Zawisza Bydgoszcz

The army needed a football team, so the army built one. It started in Koszalin as a military-sponsored side, and when the army headquarters relocated a year later, the team went with it to Bydgoszcz. The club dates from 1946, and the move came in 1947. The name Zawisza and the blue and black colours belong to the city it ended up in, though the kit is usually all black: shirt, shorts and socks.

For most of its history Zawisza was a solid provincial side that few expected to win anything. That changed in a short run of seasons. It won the I Liga in 2012–13, then the second tier, and went up to the Ekstraklasa. The next spring it reached the Polish Cup final against Zagłębie Lubin. The final finished 0–0, and Zawisza won 6–5 on penalties.

Within weeks the club beat Legia Warsaw 3–2 to add the Polish Super Cup. In 2014–15 it finished second in the league, the highest place it has reached. It has never won the title.

The collapse came as quickly as the rise. In June 2016 the professional company, WKS Zawisza Bydgoszcz SA, was dissolved. It had financial problems and failed to obtain a licence for the 2016–17 season. Supporters and local people refounded the club as a non-profit association, Stowarzyszenie Piłkarskie Zawisza Bydgoszcz. It started again in the B-class, the eighth tier. Local matches with Polonia Bydgoszcz are the club's own derby. Elana Toruń are the regional rivals.

The best-known name to have played for Zawisza is Zbigniew Boniek. He was there early in his career, before Juventus and the Poland national team made him a star.