The Danish football champions are the winners of the highest league of football in Denmark. The title has been contested since 1913,[1] in a varying form of competitions. Since 1991, the winners have been found through the Danish Superliga championship. The Danish football championship is governed by the Danish Football Association (DBU).

The early Danish football championships were decided in a single game, and the competition was not nationwide until its structure was altered before the 1927–28 season. Until the 1950s, the winners' list included teams exclusively from the Copenhagen area. Kjøbenhavns Boldklub (KB) thus won 12 of its shared record 15 Danish championships before the 1954–55 season, when Køge Boldklub became the first non-Copenhagen team to be crowned Danish football champions.

A Danish champion has been found every year since 1913, except for 1915 and 1928. In 1915, the tournament was not played because of World War I. In 1928, there was no rule defined for the possibility that two or more teams had the same number of points at the end of the tournament, when three clubs all ended in first place.

History

Upon its founding in 1889, the Danish Football Association (DBU) inaugurated The Football Tournament contested by Copenhagen clubs only, though the winners are not considered official Danish champions. Upon the creation of the Copenhagen Football Association (KBU) in 1903, the administration of The Football Tournament was handed over to the newly founded regional football association, who went on to arrange yearly Copenhagen football championships. As the five other regional football associations emerged – namely Jutland FA (JBU), Zealand FA (SBU), Funen FA (FBU), Lolland-Falster FA (LFBU) and Bornholm FA (BBU) – they also started arranging championships for their own regions, parallel with the Copenhagen Championship.

The first Danish championship, the "National Football Tournament", was played from 1912 to 1913. Through to 1927, the championship was decided in a single final match,[1] with the winner of KBU's Copenhagen football championship directly qualified to play the winner of a series of play-off games between the regional champions from the rest of Denmark.[lower-alpha 1] From 1914 to 1917, the runner-up team from the KBU tournament played a semi-final game against the best team from the rest of Denmark, with the winner facing the KBU champions in the Danish championship final. As the Copenhagen clubs were stronger than the provincial teams, this meant the final game ended up being contested by two clubs from Copenhagen.

Before the 1927–28 season, the first nationwide tournament, the "Denmark Tournament", was inaugurated.[1] 20 teams were divided into five groups of four teams. They played each other once, and the five group winners qualified for a championship deciding group. Here they again played each other once, and the top placed team was declared champions after seven games in all. This lasted only two years before the league system was changed and the tournament renamed to the "Championship League" for the 1929–30 season.[1] The teams were divided into two leagues, a championship series of ten teams and a promotion series with a varying number of clubs each year. This meant that the number of teams competing for the championship was fixed for the course of the tournament, and that every team played each other. The lowest placed team in the championship series and the top placed team in the promotion series would swap places between each season.[2] From the start of the competition in 1929–30, the clubs played each other once to give a total of nine games a season, but from 1936 to 1937 they met twice in a season for a total of 18 games.[1]

A match between Frem (horizontal stripes) and AB (vertical stripes), circa 1940. 1937 top goalscorer Pauli Jørgensen is on the far left, jumping.

During the German occupation of Denmark in World War II from 1940 to 1945, the championship was again decided in a single final.[1] The format varied throughout the occupation, as a differing number of teams played in three separate tournaments. The best placed teams in each tournament would go on to a string of play-off games, before two teams met in the final.

From the 1945–46 season, the competition reverted to the "Championship League" format, with the tournament now named the "1st Division".[1] There were 10 teams in the top division once again, playing each other twice, with the lowest team being relegated.[3] The 1953–54 season saw the first non-Copenhagen team win the Danish championship, when Køge Boldklub won the title.[4] The championship title was not reclaimed by a Copenhagen team in more than ten years, until Akademisk Boldklub (AB) won the 1967 season.

