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Slovak First Football League

Highest men's association football league in Slovakia


Summary

Highest men's association football league in Slovakia

FieldValue
nameNiké liga
imageNiké Liga logo.jpg
countrySlovakia
confedUEFA
founded1993
teams12
relegation2. liga
levels1
domest_cupSlovak Cup
confed_cupUEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa League
UEFA Conference League
championsSlovan Bratislava (15th title)
tvDomestic
Markíza
STVR (highlights)
International
Eleven Sports
OneFootball
website
current2025–26 Slovak First Football League
most_champsSlovan Bratislava (15 titles)season=2024–25pyramid=Slovak football league systemorganiser=Slovak Football Association

UEFA Europa League UEFA Conference League Markíza STVR (highlights) International Eleven Sports OneFootball

The Slovak First Football League (), officially known as Niké liga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Slovakia and the highest level of the Slovak football league system. It was formed in 1993 following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. The record for most titles is fifteen, held by Slovan Bratislava, who are the current title holders.

History

The current independent top football division in Slovakia was formed in 1993 as a result of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. The predecessors of the current top football division in Slovakia were Zväzové Majstrovstvá Slovenska (1925–1933) and Slovenská liga (1938–1944).

Slovakia was part of Czechoslovakia (1918–1939 and 1945–1993) and the best Slovak clubs played in the joint Czechoslovak First League. Three Slovak clubs managed to win it.

Zväzové Majstrovstvá Slovenska (1925–1933)

SeasonChampions (number of titles)Runners-upThird place
1925–261. ČsŠK Bratislava
1926–271. ČsŠK Bratislava
1927–28SK Žilina
1928–29SK Žilina
1929–301. ČsŠK Bratislava
1930–31Ligeti SC
1931–321. ČsŠK Bratislava
1932–33SC Rusj Uzhorod

Slovenská liga (1938–1944)

SeasonChampions (number of titles)Runners-upThird place
1938–39AC Sparta Považská BystricaŠK BratislavaMŠK Žilina
1939–40ŠK BratislavaAC Sparta Považská BystricaMŠK Žilina
1940–41ŠK BratislavaFC VrútkyAC Sparta Považská Bystrica
1941–42ŠK BratislavaFC VrútkyMŠK Žilina
1942–43OAP BratislavaŠK BratislavaAC Sparta Považská Bystrica
1943–44ŠK BratislavaOAP BratislavaTSS Trnava
1944–45

Slovak winners of the Czechoslovak 1. League (1945–1993)

ClubWinnersWinning seasons
Slovan Bratislava1949, 1950, 1951, 1955, 1969–70, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1991–92
Spartak Trnava1967–68, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73
Inter Bratislava1958–59

Competition format

Over the years, the number of teams competing in the top division has varied. The current number of 12 teams has been in effect since the 2006–07 season. However, there were also changes in the playing format afterwards. In the current format, which has been in effect since the 2017–18 season, teams play home-and-away against every other team in the regular stage, for a total of 22 matches each. The table is then divided into two halves of 6 teams each – the top 6 play in the championship group and the bottom 6 play in the relegation group. Within these groups, teams play home-and-away each other again, for a total of 10 matches each.

PeriodNumber of teams
1993–199612
1996–200016
2000–200610
2006–present12

Sponsorship

PeriodSponsorName
1993–1997No sponsor1. liga
1997–2002ReemtsmaMars superliga
2002–2003No sponsor1. liga
2003–2014HeinekenCorgoň liga
2014–2023FortunaFortuna liga
2023–presentNikéNiké liga

