On the last day of the 2016–17 season, they needed to defeat FC SKA-Khabarovsk away to achieve 4th place and a spot in the promotion play-offs for the Russian Premier League, but the game ended with a score of 2–2, leaving Tambov in 5th place.

At the end of the next 2017–18 season they secured 4th place and a chance to play in the promotion play-offs.

[2] For Premier League football purposes, they played their "home" games at the Mordovia Arena in Saransk, 184 miles away.

The local ground did not pass the Premier League standards and the planned renovation was not finished by the deadline.

The squad was filled out with free agents and prospects which the other RPL teams loaned for the rest of the season.