From 1958, the Danish championship was arranged through one calendar year,[1] and the 1956–57 season lasted 18 months with the teams playing each other thrice for a 27 games total.[5] From 1958 to 1974, the tournament was expanded to 12 teams,[1] playing each other twice for 22 games per season each, but now the bottom two teams faced relegation.[6] The number of teams was increased to 16 for the 1975 season,[1] which resulted in 30 games per season.[7] In 1986, the number of participants was altered once more, this time decreasing the number of teams to 14,[1] and the number of games to 26.[8]

In 1991, the 1st Division was replaced by the "Danish Superliga",[1] with only 10 teams participating. The opening Superliga season was played during the spring of 1991, with the ten teams playing each other twice for the championship title.[9] For the following seasons the tournament structure was once more stretched over two calendar years. In the summer and autumn of 1991, the 10 teams played each other twice in the regular season of the tournament.[1] In the following spring, the bottom two teams would be cut off, while the remaining eight teams entered the post-season tournament with their points cut in half and played each other twice once more, for a total of 32 games in a season.[10] This practice was abandoned before the 1995–96 season,[1] when the number of teams competing was increased to 12, playing each other thrice for 33 games per Superliga season.[11] For the 2016–17 season the league was expanded to 14 teams, and a championship round involving the top 6 teams was introduced.[12] For the 2020–21 season the league was reduced to 12 teams again, but the championship round remained.[13]

Champions

Landsfodboldturneringen (1913–1927)

Year Winner (titles)[14] Runners-up[14]
1912–13KB (1)B 1901
1913–14KB (2)B 93
1914–15no competition held due to World War I
1915–16B 93 (1)KB
1916–17KB (3)AB
1917–18KB (4)Randers Freja
1918–19AB (1)B 1901
1919–20B 1903 (1)B 1901
1920–21AB (2)AGF
1921–22KB (5)B 1901
1922–23Frem (1)AGF
1923–24B 1903 (2)B 1913
1924–25KB (6)AGF
1925–26B 1903 (3)B 1901
1926–27B 93 (2)Skovshoved

Danmarksmesterskabsturneringen (1928–1929)

Year Winner (titles)[15] Runners-up[15] Top scorer
1927–28none[lower-alpha 2] not available[lower-alpha 3]
1928–29B 93 (3)KB

Mesterskabsserien (1930–1940)

Year Winner (titles)[15] Runners-up[15] Top scorer (club) (goals)[16]
1929–30B 93 (4)Frem not available[lower-alpha 3]
1930–31Frem (2)KB
1931–32KB (7)AB
1932–33Frem (3)B 93
1933–34B 93 (5)B 1903
1934–35B 93 (6)Frem
1935–36Frem (4)AB
1936–37AB (3)FremPauli Jørgensen (Frem) (19)
1937–38B 1903 (4)FremKnud Andersen (B 1903) (23)
1938–39B 93 (7)KBErik Petersen (B 93) (27)
1939–40KB (8)Fremad AmagerFrede Jensen (Køge) and Kaj Hansen (B 93) (12)

War Tournaments (1941–1945)

Year Winner (titles)[15] Runners-up[15]
1940–41Frem (5)Fremad Amager
1941–42B 93 (8)AB
1942–43AB (4)KB
1943–44Frem (6)AB
1944–45AB (5)AGF

1st Division (1946–1990)