Clubs

Champions

SeasonChampionsRunners-upThird placeTop scorerGoalsTeam
1993–94Slovan Bratislava (1)Inter BratislavaDAC Dunajská StredaSlovakia Pavol Diňa19DAC Dunajská Streda
1994–95Slovan Bratislava (2)1. FC KošiceInter BratislavaSlovakia Robert Semenik18Dukla Banská Bystrica
1995–96Slovan Bratislava (3)1. FC KošiceSpartak TrnavaSlovakia Robert Semenik291. FC Košice
1996–971. FC Košice (1)Spartak TrnavaSlovan BratislavaSlovakia Jozef Kožlej221. FC Košice
1997–981. FC Košice (2)Spartak TrnavaInter BratislavaSlovakia Ľubomír Luhový17Spartak Trnava
1998–99Slovan Bratislava (4)Inter BratislavaSpartak TrnavaSlovakia Martin Fabuš19Trenčín
1999–2000Inter Bratislava (1)1. FC KošiceSlovan BratislavaSlovakia Szilárd Németh16Inter Bratislava
2000–01Inter Bratislava (2)Slovan BratislavaRužomberokSlovakia Szilárd Németh23Inter Bratislava
2001–02Žilina (1)PúchovInter BratislavaSlovakia Marek Mintál21Žilina
2002–03Žilina (2)PetržalkaSlovan BratislavaSlovakia Martin Fabuš
Slovakia Marek Mintál20Trenčín, Žilina
Žilina
2003–04Žilina (3)Dukla Banská BystricaRužomberokSlovakia Roland Števko17Ružomberok
2004–05Petržalka (1)ŽilinaDukla Banská BystricaSlovakia Filip Šebo22Petržalka
2005–06Ružomberok (1)PetržalkaSpartak TrnavaSlovakia Róbert Rák
Slovakia Erik Jendrišek21Nitra
Ružomberok
2006–07Žilina (4)PetržalkaSlovan BratislavaSlovakia Tomáš Oravec16Petržalka
2007–08Petržalka (2)ŽilinaNitraSlovakia Ján Novák17Košice
2008–09Slovan Bratislava (5)ŽilinaSpartak TrnavaSlovakia Pavol Masaryk15Slovan Bratislava
2009–10Žilina (5)Slovan BratislavaDukla Banská BystricaSlovakia Róbert Rák18Nitra
2010–11Slovan Bratislava (6)SenicaŽilinaSlovakia Filip Šebo22Slovan Bratislava
2011–12Žilina (6)Spartak TrnavaSlovan BratislavaSlovakia Pavol Masaryk18Ružomberok
2012–13Slovan Bratislava (7)SenicaTrenčínSlovakia David Depetris16Trenčín
2013–14Slovan Bratislava (8)TrenčínSpartak TrnavaSlovakia Tomáš Malec14Trenčín
2014–15Trenčín (1)ŽilinaSlovan BratislavaCroatia Matej Jelić
Czech Republic Jan Kalabiška19Žilina
Senica
2015–16Trenčín (2)Slovan BratislavaSpartak MyjavaCuracao Gino van Kessel17Trenčín
2016–17Žilina (7)Slovan BratislavaRužomberokSVK Filip Hlohovský
Guinea Seydouba Soumah20Žilina
Slovan Bratislava
2017–18Spartak Trnava (1)Slovan BratislavaDAC Dunajská StredaSVK Samuel Mráz21Žilina
2018–19Slovan Bratislava (9)DAC Dunajská StredaRužomberokSLO Andraž Šporar29Slovan Bratislava
2019–20Slovan Bratislava (10)ŽilinaDAC Dunajská StredaSLO Andraž Šporar12Slovan Bratislava
2020–21Slovan Bratislava (11)DAC Dunajská StredaSpartak TrnavaPOL Dawid Kurminowski19Žilina
2021–22Slovan Bratislava (12)RužomberokSpartak TrnavaSVK Jakub Kadák13Trenčín
2022–23Slovan Bratislava (13)DAC Dunajská StredaSpartak TrnavaMNE Nikola Krstović18DAC Dunajská Streda
2023–24Slovan Bratislava (14)DAC Dunajská StredaSpartak TrnavaSVK Róbert Polievka
ARM Tigran Barseghyan13Banská Bystrica
Slovan Bratislava
2024–25Slovan Bratislava (15)ŽilinaSpartak TrnavaARM Tigran Barseghyan
SVK David Strelec20Slovan Bratislava

Source for list of championship winners:

Performance by club

Clubs in bold currently play in the top division.

