Gambrinus Liga
The Gambrinus League is the top division in Czech football. The Czech football champions is annually played in it. The 16 participating teams must play from August to May each 30 games ( 15 home and 15 away games). At the end of each season, the two last- placed teams relegated, to be replaced by newly promoted from the 2nd Czech league. Record champions Sparta Prague is championships won with eleven. Reigning champion (2012/ 13) for the second time Viktoria Plzen.
History
The first Football League emerged in its present form in 1993, when they broke away after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia from a scheduled class with the present-day Slovakia. It is therefore the successor of the Czechoslovak football championship. Since 1997, based in Pilsen Gambrinus Brewery is the eponymous sponsor of the league.
Dominant teams were since then the two teams Sparta Prague and Slavia, which usually took the first two places of the final table. While Sparta Prague won by 2007, ten of the thirteen discharged Championships to Slavia Prague had already eight times settle for the runner and was only in 1996, 2008 and 2009 Czech Master. 2004 won Banik Ostrava the title; 2002, 2006 and 2012 Slovan Liberec; 2011 and 2013 Viktoria Plzen.
In February 2010 it was announced that there are considerations of Czech and Slovak officials to seek the formation of a common professional league. The associations expect from a common league not only a higher sporting quality, but also marketing opportunities. The approval of UEFA for it is understood, however unlikely.
Season Overview
League system
The following diagram shows the current league system in the Czech Football:
- For the Gambrinus league and 2nd league, the Czech Football Association awards for a licensing process for a license.
- While at the end of the season descend the last two teams in the first league in the second league, play the first two teams in the second league in the following season in the first league. The teams that occupy the spaces 15 and 16 of the second division at the end of the season, will be relegated to the CFL or MSFL.
- Below the first two leagues is the third Czech league. It is played in two seasons (CFL and MSFL ). The CFL (Bohemia ) is currently playing with 18 teams, the MSFL ( Moravia and Silesia ) with 16 clubs. The master of two seasons each rise on the 2nd league.
Stadiums 2012/13
Stadium under renovation; actually 25,000 places
International Competition
Czech Republic is located in the UEFA five year ranking is currently (as of the end of the 2012/13 season ) to rank 17, which entitles the master to participate in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. The qualifying for the Europa League to take the runner-up ( in the 3rd qualifying round), the third place ( in the 2nd qualifying round) as well as the winner of the cup competition part.
Never before has reached the final of a UEFA club competition, a Czech club. With his regular participation in the UEFA Champions League Sparta Prague is the world's most prestigious clubs in the country. Best performance was the elimination in the second round (0:0 and 1:4 against AC Milan ) in 2004.
Slavia Prague has never achieved despite regular participation in the qualifying round, group stage of the Champions League except in the season 2007/2008. Viktoria Plzen could, however, move as a master of the preseason in the group stage of the Champions League in the season 2011 /12. Managed by the victories over FC Pjunik Yerevan, Rosenborg and FC Copenhagen. In the group phase, the team ended up behind FC Barcelona and AC Milan, BATE Borisov of Belarus and above at # 3 and was therefore able to continue playing in the Europa League. There they lost to FC Schalke 04 in the Round of Overtime in the return game.
From the Czech league three other teams still able to participate in the qualification for the Champions League. Vice- champions FK Teplice failed twice in 1999 0-1 at Borussia Dortmund, Banik Ostrava 2004 handed a 2-1 home win no more, to compensate for the 0:5 first leg defeat at Bayer 04 Leverkusen. In the season 2006/07 FK Mladá Boleslav defeated in the second qualifying round of the Norwegian representative Vålerenga Oslo with 3:1 and 2:2, but failed in the third round at Galatasaray Istanbul 2:5 and 1:1.
The greatest successes of Czech teams in the UEFA Cup were the way into Halbinfale from Slavia Prague 1996 and the quarter-finals of FC Slovan Liberec in 2002.
Spectator interest
Exciting championship fights are rare in the Czech elite class. Only three times - in 2001/ 02, 2006/ 07 and in the 2011/12 season - winning the title was not determined until the last round.
The number of viewers in the Czech league games is relatively low. Inadequate marketing, poor infrastructure, violent hooligans in the stands and not least bribery cases are factors that make the audience interest is fast receding in the league compared to the past. Despite numerous championship titles Sparta Prague plays its home games in front of about 9,000 spectators on average, although the domestic venue would allow a little more than 20,000.
In other cities like Brno, Plzen and Olomouc usually attend the 5000 football fans the league games. The league average was around 4,700 spectators in the season 2011 /12.
Statistics
All time standings
Last update: end of the 2012/13 season marked in bold teams are playing in the 2013/14 season in the Gambrinus Liga
Downgrades:
- 2004-05: 1 FC Slovácka -12
- 2004-05: SFC Opava -6
- 2004-05: Slovan Liberec -6
- 2009-10: Bohemians Praha -15
- 2011-12: Sigma Olomouc -9
Most games
Last update: end of the 2011/12 season
UEFA five year ranking
Position in the UEFA five year ranking (in brackets the previous year placement). The abbreviation CL and EL countries behind the coefficients indicate the number of representatives in the 2014/15 season of the Champions League and the Europa League.
As of the end of the European campaign of 2012/13