Year Winner (titles)[15] Runners-up[15] Top scorer (club) (goals)[16]
1945–46B 93 (9)KBJørgen Leschly Sørensen (B 93) (16)
1946–47AB (6)KBHelge Broneé (ØB) (21)
1947–48KB (9)FremJohn Hansen (Frem) (20)
1948–49KB (10)ABJørgen Leschly Sørensen (OB) (16)
1949–50KB (11)ABJames Rønvang (AB) (15)
1950–51AB (7)OBJames Rønvang (AB), Henning Bjerregaard (B 93)
and Jens Peter Hansen (Esbjerg) (11)
1951–52AB (8)KøgeValdemar Kendzior (Skovshoved) and Poul Erik Petersen (Køge) (13)
1952–53KB (12)SkovshovedValdemar Kendzior (Skovshoved) (17)
1953–54Køge (1)KBJens-Carl Kristensen (AB) (12)
1954–55AGF (1)ABHenning Jensen (Frem) (17)
1955–56AGF (2)EsbjergGunnar Kjeldberg (AGF) (18)
1956–57AGF (3)ABSøren Andersen (Frem) (27)
1958Vejle (1)FremHenning Enoksen (Vejle) (27)
1959B 1909 (1)KBPer Jensen (KB) (20)
1960AGF (4)KBHarald Nielsen (Frederikshavn) (19)
1961Esbjerg (1)KBJørgen Ravn (KB) (26)
1962Esbjerg (2)B 1913Henning Enoksen (AGF) and Carl Emil Christiansen (Esbjerg) (24)
1963Esbjerg (3)B 1913Mogens Haastrup (B 1909) (21)
1964B 1909 (2)AGFJørgen Ravn (KB) (21)
1965Esbjerg (4)VejlePer Petersen (B 1903) (18)
1966Hvidovre (1)FremHenning Enoksen (AGF) (16)
1967AB (9)FremLeif Nielsen (Frem) (15)
1968KB (13)EsbjergNiels-Christian Holmstrøm (KB) (23)
1969B 1903 (5)KBSteen Rømer Larsen (B 1903) (15)
1970B 1903 (6)ABOle Forsing (B 1903) (18)
1971Vejle (2)HvidovreUffe Brage (KB) and John Nielsen (B 1901) (19)
1972Vejle (3)B 1903Karsten Lund (Vejle) and John Nielsen (B 1901) (16)
1973Hvidovre (2)Randers FrejaHans Aabech (Hvidovre) (28)
1974KB (14)VejleNiels-Christian Holmstrøm (KB) (24)
1975Køge (2)HolbækBjarne Petersen (KB) (25)
1976B 1903 (7)FremMogens Jespersen (AaB) (22)
1977OB (1)B 1903Allan Hansen (OB) (23)
1978Vejle (4)EsbjergJohn Eriksen (OB) (22)
1979Esbjerg (5)KBJohn Eriksen (OB) (20)
1980KB (15)NæstvedHans Aabech (KB) (19)
1981Hvidovre (3)LyngbyAllan Hansen (OB) (28)
1982OB (2)AGFIb Jacquet (Vejle) (20)
1983Lyngby (1)OBVilhelm Munk Nielsen (OB) (20)
1984Vejle (5)AGFSteen Thychosen (Vejle) (24)
1985Brøndby (1)LyngbyLars Bastrup (Ikast) (20)
1986AGF (5)BrøndbyClaus Nielsen (Brøndby) (16)
1987Brøndby (2)Ikast FSClaus Nielsen (Brøndby) (20)
1988Brøndby (3)NæstvedBent Christensen (Brøndby) (21)
1989OB (3)BrøndbyMiklos Molnar (Frem), Flemming Christensen (Lyngby)
and Lars Jakobsen (OB) (14)
1990Brøndby (4)B 1903Bent Christensen (Brøndby) (17)

Danish Superliga (1991–present)

