2020–21 First Professional Football League (Bulgaria)
97th season of top-tier football league in Bulgaria
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The 2020–21 First Professional Football League, also known as efbet League for sponsorship reasons,[2] was the 97th season of the top division of the Bulgarian football league system, the 73rd since a league format was adopted for the national competition of A Group as a top tier of the pyramid, and also the 5th season of the First Professional Football League, which decides the Bulgarian champion. Ludogorets Razgrad were the defending champions for the ninth consecutive time.
| Season | 2020–21 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 7 August 2020 – 30 May 2021 |
| Champions | Ludogorets (10th title) |
| Relegated | Etar Montana |
| Europa Conference League | CSKA Sofia Lokomotiv Plovdiv Arda |
| Matches | 223 |
| Goals | 536 (2.4 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Claudiu Keșerü (18 goals)[1] |
| Best goalkeeper | Daniel Naumov (12 clean sheets) |
| Biggest home win | Beroe 6–0 Botev Vratsa (28 August 2020) Lokomotiv Plovdiv 6–0 Botev Plovdiv (28 November 2020) Ludogorets 6–0 Etar (15 February 2021) CSKA Sofia 6–0 Montana (21 April 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Etar 0–4 Cherno More (16 August 2020) Montana 0–4 Levski Sofia (29 August 2020) |
| Highest scoring | Montana 3–4 Tsarsko Selo (7 December 2020) |
| Longest winning run | 8 matches CSKA Sofia |
| Longest unbeaten run | 16 matches Ludogorets |
| Longest winless run | 13 matches Etar |
| Longest losing run | 8 matches Botev Vratsa |
← 2019–20 2021–22 → | |
The season was initially set to start on 24 July 2020,[3] but began on 7 August 2020 due to the COVID-19 situation in Bulgaria.[4][5]
On 4 May 2021, Ludogorets Razgrad became champions for a record-breaking 10th consecutive time after winning 3–1 against Beroe.[6]
Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic
Measures pertaining to fan attendance
All matches were at first envisioned to be held without spectators, at the minimum until 31 August,[7] but this was reversed in early August (allowing for matches to be held at 50% stadium capacity and up to 1000 people per stand),[8] reportedly under pressure from fan groups, with the government's inconsistency on the matter in turn criticized in certain circles.[9] On 27 October 2020, Minister of Health Kostadin Angelov issued a decree valid from 29 October until 12 November, stipulating that all matches are to be held behind closed doors.[10][11] Minister of Youth and Sports Krasen Kralev claimed that some of the fans of certain teams had not been observing the pandemic control protocols, such as social distancing and mask-wearing.[12] On 12 November 2020, the ban on the presence of spectators was extended at least until 30 November.[13] In late November 2020 Kralev stated that the return of fans will not be under consideration until March 2021.[14] Spectators were once again allowed from 24 April 2021 onwards, at 30% stadium capacity, with a maximum of 1000 people per block.[15] The capacity was expanded to 50% from 19 May 2021.[16]
Footballers testing positive for the virus, schedule changes and vaccinations
Two Ludogorets Razgrad players tested positive for coronavirus just prior to the beginning of the championship.[17] In September 2020, the whole Etar team was initially quarantined by the regional health authorities in Veliko Tarnovo after 5 footballers' and 2 staff members' PCR tests indicated that they were infected,[18] but the match against Lokomotiv eventually went ahead without the date being changed.[19] The fixture between Arda and Ludogorets Razgrad that was to be held on 4 October 2020 was postponed after more than 10 footballers' tests from the Kardzhali team (as well as a trainer) returned positive results.[20] In late October 2020, Slavia also saw multiple footballers testing positive for COVID-19.[21] In early November 2020, four Levski Sofia players were reported to have the infection.[22] Prior to the start of the November international window, 12 Ludogorets footballers from both the first and the second teams[23] as well as additional Levski Sofia players from the senior and junior rosters were diagnosed with the virus,[24] bringing the total number of infected at the latter club to 16.[25][26] This caused some of the players to miss out on national team call-ups and led to the postponement of Ludogorets' Bulgarian Cup match against Sportist Svoge and Levski Sofia's league game against Lokomotiv Plovdiv. Beroe also saw cases of coronavirus among its players.