[3] During the summer of 2012 (following a change of ownership in Lokomotiv Plovdiv), Venkov signed a contract with CSKA Sofia, but was initially unable to play in official matches for the team due to a transfer prohibition imposed on the "redmen".

A week later, he received his first major honor with the Sailors, as he captained the team that eliminated Levski Sofia 2–1 in the 2015 Bulgarian Cup Final.

[10] On 25 July 2018, following a short stint at Kazakhstan Premier League side Kyzylzhar, Venkov returned to Bulgaria, joining Chernomorets Balchik.

In October 2012, following a long absence from international duty, he was recalled to the national side by manager Luboslav Penev for two 2014 World Cup qualifiers – against Denmark and the Czech Republic, but remained an unused substitute in these games.

In February 2015, following the refusal of a number of Bulgarian and foreign clubs to release players for national team duty, Venkov again became part of the roster, being called up by new manager Ivaylo Petev to participate in a non-official friendly match against Romania.