| Country: | Czech Republic |
| Confed: | UEFA |
| Relegation: | Czech National Football League |
| Level: | 1 |
| Teams: | 16 |
| Domest Cup: | Czech Cup |
| Confed Cup: | UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League UEFA Europa Conference League |
| Season: | 2023–24 |
| Top Goalscorer: | David Lafata (198 goals) |
| Tv: | OneFootball (Outside of Czech Republic) |
| Current: | 2024–25 Czech First League |
| Pyramid: | Czech_Republic_football_league_system |
| Chance liga | |
The Czech First League, known as the Chance liga for sponsorship reasons, is a Czech professional league for football clubs. At the top of the Czech football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Seasons typically run from August to May, most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays with few games played on Fridays. All Fortuna liga clubs qualify for the Czech Cup.
The history of the Czech football league began with its reorganization for the 1993–94 season following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia and therefore the league became the successor of the Czechoslovak League. Thirty-five clubs have competed in the Czech First League since its founding. Sparta Prague has won the title 14 times, the most among Czech clubs and are the reigning champions. Other clubs that were crowned as champions are Slavia Prague, Slovan Liberec, Baník Ostrava and Viktoria Plzeň.
Based on performances in European competitions over the past five years, the league is ranked 10th in the UEFA league rankings for the 2024–25 season.
In the inaugural season, two points were awarded for a win, before switching to three points for a win in 1994.[1] Teams are ranked by total points, in the case of two or more teams finishing with equal points, the head-to-head record between the teams is used for ranking, counting points in relevant games, then goal difference and then goals scored.
There were 16 clubs in the league. During the course of a season, which lasted from August to May, each club played the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 30 games.
The 2018–19 season was the first season played with the new competition format. After the regular season, which lasts from July to April and involves each team playing every other team home and away, the teams are divided into three groups. The top six teams enter the championship group, with the first-placed team being named champions. The teams play against each other only once, playing total of five additional matches. Points earned are added to the points from the regular season.
The teams 7th–10th position after 30 games take part in the Europa League play-offs. The best of them play against the fourth-placed or fifth-placed (it depends on the result of the Czech Cup and on the Czech coefficient rankings between European football leagues) of the championship group to determine who will participate in the Europa League.
The teams from 11th to 16th position play in the same format as the championship group. The team finishing in 16th position is relegated directly to the Czech National Football League, while teams in 15th and 14th places play relegation play-offs against teams finishing 2nd and 3rd in the Czech National Football League.
Due to positive tests for Covid-19 in the 2019–20 season the relegation group was abandoned.[2] The league announced that due to time pressure the relegation group will remain unfinished and as a consequence, no team can be relegated and the winner of the second league should be promoted. To avoid playing the 2020–21 season with odd number of teams, the automatic promotion was granted to the second placed team as well. There were 18 clubs in the league, each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 34 games. The three lowest placed teams were relegated to the second tier (Czech National Football League). From the 2021–22 season, the system returns to its previous format.
See main article: List of Czech football champions.