Year Winner (titles)[15] Runners-up[15] Top scorer (club) (goals)[16]
1991Brøndby (5)LyngbyBent Christensen (Brøndby) (11)
1991–92Lyngby (2)B 1903Peter Møller (AaB) (17)
1992–93F.C. Copenhagen (1)OBPeter Møller (AaB) (22)
1993–94Silkeborg (1)F.C. CopenhagenSøren Frederiksen (Silkeborg) (18)
1994–95AaB (1)BrøndbyErik Bo Andersen (AaB) (24)
1995–96Brøndby (6)AGFThomas Thorninger (AGF) (20)
1996–97Brøndby (7)VejleMiklos Molnar (Lyngby) (26)
1997–98Brøndby (8)SilkeborgEbbe Sand (Brøndby) (28)
1998–99AaB (2)BrøndbyHeine Fernandez (Viborg) (23)
1999–00Herfølge (1)BrøndbyPeter Lassen (Silkeborg) (16)
2000–01F.C. Copenhagen (2)BrøndbyPeter Graulund (Brøndby) (21)
2001–02Brøndby (9)F.C. CopenhagenPeter Madsen (Brøndby) and Kaspar Dalgas (OB) (22)
2002–03F.C. Copenhagen (3)BrøndbySøren Frederiksen (Viborg) and Jan Kristiansen (Esbjerg) (18)
2003–04F.C. Copenhagen (4)BrøndbySteffen Højer (OB), Mohamed Zidan (FC Midtjylland),
Tommy Bechmann (Esbjerg) and Mwape Miti (OB) (19)
2004–05Brøndby (10)F.C. CopenhagenSteffen Højer (OB) (20)
2005–06F.C. Copenhagen (5)BrøndbySteffen Højer (Viborg) (16)
2006–07F.C. Copenhagen (6)FC MidtjyllandRade Prica (AaB) (19)
2007–08AaB (3)FC MidtjyllandJeppe Curth (AaB) (17)
2008–09F.C. Copenhagen (7)OBMorten Nordstrand (FC København) and Marc Nygaard (Randers) (16)
2009–10F.C. Copenhagen (8)OBPeter Utaka (OB) (18)
2010–11F.C. Copenhagen (9)OBDame N'Doye (FC København) (25)
2011–12FC Nordsjælland (1)F.C. CopenhagenDame N'Doye (FC København) (18)
2012–13F.C. Copenhagen (10)FC NordsjællandAndreas Cornelius (FC København) (18)
2013–14AaB (4)F.C. CopenhagenThomas Dalgaard (Viborg) (18)
2014–15FC Midtjylland (1)F.C. CopenhagenMartin Pusic (Esbjerg/FC Midtjylland) (17)
2015–16F.C. Copenhagen (11)SønderjyskELukas Spalvis (AaB) (18)
2016–17F.C. Copenhagen (12)BrøndbyMarcus Ingvartsen (FC Nordsjælland) (23)
2017–18FC Midtjylland (2)BrøndbyPål Alexander Kirkevold (Hobro IK) (22)
2018–19F.C. Copenhagen (13)FC MidtjyllandRobert Skov (FC Copenhagen) (29)
2019–20FC Midtjylland (3)F.C. CopenhagenRonnie Schwartz (Silkeborg IF/FC Midtjylland) (18)
2020–21Brøndby (11)FC MidtjyllandMikael Uhre (Brøndby) (19)
2021–22F.C. Copenhagen (14)FC MidtjyllandNicklas Helenius (Silkeborg IF) (17)
2022–23F.C. Copenhagen (15)FC Nordsjælland

Total titles won

The following 20 clubs have won the top league in Danish football.

Club Winners Runners-up Winning years
KB[lower-alpha 4] 15 13 1912–13, 1913–14, 1916–17, 1917–18, 1921–22, 1924–25, 1931–32, 1939–40, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1968, 1974, 1980
F.C. Copenhagen[lower-alpha 4] 15 7 1992–93, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23
Brøndby 11 11 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2004–05, 2020–21
AB 9 10 1918–19, 1920–21, 1936–37, 1942–43, 1944–45, 1946–47, 1950–51, 1951–52, 1967
B 93 9 2 1915–16, 1926–27, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1938–39, 1941–42, 1945–46
B 1903[lower-alpha 4] 7 5 1919–20, 1923–24, 1925–26, 1937–38, 1969, 1970, 1976
Frem 6 9 1922–23, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1935–36, 1940–41, 1943–44
AGF 5 8 1954–55, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1960, 1986
Vejle 5 3 1958, 1971, 1972, 1978, 1984
Esbjerg 5 3 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1979
AaB 4 1994–95, 1998–99, 2007–08, 2013–14
OB 3 6 1977, 1982, 1989
FC Midtjylland 3 5 2014–15, 2017–18, 2019–20
Hvidovre 3 1 1966, 1973, 1981
Lyngby 2 3 1983, 1991–92
Køge[lower-alpha 5] 2 1 1953–54, 1975
B 1909 2 1959, 1964
FC Nordsjælland 1 2 2011–12
Silkeborg 1 1 1993–94
Herfølge[lower-alpha 5] 1 1999–2000
  • Bold clubs play in top flight.
  • Italic clubs merged and created superstructures.

