Credit: Andrei Anghelov at English Wikipedia, Sheriff Steaua match, CC BY 3.0
On a chilly night in Spain at the end of September, football witnessed one of its greatest-ever upsets.
Genuine surprises in football happen plenty, but real upsets that cause eyebrows to be raised worldwide are much rarer. Real Madrid is an institution, a team known for its megastars, lavish trophy room, and constant success. Sheriff Tiraspol sounds like a character from a Wild West comedy cartoon. Nobody was laughing after they rode into town and stole three Champions League points.
Sebastien Thill grabbed a late winner in the Bernabeu, securing a shock 2-1 win. They had already caused a huge upset, firstly by becoming the first-ever Moldovan team to qualify for the group stages, and secondly for beating Shakhtar Donetsk in their opening game. If that got the football world talking, their smash-and-grab raid in one of the world’s greatest stadiums got them raving. They were rank outsiders in the Champions League betting odds with Ladbrokes at one stage, but they’re now sat atop of their group, above Inter Milan and Real Madrid. It might still take a miracle for them to survive four more matches, but they’ve certainly arrived on the world stage.
Who are Sheriff Tiraspol, and how have they suddenly become big news across the world?
Football History
Whilst they might not be movers and shakers in the wider European football world, they are a big name in Moldova; they’ve won 17 of the last 19 Moldovan titles, as well as 10 Moldovan Cups and seven Super Cups. A recent FourFourTwo article revealed that despite their domestic success, this is the first time they’ve made it through to the Champions League group stages. In the past, they’ve been eliminated by the likes of KF Shkëndija (1-0) and Austrian side Grazer AK (6-1). They don’t survive long after dropping into the Europa League either; in 2020, Irish side Dundalk eliminated them on penalties, whilst FK Željezničar Sarajevo has also previously ended their interest. They have been in the group stages before but never progressed.
Cultural History
Their off-field history is a little more complicated. Moldova was a part of the USSR until it broke up, and teams from the state used to play in the Russian pyramid. In 1992, Moldova formed its football league, of which Tiraspol are included in their league. This is where things get cloudy; technically, they’re not Moldovan. Tiraspol is the capital of a breakaway state called Transnistria, which is close to the border with Ukraine. The state believes they are the last remaining outpost of the USSR, and the football team were formed by state officials in 1997. They take the name Sheriff from the nations only supermarket chain.
Facilities
Whilst their history is not illustrious nor particularly proud, they do have some fantastic facilities. Moldova has used the ground as their international base, despite it technically not being in the country. The Sheriff Stadium holds 12,746 fans and is set in 40 hectares of training pitches, on-site player’s residencies and even a soccer academy.
The Team
Sheriff’s domestic success is down to their ability to attract players from around the world. Fernando Costanza was once of Botafogo, whilst Greek winger Dimitris Kolovos has appeared nine times for his country, with Lovro Bizjak having a Slovenian cap to his name also. They might be minnows in the strictest sense, but there is nothing amateur about their lineup. With Shakhtar still to play and Madrid yet to visit Moldova, there could be even further shocks down the line from everyone’s new favorite Moldovan football club.