BASK

Formation of SK Soko

In the Kingdom of Serbia there had been many sports sections and societies, whose members were constantly increasing in number. So in the year of 1891 Belgrade gymnastics society "Soko" was established. One student, Andra Nikolić, became chairmen of the parliament, minister of education and foreign affairs, academic and writer (today in part of Belgrade called Senjak, there is a street named after him, Dr. Andra Nikolić"), together with Hugo Buli, was also the initiator of foundation "The first Serbian association for games with ball", on 1 May 1899. This association for games with ball is considered also the first Serbian football club on territory of ex Yugoslavia and Serbia. Unfortunately, this club had been closed very soon and it disappeared. Nevertheless, it succeeded in organizing one real contest on the new football field built in Guberevac.

Members of Gymnastics association SK Soko continued with ball games, and their enthusiasm had not diminished. They have been gathering on one meadow in Jugovićeva Street. The new younger members had constantly joined them, and then started generation replacement. These lovers of ball decided finally to organize again and once more to establish their own club. On member's gathering, after the usual training, under the open sky on their field, they have founded their club. Among others, unavoidable Hugo Buli, Steva Stefanović, Milan Bajić, Ljuba Jovanović, Mita Đorđević, Mita Stamenković, Boba Marković, Momir Korunović, M.Milosavljević and others were present.

Inaugural meeting was held on 18 April 1903, under the clear sky, on unoccupied lot in Braće Jugovića Street, where in that time was summer playfield Belgrade's gymnastics association Soko.

Assembly's Participants had by acclamation elected Ljubomir Jovanović, who later became minister in governments of Kingdom of Serbia and president of national assembly, and satisfied with the work done, went home. When had met the following day on the playfield, somebody said: “Oh, my God, people, we have founded a club, and nobody had remembered that we should give it a name.” Really, in very big exaltation the previous day they have completely forgotten about that “detail”.

They have assembled again and then they have started making suggestion. People said that this debate had been very long and at some moments also very bitter, until Ljuba Jovanović, newly selected president, did not propose the name “Soko”. The others have all agreed, so on 18 April 1903. of the old calendar, the first football club in Kingdom of Serbia appeared (Bačka from Subotica had been founded in 1901, two years before Soko, but on territory of Austro-Hungary in that time).

The early years

The first and foremost problem of newly founded club was a playfield. The field in Jugovićeva Street was too tight for the playground so another suitable place in the area known as Bara Venecija was found, between current Belgrade Fair and the main city railway station. However, they could not stay there because the river Sava had risen up, flooded and destroy the playfield. Finally, an adequate playground was found in part of Topčider near of Košutnjak’s forest, in the place of current Range station Topčider. Although the playground was quite far from the city center at that time, "Soko" arranged it well and stayed there for a full 27 years, until the state expropriated it for railway needs.

The stadium got an athletics track and a tribune for standing. Apart from many local games, the first international match in Serbia, between the national team of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and national team of Romania was played on it, which ended with the victory of the later by 2:1. It was the third international match of the Yugoslavia national team and it was played on 8 May 1922, in the honour of the wedding of King Alexander and Romanian Princes Maria, was attended by over 1,500 spectators, which was remarkable for that time.

In that period the club had difficulties in finding opponents as there were not many existing clubs to play against, so one of the first and the biggest public matches at that period was played among two teams of SK Soko on "St. George´s Day" (Đurđevdan), on May 6, 1904, in the honour of the celebration of the centenary of the First Serbian uprising. In that match (the score is unknown) following players participated: Stevan Stefanović, Milan Bajić, Vladimir Skobla, Dimitrije Đorđević Piperski, Dimitrije Stamenković, Nikola Spasić, Hugo Buli, Vlada Krstić among others. Six months after the club's foundation, Serbian football and engineering pioneer, Danilo Stojanović–Čika Dača, on 14 September 1903, founded the football club Šumadija so Soko got their first domestic rival.

Nevertheless, two years have passed until the match between two oldest clubs in the Kingdom of Serbia took place. On July 20, 1906, Šumadija and Soko met in Kragujevac, and Soko won by 6:1. In the rematch, on August 27, 1906, Soko won again, but this time more convincingly, with the score of 9:0. Unknown chronicle registered that the crown prince himself, George Karađorđević, was also present. For the history of Serbian football, it is very important to mention that these were the first matches played between two domestic clubs. This tradition of the rival matches between FK BASK (former SOKO) and FK Šumadija is held, since 1993, every year on St. George's Day, on May 6, and on Krstovdan, on September 14, when they celebrate their respective holiday Slava´s.

It would be in 1911 and 1912 that Soko would gain the reputation of the strongest club in Serbia and included players such as Čedomir Nedić, Đoka Ilić, Mata Miodragović, Žika Popović, Jovan Viktorović, Elezović, Paja Vukićević and others, which formed the core of the group of the pioneer Serbian football stars.