Anzhi

The club was founded in 1991 by former Dinamo Makhachkala player Aleksandr Markarov with the head of Dagnefteprodukt – Magomed-Sultan Magomedov and took part in its first season in the Dagestan League the same year. The club's name Anzhi means pearl in local Kumyk language and is a former name of Makhachkala. FC Anzhi ended up as league champions with an unbeaten record and 16 wins out of 20 matches.

Due to the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the club entered Zone 1 of the Russian Second Division (the third-highest tier) in 1992 and finished in fifth place. The club won their Group in 1993, but due to league reorganisation were not promoted, and remained in the new Western Zone of the third tier until a second-place finish in 1996 guaranteed promotion to the First Division, under the coaching of Eduard Malofeev. A key player in Anzhi's early history was Azerbaijani international forward Ibragim Gasanbekov, who was the team's top scorer in all of their first seven seasons. He was the league's top scorer in 1993 (30 goals) and 1996 (33 goals).

In 1999, Anzhi won the First Division, and were thus promoted to the top-flight Premier League for the first time. The side missed out on a bronze-medal finish on the last day of the season, as they conceded a last-minute Torpedo Moscow penalty which took their opponents into third place. On 20 June 2001, the club played in the final of the Russian Cup for the first time, losing to Lokomotiv Moscow on penalties after a 1–1 draw.

Anzhi finished 15th and were relegated from the Premier League in 2002, but during their first season back in the First Division, they reached the semi-finals of the Russian Cup, where they lost 1–0 to Rostov. In their seventh season in the First Division, Anzhi won the league and returned to the Premier League. On 5 December 2010, defender Shamil Burziyev died in a car accident at the age of 25.

Purchase

On 18 January 2011, the club was purchased by Dagestani billionaire Suleyman Kerimov, but later it was revealed that the President of Dagestan, Magomedsalam Magomedov, met Kerimov and gave him a 100% stake in the club, including 50% of the shares of the former owner of the club Igor Yakovlev, in exchange for financial support. Kerimov was planning to invest over $200 million in infrastructure, of which a substantial amount would go into building a new stadium with a capacity of more than 40,000 spectators, which would meet all UEFA requirements.

Kerimov's investment was immediate as the club made many signings in the 2011 winter transfer window. The first significant signing came on 16 February, when the club announced the free transfer of Brazilian left-back and 2002 FIFA World Cup winner Roberto Carlos from Corinthians. Further signings included Roberto Carlos's teammate at Corinthians, midfielder Jucilei, who was bought for €10 million, Atletico Mineiro forward Diego Tardelli, who signed on a four-year contract, and Moroccan winger Mbark Boussoufa from Anderlecht. Anzhi paid €8 million for Boussoufa, and his transfer was finalised in the last minute of the window, on 10 March.

In summer 2011, the club signed Hungarian winger Balázs Dzsudzsák, who signed a four-year deal for a reported €14 million. Anzhi also bought Russian midfielder Yuri Zhirkov from Chelsea for a similar fee. On 23 August, Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto'o signed from Inter Milan for approximately €21 million on a world-record €20.5 million annual salary. The deal included a three-year contract. On 30 August, Anzhi made their last big summer transfer window signing, with the arrival of Mehdi Carcela.

In September 2011, Gadzhi Gadzhiyev was sacked, after managing only one win in the last six matches, leaving the club seventh in the league table. Roberto Carlos took on a player-manager role, along with assistant Andrei Gordeyev. On 27 December 2011, the club appointed Yuri Krasnozhan as the new coach. However, he was sacked after only two months, and the team didn't play any official games under his management. In February 2012, experienced Dutchman Guus Hiddink was announced as his replacement. Hiddink's first signing was Congolese defender Christopher Samba, joining for £12 million from Blackburn Rovers on 24 February.

On 30 January 2012, Roberto Carlos announced his plans to retire at the end of the season, despite his contract running until June 2013. He ended his football career on 1 August and took up a role as the club's director. The Russian club concluded the first season after the takeover, the 2011–12 season, with a fifth-place finish in the league, which qualified the club for the Europa League second qualifying round. In the Russian Cup, the club was eliminated in the round of 16 with an extra time loss against Dynamo Moscow.

On 3 September 2012, the club signed Lassana Diarra on a four-year deal. On 10 October, Anzhi opened a youth academy, the first in Dagestan, in order to develop youth talents for the first team. The academy is being run by Anzhi Sporting Director Jelle Goes. On 2 February 2013, Willian joined the club from Shakhtar Donetsk for a €35 million fee.

Anzhi finished the 2012–13 season in third place in the league table, missing out on qualification for the next season's Champions League. Anzhi began the campaign in great form, losing only once in their first 12 matches and even holding the top spot four times. However, they suffered a downturn in form after the new year, winning only three times in their final twelve matches, including a 4–0 defeat against Krasnodar in March. In the Europa League, they finished second in their group, and were eliminated in the round of 16 by Newcastle United with a last minute goal after beating Hannover 96 in the round of 32. They reached the Russian Cup final that season, losing to CSKA on penalties.

On 22 July 2013, Hiddink resigned from his post as manager, ending an 18-month stint. His newly appointed assistant, countryman René Meulensteen, was promoted to the manager position. However, after 16 days as the team manager, Meulensteen was sacked.