Why has the champion team, which has defeated Barcelona, ​​been banned from being promoted to the top league for many years?

In Romanian football, the name Steaua București carries the glory and sentiment of a generation of fans. In 1986, they defeated Barcelona in the final of the European Champions League, becoming the first team in Eastern European history to win the Champions League. However, this former giant is now banned from being promoted to the Romanian top league due to "identity issues", which is a pity.

A history, the two teams, the Bucharest stars are now actually "divided into two": one is the FCSB, owned by private entrepreneur Joggie Becali, and currently leads the Romanian League L-League; the other is CSA Steaua București, wholly owned by the Ministry of Defense, is considered an orthodox continuation of the original club, retaining the team logo, name and European champion status in 1986.

However, it is this "institutional identity" that has become the biggest obstacle to the CSA's progress.

has excellent record, but cannot be upgraded

In the 2024/25 season, CSA Steaua has a good record and is currently ranked second in the promotion playoffs. According to their competitive results, they are fully qualified to go to the league.

But the Romanian Football Association has long stipulated that any club that has been promoted to the top league must be at least partially privatized. This is to ensure the club's market-oriented operation, financial transparency and commercial development. Since CSA is fully affiliated with the Ministry of Defense, it is considered a "public legal entity" and does not qualify for participation.

The Football Association also reiterated in an earlier official statement: "If you do not obtain a top league license or do not meet the regulations, your upgrade qualification will be automatically transferred to the qualifying teams that rank next to you." The huge budget is not helpful, surprisingly, CSA is not short of money. According to Roman media such as "ProSport", the Ministry of Defense allocated as much as 34 million euros for the overall operation of the club in 2025, of which the football department received a budget of 2 million euros, which is almost one of the most abundant conditions in Romania.

But the problem is not "whether there is money", but the legal structure of the club. Public legal groups cannot enter market-oriented professional leagues. This is not only a requirement of the Ronaldo Football Association, but also in line with UEFA's club participation system.

Seeking a way out: Introducing private capital?

Faced with the promotion threshold that has been "stuck" for many years, CSA has finally loosened. It is reported that the club is in cooperation negotiations with the South Korean defense giant Hyundai Rotem (Hyundai Rotem) to try to reform the club's structure by introducing strategic investors and eventually obtain the qualification to be promoted.

This is a difficult but necessary path. If the negotiations are successful, CSA may re-register the club in the form of "partial state-owned assets + part private enterprises", thus meeting the conditions for participating in the top league.

fans' dilemma and the split of reality

For Romanian fans, this is a confusing "double emotion":

On the one hand, although FCSB is more successful in its performance, it is considered by many to be "a corporate version that deprived the original team of history";

And CSA is the real Bucharest star in his heart, but he has never been able to confront FCSB head-on in the top league and recreate the grand occasion of the derby.

Now the two "Bucharest stars" can only develop at different levels, which makes fans feel pain and look forward to it.

Between marketization and traditional systems, the CSA Bucharest star is experiencing an identity crisis in modern football. The road to becoming a senior is not just a struggle in the arena, but also a contest between institutional reform and business thinking.

📌If you have been moved by the glory of the Bucharest star, you might as well give a thumbs up to support their future!