Unió Esportiva Santa Coloma, also known as UE Santa Coloma, is an Andorran professional football club based in the village of Santa Coloma, Andorra la Vella. The club currently plays in Primera Divisió.
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| Full name | Unió Esportiva Santa Coloma | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | UE Esquirols (Squirrels) Groc-i-negres (Yellow and Black) | ||
| Founded | 1986 | ||
| Ground | Andorra Football Federation stadiums | ||
| Chairman | Joan Antoni Antón | ||
| Manager | Boris Antón | ||
| League | Primera Divisió | ||
| 2023–24 | Primera Divisió, 1st of 10 (champions) | ||
| Website | http://www.uesantacoloma.com | ||
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History
editUE Santa Coloma was founded on 23 September 1986 in the village of Santa Coloma. In 1996 the club established a football academy to give a qualitative leap in the field of sports in the country. During few seasons the club acted as farm team for many Andorran teams including FC Santa Coloma. The first football department team was refounded, after being inactive many years, in 2006 by joining the Andorran football league Segona Divisió the following year.[1]
The team plays in the Primera Divisió after winning the Segona Divisió in the 2007–08 season. The club made its first appearance in European competition in the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League after finishing second in the league in the 2009–10 season.
In 2013 the team won his first trophy in the Copa Constitució after defeating 3–2 Sant Julià in the average time.[2] Three years later UE Santa Coloma was crowned again as Andorran's Cup winner after defeating 3-0 UE Engordany in 2016.[3]
On 16 July 2024, the club earned their first win in European competition by beating Ballkani from Kosovo in the 2024–25 UEFA Champions League. On 14 August 2024, after losing their UEFA Europa League third qualifying round tie against FK RFS, they qualified for the play-off round of UEFA Conference League so they became the first ever Andorran side to reach the play-off stage of a UEFA club competition.
Colours and badge
editYellow has been the traditional UE Santa Coloma color. Manly of the home kits alternate yellow and black. Even then in its beginnings the club dressed up the colors of the parish of Andorra la Vella, green and navy, and occasionally wearing an orange kit during some seasons.[4]
Until 2013 the badge was representing Santa Coloma's pre-romanical church tower and the most traditional team icon, the squirrel. The nowadays crest still represent the icons of UE Santa Coloma, featuring the club colours (yellow and black) and the year of foundation (1986).
The club have an alternative badge (main crest during the first leg of the 2013–14 season) representing the Santa Coloma's squirrel and the colours of the Andorran nation with the motto's country "Virtus Unita Fortior".
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      Original first kit. |
   2013–14 home kit. |
 2014–16 home kit. |
| Period * | Kitmaker | Kit sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 2007–12 | Joma | Escale |
| 2012–18 | Seguretat Sepir | |
| 2014–18 | Luanvi | |
| 2018–present | Joma | None |
* Since the Andorra Football Federation affiliation.
Support
editThe club's nickname, as seen from the crest, is Esquirols (Squirrels) due to the number of the animals that live around the town of Santa Coloma. There is a long-standing tradition for a number of fans to wear squirrel costumes at the club's last home game of each season.
Club rivalries
editEl Derbi Colomenc
editThe local rival of UE Santa Coloma is actually their neighbour's hometown football team FC Santa Coloma. The rivalry between these two teams has increased since the 2009/10 season when those teams were competing for winning the Premier Andorran League.[5]
Honours
edit- Primera Divisió:
- Copa Constitució:
- Supercopa Andorrana:
- Winners (2): 2016, 2024
- Runners-up (2): 2013, 2017
- Segona Divisió:
- Winners (1): 2007–08
League history
edit| Season | Division | Pos. | Pl. | W | D | L | GS | GA | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Segona Divisió | 1 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 66 | 11 | 44 |
| 2008–09 | Primera Divisió | 5 | 20 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 65 | 31 | 39 |
| 2009–10 | Primera Divisió | 2 | 20 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 50 | 26 | 43 |
| 2010–11 | Primera Divisió | 4 | 20 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 54 | 27 | 30 |
| 2011–12 | Primera Divisió | 3 | 20 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 61 | 20 | 37 |
| 2012–13 | Primera Divisió | 3 | 20 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 47 | 25 | 37 |
| 2013–14 | Primera Divisió | 2 | 20 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 40 | 24 | 39 |
| 2014–15 | Primera Divisió | 3 | 20 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 33 | 17 | 38 |
| 2015–16 | Primera Divisió | 4 | 20 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 34 | 20 | 30 |
| 2016–17 | Primera Divisió | 3 | 27 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 62 | 34 | 48 |
| 2017–18 | Primera Divisió | 5 | 27 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 53 | 29 | 41 |
| 2018–19 | Primera Divisió | 6 | 27 | 8 | 8 | 11 | 33 | 32 | 32 |
| 2019–20 | Primera Divisió | 5 | 24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 34 | 26 | 39 |
| 2020–21 | Primera Divisió | 6 | 20 | 9 | 3 | 8 | 44 | 27 | 30 |
| 2021–22 | Primera Divisió | 2 | 27 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 37 | 26 | 47 |
| 2022–23 | Primera Divisió | 4 | 28 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 40 | 29 | 42 |
European results
edit| Season | Competition | Round | Opponent | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–11 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Mogren
|
0–3 | 0–2 | 0–5 |
| 2011–12 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Paks
|
0–1 | 0–4 | 0–5 |
| 2012–13 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Twente
|
0–3 | 0–6 | 0–9 |
| 2013–14 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Zrinjski Mostar
|
1–3 | 0–1 | 1–4 |
| 2014–15 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Metalurg Skopje
|
0–3 | 0–2 | 0–5 |
| 2016–17 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR |  Lokomotiva
|
1–3 | 1–4 | 2–7 |
| 2017–18 | UEFA Europa League | 1QR | Osijek
|
0–2 | 0–4 | 0–6 |
| 2022–23 | UEFA Europa Conference League | 1QR |  Breiðablik
|
0–1 | 1–4 | 1–5 |
| 2024–25 | UEFA Champions League | 1QR |  Ballkani
|
1–2 | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | 3−3 (6–5 p) |
| 2QR |  Midtjylland
|
0–3 | 0–1 | 0–4 | ||
| UEFA Europa League | 3QR |  RFS
|
0–2 | 0–7 | 0–9 | |
| UEFA Conference League | PO | Víkingur Reykjavík
|
0–0 | 0–5 | 0–5 |
- Notes
- PR: Preliminary round
- QR: Qualifying round
- 1QR: First qualifying round
- 2QR: Second qualifying round
- 3QR: Third qualifying round
- PO: Playoff round
Current squad
editAs of 15 September 2024
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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External links
editReferences
edit- ^ "UE Santa Coloma » Historia".
- ^ "FAF - l'UE Santa Coloma es proclama campió de la Copa Constitució 2013".
- ^ "FAF - l'UE Santa Coloma, campió de la Copa Constitució 2016 (3-0)".
- ^ "L'escut i els colors | U.E. Santa Coloma". www.uesantacoloma.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-21.
- ^ "BonDia Diari digital d'Andorra".