VK Jug

{{Short description|Professional water polo club based in Dubrovnik, Croatia}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2026}} {{Infobox sports team | team = Vaterpolski klub Jug | color1 = | color2 = | logo = VK Jug logo.png | pixels = 175px | founded = {{Start date and age|1923}} | league = Croatian League Euro Cup | history = | arena = Bazen u Gružu (Capacity: 2,500) | city = Dubrovnik, Croatia | colours = Red and blue {{Color box|#d5001c}} {{Color box|#003c82}} | owner = | president = Tomislav Dumančić | coach = Vjekoslav Kobešćak | manager = | championships = '''4''' Champions League '''2''' Euro Cup '''2''' LEN Super Cup '''5''' Regional Water Polo League '''17''' Croatian Championships '''16''' Croatian Cups '''22''' Yugoslav Championships '''2''' Yugoslav Cups | titles = | cheerleaders = | dancers = | mascot = | broadcasters = | media = | website = {{URL|https://www.jug.hr/|jug.hr}} }}

'''Vaterpolski klub Jug ''' ({{langx|en|Jug Water Polo Club}}) is a professional water polo club based in Dubrovnik, Croatia. The club was established in 1923 as part of sports society "JUG". As of the 2025–26 season, VK Jug competes in the Croatian League and Euro Cup.

==History==

===1923–1941=== Since establishment in 1923, Jug was one of the most successful water polo clubs in Yugoslavia. It won fourteen Yugoslav Water Polo Championship titles in Kingdom of Yugoslavia.

===1945–1991=== During the existence of SFR Yugoslavia, Jug was among the elite Yugoslav water polo clubs, winning a total of eights Yugoslav Water Polo Championship titles; three in a row from 1949 to 1951, four in a row from 1980 to 1983, and their last one in 1985. Jug also won its first European title, the Champions Cup, in 1981. It also won the National Cup of Yugoslavia in 1981 and 1983.

===1991–2008=== After the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, Jug won six Croatian First League of Water Polo championships and eight Croatian Water Polo Cup titles until the 2007–08 season. It cemented its dominance in Croatia by winning the top-tier continental 2000–01 LEN Champions League and 2005–06 LEN Euroleague titles.

Dubrovnik City Council honoured the club in 1997 with the City of Dubrovnik Award.<ref>[https://www.dubrovnik.hr/gradska-uprava/gradsko-vijece/dobitnici-nagrade-grada-dubrovnika Dobitnici Nagrade Grada Dubrovnika] ''dubrovnik.hr''. City of Dubrovnik official website. Access date 6 April 2023.</ref>

===2008–present=== In the 2008–09 season, Jug won the inaugural season of the Regional Water Polo League. From 2009–10 to 2014–15, Jug was five-time runner-up in the competition and finished in third place once. In Croatia, it won five consecutive championship titles from 2008–09 to 2012–13 and Croatian Cup in the 2008–09 season.

In the 2015–16 season, Jug set a record by winning all competitions it played in.<ref name="2016historical">{{cite news |last1=V. |first1=A. |title=Evo zašto je ovo najuspješnija godina u Jugovoj povijesti |url=https://www.index.hr/sport/clanak/evo-zasto-je-ovo-najuspjesnija-godina-u-jugovoj-povijesti/897674.aspx |access-date=19 September 2019 |work=index.hr |date=5 June 2016 |language=hr}}</ref> After taking the Croatian League championship and Croatian Cup title, Jug won the Regional Water Polo League for the second time in club's history and was crowned the 2015–16 LEN Champions League champion for fourth time in club's history.<ref name="2016historical" />

Starting the 2016–17 season, Jug won the 2016 LEN Super Cup. Jug defended the Regional Water Polo League title in 2016–17, but was stopped in the final of the 2016–17 LEN Champions League by Hungarian team Szolnoki. In the 2017–18 season, Jug won third Regional League title in a row and lost in third-place game of the 2017–18 LEN Champions League.

