennis courts further along from the extensive changing room blocks.

Despite the disappointment, I was happy to have filled in some time. I returned to the city and my room in Žižkov for a siesta before heading back downtown. I chose Rocky O'Reilly's Irish Pub on Štěpánská to watch multiple sports on TV, followed by a nice local meal at a fine traditional local establishment.