Norwegian football league champions

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The Norwegian football league champions (Norwegian: Seriemestere i fotball ) are the winners of the highest level league competition in Norwegian football, currently the Norwegian Premier League. Note that the winners of this league are not actually crowned "Norwegian football champions"; this title is reserved for winners of the Norwegian Football Cup. Teams in bold are those who won the double of League Championship and Norwegian Cup in that season.

1 History
2 League of Norway (1937-48)
3 Main League (1948-62)
4 First Division (1963-90)
5 Tippeligaen (1991-present)
6 Total titles won
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] History

The first football league competition in Norway involving teams from more than one local association was the unofficial "Test League" run by the Football Association of Norway during 1914-16. It was contested by Drafn, Frigg, Kvik Fredrikshald, Larvik Turn, Mercantile and Odd, and would have yielded Odd as the first League champions (they won all their games) had it not been abandoned.

The first season of the official league began in 1937 and was organized into eleven district leagues, with the winners of each league progressing to the championship playoffs. At the end of the 1937-38 season, Fredrikstad were the first club to be crowned champions after defeating Lyn in the final. By also winning the 1938 Norwegian Cup, Fredrikstad effectively became the first double-winners.

Rosenborg, with 20 titles, have been crowned champions more times than any other club, having dominated during the 1990s and the beginning of the new millennium. They are followed by Fredrikstad (9), who dominated in the early decades of the league before the best clubs were gathered in a single top division. The third most successful club are Viking (8), who won their first title in the 1957-58 season and have since won in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Their achievements put them at the top of the All-time Norwegian Premier League table when counting from 1948 onwards (Rosenborg are at the top when counting from 1963 onwards). Lillestrøm (5) achieved success mainly in the 1970s and 1980s, while Vålerenga (5), who enjoyed great success in the 1980s, have re-surfaced as a strong club in the 2000s, becoming the first team other than Rosenborg to win the championship since 1991.

Larvik Turn (1955-56), Brann (1962-63), Lillestrøm (1976-77), and Vålerenga (1983-84) have all retained the league title once, while Fredrikstad (1938-39, 1951-52 and 1960-61) have managed to do so on three occasions. Viking (1972-75) have retained the title for four consecutive seasons. Rosenborg (1992-2004) have achieved a win-streak of 13 championships in a row, second in the world only to the 14-year streak of the Latvian club Skonto Riga.

[edit] League of Norway (1937-48)

The first official league competition in Norway, known as the League of Norway (Norgesserien), was contested from 1937. Only two full seasons had been completed, however, when the league was suspended as a result of the German invasion in 1940. The league resumed in 1947 but was reorganized into the Main League after just one season.

Year	Winners	Runners-up
1937-38	Fredrikstad	Lyn
1938-39	Fredrikstad	Skeid
1947-48	Freidig	Sparta

[edit] Main League (1948-62)

The Main League (Hovedserien) comprised two regional groups with eight teams in each. At the end of the season, the group winners would meet in a final match to determine the champions. Bronze finals were played in 1960 and 1961; before that, no bronze medalist was decided. The 1961-62 season pitted all sixteen clubs against each other over a period of one and a half years, with the top eight clubs qualifying for the new First Division along with two clubs promoted from the level below the Main League.

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Top Scorer
1948-49	Fredrikstad	Vålerenga	Not awarded	Arvid Havnås (12)
1949-50	Fram Larvik	Fredrikstad	Not awarded	Reidar Dørum (13)
1950-51	Fredrikstad	Odd Grenland	Not awarded	Jon Sveinsson (19)
1951-52	Fredrikstad	Brann	Not awarded	Jon Tangen (15)
1952-53	Larvik Turn	Skeid	Not awarded	Gunnar Thoresen (15) Per Jacobsen (15)
1953-54	Fredrikstad	Skeid	Not awarded	Gunnar Thoresen (15)
1954-55	Larvik Turn	Fredrikstad	Not awarded	Harald Hennum (13)
1955-56	Larvik Turn	Fredrikstad	Not awarded	Willy Fossli (17)
1956-57	Fredrikstad	Odd Grenland	Not awarded	Per Kristoffersen (15)
1957-58	Viking	Skeid	Not awarded	Harald Hennum (17)
1958-59	Lillestrøm	Fredrikstad	Not awarded	Reidar Sundby (13)
1959-60	Fredrikstad	Lillestrøm	Eik-Tønsberg	Per Kristoffersen (13)
1960-61	Fredrikstad	Eik-Tønsberg	Vålerenga	Per Kristoffersen (15)
1961-62	Brann	Steinkjer	Fredrikstad	Rolf Birger Pedersen (26)

[edit] First Division (1963-90)

The 1963 season was the first in which the ten best clubs in Norway were gathered in a single top division, the First Division (Førstedivisjon). It was also the first year in which the contestants were ranked by total number of points, and bronze medals were from now on awarded for a third place finish. Note that clubs from Northern Norway were not allowed to participate in the top division until 1972. This was also the year in which the number of teams was increased from ten to twelve.