[27] After initially given the green light to be held on the planned date,[28] The Eternal Derby match originally scheduled for 21 November was eventually postponed as well,[29] taking place on 18 December. After reporting a number of COVID-19 cases in July 2020, shortly before the beginning of the championship,[30] CSKA 1948 saw a boom in infections in May 2021, with 11 footballers testing positive, resulting in the postponement of their first game from the championship group against Lokomotiv Plovdiv.[31] CSKA 1948 requested that their match against CSKA Sofia (scheduled to be held on 7 May) is moved to a later date as well, but this was not granted by the Football Union. After CSKA 1948 did not show up for the game, on 10 May CSKA Sofia were awarded a 3:0 technical win by the Sports and Technical Commission.[32] However, on 13 May 2021, the same technical body decided to honour CSKA 1948's appeal, also taking into account the dissatisfaction voiced by Lokomotiv Plovdiv due to competing with CSKA Sofia for the second place in the league standings, and rescheduled the game for 22 May 2021.[33] Vaccinations among footballers and staff began in March 2021.[34]
Innovations
The VAR system was introduced at the start of the post-regular season phase, being first used on 3 May 2021 for the match between CSKA Sofia and Arda.[35]
Teams
Fourteen teams are competing in the league – the top eleven teams from the previous season, the team that finished in first place in the Second League, and the two winners of the promotion/relegation playoffs.[36]
CSKA 1948 were promoted as champions of the 2019–20 Second League and will make their debut in the top tier of Bulgarian football. The second team to be promoted was Montana, who earned promotion after winning their play-off match against Dunav Ruse.[37] The club returns after three seasons in the second tier, following their relegation in the 2016–17 season, while Dunav ended their four-year stay in the First League. In the third playoff, Tsarsko Selo remained in the top division by winning against Septemvri Sofia.[38]
Stadiums and locations
| Arda | Beroe | Botev Plovdiv | Botev Vratsa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arena Arda | Beroe | Futbolen kompleks Botev 1912 | Hristo Botev |
| Capacity: 11,114 | Capacity: 12,128 | Capacity: 4,000 | Capacity: 12,000 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Cherno More |
2020–21 First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) (Bulgaria) Location of Sofia teams. |
CSKA Sofia | |
| Ticha | Balgarska Armia | ||
| Capacity: 8,250 | Capacity: 22,995 | ||
 |
 | ||
| CSKA 1948 | Etar | ||
| Natsionalen stadion Vasil Levski | Ivaylo | ||
| Capacity: 44,000 | Capacity: 15,000 | ||
 |
 | ||
| Levski | Lokomotiv | ||
| Vivacom Arena - Georgi Asparuhov | Lokomotiv | ||
| Capacity: 25,000 | Capacity: 13,220 | ||
 |
 | ||
| Ludogorets | Montana | Slavia | Tsarsko Selo |
| Huvepharma Arena | Ogosta | Slavia | Arena Tsarsko Selo |
| Capacity: 10,422 | Capacity: 6,000 | Capacity: 25,556 | Capacity: 1,550 |
 |
 |
| |
Personnel and kits
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Individual clubs may wear jerseys with advertising. However, only one sponsorship is permitted per jersey for official tournaments organised by UEFA in addition to that of the kit manufacturer (exceptions are made for non-profit organisations). Clubs in the domestic league can have more than one sponsorship per jersey which can feature on the front of the shirt, incorporated with the main sponsor or in place of it; or on the back, either below the squad number or on the collar area. Shorts also have space available for advertisement.
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSKA 1948 |  Yordan Yurukov |
Mutual consent | 4 June 2020 | Pre-season | Krasimir Balakov |
4 June 2020[51] |
| Slavia Sofia | Zlatomir Zagorčić |
1 September 2020[52] | 13th | Martin Kushev |
7 September 2020 | |
| Martin Kushev |
End of caretaker tenure | 17 September 2020 |  Aleksandr Tarkhanov |
17 September 2020[53] | ||
| Botev Plovdiv | Ferario Spasov |
Mutual consent | 6 October 2020[54] | 12th | Petar Penchev |
6 October 2020[55] |
| Levski Sofia | Georgi Todorov |
Resigned | 25 October 2020[56] | 11th | Zhivko Milanov |
25 October 2020 |
| CSKA Sofia | Stamen Belchev |
Mutual consent | 26 October 2020[57] | 5th |  Daniel Morales |
26 October 2020 |
| Ludogorets |  Pavel Vrba |
26 October 2020[58] | 2nd | Stanislav Genchev | ||
| Levski Sofia | Zhivko Milanov |