| Season | Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Top goalscorer(s) (goals) | Club(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta Prague (1) |  Horst Siegl (20) | Sparta Prague | |||||
| Sparta Prague (2) | Slavia Prague | Radek Drulák (15) | Drnovice | ||||
| Slavia Prague (1) | Radek Drulák (22) | Drnovice | |||||
| Sparta Prague (3) | Slavia Prague | Jablonec | Horst Siegl (19) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Sparta Prague (4) | Slavia Prague | Sigma Olomouc | Horst Siegl (13) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Sparta Prague (5) | Slavia Prague | Horst Siegl (18) | Sparta Prague | ||||
| Sparta Prague (6) | Slavia Prague | Drnovice | Vratislav Lokvenc (22) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Sparta Prague (7) | Slavia Prague | Sigma Olomouc | Vítězslav Tuma (15) | Drnovice | |||
| Slovan Liberec (1) | Sparta Prague | Jiří Štajner (15) | Slovan Liberec | ||||
| Sparta Prague (8) | Slavia Prague | Viktoria Žižkov | Jiří Kowalík (16) | 1. FC Synot | |||
| Baník Ostrava (1) | Sparta Prague | Sigma Olomouc | Marek Heinz (19) | Baník Ostrava | |||
| Sparta Prague (9) | Slavia Prague | Teplice | Tomáš Jun (14) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Slovan Liberec (2) | Slavia Prague |  Milan Ivana (11) | Slovácko | ||||
| Sparta Prague (10) | Slavia Prague | Mladá Boleslav | Luboš Pecka (16) | Mladá Boleslav | |||
| Slavia Prague (2) | Sparta Prague | Baník Ostrava | Václav Svěrkoš (15) | Baník Ostrava | |||
| Slavia Prague (3) | Sparta Prague | Slovan Liberec | Andrej Kerić (15) | Slovan Liberec | |||
| Sparta Prague (11) | Jablonec | Baník Ostrava | Michal Ordoš (12) | Sigma Olomouc | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (1) | Sparta Prague | Jablonec | David Lafata (19) | Jablonec | |||
| Slovan Liberec (3) | Sparta Prague | Viktoria Plzeň | David Lafata (25) | Jablonec | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (2) | Sparta Prague | Slovan Liberec | David Lafata (20) | Jablonec / Sparta Prague | |||
| Sparta Prague (12) | Viktoria Plzeň | Mladá Boleslav | Josef Hušbauer (18) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (3) | Sparta Prague | Jablonec | David Lafata (20) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (4) | Sparta Prague | Slovan Liberec | David Lafata (20) | Sparta Prague | |||
| Slavia Prague (4) | Viktoria Plzeň | Sparta Prague | Milan Škoda / David Lafata (15) | Slavia Prague / Sparta Prague | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (5) | Slavia Prague | Jablonec | Michael Krmenčík (16) | Viktoria Plzeň | |||
| Slavia Prague (5) | Viktoria Plzeň | Sparta Prague |  Nikolay Komlichenko (29) | Mladá Boleslav | |||
| Slavia Prague (6) | Viktoria Plzeň | Sparta Prague | Libor Kozák / Petar Musa (14) | Sparta Prague / Slavia Prague | |||
| Slavia Prague (7) | Sparta Prague | Jablonec | Jan Kuchta / Adam Hložek (15) | Slavia Prague / Sparta Prague | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň (6) | Slavia Prague | Sparta Prague |  Jean-David Beauguel (19) | Viktoria Plzeň | |||
| Sparta Prague (13) | Slavia Prague | Viktoria Plzeň | Václav Jurečka (20) | Slavia Prague | |||
| Sparta Prague (14) | Slavia Prague | Viktoria Plzeň | Václav Jurečka (19) | Slavia Prague |
| Club | Winners | Runners-up | Winning years | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta Prague | 1993–94, 1994–95, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2022–23, 2023–24 | |||
| Slavia Prague | 1995–96, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2016–17, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21 | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň | 2010–11, 2012–13, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2021–22 | |||
| Slovan Liberec | 2001–02, 2005–06, 2011–12 | |||
| Baník Ostrava | 2003–04 | |||
| Sigma Olomouc | ||||
| Teplice | ||||
| Mladá Boleslav | ||||
| Jablonec |
The following 16 clubs are competing in the 2024–25 Czech First League.
.
