This season will see a new name added to the long list of clubs that have played in the Ekstraklasa. At the end of the last campaign Podbeskidzie Bielsko Biala were promoted as runners-up to LKS Lodz, who are no strangers to the top flight themselves.

So where is Bielsko Biala and how long are they likely to stay in the top league?

However football is yet to really catch on in this part of Silesia, which is more noted for its legendary Zywiec beer, regarded by many connoisseurs including this writer, as Poland’s finest drop. PBB’s  main sponsors are, not surprisingly, Zywiec as well as building firms Prefabet and Murapol. However with its tiny stadium holding barely 4,000 spectators and which has rarely been filled during this historic campaign, it would take a Wojciechowski-type sugar-daddy to pay the higher wages and expenses which life in the Ekstraklasa will incur.

Podbeskidzie’s rise to the top drawer of Polish football has been fairly swift, they appeared in the second level for the first time only in the 2002/3 season.

After just managing to avoided relegation by one point, the Gorale established themselves until after five seasons they were confident enough to think about promotion to the Ekstraklasa. 2007/8 and the following season 2008/9 saw them edge closer to promotion, finishing 6th and then 4th just missing out on a promotion play-off spot. But that improvement was followed by a reversal when they again slipped down towards the relegation zone, just managing to avoid the drop by four points.

Finally at the end of last season they clinched that second promotional spot from a fast-gaining Flota Swinoujscie.

It is obvious that the Gorale lack experience at the highest level and may find it a struggle to stay in the top flight. Trener Robert Kasperczyk coached Hutnik Krakow, Gornik Wieliczka and KSZO Ostrowiec before coming to Bielsko-Biala last year.

Gorale’s most experienced player is midfielder Marek Sokolowski, the 33 year old has played 169 matches in the Ekstraklasa with Polonia Warszawa. Maciej Rogalski and Dariusz Latka are a couple of midfielders who have also enjoyed spells with Lechia Gdansk and Korona Kielce.

To bolster this deficiency the blues have recently bought Czech defender Ondrej Sourek, a 28 year old who has tasted football at the top of European football, first with Slavia Prague and then MSK Zilina in the Champions League group stage. With the latter he played against the likes of Chelsea and Marseilles.

A very interesting summer-signing is the return to the club of Adrian Sikora, from Cypriots club APOEL Nicosia. His experience will prove invaluable. Before setting out on a southern European journey which took him to Spain and a brief spell with Murcia before Cyprus, the 31 year old striker enjoyed four great seasons at Dyskobolia. During this period he won two Polish cups, played in Europe and scored 46 goals in 109 games, an impressive record by any standards.  He has also played twice for Poland.

But will all this be enough to help consolidate the new boys at this level of Polish football?