2012–13 A Group

The 2012–13 A Group was the 89th season of the Bulgarian national top football division, and the 65th of A Group as the top tier football league in the country. The season began on 11 August 2012^[1] and ended with the last games on 25 May 2013. Ludogorets Razgrad won the A Group title for a second consecutive season, after Levski were leading prior to the last round match, but made a draw with Slavia.^[2][3][4][5]

Teams

Vidima-Rakovski, Kaliakra and Svetkavitsa were relegated after finishing in the bottom three places of the table at the end of season 2011/12.^[6][7][8]

The relegated teams were replaced by Pirin (Gotse Delchev), champions of West B Group, Etar 1924 (Veliko Tarnovo), champions of East B Group and promotion play-off winners Botev (Plovdiv). Botev returned to A Group after three years of absence, while Pirin made their debut on the highest level of Bulgarian football. For Etar 1924 this is the first season in A Group since 1997–98.

Stadia and locations

As in the previous year, the league comprised the best thirteen teams of season 2011–12, the champions of the two B Groups and the winners of the promotion play-offs.

Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.^[9]

CSKA
Levski
Lokomotiv
Slavia

Botev

Beroe

Cherno More

Etar 1924

Ludogorets

Chernomorets

Litex

Botev
Lokomotiv

Minyor

Montana

Pirin

Location of teams in 2012–13 A PFG

Personnel and sponsoring

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and Managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team	Manager	Captain	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
Beroe Stara Zagora	Petar Hubchev	Doncho Atanasov	Uhlsport	Bulsatcom
Botev Plovdiv	Stanimir Stoilov	Asen Karaslavov	adidas	KTB AD
Botev Vratsa	Antoni Zdravkov	Iliya Iliev	Zeus	—
Cherno More Varna	Georgi Ivanov	Georgi Iliev	Misho	Armeets
Chernomorets Burgas	Dimitar Dimitrov	Trayan Dyankov	Legea	—
CSKA Sofia	Milen Radukanov	Ivan Bandalovski	Legea	GLOBUL
Etar	Serdar Dayat	Dormushali Saidhodzha	Jumper	CBA
Levski Sofia	Nikolay Mitov	Stanislav Angelov	Puma	VTB Bank, M-tel
Litex Lovech	Hristo Stoichkov	Nebojša Jelenković	adidas	b-connect
Lokomotiv Plovdiv	Stefan Genov	Zdravko Lazarov	Uhlsport	—
Lokomotiv Sofia	Emil Velev	Kristian Dobrev	Joma	MALIZIA, Casa Boyana
Ludogorets Razgrad	Ivaylo Petev	Emil Gargorov	adidas	Navibulgar
Minyor Pernik	Nikolay Todorov	Ivaylo Tsvetkov	Jumper	Municipal Insurance Company
Montana	Stoycho Stoev	Georgi Mechedzhiev	Jako	Ogosta Icecream
Pirin	Tencho Tenev	Petar Lazarov	Tinger	—
Slavia Sofia	Velislav Vutsov	Bogomil Dyakov	Joma	—

League table

Source: A PFG (in Bulgarian)
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head goals scored; 5th head-to-head away goals scored; 6th goal difference; 7th goals scored
¹PFC CSKA Sofia were excluded from European competitions due to debts.
²Beroe Stara Zagora qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round by winning the 2012–13 Bulgarian Cup.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Results

Source: A PFG
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Season statistics

