Besta deild karla facts for kids
 |
|
| Founded | 1912 |
|---|---|
| Country | Iceland |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Lengjudeildin |
| Domestic cup(s) | Mjólkurbikarinn League Cup Super Cup |
| International cup(s) | UEFA Champions League UEFA Conference League |
| Current champions | Víkingur Reykjavík (7th title) (2023) |
| Most championships | KR (27) |
| Top goalscorer |  Tryggvi Guðmundsson (131 goals) |
| TV partners | Domestic: Stöð 2 Sport International: Eleven Sports OneFootball |
The Besta deild karla (which means "Men's Best Division") is the top football league for men in Iceland. It's where the best football teams in the country play against each other.
This exciting competition started way back in 1912. Because Iceland has very cold winters, the games are usually played during spring and summer, from April to September. The league is managed by the Football Association of Iceland (KSI) and has 12 teams.
For many years, from 2009 to 2022, the league was known as the Pepsi Max League because of a sponsorship deal. But in 2022, it went back to its original name, Besta deild karla.
In the league, each team plays every other team twice, once at home and once away. At the end of the season, the two teams with the fewest points move down to a lower league called 1. deild karla (First Division). In their place, the top two teams from the First Division get to move up to the Besta deild karla.
The team that wins the Besta deild karla gets to compete in the UEFA Champions League, which is a big European competition. The teams that finish second, third, and fourth qualify for the UEFA Conference League, another European tournament.
Over the years, some teams have won the championship many times. KR has won the most titles with 27 wins. Valur is next with 23 titles. ÍA and Fram Reykjavík both have 18 titles. FH has won 8 times, and Víkingur has won 7. The current champions from 2023 are Víkingur.
Contents
Current Clubs (2024)
Here are the teams playing in the Besta deild karla in 2024:
| Club | Location | Position in 2023 |
First season in Besta deild |
Seasons in Besta deild |
First season of current spell in Besta deild |
Besta deild titles |
First Besta deild title |
Last Besta deild title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breiðablik | Kópavogur | 4th | 1971 | 39 | 2006 | 2 | 2010 | 2022 |
| FH | Hafnarfjörður | 5th | 1975 | 40 | 2001 | 8 | 2004 | 2016 |
| Fram | Reykjavík (Grafarholt) | 10th | 1912 | 101 | 2022 | 18 | 1913 | 1990 |
| Fylkir | Reykjavík (Árbær) | 8th | 1989 | 26 | 2023 | 0 | - | - |
| HK | Kópavogur | 9th | 2007 | 7 | 2023 | 0 | - | - |
| ÍA | Akranes | 1st, 1. deild karla | 1946 | 70 | 2024 | 18 | 1951 | 2001 |
| KA | Akureyri | 7th | 1929 | 25 | 2017 | 1 | 1989 | 1989 |
| KR | Reykjavík (Vesturbær) | 6th | 1912 | 110 | 1979 | 27 | 1912 | 2019 |
| Stjarnan | Garðabær | 3rd | 1990 | 22 | 2009 | 1 | 2014 | 2014 |
| Valur | Reykjavík (Hlíðar/Miðborg) | 2nd | 1915 | 104 | 2005 | 23 | 1930 | 2020 |
| Vestri | Ísafjörður | 4th, 1. deild karla, play-off winner | 2024 | 1 | 2024 | 0 | - | - |
| Víkingur | Reykjavík (Fossvogur, Háaleiti og Bústaðir) |
1st (champions) | 1918 | 73 | 2014 | 7 | 1920 | 2023 |
History of Champions
The Besta deild karla has been around for over 100 years. In that time, 11 different teams have won the championship title. KR has won the most titles, with an amazing 27 wins! Stjarnan is one of the newer teams to win, getting their first title in 2014.
Most of the winning teams come from the Capital Region around Reykjavík. This is because nearly two-thirds of Iceland's population lives there. Only four teams from outside this area have ever won the league: Keflavík, ÍA, ÍBV, and KA.
Champions by Number of Titles
Here's a list of the teams that have won the Besta deild karla, ordered by how many times they've won:
| Team | Titles | First title | Last title |
|---|---|---|---|
| KR | 27 | 1912 | 2019 |
| Valur | 23 | 1930 | 2020 |
| Fram | 18 | 1913 | 1990 |
| ÍA | 18 | 1951 | 2001 |
| FH | 8 | 2004 | 2016 |
| Víkingur | 7 | 1920 | 2023 |
| Keflavík | 4 | 1964 | 1973 |
| ÍBV | 3 | 1979 | 1998 |
| Breiðablik | 2 | 2010 | 2022 |
| KA | 1 | 1989 | 1989 |
| Stjarnan | 1 | 2014 | 2014 |
Top Scorers and Players
All-time Top Scorers
The player with the most goals in the history of the Besta deild karla is Tryggvi Guðmundsson. He scored an amazing 131 goals!