Titles by city

CityTitlesWinning clubs
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Bratislava.svg20px]] BratislavaSlovan Bratislava (15), Inter Bratislava (2), Artmedia Bratislava (2)
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Žilina.svg20px]] ŽilinaŽilina (7)
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Košice.svg20px]] KošiceVSS Košice (2)
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Trenčín.svg20px]] TrenčínTrenčín (2)
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Ružomberok.svg20px]] RužomberokRužomberok (1)
[[Image:Coat of Arms of Trnava.svg20px]] TrnavaSpartak Trnava (1)

2025–26 season

Twelve clubs will compete in the 2025–26 season.

TeamLocationStadiumCapacity
DAC Dunajská StredaDunajská StredaMOL Aréna12,700
Tatran PrešovPrešovFutbal Tatran Arena6,500
KošiceKošiceKošická futbalová aréna12,555
PodbrezováPodbrezováZELPO Aréna4,000
RužomberokRužomberokŠtadión pod Čebraťom4,876
SkalicaSkalicaŠtadión MFK Skalica2,600
Slovan BratislavaBratislavaTehelné pole22,500
Spartak TrnavaTrnavaŠtadión Antona Malatinského18,200
TrenčínTrenčínŠtadión Sihoť10,000
Zemplín MichalovceMichalovceMestský futbalový štadión4,440
KomárnoKomárnoViOn Aréna4,008
ŽilinaŽilinaŠtadión pod Dubňom10,897

All-time league table

The all-time league table is an overall record of all match results, points, and goals of every team that has played in Slovak I. liga since its inception in 1993. The table as of the end of 2024–25 season. Teams in bold are part of the 2025–26 Niké liga. There is no club that played all seasons in top-flight. The best clubs in that respect, Žilina and Spartak Trnava, missed 1 season, Slovan Bratislava missed 2 seasons.

PosTeamSPWDLFAGDPts
1Slovan Bratislava3097456321719417859548311906
2MŠK Žilina311038499232307176811656031729
3Spartak Trnava311030471234321144011193211595
4MFK Ružomberok2894436126531812221154681348
5AS Trenčín2583731618732412131174391163
6DAC Dunajská Streda 22698255179264871955(-84)938 *
7Dukla Banská Bystrica22712229190293860943(-83)877
8VSS Košice1961624114822783579936863
9FC Petržalka14463204114145676561115726
10Inter Bratislava14454203102149667519148693
11FC Nitra18572177128299607875(-268)644
12Tatran Prešov16515148143224529734(-205)577
13FK Senica14448147113186510619(-138)556
14ViOn Zlaté Moravce17545139135273553859(-306)552
15MFK Dubnica13424119117188436604(-168)473
16Zemplín Michalovce113469690158384553(-169)378
17MŠK Púchov6216705393235294(-59)263
18Železiarne Podbrezová82567962105299369(-70)262
19Chemlon Humenné72167143102238323(-85)246
20Baník Prievidza72165944113239369(-130)212
21Spartak Myjava5132552750167177(-10)192
22ŠKF Sereď5155493967176237(-61)186
23Lokomotíva Košice5156483771180241(-61)174
24Partizán Bardejov5154452485159232(−73)159
25MFK Skalica4129373161139183(-44)142
26FC Rimavská Sobota4126352962129193(−64)134
27FK Pohronie4123264255128179(-51)120
28FC Senec39118284585152(−67)82
30FC Košice2641817297294(-22)71
29Tatran Liptovský Mikuláš26414163466116(-50)58
31KFC Komárno132116153648(-12)39

S = Number of seasons; P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points aSpartak Myjava withdrew from the league on 21 December 2016, and their results from season 2016-17 were annulled.

  • DAC had 6 points deducted in 2013/14 season.

