Foundation Olimpija Ljubljana was founded on 2 March 2005 as NK Bežigrad, and was renamed NK Olimpija Bežigrad during their third season. The club was renamed again to ŠD NK Olimpija Ljubljana on 3 March 2008 after being granted the rights by the
administrative unit of the
City Municipality of Ljubljana. Because of their association with the dissolved club, Olimpija Ljubljana was criticised on numerous occasions by several media outlets, which questioned the legitimacy of their actions and even the fact that the club has a year 1911 inscribed on their crest. They were also criticised by
ND Ilirija 1911. In 2013, the Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia publicly disclosed the list of tax debtors in the country and among those was also NK Olimpija Ljubljana, with a tax debt between €100,000 and €300,000.
Early years (2005–2009) Assisted by semi-retired club legends of the old Olimpija and other notable Slovenian players, the club started to compete in the lowest tier of Slovenian football and won the fifth division in their first year. In the next two seasons, Bežigrad was promoted to the
Slovenian Second League, by winning both fourth and third divisions in consecutive seasons. During their season in the fourth division the club changed its name for the first time and became known as Olimpija Bežigrad. This happened despite the claims of Joc Pečečnik, one of the wealthiest man in Slovenia and, at the time, owner of
NK Interblock, that he is in fact the sole owner of the Olimpija name and brand. During the 2008–09 season, the club changed their name once again, this time to Olimpija Ljubljana. In the same season, the club won the second division title and earned a promotion to the
Slovenian top division. Throughout the path to the top division, Olimpija was supported by
Green Dragons, the fan group of the dissolved Olimpija. The success of the club, who earned a promotion from the fifth division to top division in only four seasons, was somewhat dented by a conflict between several players, coaching staff, club leadership and sponsors, which eventually led to a player-led boycott in the final round of the
2008–09 second division season. Due to this event, the club began their first season in Slovenian top flight (
2009–10) with a two points deduction. The club's fortunes soon turned result-wise and
Robert Pevnik was hired to take over as manager. The club finished the season in fourth place. in the
2011–12 Slovenian PrvaLiga In the run up to the 2010–11 season, principal sponsor Izet Rastoder was elected president and Hadžić took over as manager. The season started poorly, with a 5–0 aggregate defeat against
Široki Brijeg in the
UEFA Europa League qualifying round. This game was later alleged by German television station
ARD to have been fixed. It was later revealed that
UEFA officially investigated the match and that three players of Olimpija were under investigation. After another poor start which saw the club only manage two points in five matches, manager Hadžić and director of football
Simon Sešlar both left in August 2010.
Dušan Kosič then took over as manager with
Aleš Čeh as his assistant. On 26 January 2011, former Slovenian international
Milenko Ačimovič became the director of football. After a poor start into the season, the new director of football brought a couple of players with international experiences, among which was also a midfielder
Dare Vršič. During the second phase of the Slovenian championship the team started to show their potential and eventually finished their second 1. SNL season in fourth place, securing a place in the
2011–12 UEFA Europa League qualifications. With the 3–0 home victory against Široki Brijeg on 7 July 2011, Olimpija achieved its first victory in
UEFA competitions. In addition, it was the first international club match played at the
Stožice Stadium, opened in August 2010. During the
2011–12 Slovenian PrvaLiga season, the club finished as a runner-up behind Maribor.
National champions (2015 to present) In June 2015,
Milan Mandarić, a Serbian-American business tycoon, took over the club. In his
first season, the club won the Slovenian League title for the first time. During the
2017–18 season, Olimpija won the
double after winning the league title over Maribor with the same number of points, but with a better head-to-head record, and winning the
national cup after defeating
Aluminij 6–1 in the final. Olimpija won two more cup titles in
2018–19 and
2020–21, before winning their third league championship in
2022–23. They confirmed the title with five rounds to go, after beating rivals Maribor 2–0 in the 31st round. In the same season, Olimpija also won their fourth cup title after defeating Maribor 2–1 in the
2023 Slovenian Cup final, thus achieving their second double in five years.
Name changes • NK Bežigrad (2005–2007) • NK Olimpija Bežigrad (2007–2008) • NK Olimpija Ljubljana (2008–present) ==Club colours and kits==