A Lyga
 | |
| Country |
 Lithuania |
|---|---|
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Number of teams | 8 (2016) |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | I Lyga |
| Domestic cup(s) |
Lithuanian Football Cup Lithuanian Supercup |
| International cup(s) |
Champions League Europa League |
| Current champions |
Žalgiris Vilnius (2015 A Lyga) |
| Most championships | FBK Kaunas (8 titles) |
| TV partners | |
 2016 A Lyga | |
The A Lyga (English: The A League), called SMScredit.lt A lyga for commercial reasons,[1] is the top division of professional football in Lithuania. It is organized by LFF (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Futbolo Federacija, English: Lithuanian Football Federation). League size has varied between 8 and 12 teams over the past few years; for its 2016 season, the league features 8 teams. The season usually kicks off in late March/early April every year; because of the harsh climate there are no games in the winter.
Clubs (2016)
The following clubs are participating in the 2016 season.
| Club | Location | Position in 2015 | Top division titles |
Last top division title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantas | Klaipėda | 3rd | 4 | 1984 |
| Lietava | Jonava | 1st(1 Lyga) | 0 | - |
| Kauno Žalgiris | Kaunas | 5th | 0 | - |
| Stumbras | Kaunas | 7th | 0 | - |
| Sūduva | Marijampolė | 4th | 0 | - |
| Trakai | Trakai | 2nd | 0 | - |
| Utenis | Utena | 6th | 0 | - |
| Žalgiris | Vilnius | 1st | 6 | 2015 |
Results
Interbellum and WWII
Seasons
| Season | Winner | Runner-up | Third place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interbellum (Independent Lithuania) | |||
| 1922 | LFLS Kaunas | LFLS Šančiai | LFLS-2 Kaunas |
| 1923 | LFLS Kaunas | KSK Kaunas | Kovas Kaunas |
| 1924 | Kovas Kaunas | Sportverein Klaipėda | LFLS Kaunas / MTV Klaipėda |
| 1925 | Kovas Kaunas | LFLS Šiauliai | Freya Klaipėda |
| 1926 | Kovas Kaunas | KSS Klaipėda | LFLS Šiauliai |
| 1927 | LFLS Kaunas | Sportverein Pagėgiai | LFLS Šiauliai |
| 1928 | KSS Klaipėda | LFLS Kaunas | LDS Šiauliai |
| 1929 | KSS Klaipėda | LFLS Kaunas | KSK Kultus Kaunas / Freya Klaipėda |
| 1930 | KSS Klaipėda | LFLS Kaunas | Sveikata Kybartai / Makabi Šiauliai |
| 1931 | KSS Klaipėda | Kovas Kaunas | Freya Klaipėda |
| 1932 | LFLS Kaunas | KSS Klaipėda | LGSF Kaunas |
| 1933 | Kovas Kaunas | LFLS Kaunas | LGSF Kaunas |
| 1934 | MSK Kaunas | LFLS Kaunas | LGSF Kaunas |
| 1935 | Kovas Kaunas | KSS Klaipėda | Sakalas Šiauliai / Šaulys Ukmergė |
| 1936 | Kovas Kaunas | LFLS Kaunas | LGSF Kaunas |
| 1937 | KSS Klaipėda | Kovas Kaunas | LFLS Kaunas |
| 1937–38 | KSS Klaipėda | LGSF Kaunas | Švyturys Klaipėda |
| 1938–39 | LGSF Kaunas | Kovas Kaunas | KSS Telšiai |
| 1939–40 | Competition abandoned | ||
| World War II (1st Soviet and German Occupations) | |||
| 1941 | Competition not finished due to World War II (Spartakas Kaunas had the best record) | ||
| 1942 | LFLS Kaunas | MSK Panevėžys | Gubernija Šiauliai / LFLS Vilnius |
| 1942–43 | Tauras Kaunas | MSK Panevėžys | Gubernija Šiauliai / LGSF Vilnius |
| 1943–44 | Competition not finished due to World War II (Tauras Kaunas had the best record) | ||
Note: In 1924–1930, 1935, 1942, 1942–1943 and 1945 seasons there was no unified league and winners were decided using either a play–off format or a single game between winners of separate divisions.