| Club | Coach | Appointed | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta Prague | [19] | ||
| Slavia Prague | [20] | ||
| Viktoria Plzeň | [21] | ||
| Baník Ostrava | [22] | ||
| Mladá Boleslav | [23] | ||
| Slovácko | [24] | ||
| Hradec Králové | [25] | ||
| Teplice | [26] | ||
| Slovan Liberec | [27] | ||
| Sigma Olomouc | [28] | ||
| Jablonec | [29] | ||
| Pardubice | [30] | ||
| Bohemians 1905 | [31] | ||
| Karviná | [32] | ||
| Dynamo České Budějovice | [33] | ||
| Dukla Prague | [34] |
In 1997 the league started a sponsorship deal with Pilsner Urquell Brewery and became known as the Gambrinus liga (after the company's Gambrinus beer).[35] In 2008, the sponsorship was extended until the end of the 2013–14 season.[36]
In May 2014, the league announced a four-year sponsorship deal with betting firm Synot, becoming the Synot liga.[37] However, in January 2016 the company announced that their deal would conclude at the end of the 2015–16 season.[38]
In July 2016 a new two-year sponsorship deal was announced, with the league partnering ePojisteni.cz, an online insurance company. The league subsequently became known as the ePojisteni.cz liga. Due to a government subsidy scandal and the arrest of FAČR chairman, ePojisteni.cz terminated the contract prematurely in May 2017.[39] The league was then renamed HET liga for the 2017–18 season, after paint manufacturer HET.[40]
In October 2016, FAČR, League Football Association and Czech betting company Fortuna signed a 6-year partnership deal. In accordance with this deal, the Czech First League will be called Fortuna liga from the 2018–19 season.[41]
In April 2024, a new partnership deal was announced with the betting company Chance. In accordance with this deal, the Czech First League will be called Chance liga from the 2024–25 season.[42]
| Country | Broadcaster | |
|---|---|---|
| Sportdigital, DAZN, Sport1 Extra | ||
| O2 TV, Tipsport, Chance, Fortuna | ||
| Telesport | ||
| Belarus 5 | ||
| Polsat Sport, Ipla | ||
| Telekom Sport | ||
| VOYO | ||
| TV 3 | ||
| Arena Sport | ||
| Time Sports | ||
| Rest of the World | OneFootball |
After the 2023–24 season.
The table counts all the seasons since the Czech First League was founded in 1993. Highlighted teams will be competing in the 2024–25 Czech First League.[43]
| Current level | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AC Sparta Prague | 31 | 959 | 602 | 201 | 156 | 1830 | 803 | 1027 | 1989 | 1st tier | |
| 2 | SK Slavia Prague | 31 | 959 | 529 | 243 | 187 | 1681 | 859 | 822 | 1814 | 1st tier | |
| 3 | FC Slovan Liberec | 31 | 953 | 404 | 262 | 287 | 1278 | 1057 | 221 | 1463 | 1st tier | |
| 4 | FC Viktoria Plzeň | 27 | 839 | 413 | 197 | 229 | 1300 | 915 | 385 | 1424 | 1st tier | |
| 5 | FK Jablonec | 30 | 929 | 357 | 267 | 305 | 1248 | 1113 | 135 | 1338 | 1st tier | |
| 6 | SK Sigma Olomouc | 29 | 890 | 335 | 251 | 304 | 1138 | 1048 | 90 | 1242 | 1st tier | |
| 7 | FC Baník Ostrava | 30 | 930 | 323 | 269 | 338 | 1231 | 1188 | 43 | 1224 | 1st tier | |
| 8 | FK Teplice | 28 | 863 | 304 | 246 | 313 | 1059 | 1096 | −37 | 1158 | 1st tier | |
| 9 | FC Zbrojovka Brno | 26 | 789 | 255 | 206 | 328 | 914 | 1069 | −155 | 961 | 2nd tier | |
