PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv of sporting conditions in the city. Most notably, the powerful national railway company through ZSK Plovdiv is the main benefactor for the creation of a state-of-the-art multi-purpose stadium in the city that opens in 1943. The stadium is constructed on the football pitches of the team of "Levski Plovdiv" and as such is the home grounds for both ZSK Plovdiv and Levski Plovdiv. As a result, the stadium is named "ZSK-Levski". In the years after 1944, the newly established communist rule embarks in several campaigns for "reorganisation of the sporting clubs in Bulgaria" so that they are aligned with the
FC Maritsa Plovdiv which flows past Plovdiv. The club is particularly famous for its renowned youth program that has produced many Bulgarian talents over the years – Hristo Stoichkov, Dinko Dermendzhiev, Aleksandar Aleksandrov. Bulgarian national first-team players Georgi Georgiev, Kostadin Vidolov, Krassimir Chomakov, Valeri Domovchiyski, Yordan Todorov, Asen Nikolov had also came through the ranks at Maritsa. In 2016–17 Third League season Maritsa Plovdiv finished second in their regional division, but gained promotion, because the first ranked team – FC Zagorets declined the offer to participate in the Second Professional League. On 16 June 2017 the club signed a contract with Botev Plovdiv