Liga I facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Liga I

Organising body	Liga Profesionistă de Fotbal (Liga I)
Founded	1909; 116 years ago (1909)
Country	Romania
Confederation	UEFA
Number of teams	16 (from 2020–21)
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Liga II
Domestic cup(s)	Cupa României Supercupa României
International cup(s)	UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League UEFA Europa Conference League
Current champions	FCSB (27th title) (2023–24)
Most championships	FCSB (27 titles)
Most appearances	Ionel Dănciulescu (515)
Top goalscorer	Dudu Georgescu (252 goals)
TV partners	Digi Sport Prima Sport Orange Sport

The Liga I (also called First League) is Romania's top professional football league for men's clubs. It's also known as the SuperLiga because of its sponsor, Superbet. Sixteen teams compete in this league. They can move up to Liga I or down to Liga II based on how well they play.

The Liga I started way back in 1909. It was first played in the 1909–10 season. The league is managed by the Liga Profesionistă de Fotbal, or LPF. Before the 2006–07 season, it was called Divizia A. The name changed because someone else had already registered that name.

The most successful team in Liga I history is FCSB. They have won 27 titles! Their big rival, Dinamo București, is second with 18 titles. Other teams have also won many times. These include CFR Cluj (8 titles), Venus București (7 titles), and Chinezul Timișoara and UTA Arad (6 titles each).

How the Competition Works

Since 2020, 16 teams play in the Liga I. First, each team plays every other team twice. This makes a total of 30 games for each team.

After these games, teams are ranked by their points. Then, they are split into two groups:

• The top six teams go into the championship play-offs.
• The remaining ten teams go into the relegation play-outs.

In these play-off and play-out stages, the points teams earned are cut in half. Other tie-breaking rules like goal difference are reset.

Championship and Relegation

The six teams in the championship play-offs play ten more games. The team that wins this group becomes the Liga I champion!

The ten teams in the relegation play-outs play each other once. This means nine more games for them.

• The teams in 9th and 10th place in the play-out group are sent down to Liga II.
• The team in 8th place plays two special matches against the 3rd place team from Liga II. The winner of these matches gets to play in Liga I next season.

Also, the 1st and 2nd teams from the play-out group play one game against each other. The winner of that game then plays against the last team from the championship play-off group that could get a European spot. The winner of that game gets to play in the UEFA Europa Conference League next season.

History of Romanian Football

Early Championships (1909–1921)

Olympia București, the first champions in 1909.

The first official football tournament in Romania was held in 1909. It was organized by the new Romanian Football Federation. The first games were played in Bucharest between December 1909 and January 1910.

Three teams played in this first tournament: Olympia and Colentina from Bucharest, and United from Ploiești. Each team played the other two. Olympia București won and became the first Romanian Football Champions.

For many years, the championship was like a cup competition. Regional winners would play each other to find the national champion. The competition was stopped during World War I from 1916 to 1919.

Divizia A (1921–2006)

The 1921–22 season was important because it was the first time a league with seven teams was formed. Football in Romania became a national competition in 1921. This is when Divizia A and Divizia B were created. Chinezul Timișoara won the first Divizia A season.

Before the 1931–32 season, Chinezul and Venus București were the strongest teams. Chinezul won six championships, and Venus won two. Then, Ripensia Timișoara became very strong in the 1932–33 season. Ripensia and Venus won eight of the next nine championships. The competition was stopped again in 1940 because of World War II.

UTA Arad during 1946–1947.

After the war, teams like UTA Arad, CCA București, and Petrolul Ploiești were very successful. In the 1960s, Dinamo București started to become a top team. Famous players like Gheorghe Ene and Florea Dumitrache helped them.

The 1970s saw the rise of Dudu Georgescu from Dinamo București. He was the top scorer in Divizia A for four seasons. He scored an amazing 156 goals and won the European Golden Shoe twice! This award is for the top scorer in Europe. Other Romanian players also won this award later.

From the 1959–60 season to the 1999–2000 season, only seven teams won the league. These were Steaua (16 titles), Dinamo (14 titles), Universitatea Craiova (4 titles), Rapid București, FC Argeș, UTA Arad (2 titles each), and Petrolul Ploiești (one title).

Romanian teams often played in European competitions. Dinamo București was the first to play in the European Champions Cup in 1956–57. Steaua București had the best success. They won the European Cup in 1985–86! They also reached another final in 1988–89. After 1992, when the competition became the UEFA Champions League, Romanian teams had less success.

At the start of the 2000s, teams from the capital city, Bucharest, were very strong. Steaua, Dinamo, and Rapid won all the league titles between 2000 and 2007.