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Top Scorer
1963	Brann	Lyn	Skeid	Leif Eriksen (16)
1964	Lyn	Fredrikstad	Sarpsborg	Ole Stavrum (18)
1965	Vålerenga	Lyn	Sarpsborg	Harald Berg (19)
1966	Skeid	Fredrikstad	Lyn	Per Kristoffersen (20)
1967	Rosenborg	Skeid	Lyn	Odd Iversen (17)
1968	Lyn	Rosenborg	Viking	Odd Iversen (30)
1969	Rosenborg	Fredrikstad	Strømsgodset	Odd Iversen (26)
1970	Strømsgodset	Rosenborg	Ham-Kam	Steinar Pettersen (16)
1971	Rosenborg	Lyn	Viking	Jan Fuglset (17)
1972	Viking	Fredrikstad	Strømsgodset	Egil Solberg (16) Johannes Vold (16)
1973	Viking	Rosenborg	Start	Stein Karlsen (17)
1974	Viking	Molde	Vålerenga	Odd Berg (13)
1975	Viking	Brann	Start	Arne Dokken (18)
1976	Lillestrøm	Mjøndalen	Brann	Jan Fuglset (17)
1977	Lillestrøm	Bodø/Glimt	Molde	Trygve Johannesen (17)
1978	Start	Lillestrøm	Viking	Tom Lund (17)
1979	Viking	Moss	Start	Odd Iversen (16)
1980	Start	Bryne	Lillestrøm	Arne Dokken (14)
1981	Vålerenga	Viking	Rosenborg	Pål Jacobsen (16)
1982	Viking	Bryne	Lillestrøm	Tor Arne Granerud (11) Trygve Johannesen (11)
1983	Vålerenga	Lillestrøm	Start	Olav Nysæter (14)
1984	Vålerenga	Viking	Start	Sverre Brandhaug (13)
1985	Rosenborg	Lillestrøm	Vålerenga	Jørn Andersen (23)
1986	Lillestrøm	Mjøndalen	Kongsvinger	Arve Seland (12)
1987	Moss	Molde	Kongsvinger	Jahn Kristian Fjærestad (18)
1988	Rosenborg	Lillestrøm	Molde	Jan Åge Fjørtoft (14)
1989	Lillestrøm	Rosenborg	Tromsø	Jahn Ivar Jakobsen (18)
1990	Rosenborg	Tromsø	Molde	Tore André Dahlum (20)

[edit] Tippeligaen (1991-present)

In 1991, the First Division was renamed Tippeligaen ("The Betting League") as part of a sponsorship deal with the national lottery and bookmaking service, Norsk Tipping. It is also known as the Norwegian Premier League (Eliteserien). The term "First Division" is now used to denote the second highest level, which had previously been known as the Second Division. In 1995, the number of teams increased from twelve to fourteen.

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Top Scorer
1991	Viking	Rosenborg	Start	Karl Petter Løken (12)
1992	Rosenborg	Kongsvinger	Start	Kjell Roar Kaasa (17)
1993	Rosenborg	Bodø/Glimt	Lillestrøm	Mons Ivar Mjelde (19)
1994	Rosenborg	Lillestrøm	Viking	Harald Martin Brattbakk (17)
1995	Rosenborg	Molde	Bodø/Glimt	Harald Martin Brattbakk (26)
1996	Rosenborg	Lillestrøm	Viking	Harald Martin Brattbakk (28)
1997	Rosenborg	Brann	Strømsgodset	Sigurd Rushfeldt (27)
1998	Rosenborg	Molde	Stabæk	Sigurd Rushfeldt (25)
1999	Rosenborg	Molde	Brann	Rune Lange (23)
2000	Rosenborg	Brann	Viking	Thorstein Helstad (18)
2001	Rosenborg	Lillestrøm	Viking	Thorstein Helstad (17) Frode Johnsen (17) Clayton Zane (17)
2002	Rosenborg	Molde	Lyn	Harald Martin Brattbakk (17)
2003	Rosenborg	Bodø/Glimt	Stabæk	Harald Martin Brattbakk (17)
2004	Rosenborg	Vålerenga	Brann	Frode Johnsen (19)
2005	Vålerenga	Start	Lyn	Ole Martin Årst (16)
2006	Rosenborg	Brann	Vålerenga	Daniel Nannskog (19)

[edit] Total titles won

Fourteen clubs have been champions.

