Club Sportiv Tunari, commonly known as CS Tunari, or simply as Tunari, is a Romanian professional football club based in Tunari, Ilfov County, currently competing in Liga II, the second tier of the Romanian football.
Founded in 1980 as Arsenal Tunari, the club was renamed CS Tunari in 2004 and gradually consolidated its place in Romania's third tier, achieving its first promotion to the second tier at the end of the 2022âÂÂ23 season. After being relegated the following season, it secured promotion back to the second tier following the 2024âÂÂ25 Liga III campaign.
CS Tunari was founded in 1980 under the name Arsenal Tunari. The name "Tunari" translates to "Gunners" in Romanian, and the communeâÂÂs coat of arms features a cannonâÂÂelements that inspired the original name as a tribute to the English football club Arsenal F.C. and its nickname, "The Gunners." In its early years, Arsenal Tunari played consistently in the Ilfov County Championships, the fourth tier of Romanian football league system. The club changed its name in 2004 after being forced to drop âÂÂArsenalâ due to copyright restrictions.
In a 2009 interview with sport.ro, club chairman Lucian Costache recounted an anecdote from 1996, when the clubâÂÂstill known as Arsenal TunariâÂÂsent a letter to Arsenal F.C. requesting official kits, but no response was received. Around this period, a new stadium was built in the commune near Bucharest, and in 2009 the club secured a place in Romania's third division.
Over the years, CS Tunari has established itself as a consistent presence at the third tier, gradually improving its performances. The 2009âÂÂ10 season ended with a 9th-place finish under the guidance of Ion Ion. The following season, Virgil NiÃÂoi led the team to 7th place. Challenging years unfolded under Ion Voicu's leadership, with the team finishing 10th in 2011âÂÂ12 and slipping to 13th in 2012âÂÂ13, before Florin VlÃÂdilàstepped in to take charge in December 2012.
From the summer of 2013 onward, with Virgil NiÃÂoi returning, significant progress became evident. The club finished 8th in the 2013âÂÂ14 season and climbed to 4th in the 2014âÂÂ15 season. A tough 2015âÂÂ16 campaign saw a drop to 12th under coach Florin Bratu, who replaced NiÃÂoi after the team lost its first six matches of the season. Bratu departed the following summer and was succeeded by Tudorel Dumitru, who led the team to its best-ever finish at the time, securing 3rd place in the 2016âÂÂ17 season, followed by a solid 7th-place finish in the 2017âÂÂ18 season.
During this period, CS Tunari also updated its branding and logo in 2018, adopting a red-and-white color scheme instead of the previous red-and-blue combination. The new emblem briefly reintroduced the name âÂÂArsenal,â though the official club name remained CS Tunari.
ÃÂtefan Odoroabàcoached the team for the next three and a half seasons, achieving a 6th-place finish in the 2018âÂÂ19 season, 4th in the 2019âÂÂ20 season, and 5th in the 2020âÂÂ21 season. Odoroabàleft Tunari in March 2022 and was replaced by Marcel AbÃÂluÃÂÃÂ, who led the team to an impressive 2nd place in the 2021âÂÂ22 season, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After eliminating CS AfumaÃÂi in the first round 5âÂÂ2 on aggregate (3âÂÂ2 at home and 2âÂÂ0 away), the team lost the promotion in the second round to Progresul Spartac BucureÃÂti, 1âÂÂ7 on aggregate (0âÂÂ4 at home and 1âÂÂ3 away).
In the 2022âÂÂ23 season, Valentin Negru was appointed as the new head coach, but he left the club in November, with the team in 1st place. Assistant coach Alin Ilin took charge for the rest of the year. Gabriel Manu was hired in January 2023, leading the team to its first-ever promotion to Liga II. The Gunners ended the season in 1st place in Series IV, nine points ahead of PopeÃÂti-Leordeni. The promotion play-offs began with Farul ConstanÃÂa II being eliminated (1âÂÂ3 away and 4âÂÂ0 at home), followed by a victory over PopeÃÂti-Leordeni (1âÂÂ2 away and 3âÂÂ1 at home) in the final stage.
In June 2023, Tunari appointed Florin Stângàas head coach, just two days after unexpectedly parting ways with Gabriel Manu. Stângàled the team for six rounds before ÃÂtefan Odoroabàreplaced interim coach Alin Ilin in October 2023. The Gunners finished 17th in the regular season of 2023âÂÂ24 season and were placed in Group B of the play-out under the guidance of Dan Alexa, who replaced Odoroabàin March 2024. However, multiple changes in the squad and coaching staff led to relegation, with Tunari finishing second to last in the group. Tunari also qualified for the group stage of Cupa României after a 5âÂÂ0 victory over third-division side Viitorul Ianca. The group stage featured matches against Universitatea Craiova (1âÂÂ1), Voluntari (1âÂÂ1), and Gloria BuzÃÂu (1âÂÂ1), ending in 5th place out of 6 in Group D, resulting in elimination.
Tunari, coached by Dan Alexa, won Series V of the 2024âÂÂ25 season, qualified for the promotion play-off, and in the semi-finals the Ilfov-based side advanced without playing after BÃÂicoi was declared ineligible for participation. In the final promotion play-off round, they defeated Odorheiu Secuiesc 4âÂÂ0 in the first leg and secured a 1âÂÂ1 draw in the return leg, thus earning immediate promotion back to the second tier, with a squad that included Moroz, Ahmed, I. Croitoru, ÃÂerban, FurtunÃÂ, Tudorache, Vasu, Moga, GavrilÃÂ, Lupescu, Jerky Song, Ion, ÃÂegle, Dragu, Filip, Hlistei, SpÃÂtaru, R. Paul, BÃÂlan, and Pumbuitu.
Following the departure of Dan Alexa shortly before the start of the 2025âÂÂ26 Liga II season, CS Tunari appointed Bogdan PÃÂtraÃÂcu as head coach, but after seven rounds and only six points he was dismissed, after which assistant Alin Ilin had a short interim spell before Dinu Todoran was appointed in November.
CS Tunari plays its home matches on the Comunal Stadium in Tunari, with a capacity of 1,000 seats. The stadium was renovated and expanded in 2004 for the sum of 400,000 lei, at that time approximately 84,000 â¬. In 2017 the stadium was renovated again and the pitch was changed.
During the 2023âÂÂ24 season, Tunari Stadium underwent renovations, prompting the team to relocate their matches to the Central Stadium of the Romanian National Football Centre.
The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level and/or significant caps for CS Tunari.