Performance by club
| Club | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Winning Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kovas Kaunas | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1924, 1925, 1926, 1933, 1935, 1936 |
| KSS Klaipėda | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1937, 1937–38 |
| LFLS Kaunas | 5 | 6 | 2 | 1922, 1923, 1927, 1932, 1942 |
| LGSF Kaunas | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1938–39 |
| MSK Kaunas | 1 | – | – | 1934 |
| Tauras Kaunas | 1 | – | – | 1942–43 |
All champions from this period are defunct.
Lithuanian SSR Championship
The competition was not contested by teams participating in the Soviet Union football league system.
Seasons
Note: Some clubs like Žalgiris Vilnius played in Soviet Divisions like Soviet Top League instead of Lithuanian SSR Divisions.
Performance by club
| Club | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Winning Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elnias Šiauliai† | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1948, 1949, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959–60, 1960–61 |
| Inkaras Kaunas† | 5 | 6 | 5 | 1950, 1951, 1954, 1964, 1965 |
| Atlantas Klaipėda | 4 | 7 | - | 1978, 1980, 1981, 1984 |
| Karininkų Namai / Raudonoji Žvaigždė / Saliutas Vilnius† | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1952, 1958–59, 1967 |
| Nevėžis Kėdainiai | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1966, 1972, 1973 |
| Pažanga Vilnius† | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1971, 1982, 1983 |
| Statybininkas Šiauliai† | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1969, 1977 |
| Statyba Panevėžys† | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1962–63, 1968 |
| FK Atletas Kaunas† | 2 | 1 | - | 1961–62, 1970 |
| Atmosfera Mažeikiai† | 2 | - | 2 | 1976, 1979 |
| Banga Kaunas | 2 | - | 1 | 1986, 1989 |
| Ekranas Panevėžys | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1985 |
| Tauras Šiauliai | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1974 |
| SRT Vilnius† | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1988 |
| Lima Kaunas† | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1955 |
| Spartakas Kaunas† | 1 | 1 | - | 1945 |
| Tauras Tauragė | 1 | 1 | - | 1987 |
| Linų Audiniai Plungė | 1 | - | 2 | 1956 |
| Dainava Alytus | 1 | - | 2 | 1975 |
| Dinamo Kaunas† | 1 | - | - | 1946 |
| Lokomotyvas Kaunas† | 1 | - | - | 1947 |
Clubs currently playing in A Lyga are written in Bold.
† - Defunct clubs.
A Lyga
Seasons
Performance by club
| Club | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Winning Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FBK Kaunas | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007 |
| Ekranas Panevėžys† | 7 | 4 | 5 | 1992–93, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 |
| Žalgiris Vilnius | 6 | 9 | 4 | 1991, 1991–92, 1998–99, 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| Kareda Šiauliai† | 2 | 2 | - | 1996–97, 1997–98 |
| Inkaras Kaunas† | 2 | - | 1 | 1994–95, 1995–96 |
| Sirijus Klaipėda† | 1 | - | 1 | 1990 |
| ROMAR Mažeikiai† | 1 | - | 1 | 1993–94 |
Clubs currently playing in A Lyga are written in Bold.
† - Defunct clubs.
References
- ↑ "SMScredit.lt A lyga". LFF.lt. Lietuvos futbolo federacijos. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
External links
- Official website (Lithuanian)
- Futbolo.TV - A lyga streaming, video and stat center (Lithuanian)
- One Nil Up - Digital Magazine focusing on football in the Baltic States
- League321.com - Lithuanian football league tables, records & statistics database
- RSSSF.com - List of Champions
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