Veikkausliiga
FIFA Region
UEFA
Season
2026
Location
Finland
Abbreviation
FIN1

Summary

The Veikkausliiga (FIN1) is the top football league in the Finnish football system. At the end of the 2026 FIN1 season, the FIN1 teams listed below qualify for the following non-league play:

  • 2027 - 2028 UEFA Champions League (UEFACL) - 1st Qualifying Round:
    • 1st place 2026 FIN1 Championship round team
  • 2027 - 2028 UEFA Europa Conference League (UEFAECL) - 1st Qualifying Round:
    • 2nd and 3rd place 2026 FIN1 Championship round teams

    The winner of the 2026 Suomen Cup (Finnish Cup), typically a FIN1 team, also receives a berth in the 1st Qualifying Round of the 2027 - 2028 UEFA Europa Conference League.

Leagues Pyramid - Finland

Abbrev League # of Teams
FIN1 Veikkausliiga 12
FIN2 Ykkösliiga 10
FIN3 Ykkönen 12
FIN4 Kakkonen 30
FIN5 Kolmonen 108
FIN6 Nelonen 159
FIN7 Vitonen 228
FIN8 Kutonen 265
FIN9 Seiska 24

Competition Structure

Season

# of Teams

Regular
4 Apr 2026 - 31 Dec 1969
Champ/Relegation Series
9 Sep 2026 - 9 Nov 2026
 12: FIN1 (10 minimum), FIN2 (2 maximum)

Season Format

Each FIN1 team plays Home/Away matches against the other 11 FIN1 teams for a total of 22 regular season league matches per team. At the end of regular season, the top 6 teams play in the Championship Series, while the bottom 6 teams play in the Relegation Series. In each series, each team plays against the other 5 teams in their group once for 5 more matches (27 total league matches). Table ranking ties for the Regular season are broken by (1) goal difference, (2) goals scored, (3) head-to-head points, (4) head-to-head goal difference, (5) head-to-head away goals scored, then (6) a playoff. Table ranking ties for the Championship/Relegation series are broken by (1) points in Regular season, (2) head-to-head points in Regular season, (3) head-to-head goal difference in Regular season, (4) head-to-head goals scored in Regular season, (5) head-to-head away goals scored (if two teams tied), (6) goal difference, (7) goals scored, (8) Fair-Play ranking, then (9) a drawing.

Playoffs

Not applicable.

Relegation

At the end of the 2026 FIN1 Regular season, the 6th place FIN1 Relegation Round team is relegated to the FIN2, and the 5th place FIN1 Relegation Round team plays Home-Away highest aggregate goals wins playoff matches with the 2nd place FIN2 team. The playoff winner and the 1st place FIN2 team play in the 2027 FIN1.


More Info...


1st Stage

 LeagueHomeRoad
POSMPW - D - LPTSCPTSGFGAGDMPW - D - LPTSGFGAGDMPW - D - LPTSGFGAGD
1AC Oulu 22 -0-06-61500 -0-0000022 -0-06615
2KuPS 22 -0-06-41311 -0-0310111 -0-03312
3TPS 21 -1-04-32111 -0-0321110 -1-01110
4FC Inter Turku 21 -1-04-21121 -1-0421100 -0-00000
5HJK 21 -0-13-31221 -0-1331200 -0-00000
6SJK 21 -0-13-33011 -0-0330310 -0-1003-3
7FC Lahti 21 -0-13-22000 -0-0000021 -0-13220
8VPS 20 -2-02-00010 -1-0100010 -1-01000
9FF Jaro 20 -1-11-01-110 -0-1001-110 -1-01000
10IFK Mariehamn 20 -1-11-14-310 -1-0111010 -0-1003-3
11FC Ilves 20 -0-20-25-310 -0-1013-210 -0-1012-1
12IF Gnistan 20 -0-20-16-510 -0-1015-410 -0-1001-1
Championship Rounds
Relegation Rounds

Fixtures

Sat - 18 Apr 2026
 IF Gnistan   HJKMustapekka Areena
 FF Jaro   KuPSJakobstads Centralplan
 AC Oulu   VPSRaatin stadion (Oulu)
 FC Lahti   FC Inter TurkuLahden Stadion
 TPS   SJKVeritas Stadion
 IFK Mariehamn   FC IlvesWiklöf Holding Arena
Wed - 22 Apr 2026
 KuPS   AC OuluVäre Areena
Fri - 24 Apr 2026
 VPS   FC IlvesLemonsoft Stadion
 TPS   IF GnistanVeritas Stadion
 SJK   FF JaroOmaSP Stadion
Sat - 25 Apr 2026
 FC Lahti   AC OuluLahden Stadion
 FC Inter Turku   IFK MariehamnVeritas Stadion
Sun - 26 Apr 2026
 KuPS   HJKVäre Areena
Wed - 29 Apr 2026
 FC Inter Turku   HJKVeritas Stadion
Sat - 2 May 2026
 SJK   FC IlvesOmaSP Stadion
 IFK Mariehamn   VPSWiklöf Holding Arena
 FF Jaro   TPSJakobstads Centralplan
 AC Oulu   KuPSRaatin stadion (Oulu)
Mon - 4 May 2026
 HJK   FC LahtiBolt Arena
Tue - 5 May 2026
 IF Gnistan   FC Inter TurkuMustapekka Areena

Results

Sat - 11 Apr 2026
 FC Inter Turku 21 FC IlvesVeritas Stadion
 HJK 01 AC OuluBolt Arena
 KuPS 10 IF GnistanVäre Areena
Fri - 10 Apr 2026
 VPS 00 FF JaroLemonsoft Stadion
 SJK 30 IFK MariehamnOmaSP Stadion
 TPS 21 FC LahtiVeritas Stadion
Sat - 4 Apr 2026
 IF Gnistan 15 AC OuluMustapekka Areena
 IFK Mariehamn 11 TPSWiklöf Holding Arena
 FF Jaro 01 FC LahtiJakobstads Centralplan
 FC Ilves 13 KuPSTammelan Stadion
 HJK 30 SJKBolt Arena
 FC Inter Turku 00 VPSVeritas Stadion