The Riga Football Club (Rëgas futbola klubs or Rëgas Futbolklubs, RFK or Rëgas FK) was a Latvian football club which was founded on December 14, 1923 in Riga. It was the most successful Latvian football club in the 1920s and 30s, winning the Latvian Higher League and the precursor Latvian Championship eight times between 1924 and 1940. The club was the base team for the Latvia national football team in its early years. It disbanded after World War II.
In the 1920s, the club also had a basketball section, which won the Latvian Basketball League in 1926 and 1927.
The idea for its creation came about in 1922 with the goal of uniting Latvian players in a team which could beat the mostly-German öeizarmeà ¾s. The founder and manager was Juris RÃÂdlihs, one of the most active football organizers in Latvia. In 1923, most of the best Latvian footballers from JKS moved to Riga FK. Those included Hermanis Saltups, Aà ¡manis, Eihmanis, Roga, Bone, Sokolovs, Zemëts and the brothers Edvëns, Rà «dolfs and Arvëds BÃÂrda.
In its first season in the Riga Championship, Riga FK finished second â one point behind öeizarmeà ¾s. In 1924, when Riga FK acquired a new manager who also managed the Latvia national football team â Willy Malousek from Austria. Because it was prohibited to have foreign citizens playing in the Latvian league for that season, öeizarmeà ¾s didn't play in 1924. Riga FC easily beat its closest rivals â ASK Riga in the Riga championship and beat the province champions from CÃÂsis 5âÂÂ1, winning its first Latvian championship. In 1925 and 1926 Riga FK won its second and third titles.
In 1927, when the Latvian Higher League was launched, Olimpija LiepÃÂja took gold, leaving RFC with second place. Several players (including Arvëds Jurgens, VoldemÃÂrs Plade, ÃÂeslavs StanÃÂiks and Aleksandrs ÃÂbrams) left Riga FK during this season in order to found a new team â Riga Vanderers. Olimpija also beat RFK in the battle for title in 1928 and 1929.
In the 1930s, the emergence of the best pre-war Latvian footballer, ÃÂriks PÃÂtersons, once again brought good results for Riga FK â with titles in 1930 and 1931. In 1932, however, the team finished in its worst position so far â 3rd behind ASK and Riga Vanderers. The next titles for RK came in 1934 and 1935, when the team beat its competition by a large margin.
The last time that RFK won the Latvian title was in 1940, just months before Soviet occupation of Latvia. RFK was then disbanded with its best players joining FK Dinamo Rëga. In 1941, with the German occupation of Latvia, Riga FK and other Latvian football teams were restored and participated in the 1942âÂÂ1944 championships. The fate of former RFK was different, with some continuing to play football in Soviet Latvia, others emigrating and some being killed in the war.
In 1992, the former FK Auda was renamed Riga FK but, after a couple of seasons without serious results, it was renamed Auda again.
In 2014 Riga Football Club was founded.