Veikkausliiga
| File:Veikkausliigan logo.svg | |
| Country |  Finland |
|---|---|
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Ykkönen |
| Domestic cup(s) | Finnish Cup |
| League cup(s) | Finnish League Cup |
| International cup(s) | Champions League UEFA Europa League |
| Current champions | SJK Seinäjoki (2015) |
| Most championships | HJK Helsinki (11) |
| TV partners | ISTV, Yle TV2 |
| Website | Veikkausliiga |
 2015 Veikkausliiga |
|
| Finnish Football League Structure |
|---|
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Veikkausliiga (Tier 1) |
Veikkausliiga (Swedish: Tipsligan) is the premier division of Finnish football, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikkaus, hence the league's name. Veikkausliiga was founded in 1990; before that the top division was called Mestaruussarja (championship series) since 1930 which was an amateur or semi-professional league. Between 1908 and 1930 the championship was decided in a cup competition.
Ykkönen (division one) has been the second highest level of Finnish football since 1973.
As with certain other cold-climate European countries, league matches in Finland are played in summer, with a schedule usually from April to October. The format and number of teams has changed frequently, and in the 2013 season there were 12 teams, with each team playing the others three times, for 33 rounds during the season. An uneven number of matches meant that the best six teams from the 2012 season had 17 home matches and the other six teams had 16 home matches. At the end of the season, the lowest-placed team is relegated to Ykkönen, whose winner is promoted to Veikkausliiga.
In 2010 the average annual salary with fringe benefits for a league player was 24,400 euro.[1] Veikkausliiga is a founding member of the European Professional Football Leagues association.[2]
Contents
Clubs
The Veikkausliiga clubs in the 2015 season are presented in the table below. Number of seasons includes seasons played in preceding Mestaruussarja and seasons of predecessor teams.
| Club |
City | Stadium | Capacity | 2014 position | Number of seasons* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Ilves | Tampere | Tammela Stadion | 5,040 | 3rd in Ykkönen | 33 |
| FC Inter Turku | Turku | Veritas Stadion | 9,372 | 10th | 26 |
| KTP | Kotka | Arto Tolsa Areena | 4,780 | 2nd in Ykkönen | 25 |
| FC Lahti | Lahti | Lahti Stadium | 14,500 | 3rd | 38 |
| FF Jaro | Jakobstad | Jakobstads Centralplan | 5,000 | 6th | 24 |
| HIFK | Helsinki | Sonera Stadium | 10,300 | 1st in Ykkönen | 30 |
| HJK | Helsinki | Sonera Stadium | 10,300 | 1st | 73 |
| IFK Mariehamn | Mariehamn | Wiklöf Holding Arena | 4,000 | 5th | 10 |
| KuPS | Kuopio | Savon Sanomat Areena | 5,000 | 7th | 57 |
| RoPS | Rovaniemi | Rovaniemen Keskuskenttä | 4,000 | 9th | 27 |
| SJK | Seinäjoki | Seinäjoen Keskuskenttä | 4,500 | 2nd | 1 |
| VPS | Vaasa | Hietalahti | 4,600 | 4th | 47 |
Former clubs
| Club | Home town | Seasons |
| AC Allianssi | Vantaa | 2002–2005 |
| AC Oulu | Oulu | 2007, 2010 |
| Atlantis FC | Helsinki | 2001 |
| FC Haka | Valkeakoski | 1990–1996, 1998–2012 |
| FC Honka | Espoo | 2006–2014 |
| FC Hämeenlinna | Hämeenlinna | 2002–2004 |
| FC Jazz1 | Pori | 1991–2004 |
| FC Jokerit | Helsinki | 1999–2001, 2003 |
| FC KooTeePee | Kotka | 2003–2008 |
| FC Kuusysi2 | Lahti | 1990–1995 |
| FC Oulu | Oulu | 1992, 1994 |
| FC Viikingit | Helsinki | 2007 |
| FinnPa | Helsinki | 1993–1998 |
| JJK | Jyväskylä | 2009–2013 |
| KPV | Kokkola | 1990 |
| Kumu | Kuusankoski | 1990 |
| MP | Mikkeli | 1990–1996 |
| MyPa | Kouvola | 1992–2014 |
| OTP | Oulu | 1990–1991 |
| PK-35 | Helsinki | 1998 |
| Ponnistus | Helsinki | 1995 |
| Reipas2 | Lahti | 1990–1991 |
| TPV | Tampere | 1993–1995, 1999 |
| Tampere United3 | Tampere | 2000–2010 |
| TP-Seinäjoki | Seinäjoki | 1997 |
| TP-47 | Tornio | 2004–2005 |
| TPS | Turku | 1990–2000, 2003–2014 |
1) FC Jazz was formerly known as PPT (Porin Pallotoverit).
2) Kuusysi and Reipas merged their professional teams in 1996 to form FC Lahti. Kuusysi returned to Kakkonen in 2011 under the name Lahti Akatemia, while Reipas returned to Kolmonen one year later.
3) Tampere United was formed in 1998 after it inherited the place of FC Ilves. Tampere United was dissolved in 2011 and Ilves, which had continued playing at lower levels, got promoted back to the highest league in 2015.