| LAST SEASON | TOP SCORER'S NAME | GOALS | CLUB |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Tryggvi Guðmundsson |
131 | ÍBV, KR, FH, Fylkir |
| 1987 | Ingi Björn Albertsson |
126 | Valur, FH |
Recent Top Scorers
Here are the top goal scorers for the most recent seasons:
| SEASON | TOP SCORER'S NAME | GOALS | CLUB |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 |  Steven Lennon |
17 | FH |
| 2021 |  Nikolaj Hansen |
16 | Víkingur R. |
| 2022 | Nökkvi Þeyr Þórisson Guðmundur Magnússon |
17 | KA Fram |
| 2023 | Emil Atlason |
17 | Stjarnan |
Recent Player of the Year Winners
Each season, a "Player of the Year" is chosen for their outstanding performance. Here are some recent winners:
| SEASON | PLAYER OF THE YEAR | CLUB |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Steven Lennon |
FH |
| 2021 | Nikolaj Hansen |
Víkingur R. |
| 2022 | Nökkvi Þeyr Þórisson |
KA |
| 2023 | Birnir Snær Ingason |
Víkingur R. |
Recent Young Player of the Year Winners
This award celebrates the best young talent in the league. Here are some recent winners:
| Season | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Valgeir Lunddal Friðriksson |
Valur |
| 2021 | Kristall Máni Ingason |
Víkingur R. |
| 2022 | Ísak Andri Sigurgeirsson |
Stjarnan |
| 2023 | Eggert Aron Guðmundsson |
Stjarnan |
Total Seasons in Besta deild by Club
A total of 31 teams have played at least one season in the top division. The teams in bold are playing in the 2024 season.
| Club | Location | First season in Besta deild |
Last season in in Besta deild |
Seasons in Besta deild |
Best result in Besta deild |
Besta deild titles |
First Besta deild title |
Last Besta deild title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breiðablik | Kópavogur | 1971 | 2024 | 39 | 1st | 2 | 2010 | 2022 |
| FH 2 | Hafnarfjörður | 1975 | 2024 | 40 | 1st | 8 | 2004 | 2016 |
| Fjölnir | Reykjavík (Grafarvogur) | 2008 | 2020 | 8 | 4th | 0 | - | - |
| Fram | Reykjavík (Grafarholt) | 1912 | 2024 | 101 | 1st | 18 | 1913 | 1990 |
| Fylkir | Reykjavík (Árbær) | 1989 | 2024 | 26 | 2nd | 0 | - | - |
| Grindavík | Grindavík | 1995 | 2019 | 20 | 3rd | 0 | - | - |
| Grótta | Seltjarnarnes | 2020 | 2020 | 1 | 11th | 0 | - | - |
| Haukar 2 | Hafnarfjörður | 1979 | 2010 | 2 | 10th | 0 | - | - |
| HK | Kópavogur | 2007 | 2024 | 7 | 9th | 0 | - | - |
| ÍA | Akranes | 1946 | 2024 | 70 | 1st | 18 | 1951 | 2001 |
| ÍBA1 | Akureyri | 1943 | 1974 | 17 | 3rd | 0 | - | - |
| ÍBH 2 | Hafnarfjörður | 1957 | 1961 | 3 | 4th | 0 | - | - |
| ÍBÍ 3 | Ísafjörður | 1962 | 1983 | 3 | 6th | 0 | - | - |
| ÍBV | Vestmannaeyjar | 1912 | 2023 | 53 | 1st | 3 | 1979 | 1998 |
| ÍR | Reykjavík (Breiðholt) | 1998 | 1998 | 1 | 10th | 0 | - | - |
| KA 1 | Akureyri | 1929 | 2024 | 25 | 1st | 1 | 1989 | 1989 |
| Keflavík | Reykjanesbær (Keflavík) | 1958 | 2023 | 55 | 1st | 4 | 1964 | 1973 |
| KR | Reykjavík (Vesturbær) | 1912 | 2024 | 110 | 1st | 27 | 1912 | 2019 |
| Leiftur 4 | Ólafsfjörður | 1988 | 2000 | 7 | 3rd | 0 | - | - |
| Leiknir | Reykjavík (Breiðholt) | 2015 | 2022 | 3 | 8th | 0 | - | - |
| Selfoss | Selfoss | 2010 | 2012 | 2 | 11th | 0 | - | - |
| Skallagrímur | Borgarnes | 1997 | 1997 | 1 | 9th | 0 | - | - |
| Stjarnan | Garðabær | 1990 | 2024 | 22 | 1st | 1 | 2014 | 2014 |
| Valur | Reykjavík (Hlíðar/Miðborg) | 1915 | 2024 | 104 | 1st | 23 | 1930 | 2020 |
| Vestri 3 | Ísafjörður | 2024 | 2024 | 1 | - | 0 | - | - |
| Víðir | Garður | 1985 | 1991 | 4 | 7th | 0 | - | - |
| Víkingur | Ólafsvík | 2013 | 2017 | 3 | 10th | 0 | - | - |
| Víkingur | Reykjavík (Fossvogur, Háaleiti og Bústaðir) |
1918 | 2024 | 73 | 1st | 7 | 1920 | 2023 |
| Völsungur | Húsavík | 1987 | 1988 | 2 | 8th | 0 | - | - |
| Þór 1 | Akureyri | 1977 | 2014 | 17 | 3rd | 0 | - | - |
| Þróttur | Reykjavík (Laugardalur) | 1953 | 2016 | 19 | 5th | 0 | - | - |
1 ÍBA was a team made up of players from KA and Þór. It split up after the 1974 season. 2 ÍBH was a team made up of players from FH and Haukar. It split up after the 1963 season. 3 ÍBÍ had money problems and stopped playing after the 1987 season. Most of its players joined BÍ, which is now known as Vestri. 4 Leiftur also had money problems and later joined with another club, KS. These teams eventually formed a new club called KF.
See Also
In Spanish: Úrvalsdeild Karla para niños
- Besta deild kvenna (Women's Premier League)
- List of football clubs in Iceland
- List of foreign Úrvalsdeild players