End of caretaker tenure | 10 November 2020 | 12th |  Slaviša Stojanovič |
10 November 2020[59] |
| Etar | Petko Petkov |
Mutual consent | 10 November 2020[60] | 14th | Kaloyan Chakarov |
11 November 2020 |
| Lokomotiv Plovdiv |  Bruno Akrapović |
Signed by CSKA Sofia | 11 November 2020 | 2nd | Aleksandar Tunchev |
11 November 2020[61] |
| CSKA Sofia | Daniel Morales |
End of caretaker tenure | 5th | Bruno Akrapović |
11 November 2020[62] | |
| Etar | Kaloyan Chakarov |
19 November 2020 | 14th | Aleksandar Tomash |
19 November 2020[63] | |
| Montana | Nikola Spasov |
Death | 23 November 2020[64] | 12th | Atanas Atanasov |
1 December 2020[65] |
| Botev Plovdiv | Petar Penchev |
Demoted to youth team | 7 December 2020 | 10th | Stefan Stoyanov |
7 December 2020[66] |
| Ludogorets | Stanislav Genchev |
Demoted to assistant | 3 January 2021 | 1st |  Valdas Dambrauskas |
3 January 2021[67] |
| Botev Plovdiv | Stefan Stoyanov |
End of caretaker tenure | 8 January 2021 | 10th | Azrudin Valentić |
8 January 2021[68] |
| Botev Vratsa | Antoni Zdravkov |
Resigned | 13 March 2021[69] | 12th | Veselin Velikov |
15 March 2021[70] |
| CSKA 1948 | Krasimir Balakov |
Demoted | 21 March 2021[71] | 6th | Rosen Kirilov |
23 March 2021[72] |
| CSKA Sofia | Bruno Akrapović |
Sacked | 28 March 2021[73] | 3rd | Lyuboslav Penev |
28 March 2021[74] |
| Tsarsko Selo | Lyuboslav Penev |
Signed by CSKA Sofia | 28 March 2021 | 9th | Antoni Zdravkov |
29 March 2021[75] |
| Slavia Sofia | Aleksandr Tarkhanov |
Mutual consent | 11 April 2021 | 13th | Zlatomir Zagorčić |
11 April 2021[76] |
| Beroe | Dimitar Dimitrov |
Resigned | 21 April 2021[77] | 5th | Petar Kolev |
22 April 2021[78] |
| CSKA 1948 | Rosen Kirilov |
Mutual consent | 24 April 2021[79] | 6th | Todor Kiselichkov |
24 April 2021 |
| Montana | Atanas Atanasov |
Mutual consent | 15 May 2021[80] | 14th | Svetlan Kondev |
15 May 2021 |
Regular season
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ludogorets Razgrad | 26 | 20 | 4 | 2 | 59 | 18 | +41 | 64 | Qualification for the Championship group |
| 2 | Lokomotiv Plovdiv | 26 | 15 | 7 | 4 | 41 | 19 | +22 | 52 | |
| 3 | CSKA Sofia | 26 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 39 | 20 | +19 | 50 | |
| 4 | Arda | 26 | 12 | 9 | 5 | 36 | 29 | +7 | 45 | |
| 5 | CSKA 1948 | 26 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 34 | 30 | +4 | 38 | |
| 6 | Beroe | 26 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 38 | 28 | +10 | 37[a] | |
| 7 | Cherno More | 26 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 27 | 25 | +2 | 37[a] | Qualification for the Europa Conference League group |
| 8 | Tsarsko Selo | 26 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 29 | 27 | +2 | 34 | |
| 9 | Levski Sofia | 26 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 25 | 27 | −2 | 28 | |
| 10 | Botev Plovdiv | 26 | 5 | 9 | 12 | 25 | 46 | −21 | 24 | |
| 11 | Slavia Sofia | 26 | 6 | 5 | 15 | 19 | 40 | −21 | 23 | Qualification for the Relegation group |
| 12 | Botev Vratsa | 26 | 6 | 4 | 16 | 26 | 39 | −13 | 22[b] | |
| 13 | Etar | 26 | 4 | 10 | 12 | 20 | 45 | −25 | 22[b] | |
| 14 | Montana | 26 | 4 | 8 | 14 | 21 | 46 | −25 | 20 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fairplay ranking; 9) Draw.[81]
Notes:
Results
Positions by round
Results by round
Championship round
Championship round table
Points and goals will carry over in full from regular season.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | LUD | LPD | CSS | ARD | CSK | BSZ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ludogorets Razgrad (C) | 31 | 22 | 4 | 5 | 69 | 29 | +40 | 70 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round | — | 1–2 | — | 4–1 | — | 3–1 | |
| 2 | Lokomotiv Plovdiv | 31 | 17 | 10 | 4 | 48 | 23 | +25 | 61 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round[a] | — | — | 2–0 | — | 0–0 | 0–0 | |
| 3 | CSKA Sofia | 31 | 17 | 8 | 6 | 46 | 24 | +22 | 59 | 4–1 | — | — | 1–0 | — | 2–0 | ||
| 4 | Arda (O) | 31 | 13 | 11 | 7 | 42 | 37 | +5 | 50 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League play-off | — | 3–3 | — | — | 0–0 | — | |
| 5 | CSKA 1948 | 31 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 47 | 3–1 | — | 1–0 | — | — | — | ||
| 6 | Beroe | 31 | 10 | 9 | 12 | 42 | 38 | +4 | 39 | — | — | — | 0–2 | 3–3 | — |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fairplay ranking; 9) Draw.[82]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
Notes:
- CSKA Sofia qualified for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round by winning the 2020–21 Bulgarian Cup.
