Norwegian First Division (women)
Football league
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Norwegian First Division, also called 1. divisjon (Norwegian: 1. divisjon), is the second highest division in women's football in Norway. It was founded in 1984. Between 1984 and 1995 it served as the first tier. 1. divisjon was replaced as a first tier by the Eliteserien which in turn was replaced by the Toppserien in 2000. It continued as a second tier from 1996 and onwards.
| Founded | 1984 |
|---|---|
| Country | Norway |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Number of clubs | 10 |
| Level on pyramid | 2 |
| Promotion to | Toppserien |
| Relegation to | Norwegian Second Division |
| Domestic cup | Norwegian Cup |
| Current champions | Hønefoss (2024) |
| Most championships | Sandviken (5) |
| Broadcaster(s) | TV 2 |
| Website | toppserien.no |
| Current: 2025 Norwegian First Division (women) | |
First tier
Between 1977 and 1983 women's league football in Norway was organized on a county and regional basis. In 1984, three of these leagues, those representing Ãstlandet, Vestlandet and Trøndelag, merged to form the first national league. However, during the earliest seasons teams continued to play in three regional groups, each with ten teams, and the national title was decided by a play-off between the three group winners. In 1986, a fourth group representing Nord-Norge was added, and the number of teams in the league increased to forty. The league system was subsequently reorganized for the 1987 season. At the end of the 1986 season, thirty of the teams were relegated and formed into a 2. divisjon. The remaining ten teams formed a single nationwide 1. divisjon. The new 1. divisjon remained the top tier of Norwegian women's football until 1995.
List of champions (1984â1995)
Second tier
With the establishment of the Eliteserien in 1996 the 1. divisjon became a second tier division. At the same time the original 2. divisjon formed in 1987 became the third tier. The 1. divisjon now featured 58 teams in six regional groups. For the 2001 season the 1. divisjon was greatly reduced in size and it once again became single nationwide division. It initially featured nine teams, gradually adding a tenth before expanding to twelve for the 2009 season.[1] All nineteen counties of Norway have been represented in the nationwide 1. divisjon since 2001; Ãstfold was the last county to be represented, when Sarpsborg 08 got promoted in 2010.
Regional format
| Season | Promoted | Qualification | System | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Bjørnar Verdal | Donn, Fløya Raufoss/Vind, Bergen Nord | 58 teams in 6 pools Play-off: 2 groups á 3 teams | |
| 1997 | Byåsen Fløya | Haugar, Jardar Kaupanger, Larvik | 55 teams in 6 pools Play-off: 2 groups á 3 teams | |
| 1998 | Grand Bodø Kaupanger | Liungen, Solid Larvik, Verdal | 55 teams in 6 pools Play-off: 2 groups á 3 teams | |
| 1999 | Byåsen Larvik | Medkila, Voss Haugar, Liungen | 55 teams in 6 pools Play-off: 2 groups á 3 teams | |
| 2000 | Liungen Røa | Fløya, Fortuna Ã
lesund Follese, Haugar | 57 teams in 6 pools Play-off: 2 groups á 3 teams | |
Single Division Format
| Season | Winner | Promoted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Sandviken | Larvik | Grand Bodø withdrew, only 9 teams finished the season. |
| 2002 | Liungen | Fløya | Athene Moss withdrew, only 9 teams finished the season. |
| 2003 | Sandviken | Medkila | |
| 2004 | Kattem | Liungen | |
| 2005 | Arna-Bjørnar | Amazon Grimstad | |
| 2006 | Asker | Kattem, Grand Bodø[2] | Toppserien expanded to 12 teams, 3rd and 4th place in the 1. divisjon played promotion matches against the bottom two teams in Toppserien. |
| 2007 | Fart | Larvik | |
| 2008 | Sandviken | Fortuna à lesund | 1. divisjon expanded to 12 teams, the bottom two teams in the 1. divisjon played relegation matches against the winners of the 2. divisjon. |
| 2009 | Linderud-Grei | Donn | |
| 2010 | Sandviken | Medkila | |
| 2011 | VÃ¥lerenga | Fart | |
| 2012 | Avaldsnes | Medkila | Medkila lost the promotion-playoff against Kattem, but were still promoted when Kattem withdrew their team. |
| 2013 | Grand Bodø | â | |
| 2014 | Sandviken | â | |
| 2015 | Urædd | â | |
| 2016 | Grand Bodø | â | |
| 2017 | Lyn | â | |
| 2018 | Fart | â | |
| 2019 | Fløya | â | No teams promoted due to number of Toppserien teams reduced from 12 to 10. |
| 2020 | Stabæk | â | Medkila lost the promotion-playoff against Kolbotn. |
| 2021 | Røa | â |