The 2022–23 Slovak First Football League (known as Fortuna liga for sponsorship reasons) was the 30th season of the top-tier football league in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

since its establishment in 1993. The winter break began earlier than usual this season due to the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

in Qatar. The last full round was scheduled for 11–13 November 2022. Four postponed matches then took place on 24 and 27 November. The first round after the winter break was scheduled for 10–12 February 2023. Four-time defending champion Slovan Bratislava successfully defended their title, securing a record-extending fifth consecutive and 13th overall championship.

Teams

Team changes

Twelve teams competed in the league – nine teams from the previous season, and three teams promoted from the 2. Liga. Podbrezová (promoted to the top flight for the second time) earned an automatic promotion thanks to the victory of the 2. Liga, replacing Pohronie (relegated after three years in the top flight), who finished last in the 2021–22 Slovak First Football League. Dukla Banská Bystrica (promoted after seven years of absence) and

Skalica Skalica (, , Latin: ''Sakolcium'') is the largest town in Skalica District in western Slovakia in the Záhorie region. Located near the Czech Republic, Czech border, Skalica has a population of around 15,000. Etymology The name is derived from Slo ...

(promoted to the top flight for the second time) were also promoted, and they will replace

Senica Senica (; ; ) is a town in Trnava Region, western Slovakia. It is located in the north-eastern part of the Záhorie lowland, close to the Little Carpathians. Etymology The name is derived from the word ''seno'' ' hay' with the suffix ''-ica'' us ...

and

Sereď Sereď (; ) is a town in southern Slovakia near Trnava, on the right bank of the Váh River on the Danubian Lowland. It has approximately 15,500 inhabitants. Geography Sereď lies at an altitude of above sea level and covers an area of . It ...

– two teams that did not obtain a licence for the 2022–23 season.

Stadiums and locations

Personnel and kits

Managerial changes

Regular stage

League table

Results

Each team plays home-and-away against every other team in the league, for a total of 22 matches each.

Championship group

Relegation group

Europa Conference League play-offs

The winner of the 2022–23 Slovak Cup,

Spartak Trnava FC Spartak Trnava () is a professional football club based in Trnava, Slovakia. The club competes in Slovak First Football League, the top flight in the Slovak league system, having participated in more seasons than any other club. Founded in ...

, finished in the top 3 in the league, which already secured them a spot in the

2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League The 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League was the third season of the UEFA Europa Conference League, Europe's tertiary club association football, football tournament organised by UEFA. The 2024 UEFA Europa Conference League final, final was ...

. As a result, a playoff was held for the final spot in the Europa Conference League, which involved the teams ranked in 4th–7th place at the conclusion of the regular season. The play-offs were one-off matches with extra time and penalties used to determine the winner if necessary, with the higher-ranked teams given home advantage against the lower-ranked teams (i.e. ''3rd v. 7th'' and ''5th v. 6th'') in the semi-finals. The higher-ranked of the two semi-final winners also gained home advantage in the final.

Žilina Žilina (; ; ; ; Names of European cities in different languages: U-Z#Z, names in other languages) is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the List of cities ...

won the play-offs and earned a place in the Europa Conference League first qualifying round.

Semi-finals

Final

Relegation play-offs

The team which finished 11th faced the 2nd team from 2. Liga for one spot in the top flight in the next season. 1st leg 2nd leg ''Zlaté Moravce won 3–1 on aggregate.''

Season statistics

Top goalscorers

¹ plus 1 play-off goal

Hat-tricks

;Note ⁴ Player scored 4 goals

Clean sheets

Discipline

Player

* Most yellow cards: 10 ** Lazar Stojsavljević (Trenčín) * Most red cards: 2 ** Chinonso Emeka (Trenčín) ** Erik Grendel (Podbrezová) ** Kelvin Pires (Trenčín)

Club

* Most yellow cards: 82 ** Zlaté Moravce * Most red cards: 8 ** Trenčín * Fewest yellow cards: 46 ** Slovan Bratislava * Fewest red cards: 0 ** Zlaté Moravce

Awards

Monthly awards

Annual awards

Team of the Season

Team of the Season was: *Goalkeeper: Ľubomír Belko (Žilina) *Defenders: Jurij Medveděv (Slovan Bratislava), Guram Kashia (Slovan Bratislava), Marek Bartoš (Podbrezová), Lucas Lovat (Slovan Bratislava) *Midfielders: Aleksandar Čavrić (Slovan Bratislava),

Juraj Kucka Juraj Kucka (; born 26 February 1987), also known by his nickname Kuco (), is a former Slovak professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for Slovak club Slovan Bratislava. Club career Early career Kucka made his Corgoň Liga debut ...

(Slovan Bratislava), Miroslav Káčer (DAC Dunajská Streda), Vladimír Weiss Jr. (Slovan Bratislava) *Forwards: Róbert Polievka (Dukla Banská Bystrica), Nikola Krstović (DAC Dunajská Streda)

Individual awards

Manager of the Season Vladimír Weiss (Slovan Bratislava) Player of the Season Vladimír Weiss Jr. (Slovan Bratislava) Young Player of the Season Artur Gajdoš (Trenčín)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Slovak First Football League 2022-23 Slovak 2022-23 1