League or status:

Defunct

European competitions

Main article: Slovak football clubs in European competitions

UEFA coefficients

The following data indicates Slovak coefficient rankings between European football leagues. 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 25,25,24,25,27,27,27,25,24,25, 23,25,25,26,30,30,31,31,32,30, 30,32,30

;Country ranking: UEFA League Ranking as of the end 2023/24 season for the period of 2019-2024:

    1. (22) SER Serbian SuperLiga (23.675)
    1. (20) UKR Ukrainian Premier League (22.800)
  • 22. (28) Slovakia Slovak I. Liga (21.250)
    1. (21) HUN Nemzeti Bajnokság I (21.000)
    1. (23) SWE Allsvenskan (20.000)

;Club ranking: UEFA 5-year Club Ranking as of the August 30 2024 season:

    1. Slovan Bratislava (33.500)
    1. Spartak Trnava (8.500)
    1. DAC Dunajská Streda (8.000)
    1. Žilina (5.000)
    1. Ružomberok (5.000)

Players

The clubs sell their players to financially stronger clubs from western Europe. Examples of players that have succeeded in notable leagues are Marek Hamšík, who was captain of Italian club SSC Napoli, Peter Pekarík who captained Bundesliga side Hertha BSC or Martin Škrtel, a well-known former Liverpool centre-back who is now the Sporting director of FC Spartak Trnava. Moreover, over the last few years more and more youngsters have been given chances to perform regularly in the league and as the result, many transfers were to be seen. For example Leon Bailey, Milan Škriniar, Stanislav Lobotka or Samuel Kalu could have been seen playing football at Slovak stadiums recently.

Top scorers

As of the end of the 2017–18 season.

GoalsNameClubs/goals for the club
125Juraj HalenárInter Bratislava 35, Petržalka 33, Slovan Bratislava 57
120Róbert SemeníkDukla Banská Bystrica 72, 1. FC Košice 43, Nitra 5
86Marek UjlakySpartak Trnava 79, Slovan Bratislava 2, Senec 3, Zlaté Moravce 2
86Pavol MasarykSpartak Trnava 10, Slovan Bratislava 45, Ružomberok 28, Senica 2, Skalica 1
85Szilárd NémethSlovan Bratislava 25, 1. FC Košice 21, Inter Bratislava 39
83Vladimír KožuchSpartak Trnava 61, Tatran Prešov 22
81Martin FabušODu/AS Trenčín 59, Žilina 17, Dukla Banská Bystrica 5
78Tomáš Oravec1. FC Košice 4, Ružomberok 19, Petržalka 28, Žilina 24, Spartak Trnava 3
78Róbert RákNitra 61, Ružomberok 17
76Marek MintálŽilina 76

Transfers

Record departures

!Rank!Player!From!To!Fee!Year
1SVK David StrelecSlovan BratislavaENG Middlesbrough€10 milliontitle=Slovan urobil prestup storočia. Kúpili ho zanedbaného, predali za desaťnásobokurl=https://sportnet.sme.sk/spravy/futbal-david-strelec-prestup-zo-slovana-do-fc-middlesbrough-championship-2025-2026/website=sportnet.sme.skaccess-date=1 September 2025language=sk}}
2.NGA Suleman SaniTrenčínGER RB Leipzig€7.0 million2026
3SVK Szilárd NémethInter BratislavaENG Middlesbrough€6.75 million2001
4SVN Andraž ŠporarSlovan BratislavaPOR Sporting CP€6 million2020
5SVK László BénesŽilinaGER Mönchengladbach€5.5 million2016
6SVK Róbert BoženíkŽilinaNED Feyenoord€4.6 million2020
7SVK Dávid HanckoŽilinaITA Fiorentina€4.5 million2018
MNE Nikola KrstovićDAC Dunajská StredaITA US Lecce€4.5 million2023
8SVK Peter DubovskýSlovan BratislavaESP Real Madrid€4.3 million (110 mil. SKK)1993
9BRA WesleyTrenčínBEL Club Brugge€4.2 million2016
10SVK Tomáš HubočanŽilinaRUS Zenit Saint Petersburg€3.8 million2008