In the 2018–19 season, Jug failed to defend the Regional Water Polo League title for fourth season in a row, losing to HAVK Mladost. Also, in the 2018–19 LEN Champions League, it lost in the quarterfinals to Hungarian team Ferencvárosi with 10–9.<ref>{{cite news |title=Veliki Jugov kiks! Ništa od borbe za Ligu prvaka |url=http://sportklub.hr/Vaterpolo/a86394-Veliki-Jugov-kiks-Nista-od-borbe-za-Ligu-prvaka.html |access-date=19 September 2019 |work=sportklub.hr |date=6 June 2019 |language=hr}}</ref>

==Honours== {| class="wikitable" ! Competition !!# !!Winning years |- bgcolor="#EFEFEF" ! National Championships !!39 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''National Championship of Croatia''' ||align="center"|17 ||2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |National Championship of Communist Yugoslavia ||align="center"|8 ||1949, 1950, 1951, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |National Championship of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia ||align="center"|14 ||1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1940 |- bgcolor="#EFEFEF" ! National Cups !!18 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''National Cup of Croatia''' ||align="center"|16 ||1994, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" | National Cup of Communist Yugoslavia ||align="center"|2 ||1981, 1983 |- bgcolor="#EFEFEF" ! Regional Championships !!5 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''Regional Water Polo League''' ||align="center"|5 ||2009, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2023 |- bgcolor="#EFEFEF" ! European Cups !!8 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''LEN Champions League''' ||align="center"|4 ||1981, 2001, 2006, 2016 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''LEN Super Cup''' ||align="center"|2 ||2006, 2016 |-bgcolor="#FFFFFF" |'''LEN Cup''' ||align="center"|2 ||2000, 2024 |}

==Current squad== '''Season 2021–22'''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jug.hr/team/145-VK-Jug-CO|title=Seniori|publisher=jug.hr}}</ref> {| class=wikitable style="font-size: 95%;" ! No. ! Nat. !width=145|Player ! Birth Date ! Position ! L/R |- |align=center|1 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Toni Popadić|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1994|11|5}}|| Goalkeeper|| |- |align=center|2 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Hrvoje Zvono|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2003|1|31}}|| Wing|| |- |align=center|3 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Loren Fatović|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1996|11|16}}|| Wing|| |- |align=center|4 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Luka Stahor|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2002|4|21}}|| Center||R |- |align=center|5 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Maro Joković|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1987|10|1}}|| Wing||L |- |align=center|6 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Greece}}|| Alexandros Papanastasiou|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1999|2|12}}||Wing|| |- |align=center|7 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Marin Tomasović|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2001|1|26}}|| Wing|| |- |align=center|8 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Greece}}|| Stylianos Argyropoulos|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1996|8|2}}||Wing|| |- |align=center|9 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Filip Kržić|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2000|8|28}}|| Wing|| |- |align=center|10 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Greece}}|| Konstantinos Kakaris|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1999|7|2}}|| Center||R |- |align=center|11 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Hrvoje Benić|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1992|4|26}}|| Guard||R |- |align=center|12 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Marko Žuvela|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2001|12|22}}|| Guard||R |- |align=center|13 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Ivan Jurišić|| {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2003|8|28}}||Goalkeeper||R |- |align=center|14 ||align=center|{{flagicon|Croatia}}|| Ivuša Burđelez || {{Birth date and age|df=yes|2005|7|11}}|| Guard||R |-

===Staff=== {| class=wikitable bgcolor="white" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" border="1" style="font-size: 95%; border-collapse: collapse;" |- ! colspan="2" style="margin:0.7em;color:#FFFFFF;text-align:center;background:#2B65EC"|Technical Staff |- | align="left" |Chairman | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Tomislav Dumančić |- | align="left" |Vice-chairman | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Željan Konsuo |- | align="left" |Vice-chairman | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Pero Kulaš |- | align="left" |Vice-chairman | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Lukša Jakobušić |- | align="left" |Club director | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Ognjen Kržić |- !colspan=2 style="text-align: center;"| |- | align="left" |Head coach | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Vjekoslav Kobešćak |- | align="left" |Assistant coach | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Đani Pecotić |- | align="left" |Assistant coach | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Miho Bobić |- | align="left" |Goalkeeping coach | align="left" |{{flagicon|Croatia}} Maro Balić |- |}

