Danish Superliga
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For current news on this topic see: Danish Superliga 2006-07 |
| Danish Superliga | |
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| Sport | Football |
| Founded | 1991 |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country |  Denmark |
| Current champions | F.C. Copenhagen |
The Danish Superliga is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest league of football (soccer) in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each year. Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) is the main sponsor of the Superliga, and the official name of the tournament is SAS Ligaen.
Since the 2000-01 season, the competition has been dominated by F.C. Copenhagen and Brøndby IF who have taken turns finishing champions and runners up.
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[edit] History
Founded in 1991, the Danish Superliga replaced the Danish 1st Division as the highest league of football in Denmark.
From the start in 1991, 10 teams were participating. The opening Superliga season was played during the spring of 1991, with the ten teams playing each other twice for the championship title. From the summer of 1991, the tournament structure would stretch over two years. The 10 teams would play each other twice in the first half of the tournament. In the following spring, the bottom two teams would be cut off, the points of the teams would be cut in half, and the remaining eight teams would once more play eacother twice, for a total of 32 games in a season.
This practice was abandoned before the 1995-96 season, when the number of teams competing were increased to 12, playing each other thrice for 33 games per Superliga season. For the first season of this new structure, Coca-Cola became the name sponsor of the league, which was then named Coca-Cola Ligaen. After a single season under that name, Faxe Brewery became sponsors and the league changed its name to Faxe Kondi Ligaen. Before the 2001-02 season, Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) became the head sponsor, and the name of the tournament changed to SAS Ligaen.
[edit] Structure
Since 1996, 12 clubs have played in the league, playing eachother thrice. Each team meets each one of the other teams one time at home, one time away, plus one more time home or away dependent of the clubs placement in the previous season. The two teams with the fewest points are relegated to the Danish 1st Division.
The Danish champion will play in the UEFA Champions League in the upcoming season where they will start in the 2nd qualifying round. The runner-up will play the UEFA Cup along with the winner of the Danish Cup. Both teams will start in the 2nd qualifying round. The third-placed team will play in the UEFA Intertoto Cup in the upcoming season and will start in the 2nd round. Teams finishing 1st to 4th are all qualified for the Royal League.
[edit] Current participants
| Clubs placed on map |
| Club |
Finishing position last season |
First season in top division |
First season of current spell in top division |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aalborg BK | 5th | 1928–29 | 1987 |
| AC Horsens | 10th | 2005–06 | 2005–06 |
| Brøndby IF | 2nd | 1982 | 1982 |
| Esbjerg fB | 6th | 1928–29 | 2001–02 |
| F.C. Copenhagen | 1st | 1992–93 | 1992–93 |
| FC Midtjylland | 7th | 2000–01 | 2000–01 |
| FC Nordsjælland | 9th | 2002–03 | 2002–03 |
| Odense BK | 3rd | 1927-28 | 1999–00 |
| Randers FC | 2nd in 1st Division | 1941–42 | 2006–07 |
| Silkeborg IF | 8th | 1988 | 2004–05 |
| Vejle BK | 1st in 1st Division | 1940–41 | 2006–07 |
| Viborg FF | 4th | 1927–28 | 1998–99 |
[edit] Seasons
[edit] Winners
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| Season | Performance | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | |
| 1991 | Brøndby IF | 26 | 18 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 26 | 15 | +11 |
| 1991-92 | Lyngby BK | 32[1] | 14 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 22 | 7 | +15 |
| 1992-93 | F.C. Copenhagen | 32[1] | 14 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 31 | 23 | +8 |
| 1993-94 | Silkeborg IF | 31[1] | 14 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 23 | 15 | +8 |
| 1994-95 | Aalborg BK | 31[1] | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 30 | 13 | +17 |
| 1995-96 | Brøndby IF | 67 | 33 | 20 | 7 | 6 | 71 | 32 | +39 |
| 1996-97 | Brøndby IF | 68 | 33 | 20 | 8 | 5 | 64 | 39 | +25 |
| 1997-98 | Brøndby IF | 76 | 33 | 24 | 4 | 5 | 81 | 33 | +48 |
| 1998-99 | Aalborg BK | 64 | 33 | 17 | 13 | 3 | 65 | 37 | +28 |
| 1999-00 | Herfølge BK | 56 | 33 | 16 | 8 | 9 | 52 | 49 | +3 |
| 2000-01 | F.C. Copenhagen | 63 | 33 | 17 | 12 | 4 | 55 | 27 | +28 |
| 2001-02 | Brøndby IF | 69 | 33 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 74 | 28 | +46 |
| 2002-03 | F.C. Copenhagen | 61 | 33 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 51 | 32 | +19 |
| 2003-04 | F.C. Copenhagen | 68 | 33 | 20 | 8 | 5 | 56 | 27 | +29 |
| 2004-05 | Brøndby IF | 69 | 33 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 61 | 23 | +38 |
| 2005-06 | F.C. Copenhagen | 73 | 33 | 23 | 7 | 4 | 62 | 27 | +35 |
[edit] Top scorers
| Season | Tally | Top scorer(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 11 | Bent Christensen (Brøndby IF) |
| 1991-92 | 17 | Peter Møller (Aalborg BK) |
| 1992-93 | 22 | Peter Møller (Aalborg BK) |
| 1993-94 | 18 | Søren Frederiksen (Silkeborg IF) |
| 1994-95 | 24 | Erik Bo Andersen (Aalborg BK) |
| 1995-96 | 20 | Thomas Thorninger (Aarhus GF) |
| 1996-97 | 26 | Miklos Molnar (Lyngby FC) |
| 1997-98 | 28 | Ebbe Sand (Brøndby IF) |
| 1998-99 | 23 | Heine Fernandez (Viborg FF) |
| 1999-00 | 16 | Peter Lassen (Silkeborg IF) |
| 2000-01 | 21 | Peter Graulund (Brøndby IF) |
| 2001-02 | 22 | Peter Madsen (Brøndby IF) and Kaspar Dalgas (Odense BK) |
| 2002-03 | 18 | Søren Frederiksen (Viborg FF) and Jan Kristiansen (Esbjerg fB) |
| 2003-04 | 19 | Steffen Højer (Odense BK), Mohamed Zidan (FC Midtjylland) and Tommy Bechmann (Esbjerg fB) |
| 2004-05 | 20 | Steffen Højer (Odense BK) |
| 2005-06 | 16 | Steffen Højer (Viborg FF) |
