CSM Râmnicu Vâlcea
CSM Râmnicu Vâlcea was founded in 2004 following the dissolution of Chimia Râmnicu Vâlcea, the city's traditional football club. In its first season, CSM won Series V of the 2004–05 Divizia C and earned promotion to Divizia B. The club subsequently became a regular second-tier side and came close to promotion to Liga I on several occasions, finishing third in the 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2013–14 seasons.
The 2013–14 campaign was followed by a dispute over promotion to Liga I. CSM finished third in the promotion play-off, behind CS Universitatea Craiova and ASA Târgu Mureș, but club officials challenged Universitatea Craiova's eligibility to compete in the top division. CSM ultimately remained in Liga II.
In December 2016, the Râmnicu Vâlcea Municipality withdrew its financial support from the football club. Businessman Dan Nițu, the club's other major financier, announced that he was unable to continue financing the team on his own, and most of the senior players subsequently terminated their contracts.
In February 2017, club president Lucian Munteanu announced that the senior team would cease operations, while the youth sections would temporarily continue to compete in their respective competitions. The youth team reached the final of the national Under-17 championship later that year, losing to Atletico Vaslui in a penalty shoot-out, before CSM's remaining football activities were also discontinued.
SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea
A new municipally supported football project was launched in the summer of 2017 under the name SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea. The initials SCM stood for Sport Club Municipal, while the former club had competed under the initials CSM. The new organisation initially focused exclusively on youth football, with a number of players and coaches from the former CSM structure joining the project.
The senior team was re-established in the summer of 2022 and entered Liga IV – Vâlcea County, with Gabriel Mangalagiu appointed as head coach. SCM won the 2022–23 county championship and faced Rapid Buzescu, the Teleorman County champions, in the promotion play-off. The Vâlcea side won 2–0 away and 4–1 at home, securing promotion to Liga III with a 6–1 aggregate victory.
SCM immediately became one of the leading teams in Liga III. In the 2023–24 season, the club won Series VI and advanced through the first round of the promotion play-offs before facing Câmpulung Muscel in the decisive tie. SCM lost the first leg 1–2 away and drew the return leg 0–0, missing out on direct promotion. Following the expansion of Liga II to 22 teams, SCM received another opportunity through a supplementary promotion tournament, having ranked first among the defeated finalists with seven points and an 8–2 goal difference from its four previous play-off matches. The club failed to secure the additional promotion place and remained in the third tier.
In 2024–25, SCM again won its series and reached the decisive promotion play-off, this time against Gloria Bistrița. Gloria won the first leg 1–0, while SCM won the return leg 3–2 after extra time. With the tie level on aggregate, Gloria prevailed 5–4 in the penalty shoot-out and earned promotion to Liga II. The two legs attracted 8,000 spectators each, the highest attendances of the 2025 Liga III promotion finals.
During the same campaign, SCM recorded its best Cupa României performance under its current identity by qualifying for the group stage of the 2024–25 Cupa României. Drawn in Group D alongside Oțelul Galați, Sepsi OSK, CSM Reșița, Csikszereda and Unirea Alba Iulia, SCM lost its opening two matches against Reșița and Oțelul and was eliminated before the final round.
The 2025–26 season finally brought promotion. With Constantin Schumacher as head coach, SCM qualified for the play-off phase and finished first in its promotion group, securing direct promotion to Liga II. The achievement returned a senior team from Râmnicu Vâlcea to the second tier for the first time since CSM's withdrawal in 2017. Cătălin Doman, one of the squad's most experienced members, recorded the eighth promotion of his career with SCM.
SCM was officially included among the five clubs promoted from Liga III for the 2026–27 Liga II season, alongside Cetatea Suceava, Ștefăneștii de Jos, Politehnica Timișoara and Popești-Leordeni.