Total titles won by city

The 20 title-winning clubs have come from a total of 10 cities. The most successful city is Copenhagen.

Total titles won by city
City Titles Winning clubs
Storkøbenhavn 77 KB (15), F.C. Copenhagen (15), Brøndby (11), AB (9), B 93 (9), B 1903 (7), Frem (6), Hvidovre (3), Lyngby (2)
Aarhus 5 AGF (5)
Esbjerg 5 Esbjerg fB (5)
Odense 5 OB (3), B 1909 (2)
Vejle 5 Vejle Boldklub (5)
Aalborg 4 AaB (4)
Herning 3 FC Midtjylland (3)
Køge 2 Køge (2)
Farum 1 FC Nordsjælland (1)
Herfølge 1 Herfølge (1)
Silkeborg 1 Silkeborg IF (1)

Notes

  1. The winners of the regional JBU (Jutland), FBU (Funen), SBU (Zealand), LFBU (Lolland-Falster) and BBU (Bornholm) competitions.
  2. No rule was defined for the possibility of two or more teams finishing the tournament with the same number of points. B 93, Frem and B 1903 all ended equal at 6 points, and DBU proposed rematches. When B 93 and Frem refused, B 1903 forfeited the championship, and no champion was chosen. Danish League Tables 1927–1998 by RSSSF.
  3. 1 2 No sources chronicle the top goal scorers of the earliest league championships.
  4. 1 2 3 KB and B 1903 merged to form FC København in 1992. Together the three have won 36 championships and been runners-up 25 times.
  5. 1 2 Herfølge BK and Køge BK merged to form HB Køge in 2009. Together the three have won 3 championships and been runners-up 1 time.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Historien om Danmarksmesterskabet i fodbold" (in Danish). Danish Football Association. Archived from the original on 1 December 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
  2. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN – 1929/1930". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  3. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN – 1945/1946". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  4. "Køges første DM-titel blev til på "Ungarsk Rapsodi"" (in Danish). Køge Boldklub. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
  5. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN 1956/1957 – 1. DIVISION". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  6. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN 1958 – 1. DIVISION". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  7. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN 1975 – 1. DIVISION". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  8. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN 1986 – 1. DIVISION". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 12 September 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  9. "Danmarksturneringen 1991, Superligaen, resultater". DanskFodbold.com. Danish Football Association. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  10. "DANMARKSTURNERINGEN – 1991/1992". Haslund.info. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  11. "Superligaen (Coca-Cola Superligaen) 1995/96". DanskFodbold.com. Danish Football Association. Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
  12. "Superligaen 2016/17". DanskFodbold.com. Danish Football Association. Archived from the original on 30 May 2022. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  13. "Superligaen 2020/21". DanskFodbold.com. Danish Football Association. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 21 May 2022.
  14. 1 2 Denmark – København A-Raeken and National Playoffs 1889–1927 Archived 2022-10-17 at the Wayback Machine at RSSSF
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 (in Danish) End tables of the Danish football championships since 1927–28 Archived 2017-07-23 at the Wayback Machine by the Danish Football Association
  16. 1 2 3 Denmark – List of Topscorers Archived 2011-11-16 at the Wayback Machine at RSSSF

Sources

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