==Recent seasons== {{updated|7 May 2025.}}

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:88%; text-align:center" |- !Season !Tier !League !{{Tooltip|Pos.|Position after playoffs}} !Domestic cup !Regional League !colspan=2 | European competitions |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1992 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd | {{n/a|not held}} | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1992–93 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1993–94 | 1 || 1. HVL | 5th | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1994–95 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:gold"| Champion | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1995–96 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1996–97 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''3''' LEN Cup || {{Tooltip|SF|Semifinalist}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1997–98 | 1 || 1. HVL | 4th | Quarterfinalist | | |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1998–99 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | Quarterfinalist | |align=left| '''3''' LEN Cup || {{Tooltip|SF|Semifinalist}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 1999–00 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | |align=left| '''3''' LEN Cup || bgcolor=gold|{{Tooltip|C|Champion}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2000–01 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || bgcolor=gold|{{Tooltip|C|Champion}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2001–02 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|4th|Fourth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2002–03 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''2''' Cup Winners' Cup || {{Tooltip|QF|Quarterfinalist}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2003–04 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || {{Tooltip|PR|Preliminary round}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2004–05 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || {{Tooltip|4th|Fourth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2005–06 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || bgcolor=gold|{{Tooltip|C|Champion}} |- | rowspan=2 style="background:#efefef;"| 2006–07 | rowspan=2| 1 || rowspan=2|1. HVL | rowspan=2 style="background:gold"| 1st | rowspan=2 style="background:gold"| Champion | rowspan=2 | |align=left| LEN Super Cup || bgcolor=gold|C |- |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || bgcolor=silver|{{Tooltip|F|Runner-up}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2007–08 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:gold"| Champion | |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || bgcolor=silver|{{Tooltip|F|Runner-up}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2008–09 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:gold"| Champion |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || bgcolor=#e1b384|{{Tooltip|3rd|Third place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2009–10 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || {{Tooltip|4th|Fourth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2010–11 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:#e1b384"| Semifinalist | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Euroleague || {{Tooltip|SGR|Second group round}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2011–12 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:#e1b384"| Semifinalist |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|QF|Quarterfinalist}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2012–13 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || bgcolor=silver|{{Tooltip|F|Runner-up}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2013–14 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|PR|Preliminary round}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2014–15 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:#e1b384"| Semifinalist | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|4th|Fourth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2015–16 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:gold"| Champion |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || bgcolor=gold|{{Tooltip|C|Champion}} |- | rowspan=2 style="background:#efefef;"| 2016–17 | rowspan=2| 1 || rowspan=2| 1. HVL | rowspan=2 style="background:gold"| 1st | rowspan=2 style="background:gold"| Champion | rowspan=2 style="background:gold"| Champion |align=left| LEN Super Cup || bgcolor=gold|C |- |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || bgcolor=silver|{{Tooltip|F|Runner-up}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2017–18 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:gold"| Champion |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|4th|Fourth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2018–19 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|5th|Fifth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2019–20 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{n/a|{{Tooltip|—{{ref|1|1}}}}}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2020–21 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:silver"| Runner-up |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|5th|Fifth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2021–22 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:silver"| Runner-up | style="background:#e1b384"| Semifinalist |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|8th|Eighth place}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2022–23 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:silver"| 2nd | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:gold"| Champion |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|QF|Quarterfinalist}} |- | style="background:#efefef;"| 2023–24 | 1 || 1. HVL | style="background:gold"| 1st | style="background:gold"| Champion | style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd |align=left| '''2''' Euro Cup || bgcolor=gold|{{Tooltip|C|Champion}} |- | rowspan=3 style="background:#efefef;"| 2024–25 | rowspan=3|1 || rowspan=3|1. HVL | rowspan=3 style="background:#e1b384"| 3rd | rowspan=3 style="background:gold"| Champion | rowspan=3| 8th |align=left| Super Cup || bgcolor=silver|{{Tooltip|F|Runner-up}} |- |align=left| '''1''' Champions League || {{Tooltip|QR|Qualification round}} |- |align=left| '''2''' Euro Cup || {{Tooltip|EF|Eighth-finals}} |} {{refbegin}} :{{note|1|1}} Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. {{refend}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * {{Official website|https://www.jug.hr/}}

{{LEN Champions League winners}} {{LEN Euro Cup winners}} {{1999–2000 LEN Trophy champions roster}} {{2000–01 LEN Champions League champions roster}} {{2005–06 LEN Euroleague champions roster}} {{2015–16 LEN Champions League champions roster}} {{Regional Water Polo League}}

Category:Sports clubs and teams established in 1923 Category:Water polo clubs in Croatia Category:Water polo clubs in Yugoslavia Category:LEN Euroleague clubs Category:Sport in Dubrovnik Category:Recipients of the Charter of the Republic of Croatia