Match of the 5th round of the expansion of the first football league, group for the title: Sparta Prague – Viktoria Plzeň, May 27, 2023, Prague. Sparta players celebrating on Letná.
Prague – After the last fifth round of the league extension against Pilsen, the players of Sparta took over the cup for the new champion. Prague lost 0:1 to last year's champion at the end of the season, but they didn't let that spoil the celebrations at the sold-out Letná. The team then moved by bus to the neighboring Letenská plain, where they continued celebrating on stage in front of thousands of fans until late in the evening. Among other things, the Spartans remembered the tragically deceased former representative Josef Šural, and at the end, Vojtěch Dyk sang the club song.
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Photo gallery: First Football League 2022/23
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Since Tuesday's goalless draw in Uherské Hradiště, the Spartans were already assured of their first title in nine years, and today's match was therefore carried in a celebratory spirit. Before kick-off, Letenski captain Ladislav Krejčí Jr. received the key to Prague from the mayor of the capital Bohuslav Svoboda for the winner of the last derby.
During the match, the fans often chanted shouts like “Sparta Prague, champion of the league” or “So we're first, so what?”. In the 12th minute, the supporters on the opposite stand created a big choreo with the inscription “Champions” in gold color, after a quarter of an hour of the game, the Mexican wave began to circulate through the stadium for the first time.
In the 58th minute, Matěj Vydra sent Viktoria into the lead, to the Spartan fans but that didn't matter too much. In the 84th minute, the referee Stanislav Volek had to stop the match for a while, because dozens of supporters behind one of the goals, where the “boiler” is located, climbed from the stands to the sideline.
Even captain Krejčí had to persuade the fans to stay off the pitch. The referee then preferred to end the match immediately after the 90th minute, and several thousand fans ran onto the pitch in euphoria.
The fans gathered under the main stand, where an improvised stage was to be erected, on which the Spartans then received the victory cup and medals. The home announcer had to call the fans for several minutes to clear the area, and the championship ceremony did not start until more than half an hour after the final whistle.
The Leten team put on special black title T-shirts and caps with the inscription “Champions Z37NÉ”, symbolizing the number the champion primates of Sparta. Gradually, all members of the implementation team and players took to the stage. Symbolically, the recovered defender Ondřej Čelůstka, who started the last eight minutes today and played for the A-team in a competitive match for the first time since last February, jumped on one leg.
The biggest applause was received by the Danish coach of Sparta Brian Priske and captain Krejčí, who then received the winning trophy. “One of the greatest moments in my life. It's just a shame that they splashed the champagne in my face, I couldn't see anything. But it was great. This was also one of the things I imagined how I would be able to lift it with the team. These are things you won't forget,” Krejčí told reporters.
The celebrations culminated on the neighboring Letenská plain, where a large improvised stage was erected in front of thousands of enthusiastic fans, to which the team arrived by bus from the nearby stadium. The moderator gradually introduced all the players and members of the implementation team.
Defensive all-rounder David Pavelka put on a shirt with the number 23 and the name of the former Letenské Šural striker, who died four years ago at the age of 28 in a traffic accident during an engagement in Turkey. It also commemorated other deceased Spartans.
Former Prague captain Bořek Dočkal and legendary forward David Lafata also arrived on stage. The sports manager of the A-team Tomáš Sivok and the sports director Tomáš Rosický also spoke, who, like Priske, found himself above the players' heads for a moment. frequented by Slavia fans, where he worked in the past. Rosický, on the other hand, jokingly started with the vulgar chant “Sparta's leadership is a bunch of nos”, which was often shouted by Leten supporters during unsuccessful previous seasons. The evening culminated with the club song “Na srdci S” performed by the singer and actor Dyko. Subsequently, the Spartans set off for yet another private celebration.
In the past few days, during the celebrations, the Letenskés have already enjoyed, for example, a triumphal boat cruise in Prague on the Vltava River. “We live in euphoria. It's great when it's spread over several days. The ship was amazing, we had the Charles Bridge, it was something incredible. We have a few people there who slept the least, I'm one of them. We're full, what are the bombs? After the Letenská plain, we will definitely have another celebration. I hope that everyone will still gather the remnants of their strength and let them go,” Krejčí added.
