| Competition: | Tippeligaen |
| Season: | 2012 |
| Winners: | Molde 2nd title |
| Relegated: | Fredrikstad Stabæk |
| Continentalcup1: | Champions League |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | Molde |
| Continentalcup2: | Europa League |
| Continentalcup2 Qualifiers: | Strømsgodset Rosenborg Hødd (via cup) |
| Matches: | 240 |
| Total Goals: | 693 |
| League Topscorer: | Zdeněk Ondrášek, Péter Kovács (14) |
| Biggest Home Win: | Lillestrøm 6–0 Stabæk (4 November 2012) |
| Biggest Away Win: | Stabæk 0–5 Molde (12 May 2012) |
| Highest Scoring: | Brann 6–2 Odd Grenland (15 July 2012) |
| Longest Wins: | 5 matches - Molde, Viking[1] |
| Longest Unbeaten: | 13 matches - Rosenborg |
| Longest Winless: | 13 games - Hønefoss |
| Longest Losses: | 9 matches - Stabæk |
| Highest Attendance: | 20,572 Rosenborg v Hønefoss (16 May 2012) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 1,876 Hønefoss v Haugesund (29 July 2012) |
| Average Attendance: | 7,005 12.3% |
| Prevseason: | 2011 |
| Nextseason: | 2013 |
| Dates: | 23 March – 18 November |
The 2012 Tippeligaen was the 68th completed season of top division football in Norway. The competition began on 23 March 2012 and ended on 18 November 2012, with a summer break from 28 May to 30 June.[2] Molde were the defending champions,[3] while Hønefoss and Sandnes Ulf entered as the promoted teams from the 2011 1. divisjon. They replaced Start and Sarpsborg 08 who were relegated to the 2012 1. divisjon.
On 11 November 2011, Molde won the title with one matchday left to play after a 1–0 home win over Hønefoss.[4] It was their second consecutive league title and also their second top-flight title overall.
Strømsgodset were leading the league most of the season, but four matches before the end of the season there were three teams competing for the title. Rosenborg lost out on the title-race after losing to Strømsgodset and Molde.[5] Molde secured the title in the 29th round after they won 1 - 0 at home, while Strømsgodset lost 2 - 1 against Sandnes Ulf.
Stabæk were relegated after being positioned at the bottom of the table throughout the season. Ahead of the last round, four teams were fighting against relegation, but Fredrikstad lost their match against the league-winners Molde and were relegated, while Sandnes Ulf finished 14th and played relegation play-offs against Ullensaker/Kisa, the sixth-placed team in the 1. divisjon. Sandnes Ulf won the play-offs 7–1 on aggregate (4–0 away and 3–1 at home), and were not relegated.
The average attendance in 2012 were 7,014 spectators, down from 7,995 in 2011, which was the lowest average attendance in Tippeligaen since 2003.[6]
Sixteen teams competed in the league – the top fourteen teams from the previous season and the two teams promoted from the 1. divisjon The promoted teams were Hønefoss (returning after a season's absence) and Sandnes Ulf (their first post-World War II top-flight season). They replaced Sarpsborg 08 (relegated after their first ever presence) and Start (ending their three-year spell in the top flight).
Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Aalesund | Brann | Fredrikstad | Haugesund | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Color Line Stadion | Brann Stadion | Fredrikstad Stadion | Haugesund Stadion | |
| Capacity: 10,778 | Capacity: 17,824 | Capacity: 13,300 | Capacity: 5,000 | |
| Hønefoss | Lillestrøm | Molde | Odd Grenland | |
| Aka Arena | Åråsen Stadion | Aker Stadion | Skagerak Arena | |
| Capacity: 4,000 | Capacity: 11,637 | Capacity: 11,800 | Capacity: 13,500 | |
| Rosenborg | Sandnes Ulf | Sogndal | Stabæk | |
| Lerkendal Stadion | Sandnes Idrettspark | Fosshaugane Campus | Nadderud Stadion | |
| Capacity: 21,850 | Capacity: 3,850 | Capacity: 5,402 | Capacity: 7,000 | |
| Strømsgodset | Tromsø | Vålerenga | Viking | |
| Marienlyst Stadion | Alfheim Stadion | Ullevaal Stadion | Viking Stadion | |
| Capacity: 7,500 | Capacity: 7,500 | Capacity: 25,572 | Capacity: 16,600 | |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | Table | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sogndal |  Harald Aabrekk | End of contract | 31 December 2011 |  Jonas Olsson | 1 January 2012[8] | Pre-Season | |
| Lillestrøm | Petter Belsvik Magnus Powell (caretakers) | End of contract | 31 December 2011 | Magnus Haglund | 1 January 2012[9] | Pre-Season | |
| Signed by IF Elfsborg | 31 December 2011[10] | Petter Belsvik | 2 January 2012[11] | Pre-Season | |||
| Resigned | 10 May 2012 | Trond Amundsen | 10 May 2012[12] | 13th | |||
| Sacked[13] | 9 June 2012 | 19 June 2012[14] | 10th |
See main article: 2012 Eliteserien promotion/relegation play-offs. At the end of the season, Stabæk and Fredrikstad were relegated directly to 1. divisjon, and will be replaced by Start and Sarpsborg who were directly promoted.
Five teams entered a play-off for the last Tippeligaen spot in the 2013 season. These were:
The four 1. divisjon teams first played a single game knockout tournament, with the winner (Ull/Kisa) advancing to a two-legged tie against the Tippeligaen team (Sandnes Ulf) for the 16th and final spot in the 2013 season. Sandnes Ulf retained their Tippeligaen spot with an aggregate 7–1 win over Ull/Kisa.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals | Games | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Péter Kovács | Strømsgodset | 14 | 28 | 0.50 |
 Zdeněk Ondrášek | Tromsø | 14 | 29 | 0.48 | |
| 3 |  Davy Claude Angan | Molde | 13 | 26 | 0.50 |
| 4 | Nikola Đurđić | Haugesund | 12 | 18 | 0.67 |
| 5 | Rade Prica | Rosenborg | 11 | 26 | 0.42 |
| Kim Ojo | Brann | 11 | 29 | 0.38 | |
| Ola Kamara | Strømsgodset | 11 | 30 | 0.37 | |
| 8 |  Riku Riski | Hønefoss | 10 | 26 | 0.38 |
| Bořek Dočkal | Rosenborg | 10 | 27 | 0.37 | |
| Ulrik Flo | Sogndal | 10 | 27 | 0.37 | |
| Torgeir Børven | Odd Grenland / Vålerenga | 10 | 29 | 0.34 | |
| Alexander Søderlund | Haugesund | 10 | 29 | 0.34 | |
Source:[15]
Tremaine Stewart (Aalesund)The Goalkeeper of the Year awarded to Kenneth Udjus (Sogndal)
The Defender of the Year awarded to Vegard Forren (Molde)
The Midfielder of the Year awarded to Magnus Wolff Eikrem (Molde)
The Striker of the Year awarded to Alexander Søderlund (Haugesund)
The Coach of the Year awarded to Ole Gunnar Solskjær (Molde)