2023 Veikkausliiga
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| Season | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 5 April – 5 November |
| Champions | HJK |
| Relegated | Honka KTP |
| Champions League | HJK |
| Conference League | Ilves (via Finnish Cup) KuPS VPS |
| Matches | 132 |
| Goals | 329 (2.49 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Bojan Radulović (18 goals) |
| Biggest home win | HJK 4–0 VPS (19 April 2023) |
| Biggest away win | Oulu 0–3 SJK (29 April 2023) SJK 1–4 Oulu (27 June 2023) |
| Highest scoring | Lahti 3–4 KuPS (1 July 2023) |
| Longest winning run | 10 matches VPS |
| Longest unbeaten run | 11 matches SJK |
| Longest winless run | 11 matches Haka, Lahti |
| Longest losing run | 5 matches VPS |
← 2022 2024 →
All statistics correct as of 9 October 2023. | |
The 2023 Veikkausliiga was the 93rd season of top-tier football in Finland, which takes place from April to November.
The winners (HJK, their fourth successive title win and thirty-third overall) qualified for the Champions League first qualifying round. The 2023 Finnish Cup winners (Ilves) qualified for the Conference League second qualifying round. The second-placed team (KuPS) and Conference League play-off winners (VPS) qualified for the Conference League first qualifying round. The eleventh-placed team (Mariehamn) qualified for the Veikkausliiga play-off, winning to retain their place in the league. The bottom-placed team (KTP) were relegated to the 2024 Ykkösliiga. The fifth-placed team (Honka) were demoted to the 2024 Kakkonen due to financial issues.
Stadia and locations
The league consisted of twelve teams; the top eleven teams from the previous season, and one team promoted from the Ykkönen. After 22 games, the season split into a championship/relegation round.
HJK were the defending champions. HJK drew an average home attendance of 5,631 in the 2023 Veikkausliiga, the highest in the league.[1] Veikkaus was the league’s sponsor.[2]
| Promoted from 2022 Ykkönen |
Relegated to 2023 Ykkönen |
|---|---|
| KTP | HIFK |
| Club | Location | Stadium | Turf | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AC Oulu | Oulu | Raatti Stadion | Natural | 5,000 |
| FC Haka | Valkeakoski | Tehtaan kenttä | Artificial | 3,516 |
| FC Honka | Espoo | Tapiolan Urheilupuisto | Natural | 6,000 |
| FC Inter | Turku | Veritas Stadion | Natural | 9,372 |
| FC Lahti | Lahti | Lahden Stadion | Natural | 7,465 |
| HJK | Helsinki | Bolt Arena | Artificial | 10,770 |
| IFK Mariehamn | Mariehamn | Wiklöf Holding Arena | Artificial | 1,650 |
| Ilves | Tampere | Tampere Stadium | Natural | 16,800 |
| KTP | Kotka | Arto Tolsa Areena | Artificial | 4,780 |
| KuPS | Kuopio | Savon Sanomat Areena | Artificial | 2,700 |
| SJK | Seinäjoki | OmaSP Stadion | Artificial | 5,817 |
| VPS | Vaasa | Hietalahti | Artificial | 6,005 |
Regular season
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | HJK | 22 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 39 | 19 | +20 | 44 | Qualification for the Championship Round |
| 2 | KuPS | 22 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 34 | 15 | +19 | 43 | |
| 3 | SJK | 22 | 11 | 5 | 6 | 29 | 24 | +5 | 38 | |
| 4 | VPS | 22 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 30 | 23 | +7 | 36 | |
| 5 | Honka | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 23 | 17 | +6 | 35 | |
| 6 | Inter Turku | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 33 | 31 | +2 | 34 | |
| 7 | Oulu | 22 | 9 | 4 | 9 | 32 | 37 | −5 | 31 | Qualification for the Relegation Round |
| 8 | Haka | 22 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 27 | 37 | −10 | 24 | |
| 9 | Lahti | 22 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 32 | −11 | 22 | |
| 10 | Ilves | 22 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 27 | −7 | 20 | |
| 11 | KTP | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 20 | 33 | −13 | 20 | |
| 12 | Mariehamn | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 | 21 | 34 | −13 | 15 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Head-to-head away goals scored; 7) Play-off
(Note: Play-off is only played if need to decide champion, teams for relegation or UEFA competition and will be played on a neutral ground).
Results
Championship Round
Relegation Round
Play-offs
Conference League play-off
Teams placed 3rd-7th (Honka, Inter Turku, Oulu, SJK, and VPS) entered play-off matches for the second spot in the Conference League first qualifying round. The third-placed team (VPS) received a bye to the final. The quarter-finals and semi-finals are held over one leg (with the higher-placed team gaining home advantage), while the final is held over two legs.[3]
Quarter-finals
| 25 October 2023 | Honka (5th) | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p) | Inter Turku (6th) | Tapiolan urheilupuisto, Espoo |
| 16:00 BST |
Semi-finals
| 28 October 2023 | Honka (5th) | 5–0 | Oulu (7th) | Tapiolan urheilupuisto, Espoo |
| 15:00 BST |
Final
First leg
| 1 November 2023 | Honka (5th) | 0–1 | VPS (3rd) | Tapiolan urheilupuisto, Espoo |
| 16:00 BST |
Second leg
Veikkausliiga play-off
The eleventh-placed team (Mariehamn) qualified for a play-off alongside the second, third, and fourth-placed teams from the 2023 Ykkönen (Gnistan, MP, and SJK Akatemia). The third and fourth-placed Ykkönen teams entered the quarter-finals, with the winners facing the second-placed Ykkönen team in the semi-finals. The semi-final winners then face the eleventh-placed Veikkausliiga team, with the winners securing the final place in the 2024 Veikkausliiga. For the quarter and semi-finals, the higher-placed team gained home advantage.
Quarter-finals
| 14 October 2023 | MP (3rd, Ykkönen) | 1–4 | SJK Akatemia (4th, Ykkönen) | Mikkelin Urheilupuisto, Mikkeli |
| 13:00 BST |
Semi-finals
| 21 October 2023 | Gnistan (2nd, Ykkönen) | 4–2 (a.e.t.) | SJK Akatemia (4th, Ykkönen) | Mustapekka Areena, Helsinki |
| 16:00 BST |
Final
First leg
| 25 October 2023 | Gnistan (2nd, Ykkönen) | 0–0 | Mariehamn (11th, Veikkausliiga) | Mustapekka Areena, Helsinki |
| 16:30 BST |
Second leg
Top scorers
- As of 1 November 2023[4]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Bojan Radulović |
HJK | 18 |
| 2 |  Peter Godly Michael |
VPS | 17 |
| 3 |  Ashley Coffey |
Oulu | 13 |
| 4 |  Jaime Moreno |
SJK | 11 |
| 5 |  Juan Lescano |
Haka | 9 |
| 6 |  Darren Smith |
Inter Turku | 8 |
 Santeri Haarala |
Ilves | ||
| Rasmus Karjalainen |
Oulu | ||
| 9 | Jeremiah Streng |
SJK | 7 |
| Elias Mastokangas |
Haka | ||
| Tuomas Ollila |
HJK | ||
| Niklas Jokelainen |
Oulu |