| 10 | FK Mladá Boleslav | 20 | 626 | 251 | 163 | 212 | 934 | 835 | 99 | 916 | 1st tier | |
| 11 | 1. FC Slovácko | 22 | 686 | 238 | 179 | 269 | 807 | 863 | −56 | 893 | 1st tier | |
| 12 | SK Dynamo České Budějovice | 23 | 705 | 200 | 190 | 315 | 752 | 1074 | −322 | 779 | 1st tier | |
| 13 | Bohemians 1905 | 22 | 688 | 195 | 197 | 296 | 715 | 958 | −243 | 774 | 1st tier | |
| 14 | FK Příbram | 22 | 672 | 191 | 172 | 309 | 697 | 986 | −289 | 745 | 3rd tier | |
| 15 | FC Zlín | 19 | 596 | 162 | 164 | 270 | 594 | 859 | −265 | 640 | 2nd tier | |
| 16 | FC Hradec Králové | 17 | 524 | 141 | 143 | 240 | 499 | 742 | −243 | 557 | 1st tier | |
| 17 | FK Viktoria Žižkov | 14 | 420 | 144 | 106 | 170 | 478 | 539 | −61 | 526 | 2nd tier | |
| 18 | FK Drnovice | 10 | 300 | 114 | 67 | 119 | 392 | 398 | −6 | 396 | Dissolved in 2006 | |
| 19 | SFC Opava | 11 | 342 | 83 | 89 | 170 | 347 | 532 | −185 | 338 | 2nd tier | |
| 20 | FK Dukla Prague | 9 | 275 | 77 | 76 | 122 | 325 | 420 | −95 | 306 | 1st tier | |
| 21 | FK Chmel Blšany | 8 | 240 | 67 | 63 | 110 | 255 | 350 | −95 | 264 | Dissolved in 2016 | |
| 22 | FC Vysočina Jihlava | 7 | 210 | 55 | 61 | 94 | 221 | 315 | −94 | 226 | 2nd tier | |
| 23 | MFK Karviná | 7 | 232 | 50 | 63 | 119 | 246 | 367 | −121 | 213 | 1st tier | |
| 24 | FK Pardubice | 4 | 139 | 46 | 28 | 65 | 160 | 220 | −60 | 166 | 1st tier | |
| 25 | SK Kladno | 4 | 120 | 28 | 30 | 62 | 99 | 173 | −74 | 114 | 4th tier | |
| 26 | FC Union Cheb | 3 | 90 | 29 | 26 | 35 | 95 | 121 | −26 | 100 | 4th tier | |
| 27 | FK SIAD Most | 3 | 90 | 19 | 30 | 41 | 96 | 140 | −44 | 87 | Dissolved in 2016 | |
| 28 | FK Bohemians Prague | 2 | 60 | 14 | 8 | 38 | 60 | 111 | −51 | 50 | Dissolved in 2016 | |
| 29 | FC Karviná | 2 | 60 | 12 | 12 | 36 | 53 | 105 | −52 | 48 | Merged with MFK Karviná in 2008 | |
| 30 | 1. SC Znojmo FK | 1 | 30 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 32 | 49 | −17 | 27 | 3rd tier | |
| 31 | FK Ústí nad Labem | 1 | 30 | 4 | 7 | 19 | 22 | 67 | −45 | 19 | 3rd tier | |
| 32 | Slovácká Slavia Uherské Hradiště | 1 | 30 | 3 | 8 | 19 | 19 | 65 | −46 | 17 | Merged with Slovácko in 2000 | |
| 33 | MFK Vítkovice | 1 | 30 | 3 | 7 | 20 | 22 | 64 | −42 | 13 | 4th tier | |
| 34 | FK Švarc Benešov | 1 | 30 | 3 | 3 | 24 | 23 | 78 | −55 | 12 | 4th tier | |
| 35 | AFK Atlantic Lázně Bohdaneč | 1 | 30 | 2 | 5 | 23 | 18 | 61 | −43 | 11 | Dissolved in 2000 |
See also: UEFA coefficient. The following data indicates Czech coefficient rankings between European football leagues.[44]
Belgian Pro League (48.600)
Süper Lig (38.600) Czech First League (36.050)| Season | Total | Average | Highest | Home Av. | Club | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | 1,116,885 | 4,663 | 23,111 | 9,501 | Brno | |
| 1994–95 | 1,380,060 | 5,750 | 34,770 | 20,523 | Brno | |
| 1995–96 | 1,225,755 | 5,129 | 26,872 | 12,283 | Brno | |
| 1996–97 | 1,710,045 | 7,155 | 44,120 | 21,659 | Brno | |
| 1997–98 | 1,477,515 | 6,156 | 31,730 | 15,365 | Brno | |
| 1998–99 | 1,447,875 | 6,033 | 24,400 | 13,207 | Brno | |
| 1999–00 | 1,433,355 | 5,972 | 23,800 | 11,280 | Opava | |
| 2000–01 | 1,091,882 | 4,549 | 16,350 | 7,718 | Olomouc | |
| 2001–02 | 1,113,325 | 4,722 | 16,300 | 7,490 | Ostrava | |
