FC Meshakhte (Georgian: საფეხბურთო კლუბი მეშახტე) is a Georgian professional football club based in Tkibuli. Following the 2025 season, they were promoted to the Erovnuli Liga, the top tier of Georgian football.
They are the two-time league champions and two-time cup winners of the Soviet period.
History Meshakhte participated in the Georgian Soviet league and twice, in 1980 and 1981, became champions. In 1964 and 1976 they also won the domestic Cup.
The club spent 13 seasons in the Soviet third division with the following combined results: + M W D L GF–GA 303 127 60 116 414-399
The success of the club was attributed to the large coal mine industry based in Tkibuli which financed the local football as well.
First years after the Georgian national league was formed, the club played in the second division. Between 1991 and 1996 they three times finished third and once, in 1997, came 2nd. Starting from 2005, Meshakhte spent thirteen consecutive seasons in Pirveli Liga.
The team had a third-place finish in 2016, which was their highest position during this period. But the next season turned out troublesome. The team produced a seventeen-game unwinning run. Three points earned in the last round saved the club from automatic relegation, although a home-and-away play-off tie ended unfavorably.
After two years in Liga 3 Meshakhte, struggling the whole season, finished at the bottom in 2020. However, they avoided another relegation due to some changes, introduced in late January 2021, which increased the number of clubs in this league.
In 2022, Meshakhte took part in a long survival battle, but they lost a crucial game and ended up in the drop zone. Nevertheless, this time due to disqualification of another club, the Miners retained their place in this division.
In June 2024, 70% of the club's share was put up for auction. As a result, Okriba Meshakhte Ltd took over the management with the rest of the share remaining in municipal property.
Meshakhte significantly improved in 2024, joining a title race from the very outset. They finished 2nd and sealed automatic promotion back to Erovnuli Liga 2 after a seven-year break.
The team continued its successful run in the 2nd division as well. After a narrow away win over the crowned league champions Rustavi in a final match of the season, Meshakhte under manager Lado Burduli sealed a play-off spot for the first time in their history. They went on to win a penalty shoot-out against Telavi to complete a back-to-back promotion to the top tier.
On 12 March 2026, Meshakhte claimed a historic away victory over the reigning cup holders Dila. Unable to hold their home matches in Tkibuli due to league requirements, the team was relocated to the Tskaltubo stadium for the whole season. Seasons + Year League Pos P W D L GFGA Pts 2005/06Pirveli Liga13/18 34 11 9 14 3840 42 2006/07 9/18 34 15 6 13 5340 51 2007/082/10 27 14 2 11 3941 44 2008/09 11/11 30 4 4 22 2061 16 2009/10 12/15 28 6 7 15 3668 25 2010/11 10/17 32 10 5 17 3248 35 2011/12 Pirveli Liga10/10 18 24 12 16 33 10B Group 4/8 20 9 3 8 35 32 30 2012/13 Pirveli Liga Group A 5/12 33 13 6 14 4266 45 2013/14 Pirveli Liga Group A 7/13 24 8 8 8 3738 32 2014/15 Pirveli Liga Group B7/10 36 14 5 17 5755 47 2015/16 Pirveli Liga 11/18 34 10 12 12 2831 42 2016 Pirveli Liga Group White3/916 9 2 5 2512 29 2017 Erovnuli Liga 29/10 367 6 23 3375 27 2018Liga 3 8/20 38 17 6 15 5954 57 2019 8/10 36 11 6 19 4355 39 2020 10/10 18 1 3 14 1045 6 2021 10/14 26 8 6 12 3145 30 2022 14/16 30 10 5 15 3539 35 2023 5/16 30 15 10 5 4924 55 2024 2/16 30 18 6 6 5422 60 2025 Erovnuli Liga 23/10 30 13 13 10 3425 52
Players As of 29 July, 2026
(on loan from Torpedo Kutaisi)
(on loan from Torpedo Kutaisi)
Stadium When the central stadium was opened in 1968, initially it was 17,000-seater in a city with almost 23,000 residents. It is currently able to hold 6,000 spectators.
Honours Soviet competitions Georgian Soviet Championship Champion: 1980, 1981 Georgian Soviet Cup Champion: 1964, 1976 Georgian competitions Pirveli Liga / Erovnuli Liga 2 Runners-up: 2008 Bronze Medal winner: 1991, 1994, 1995, 2025 Liga 3 Runners-up: 2024
Name In 1991, the club took part in the second division as Okriba only to regain the current name the next season.
Meshakhte literally means a miner. The name comes from shakhta which can be translated as a shaft in coal mine industry.
References
External links Team profile on Soccerway FC Meshakhte Tkibuli Results on Flashscore