The Latvian First League ( lv, Latvijas Pirmā līga, 1. līga) is the second tier of
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
in
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
and is organised by the
Latvian Football Federation. Since 2021, its full name is Optibet Nākotnes Līga (''Optibet Future League'') due to the sponsorship by
sports betting company
Optibet.
History
The league was founded together with other Latvian football competitions in 1992. From 2007 to 2008, the tournament was known as the Traffic 1. līga, due to its first sponsorship deal concluded with the "Traffic auto advert" advertising company.
From 2015 its name was Komanda.lv First League (''Komanda.lv 1. līga'') for sponsorship reasons, after th
Komanda.lv sporting goods store became the league's main sponsor in 2015.
Format
There are 14 clubs in the First League. During the course of the season each club plays the every other club twice, once at home and once away, with a total of 26 games. At the end of the season, the highest placed club is automatically promoted to the
Virslīga
Latvian Higher League or Virslīga is a professional football league and the top tier of association football in Latvia. Organised by the Latvian Football Federation, the Higher League is contested by 10 clubs. The full name of the league is Op ...
. The second lowest placed club in the Virslīga and the second placed club in the First League compete in a two-legged tie for the remaining place in the following season's Virslīga. The two clubs finishing at the bottom of the First League are relegated to the
Second League, while the third-from-bottom team competes in a two-legged tie with the third-placed team of the Second League for a place in the First League.
First League clubs (2023)
14 clubs took part in the Optibet Nākotne līga season:
*
Rēzekne (
Rēzekne)
*
Grobiņas SC
Grobiņas sporta centrs () is a Latvian football club based in Grobiņa and plays in the 2nd tier of Latvian football Latvian First League and the Latvian Football Cup.
In 2016 Grobiņas SC won the Kurzeme Regional League and therefore qualifie ...
(
Grobiņa
Grobiņa (; german: Grobin) is a town in South Kurzeme Municipality in the Courland region of Latvia, eleven kilometers east of Liepāja. It was founded by the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century. Some ruins of their Grobina castle are still ...
)
*
FK Dinamo Rīga FK or fk may refer to:
In arts and entertainment:
* Flyer Killer, fictional automated robots in the ''Terminator'' film franchise.
* Fox Kids, a former American children's television programming block.
* Funky Kong, a video game character.
Place ...
(
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
)
*
JDFS Alberts (
Riga
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...
)
*
Leevon Saldus (
Saldus)
*
FK Smiltene FK or fk may refer to:
In arts and entertainment:
* Flyer Killer, fictional automated robots in the ''Terminator'' film franchise.
* Fox Kids, a former American children's television programming block.
* Funky Kong, a video game character.
Place ...
(
Smiltene)
*
Skanstes SK (
Rīga)
*
AFA Olaine
AFA Olaine is a Latvian football club. They compete in the second-highest division of Latvian football ( 1. līga) and the Latvian Football Cup.
First-team squad
''As of 30 April 2017.''
References
External links
* ...
(
Olaine
Olaine (; german: Olai) is a city in Olaine Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. Olaine gained town rights in 1967. The name comes from the Saint Olai Church, built by the Misa river under Swedish rule in the 17th century. An old cemete ...
)
*
JFK Ventspils (
Ventspils)
*
Riga FC-2 (
Rīga)
*
FK RFS-2 (
Rīga)
*
Valmiera FC-2 (
Valmiera)
*
FK Tukums 2000-2 (
Tukums)
*
FK Beitar (
Rīga)
Past First League winners
:
a Previously won as Ranto/AVV.
References
External links
The First League on the Latvian Football Federation website(in Latvian)
(Archive) The page of the league on the Latvian Football Federation website (in English)- Latvian football league tables, records & statistics database.
{{UEFA second leagues
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