The history of organized football in Celje began in 1919, with the establishment of I. SSK Celje (I. Slovenian Sports Club Celje). After the Second World War, two local sports associations merged to form NK Kladivar, which won both the Slovenian Republic League and Republic Cup in 1963/64 and earned promotion to the Yugoslav Second Federal League – West. Kladivar merged with Železničar Celje in 1967, and following Slovenia’s independence, Celje became a founding member of the new Slovenian top division, where it has competed ever since.

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Renamed NK Publikum in 1992, the club soon entered European competition for the first time, facing Odense in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup and later recording its first European victory against Maccabi Haifa in 1997. Celje finished second in the Slovenian championship in 2002/03 and won its first major national trophy in 2004/05, defeating Gorica in the Slovenian Cup final. In 2007, the club adopted its current name, Nogometni klub (Football Club) Celje - NK Celje. The club celebrated 100 years of organized Slovenian football in Celje in 2019, before becoming Slovenian champions for the first time in 2019/20.
 

A new golden era followed. Celje reached the UEFA Conference League play-offs in 2022/23 and won its second Slovenian championship in 2023/24. The following season became one of the greatest in club history. Under Albert Riera, Celje advanced to the UEFA Conference League quarter-finals, overcoming APOEL and Lugano before narrowly losing 4–3 on aggregate to Fiorentina. The achievement made Celje the first Slovenian club to reach the quarter-finals of a major UEFA club competition, while the home match against Fiorentina produced the first sell-out at Stadion Z’dežele. Celje ended the 2024/25 season by winning the Slovenian Cup and continued its success in 2025/26, securing a third Slovenian league title and reaching the Conference League Round of 16.
 

The 2026/27 season opened another historic European chapter. As Slovenian champions, Celje overcame Egnatia and Ararat-Armenia to reach the UEFA Champions League play-offs for the first time, where Slovan Bratislava narrowly ended the club’s Champions League journey. Reaching the play-offs nevertheless secured Celje its first-ever place in the UEFA Europa League league phase, with matches against Bayer Leverkusen, Omonia, Salzburg, Sturm Graz, Ferencváros, Olympiacos, Ararat-Armenia and N.E.C. Nijmegen. From its beginnings in 1919 to domestic titles and historic European nights, FC Celje has grown into one of Slovenia’s most successful and ambitious football clubs, continuing to write new chapters from the heart of the City of Counts.