Coached by Ivan Čabrinović, the club became one of the strongest teams in the second league, and after several times being close, it finally reached promotion to the Yugoslav First League in 1982. In that same season, the club reached the semi-finals of the 1981–82 Yugoslav Cup where they lost against the cup winners Red Star Belgrade. The club played in the 1982–83 Yugoslav First League however it finished bottom of the table subsequently relegated back to the Second League. On 1 January 1985, the club changed its name into the one that still carries nowadays, FK Zemun.