Until 2005 FC Honka was thought of as a "nearly, but not quite" team, a promising but always underachieving side in the Finnish First Division (
Ykkönen). In the late 1990s the objective was promotion, but year after year they failed. At the beginning of the 21st century FC Honka almost went bankrupt but was saved at the last moment. In early 2005 the club was taken over by Jouko Pakarinen and Jouko Harjunpää, who had a plan to turn FC Honka from underachievers to a
UEFA Champions League candidate. In the first year of their take-over of FC Honka, the new management succeeded in assembling a squad which won the First Division (Ykkönen) with ease and also made the semi-finals of the
Finnish Cup where they eventually lost 1–0 to
FC Haka. FC Honka was able to fight for top positions instantly, but narrowly missed the top three in their first two seasons. In 2007 the team reached the Finnish Cup final, losing to
Tampere United on penalties after extra time. As Tampere United also won the league title that season, FC Honka qualified for the
2008–09 UEFA Cup. In 2008, FC Honka achieved its highest place by finishing 2nd in the league.
Financial difficulties FC Honka won the Finnish Cup in 2012. However, due to financial difficulties the team was relegated to the third tier
Kakkonen in 2015. In 2015 the fitness center company Esport bought the club and after that, the club has also been known as Esport Honka. The club dominated their first season in the Kakkonen in 2015 and lost only two games, but were defeated in the promotion battle. After the 2016 season, the team was promoted to the second tier Finnish First Division (Ykkönen). After the
2017 Ykkönen season Honka was promoted to the highest Finnish tier (Veikkausliiga) after Promotion playoffs against
HIFK.
Financial problems again and the bankruptcy On 31 October 2023, it was widely reported in Finnish media, that with no prior announcement or warning, Honka hadn't paid the salaries for the staff or the players on time. Kurt Möller, the head of development and public relations of Esport, the company currently running the club, stated that Esport Honka had run out of money. On 5 November 2023, it was further reported that the severe financial difficulties might force Honka into bankruptcy, as it's probable that the owner
Färid Ainetdin is not willing to keep covering the annual losses of millions of euros anymore. Möller or Hexi Arteva, the General Manager of the club, did not comment on the reports in media. On 8 November 2023, it was reported that the General Manager Hexi Arteva had resigned from his job two days earlier, with no announcement or comments. On 10 November 2023, it was reported that Honka is unable to fulfill the requirements for the league license of
Veikkausliiga and will not play in the top tier in the
2024 season.
Henri Aalto, the former captain of Honka who announced his retirement from his professional career after the 2023 season, criticized the club in an interview with
Yle: "Every time, when Honka faces financial difficulties, I am frustrated by how poorly things are communicated and solved with the players, coaches and the rest of the staff. Nothing is announced beforehand. And when something negative happens, even then you have to be the one asking for information and to live in uncertainty." On 15 November 2023, when Honka wasn't able to get a league license for the second or the third tier, Henri Aalto commented on a case again to Finnish media. The players and the staff were still yet to get their salaries and bonuses. Foreign-born players are still stuck in the country clueless of the future. The owner Färid Ainetdin hasn't commented a word on the situation, and no one has managed to get a contact to him. Finally on 16 November 2023, Färid Ainetdin spoke to a small free local newspaper
Länsiväylä. He stated that the reason for the sudden cutting of funding of the club, is the long delay in the new stadium project in
Tapiola, and he is not ready to fund the club for four more years and waiting for the possible new stadium to be built and completed. According to Ainetdin, there are no financial conditions for Honka to keep playing in any of the three highest tiers of Finnish football. He also wishes that the players would get their salaries soon via insurance. On the same day, Esport Honka filed for bankruptcy at
the Court of Länsi-Uusimaa. On 21 November 2023, Esport Honka was declared for bankruptcy.
2024: New era On 16 November 2023, after Esport Honka had filed for bankruptcy, the club,
FC Honka ry, announced that Honka will continue playing in
Kakkonen, which will be the fourth-tier division starting in 2024. Honka will gain the division position of its former reserve team
Honka II, and use the name
Honka Akatemia. On 24 November 2023, the club announced that
Mika Väyrynen will be the new first team head coach. ==Honours==