Positions by round
Below the positions per round are shown. As teams did not all start with an equal number of points, the initial pre-playoffs positions are also given.
Europa Conference League round
Points and goals will carry over in full from regular season.
Europa Conference League round table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | CHM | LEV | TSS | BPD | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cherno More | 32 | 12 | 9 | 11 | 37 | 34 | +3 | 45 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League play-off | — | 1–2 | 3–3 | 3–1 | |
| 2 | Levski Sofia | 32 | 11 | 8 | 13 | 34 | 32 | +2 | 41 | 2–1 | — | 1–1 | 1–2 | ||
| 3 | Tsarsko Selo | 32 | 9 | 10 | 13 | 33 | 39 | −6 | 37 | 0–1 | 0–2 | — | 0–0 | ||
| 4 | Botev Plovdiv | 32 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 34 | 52 | −18 | 32 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 5–0 | — |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fairplay ranking; 9) Draw.[83]
Positions by round
Below the positions per round are shown. As teams did not all start with an equal number of points, the initial pre-playoffs positions are also given.
Relegation round
Points and goals will carry over in full from regular season.
Relegation round table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation | SLA | BVR | MON | ETA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Slavia Sofia | 32 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 28 | 44 | −16 | 34 | — | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | ||
| 2 | Botev Vratsa (O) | 32 | 8 | 6 | 18 | 31 | 45 | −14 | 30 | Qualification for the relegation play-off | 1–1 | — | 1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 3 | Montana (R) | 32 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 26 | 52 | −26 | 28[a] | Relegation to the Second League | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 1–0 | |
| 4 | Etar (R) | 32 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 25 | 53 | −28 | 28[a] | 0–3 | 2–0 | 1–2 | — |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fairplay ranking; 9) Draw.[84]
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- Head-to-head points: Montana 10, Etar 1.
Positions by round
Below the positions per round are shown. As teams did not all start with an equal number of points, the initial pre-playoffs positions are also given.
Europa Conference League play-off
| Arda | 1–0 | Cherno More |
|---|---|---|
Kokonov  18' |
Report |
Promotion/relegation play-off
| Botev Vratsa | 1–0 | Septemvri Sofia |
|---|---|---|
| Zlatinski 76' (pen.) |
Report |
Season statistics
Top scorers
- As of 30 May 2021[1]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Claudiu Keșerü |
Ludogorets | 18 |
| 2 | Atanas Iliev |
Botev Plovdiv | 16 |
| 3 |  Mathias Coureur |
Cherno More | 15 |
| 4 | Martin Kamburov |
Beroe[a] | 14 |
| 5 | Dimitar Iliev |
Lokomotiv Plovdiv | 13 |
| 6 | Preslav Borukov |
Etar | 12 |
| 7 |  Alioune Fall |
Beroe | 10 |
| 8 | Galin Ivanov |
CSKA 1948 | 9 |
| Georgi Minchev |
Lokomotiv Plovdiv | ||
| Ivan Kokonov |
Arda |
Clean sheets
- As of 30 May 2021
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Daniel Naumov |
CSKA 1948 | 12 |
| 2 | Ivan Karadzhov |
Arda | 11 |
| 3 | Gustavo Busatto |
CSKA Sofia | 10 |
| 4 | Ilko Pirgov |
Lokomotiv Plovdiv | 8 |
| Krasimir Kostov |
Botev Vratsa | ||
 Johny Placide |
Tsarsko Selo | ||
| Martin Lukov |
Lokomotiv Plovdiv | ||
| 8 | Georgi Georgiev |
Cherno More | 6 |
| Hristo Ivanov |
Etar | ||
 Zvonimir Mikulić |
Levski Sofia |
Notes
- Includes 9 goals for CSKA 1948