Liga I (2006–present)

In 2006–07, the league had to change its name from Divizia A to Liga I. This was because of a problem with the trademark. The lower leagues also changed their names. So, Divizia B became Liga II, and Divizia C became Liga III.

Dinamo won the title in 2006–07. Then, new teams started winning. CFR Cluj won their first title in 2007–08. Unirea Urziceni won in 2008–09. Oțelul Galați won in 2010–11. Oțelul was the first team from the Moldavia region to win a national title.

CFR Cluj (pictured at Stamford Bridge in a 2008–09 UEFA Champions League match against Chelsea) won eight championships under the new name of Liga I.

CFR Cluj became the first Romanian team to go straight into the Champions League group stage in 2008. They also had a great performance in the 2012–13 Champions League. They earned ten points in their group, finishing third.

The 2010s saw more new champions. Astra Giurgiu won in 2015–16. Viitorul Constanța won in 2016–17. After 2017, CFR Cluj became very dominant. They won five Liga I titles in a row! By 2022, they had won eight national titles in total.

In June 2022, Liga I officially changed its name to "SuperLiga". This was because of a sponsorship deal with the Romanian betting company Superbet.

Clubs and Champions

Wins by Club

This table shows which clubs have won the Liga I (or Divizia A) and how many times. Bold means the club is currently playing in the Liga I. Italics mean the club no longer exists.

Club	Wins	Winning years
FCSB	27	1951, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1967–68, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2000–01, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2023–24
Dinamo București	18	1955, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1970–71, 1972–73, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2006–07
CFR Cluj	8	2007–08, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Venus București	7	1919–20, 1928–29, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1939–40
UTA Arad	6	1946–47, 1947–48, 1950, 1954, 1968–69, 1969–70
Chinezul Timișoara	6	1921–22, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1926–27
Universitatea Craiova	4	1973–74, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1990–91
Petrolul Ploiești	4	1929–30, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1965–66
Ripensia Timișoara	4	1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1937–38
Rapid București	3	1966–67, 1998–99, 2002–03
Argeș Pitești	2	1971–72, 1978–79
Unirea Tricolor București	2	1920–21, 1940–41
Prahova Ploiești	2	1911–12, 1915–16
Colentina București	2	1912–13, 1913–14
Olympia București	2	1909–10, 1910–11
Farul Constanța	1	2022–23
Viitorul Constanța	1	2016–17
Astra Giurgiu	1	2015–16
Oțelul Galați	1	2010–11
Unirea Urziceni	1	2008–09
Club Atletic Oradea	1	1948–49
CSM Reșița	1	1930–31
Colțea Brașov	1	1927–28
Româno-Americană București	1	1914–15

Teams in the 2023–24 Season

Here are the 16 clubs playing in the Liga I during the 2023–24 season:

Sponsorship and Media

League Sponsors Over Time

The Liga I has had many sponsors over the years, which often changed the league's official name.

• In 1998, SABMiller was the first sponsor, naming it "Divizia A Ursus".
• From 2004–05, European Drinks & Foods sponsored it as "Divizia A Bürger".
• In 2008, Realitatea Media called it "Liga I Realitatea".
• Later in 2008, European Drinks & Foods returned, naming it "Liga I Frutti Fresh".
• For the 2009–10 season, Gamebookers sponsored it as "Liga 1 Gamebookers.com".
• In 2010, Bergenbier became the sponsor, calling it "Liga I Bergenbier".
• From 2015–16, Orange sponsored it as "Liga 1 Orange".
• From 2017–18, Betano sponsored it as "Liga 1 Betano".
• For the 2019–20 season, Casa Pariurilor sponsored it as "Casa Liga 1".
• Since the 2022–23 season, Superbet is the sponsor, and the league is called "Superliga României".

TV Coverage

Over the years, many TV channels have shown Liga I matches.

• In 2004, Telesport bought the rights to broadcast the games. They also sold some rights to other channels like TVR1 and Antena 1.
• In 2008, Antena 1 and RCS & RDS won the rights to broadcast the games.
• In 2011, RCS & RDS bought the rights for their Digi Sport channels. Other channels like Antena 1 and Dolce Sport also showed some matches.
• From 2014 to 2019, Look TV and Look Plus broadcast the games.

Liga I in Video Games

On August 27, 2019, Liga I made a deal with EA Sports. This meant the league was included in the video game FIFA 20 for the first time! Since then, Liga I has been in every FIFA game.

Player Records

Most Appearances

Here are the top players who have played the most games in Liga I.

