Viitorul Pandurii Targu Jiu

Asociația Clubul Sportiv Viitorul Pandurii Targu Jiu, commonly known as Viitorul Pandurii Targu Jiu or Viitorul Targu Jiu, is a Romanian football club from Targu Jiu, Gorj County, currently playing in the Liga II.

Established in 1998, the team was known as Șirineasa and ACS Energeticianul, before moving to Targu Jiu in the summer of 2019 and renaming as Viitorul Pandurii Targu Jiu.

History

Viitorul Pandurii Targu Jiu was founded in 1998 as AS Șirineasa and played for almost all its history at county level, Liga IV and Liga V. At the end of 2015–16 Liga IV season, the team was crowned the champion of Valcea County and went to the promotion play-off match where they defeated Dolj County champions, Tractorul Cetate, 5–4 on aggregate and promoted to Liga III for the first time in the history of the club.

The first Liga III season was a very difficult one, financial problems and the weak number of players leading the team to the relegation area until the winter break. In the winter transfer period CS Șirineasa transferred an entire team from the newly disbanded CSM Ramnicu Valcea, but the team did not find its rhythm, finishing in the 13th place and relegating to Liga IV after only one season.

In the summer of 2017 the club has received an invitation from the Romanian Football Federation to continue in Liga III due to lack of teams. The club accepted and was later taken over by the businessman, Nicolae Sarcina. Originally from Gorj County, he was planning to move the team to Targu Jiu, following to play on the newly built Tudor Vladimirescu Stadium, within this idea the club changed its name from a legal point of view to ACS Energeticianul, shortly before the start of the season, but too late for a change in the Romanian Football Federation records, playing practically in the 2017–18 season with two names CS Șirineasa and ACS Energeticianul, fact that attracted a lot of complaints from the other competitors in the championship. The completion of the