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning Years
Rosenborg	20	5	1967, 1969, 1971, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006
Fredrikstad	9	8	1937-38, 1938-39, 1948-49, 1950-51, 1951-52, 1953-54, 1956-57, 1959-60, 1960-61
Viking	8	2	1957-58, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1979, 1982, 1991
Lillestrøm	5	8	1958-59, 1976, 1977, 1986, 1989
Vålerenga	5	2	1965, 1981, 1983, 1984, 2005
Larvik Turn	3	0	1952-53, 1954-55, 1955-56
Lyn	2	5	1964, 1968
Brann	2	5	1961-62, 1963
Start	2	1	1978, 1980
Skeid	1	5	1966
Moss	1	1	1987
Strømsgodset	1	0	1970
Fram Larvik	1	0	1949-50
Freidig	1	0	1947-48

[edit] Medalists by club name

The following clubs have won one or more league medals since 1937-38:

Club	Founded	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Last merits
Bodø/Glimt	1916-09-19	-	3	1	League silver 2003; cup gold 1993, silver 2003
Brann	1908-09-26	2	5	3	League gold 1963, silver 2006; cup gold 2004
Bryne	1926-04-10	-	2	-	League silver 1982; cup gold 1987, silver 2001
Eik-Tønsberg	1928-03-14	-	1	1	League silver 1960-61
Fram Larvik	1894-01-15	1	-	-	League gold 1949-50
Fredrikstad	1903-04-07	9	8	1	League gold 1960-61, silver 1972; cup gold 1984
Freidig	1903-10-13	1	-	-	League gold 1947-48
Ham-Kam	1918-08-10	-	-	1	League bronze 1970
Kongsvinger	1892-01-31	-	1	2	League silver 1992
Larvik Turn	1906-10-10	3	-	-	League gold 1955-56; cup silver 1956
Lillestrøm	1917-04-02	5	8	3	League gold 1989, silver 2001; cup gold 1985, silver 2005
Lyn	1896-03-03	2	5	4	League gold 1968, silver 1971, bronze 2005; cup gold 1968, silver 2004
Mjøndalen	1910-08-22	-	2	-	League silver 1986; cup gold 1937, silver 1968
Molde	1911-06-19	-	6	3	League silver 2002; cup gold 2005
Moss	1906-08-28	1	1	-	League gold 1987; cup gold 1983
Odd Grenland	1894-03-31	-	2	-	League silver 1956-57; cup gold 2000, silver 2002
Rosenborg	1917-05-19	20	5	1	League gold 2006; cup gold 2003
Sarpsborg	1903-05-08	-	-	2	League bronze 1965; cup gold 1951, silver 1964
Skeid	1915-01-01	1	5	1	League gold 1966, silver 1967; cup gold 1974
Sparta Sarpsborg	1928-11-23	-	1	-	League silver 1947-48; cup gold 1952
Stabæk	1912-03-16	-	-	2	League bronze 2003; cup gold 1998
Start	1905-09-19	2	1	7	League gold 1980, silver 2005
Steinkjer	1910-05-29	-	1	-	League silver 1961-62
Strømsgodset	1907-02-10	1	-	3	League gold 1970, bronze 1997; cup gold 1991, silver 1997
Tromsø	1920-09-15	-	1	1	League silver 1990; cup gold 1996
Viking	1899-08-10	8	2	8	League gold 1991, bronze 2001; cup gold 2001
Vålerenga	1913-07-29	5	2	3	League gold 2005; cup gold 2002

[edit] Titles by county

County	Titles	Winning Clubs
Sør-Trøndelag	21	Rosenborg (20), Freidig (1)
Østfold	10	Fredrikstad F.K. (9), Moss (1)
Rogaland	8	Viking (8)
Oslo	8	Vålerenga (5), Lyn (2), Skeid (1)
Akershus	5	Lillestrøm (5)
Vestfold	4	Larvik Turn (3), Fram Larvik (1)
Hordaland	2	Brann (2)
Vest-Agder	2	Start (2)
Buskerud	1	Strømsgodset (1)

[edit] Titles by city

City	Titles	Winning Clubs
Trondheim	21	Rosenborg (20), Freidig (1)
Fredrikstad	9	Fredrikstad (9)
Stavanger	8	Viking (8)
Oslo	8	Vålerenga (5), Lyn (2), Skeid (1)
Lillestrøm	5	Lillestrøm (5)
Larvik	4	Larvik Turn (3), Fram Larvik (1)
Bergen	2	Brann (2)
Kristiansand	2	Start (2)
Moss	1	Moss (1)
Drammen	1	Strømsgodset (1)