Top Ten Players With Most Appearances
As of 1 June 2024

Player		Period	Club	Games
1	Ionel Dănciulescu	1993–14	Electroputere Craiova, Dinamo, Steaua	515
2	Costică Ștefănescu	1968–88	Steaua, Craiova, Brașov	490
3	Florea Ispir	1969–88	ASA Târgu Mureș	485
4	László Bölöni	1971–88	ASA Târgu Mureș, Steaua	484
5	Costel Câmpeanu	1987–05	Bacău, Dinamo, Bistrița, Național, Ceahlăul	470
6	Petre Marin	1993–12	Sportul, Național, Rapid, Steaua, Urziceni, Chiajna	468
7	Paul Cazan	1972–88	Sportul	465
8	Cornel Dinu	1966–83	Dinamo	454
9	Constantin Stancu	1976–90	Argeș	447
10	Ion Dumitru	1967–88	Rapid, Steaua, Timișoara, Craiova	442

Top Goalscorers

Here are the players who have scored the most goals in Liga I.

Top Ten Highest Goalscorers
As of 1 June 2024

Player		Period	Club	Goals
1	Dudu Georgescu	1970–87	Progresul, Reșița, Dinamo, Bacău, Buzău, Moreni	252 (Ø 0,68)
2	Ionel Dănciulescu	1993–14	Electroputere Craiova, Dinamo, Steaua	214 (Ø 0,41)
3	Rodion Cămătaru	1974–89	Craiova, Dinamo	198 (Ø 0,52)
4	Marin Radu	1974–89	Argeș, Olt Scornicești, Steaua, Sibiu	190 (Ø 0,49)
5	Florea Dumitrache	1966–83	Dinamo, Jiul, Corvinul	170 (Ø 0,47)
5	Ion Oblemenco	1963–77	Rapid, Craiova	170 (Ø 0,62)
7	Mircea Sandu	1970–87	Național, Sportul	167 (Ø 0,41)
8	Victor Pițurcă	1975–89	Olt Scornicești, Steaua	166 (Ø 0,55)
9	Mihai Adam	1962–76	U Cluj, Vagonul Arad, CFR	160 (Ø 0,45)
10	Titus Ozon	1947–64	Unirea Tricolor, Dinamo, Brașov, Național, Rapid	157 (Ø 0,58)

Youngest Players to Debut

These are the youngest players ever to play their first game in Liga I.

Top Ten Youngest Debutants
As of 1 June 2024. The teams written in bold are the ones the players debuted at

Player		Age	Match	Season	Date
1	Nicolae Dobrin	14 years, 10 months and 5 days	Știința Cluj - Dinamo Pitești 5–1	1961–62	1 July 1962
2	Alexandru Stoian	14 years, 10 months and 13 days	FC U Craiova - Farul Constanța 1–2	2022–23	28 October 2022
3	Alexandru Bota	14 years, 11 months and 13 days	CFR Cluj - Universitatea Cluj 4–0	2022–23	13 March 2023
4	Rareș Lazăr	15 years, one month and 19 days	Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț - FC Vaslui 2–0	2013–14	17 May 2014
5	Răzvan Popa	15 years, 2 months and 13 days	Dinamo - Sportul Studențesc 1–3	2011–12	17 March 2012
6	Codrin Epure	15 years, 2 months and 21 days	FC Vaslui - Astra 1–4	2013–14	19 May 2014
7	Vasile Chitaru	15 years, 4 months and 14 days	SC Bacău - Jiul Petroșani 3–0	1973–74	19 May 1974
8	Ștefan Harsanyi	15 years, 4 months and 22 days	Bihor Oradea - Sportul Studențesc 2–0	1982–83	2 July 1983
9	Dorel Zamfir	15 years, 5 months and 16 days	FC Constanța - Steaua București 0–1	1976–77	16 March 1977
10	Enes Sali	15 years, 5 months and 17 days	Farul Constanța - Sepsi OSK 1–0	2021–22	9 August 2021

International Competitions

Romanian Teams in Europe

Romanian clubs have played in many European football competitions. Here are some of their best results, from the quarter-finals onwards.

UEFA League Ranking

The UEFA League Ranking shows how strong a country's football league is compared to others in Europe. This ranking is based on how well clubs from that country perform in UEFA competitions.

UEFA League Ranking for 2018–2023:

• 24. Ekstraklasa (Poland)
• 25. Nemzeti Bajnokság I (Hungary)
• 26. Liga I (Romania)
• 27. First Professional Football League (Bulgaria)
• 28. Slovak Super Liga (Slovakia)

More About Romanian Football