Veikkausliiga 1990–present
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| Season | Winner | Runners-up | Third place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | HJK | Kuusysi | MP |
| 1991 | Kuusysi | MP | FC Haka |
| 1992 | HJK | Kuusysi | FC Jazz |
| 1993 | FC Jazz | MyPa | HJK |
| 1994 | TPV | MyPa | HJK |
| 1995 | FC Haka | MyPa | HJK |
| 1996 | FC Jazz | MyPa | TPS |
| 1997 | HJK | VPS | FinnPa |
| 1998 | FC Haka | VPS | PK-35 |
| 1999 | FC Haka | HJK | MyPa |
| 2000 | FC Haka | FC Jokerit | MyPa |
| 2001 | TamU | HJK | MyPa |
| 2002 | HJK | MyPa | FC Haka |
| 2003 | HJK | FC Haka | TamU |
| 2004 | FC Haka | AC Allianssi | TamU |
| 2005 | MyPa | HJK | TamU |
| 2006 | TamU | HJK | FC Haka |
| 2007 | TamU | FC Haka | TPS |
| 2008 | FC Inter | FC Honka | FC Lahti |
| 2009 | HJK | FC Honka | TPS |
| 2010 | HJK | KuPS | TPS |
| 2011 | HJK | FC Inter | JJK |
| 2012 | HJK | FC Inter | TPS |
| 2013 | HJK | FC Honka | VPS |
| 2014 | HJK | SJK | FC Lahti |
| 2015 | SJK | RoPS | HJK |
Performance
Performance by club
The following clubs have won:
Finnish Championship Cup Competition (1908–1929)
Mestaruussarja (1930–1989)
Veikkausliiga (1990–present)
28 clubs have been Champions.
| Club | Titles | Runners-up | Winning Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| HJK |
|
|
1911, 1912, 1917, 1918, 1919, 1923, 1925, 1936, 1938, 1964, 1973, 1978, 1981, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 |
| FC Haka |
|
|
1960, 1962, 1965, 1977, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004 |
| HPS |
|
|
1921, 1922, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1957 |
| TPS |
|
|
1928, 1939, 1941, 1949, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1975 |
| HIFK |
|
|
1930, 1931, 1933, 1937, 1947, 1959, 1961 |
| KuPS |
|
|
1956, 1958, 1966, 1974, 1976 |
| FC Kuusysi |
|
|
1982, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1991 |
| Kiffen |
|
|
1913, 1915, 1916, 1955 |
| ÅIFK |
|
|
1910, 1920, 1924 |
| Reipas Lahti |
|
|
1963, 1967, 1970 |
| VIFK |
|
|
1944, 1946, 1953 |
| Tampere United |
|
|
2001, 2006, 2007 |
| VPS |
|
|
1945, 1948 |
| KTP |
|
|
1951, 1952 |
| OPS |
|
|
1979, 1980 |
| FC Jazz |
|
|
1993, 1996 |
| MyPa |
|
|
2005 |
| FC Inter Turku |
|
|
2008 |
| SJK |
|
|
2015 |
| PUS |
|
|
1909 |
| Sudet Vyborg |
|
|
1940 |
| KPV |
|
|
1969 |
| FC Ilves |
|
|
1983 |
| Unitas |
|
|
1908 |
| HT |
|
|
1942 |
| Ilves-Kissat |
|
|
1950 |
| Pyrkivä Turku |
|
|
1954 |
| TPV |
|
|
1994 |
Performance by city
Top scorers
| Season | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 |  Marek Czakon |
Ilves | 16 |
| 1991 | Kimmo Tarkkio |
FC Haka | 23 |
| 1992 |  Luiz Antônio |
FC Jazz | 21 |
| 1993 | Antti Sumiala |
FC Jazz | 20 |
| 1994 | Dionísio |
TPV | 17 |
| 1995 |  Valeri Popovitch |
FC Haka | 21 |
| 1996 | Luiz Antônio |
FC Jazz | 17 |
| 1997 | Rafael |
HJK | 11 |
| 1998 | Matti Hiukka |
RoPS | 11 |
| 1999 | Valeri Popovitch |
FC Haka | 23 |
| 2000 | Shefki Kuqi |
FC Jokerit | 19 |
| 2001 | Paulus Roiha |
HJK | 22 |
| 2002 | Mika Kottila |
HJK | 18 |
| 2003 | Saku Puhakainen |
MyPa | 14 |
| 2004 | Antti Pohja |
TamU | 16 |
| 2005 | Juho Mäkelä |
HJK | 16 |
| 2006 | Hermanni Vuorinen |
FC Honka | 16 |
| 2007 | Rafael |
FC Lahti | 14 |
| 2008 | Aleksandr Kokko |
FC Honka | 13 |
| Henri Myntti |
TamU | ||
| 2009 | Hermanni Vuorinen |
FC Honka | 16 |
| 2010 | Juho Mäkelä |
HJK | 16 |
| 2011 | Timo Furuholm |
FC Inter Turku | 22 |
| 2012 |  Irakli Sirbiladze |
FC Inter Turku | 17 |
| 2013 | Tim Väyrynen |
FC Honka | 17 |
| 2014 | Jonas Emet |
FF Jaro | 14 |
 Luis Solignac |
IFK Mariehamn | ||
| 2015 | Aleksandr Kokko |
RoPS | 17 |
Individual all-time records
Most matches played
Last updated: 26 October 2014. |
Most goals scored
Last updated: 26 October 2014. |
See also
References
External links
- Official website
- Escape To Suomi - the latest Veikkausliiga news (in English)
- Finland - List of League First Level Tables at RSSSF
- Fixtures and Tables on aragon.ws
- Clean and simple game scores featuring RSS feed
- League321.com - Finnish football league tables, records & statistics database. (English)