*-unofficial fee

Record arrivals

!Rank!Player!From!To!Fee!Year
1Nigeria Rabiu IbrahimBEL GentSlovan Bratislava€1.0 million2017
CRO Marko TolićCRO Dinamo ZagrebSlovan Bratislava€1.0 million2024
GAM Alasana YirajangSVK PodbrezováSlovan Bratislava€1.0 million2025
Serbia Svetozar MarkovićCZE Viktoria PlzeňSlovan Bratislava€1.0 million2026
2UKR Mykola KukharevychENG SwanseaSlovan Bratislava€0.8 million2025
3HUN Dávid HolmanHUN DebrecenSlovan Bratislava€0.7 million2017
Trinidad Lester PeltierSVK TrenčínSlovan Bratislava€0.7 million2012
SVK Marek ŠpilárSVK Tatran Prešov1. FC Košice€0.7 million (20mil SKK)*url=https://www.aktuality.sk/clanok/545573/tri-slovenske-ochutnavky-v-lige-majstrov-za-25-rokov-a-co-bolo-potom/title=Tri slovenské ochutnávky v Lige majstrov za 25 rokov. A čo bolo potom?website=Aktuality.skdate=8 December 2017 }}
HUN András TelekHUN Ferencváros1. FC Košice€0.7 million (20mil SKK)*1997
SVK David StrelecITA Spezia CalcioSlovan Bratislava€0.7 million2024
4SLO Kenan BajrićSLO Olimpija LjubljanaSlovan Bratislava€0.6 million2018
SVN Andraž ŠporarSUI BaselSlovan Bratislava€0.6 million2018
SVK Samuel ŠtefánikNED NEC NijmegenSlovan Bratislava€0.6 million2014
CIV Julien BationoARM FC AlashkertDunajská Streda€0.6 million2025

References

References

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  20. (5 August 2006). "Greško bol najdrahší".
  21. "Rekordny trencan". sportovymagazin.sk.
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  23. (27 June 2017). "Potvrdené! Ibrahim Rabiu do Slovana Bratislava za rekordnú sumu".
  24. (30 September 2024). "The £200 million Celtic gap: How Champions League squads compare".
  25. https://www.denniksport.sk/futbal/c/alasana-yirajang-slovan-bratislava-rozhovor
  26. https://sportnet.sme.sk/spravy/futbal-svetozar-markovic-nova-posila-profil-slovan-bratislava-nike-liga-2025-2026/
  27. https://parameter.sk/1270796/a-dac-nal-tenyleg-erosites-tortent-a-slovan-regi-kozonsegkedvencet-hozott-a-millios-csatar-helyere-mig-nagyszombatban-a-csallokozt-is-megjart-tamadotol-varjak-a-golokat-igy-zajlott-a-nyari/
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  30. (8 December 2017). "Tri slovenské ochutnávky v Lige majstrov za 25 rokov. A čo bolo potom?".
  31. (14 June 2024). "Kmotríkovci siahajú hlboko do vrecka: Slovan hlási už 5 posíl! | Hitky.sk".
  32. "Bajrič za 600-tisíc hráčom Slovana".
  33. "Slovan hlási posilu do defenzívy, Bajrič bol pre "belasých" prvou voľbou | ProFutbal.sk".
  34. (16 December 2019). "Andraž Šporar na lane veľkoklubu: Koľko môže Slovan zarobiť? {{!}} Šport7.sk".
  35. "Šporar sa vyjadril k prestupu do Trabzonsporu {{!".
  36. "EFotbal.cz » Zahraničí : Na Šporara se stojí řada a jsou v ní i velkokluby. Nejdražší přestup ze slovenské ligy se blíží".
  37. (25 December 2015). "Slovan vyhodil hore komínom približne dva milióny eur".
  38. (11 September 2025). "a dac mal".
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