Veikkausliiga (FIN)
This month, European Leagues spotlights the Veikkausliiga – a competition built on strong community ties and a central pillar of football culture across Finland.
League at a glance
- Country: Finland
- Founded: 1989 (Finnish FA founded in 1907)
- Divisions managed: Veikkausliiga (top-tier)
- Clubs: 12
- Other competitions: League Cup (Liigacup)
- European Leagues member: 2005, founding member of the European Leagues
- Matchdays: 32 (22 Regular Season + 10 Championship Group / 5 Relegation Group)
- Format: Regular season + Championship and Relegation groups
How the competition works
After the regular season (Home/Away matches), teams ranked 1st to 6th will enter the Championship Group, where they will play each other twice to determine the final standings. Teams ranked 7th to 12th will compete in the Relegation Group, facing each other once. Both the Championship and Relegation Groups will begin with the points accumulated during the regular season.
Leadership perspective
“We are passionate about football and dedicate ourselves to making it even better. We serve a vast number of Finns for whom football can provide a sense of community, role models, and memorable experiences. We want to be a deep-rooted part of our regions’ identity and create well-being around us.”
Timo Marjamaa, CEO of Veikkausliiga
History & Identity
33 – Most titles (HJK Helsinki – 17 titles in the league era)
459 – Most appearances (Rami Nieminen)
206 – All-time top scorer (Hekki Suhonen)
Milestone: HJK Helsinki is the only club to have played at league level in all 36 seasons, finishing outside the top three on just nine occasions during that period.
Did you know?
In the 2025 Veikkausliiga season, the average number of goals per game was 3.29, an all-time record, surpassing the previous league-era record by 0.26 goals. The record for most goals in a single match still stands from earlier seasons (1991: RoPS v Reipas 11–0 and 2012: TPS v FC Haka 9–2).
European Leagues engagement
As one of the 14 founding members of European Leagues in 2005, Veikkausliiga takes pride in its longstanding commitment and contribution to the organisation.
Other
Veikkausliiga made a complete brand renewal before season 2025 with new logo and unique text font, also the slogan “Tältä tuntuu Veikkausliiga” (“This is how Veikkausliiga feels”) was introduced at the same time.
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