| 2002–03 | 935,927 | 3,899 | 18,228 | 6,175 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2003–04 | 1,158,523 | 4,827 | 20,032 | 15,376 | Ostrava | |
| 2004–05 | 921,658 | 3,840 | 15,419 | 8,028 | Ostrava | |
| 2005–06 | 980,633 | 4,085 | 20,318 | 7,211 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2006–07 | 1,173,869 | 4,891 | 20,565 | 11,848 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2007–08 | 1,237,660 | 5,156 | 20,698 | 11,022 | Ostrava | |
| 2008–09 | 1,119,410 | 4,664 | 20,500 | 11,971 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2009–10 | 1,177,014 | 4,924 | 19,370 | 10,766 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2010–11 | 1,073,690 | 4,473 | 18,873 | 8,665 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2011–12 | 1,130,540 | 4,710 | 18,299 | 10,322 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2012–13 | 1,151,464 | 4,797 | 19,410 | 10,046 | Plzeň | |
| 2013–14 | 1,216,389 | 5,068 | 19,089 | 11,340 | Sparta Prague | |
| 2014–15 | 1,137,131 | 4,738 | 18,665 | 10,868 | Plzeň | |
| 2015–16 | 1,219,366 | 5,080 | 18,684 | 10,618 | Plzeň | |
| 2016–17 | 1,172,619 | 4,886 | 19,084 | 11,625 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2017–18 | 1,331,016 | 5,546 | 19,084 | 12,431 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2018–19 | 1,533,390 | 5,536 | 19,370 | 13,456 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2019–20 | 1,153,357 | 4,470 | 19,370 | 10,851 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2020–21 | 165,502 | 600 | 9,285 | 3,709 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2021–22 | 1,055,806 | 3,825 | 19,370 | 10,989 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2022–23 | 1,535,500 | 5,563 | 19,370 | 14,729 | Slavia Prague | |
| 2023–24 | 1,782,387 | 6,435 | 19,370 | 17,688 | Slavia Prague |
See main article: Czech First League records and statistics. .[48] [49] Following statistics count only seasons of Czech First League since its inception in 1993. Highlighted players currently plays in the Czech First League.
| Name | Matches | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Milan Petržela | 511 | |
| 2 | 447 | ||
| 3 | Josef Jindřišek | 442 | |
| 4 | 436 | ||
| 5 | 432 | ||
| 7 | Marek Matějovský | 427 | |
| 8 | 426 | ||
| 9 | 418 | ||
| 10 | 407 |
| Name | Goals | Matches | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 198 | 418 | ||
| 2 | 134 | 310 | ||
| 3 | 125 | 407 | ||
| 4 | 104 | 344 | ||
| 5 | 96 | 336 | ||
| 6 | Jan Chramosta | 95 | 347 | |
| 7 | 94 | 436 | ||
| 8 | 92 | 342 | ||
| 9 | 88 | 389 | ||
| 10 | Martin Doležal | 87 | 305 |
| Name | Clean sheets | Matches | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 157 | 401 | |
| 2 | 153 | 432 | |
| 3 | 117 | 376 | |
| 4 | 111 | 242 | |
| 5 | 110 | 309 | |
| 6 | 101 | 300 | |
| 7 | 90 | 212 | |
| Ondřej Kolář | 185 | ||
| 9 | 89 | 275 | |
| 10 | 88 | 289 | |
| 308 |
| Record | Match | Score | Season | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most goals total | Zlín–Mladá Boleslav | 5–9 | 2023–24 | |
| Home team's highest win | Slavia–Slovácká Slavia Uherské Hradiště | 9–1 | 1995–96 | |
| Away team's highest win | Teplice–Mladá Boleslav | 0–8 | 2018–19 | |
| Highest draw | Jablonec–Znojmo | 5–5 | 2013–14 |