Top scorers Rank Scorer Club Goals[10] 1 Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia 19 2 Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv 17 3 Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech 16 4 Georgi Andonov Beroe Stara Zagora 12 5 Ismail Isa Litex Lovech 11 6 Todor Nedelev Botev Plovdiv 9 Ivan Stoyanov Ludogorets Razgrad 9 Armando Vajushi Litex Lovech 9 9 Rangel Abushev Lokomotiv Plovdiv 8 Ventsislav Hristov Beroe Stara Zagora / Chernomorets Burgas 8 Michel Platini CSKA Sofia 8 Awards Weekly awards Player of the Round Round Player of the Round Player Club Round 1[11] Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv Round 2[12] Simeon Raykov Levski Sofia Round 3 Marcelinho Ludogorets Razgrad Round 4[13] Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia Round 5[14] Anicet Andrianantenaina CSKA Sofia Round 6[15] Marcelinho Ludogorets Razgrad Round 7[16] Emil Gargorov Ludogorets Razgrad Round 8[17] Todor Nedelev Botev Plovdiv Round 9[18] Serge Nyuiadzi CSKA Sofia Round 10[19] Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech Round 11[20] Ismail Isa Litex Lovech Round 12 Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv Round 13[21] Stanislav Genchev Ludogorets Razgrad Round 14[22] Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia Round 15[23] João Silva Levski Sofia Round 16[24] Armando Vajushi Litex Lovech Round 17[25] Serginho CSKA Sofia Round 18[26] Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech Round 19[27] Georgi Bozhilov Cherno More Round 20[28] Michel Platini Mesquita Cska Sofia Round 21[29] Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech Round 22[30] Zdravko Lazarov Slavia Sofia Round 23[31] Garry Rodrigues Levski Sofia Round 24[32] João Silva Levski Sofia Round 25[33] Marcinho CSKA Sofia Round 26[34] Yordan Gospodinov Lokomotiv Plovdiv Round 27[35] Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv Round 28[36] Stanislav Angelov Levski Sofia Round 29[37] Iliya Iliev Botev Vratsa Transfers List of Bulgarian football transfers summer 2012 List of Bulgarian football transfers winter 2012–13 References ↑ The new season begins ↑ Ludogorets Razgrad completed a remarkable league-and-cup double by being crowned champions of Bulgaria ↑ Ludogorets wins the championship ↑ Ludogorets Razgrad - the new champion of Bulgaria ↑ Ludogorets wins A PFG ↑ Vidima was relegated from A PFG, after losing against Levski Sofia ↑ Litex send Kaliakra into B PFG after –-0 win ↑ Svetkavica is relegated from A PFG ↑ News, standings, rounds, seasons, teams, grounds, cities, matches at a-pfg.com ↑ "Извеждане на голмайсторите в "А" Група". A PFG (in Bulgarian). Bulgarian A Professional Football Group. Retrieved 11 March 2013.  ↑ Ivan Tsvetkov named for Bulgarian Player of the First Round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Simeon Raykov is the top player of the Second Round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Basile de Carvalho wins the award ahead of Anton Karachanakov and Stanko Yovchev (in Bulgarian) ↑ Anicet wins the award after scoring twice against Botev Vratsa ↑ Marcelinho wins the award after scoring against CSKA ↑ Emil Gargorov is picked for the best player of the round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Stars of Botev (Plovdiv) blew the competition in 'A' group away (in Bulgarian) ↑ The hero of the derby scoops Player of the round award (in Bulgarian) ↑ Georgi Milanov became player of the tenth round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Ismail Isa - number one player of the eleventh round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Stanislav Genchev number one of the round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Basile de Carvalho named Footballer of the round ↑ Joao Silva with first individual trophy at Levski ↑ Armando Vajushi named as footballer of the 16th round ↑ Serginho named as footballer of the 17th round ↑ Georgi Milanov became player of the 18th round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Joro Bozhilov became player of the 19 round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Michel Platini became player of the 20 round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Milanov won the again (in Bulgarian) ↑ Elektrichkata player of the 22nd round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Convincing Garry Rodrigues (in Bulgarian) ↑ Convincing Garry Rodrigues (in Bulgarian) ↑ Marcinho player of the round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Yordan Gospodinov number 1 of the round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Ivan Tsvetkov best player of the round (in Bulgarian) ↑ Stanislav Angelov: Luck is part of life (in Bulgarian) ↑ Iliya Iliev number 1 of the 29th round (in Bulgarian) First Professional Football League 2017–18 clubs Beroe Botev Plovdiv Cherno More CSKA Sofia Dunav Ruse Etar Levski Sofia Lokomotiv Plovdiv Ludogorets Razgrad Pirin Blagoevgrad Septemvri Sofia Slavia Sofia Vereya Vitosha Bistritsa Stadiums Beroe Botev 1912 Football Complex Ticha Balgarska Armia Gradski Stadium Ivaylo Vivacom Arena - Georgi Asparuhov Lokomotiv Ludogorets Arena Hristo Botev Vasil Levski National Stadium Trace Arena Bistritsa Stadium Former clubs* Akademik Sofia (18) Akademik Svishtov (4) Belasitsa (12) Botev Vratsa (28) FC Chernomorets (29) PSFC Chernomorets (7) Chernomorets Burgas Sofia (1) Dimitrovgrad (1) Dobrudzha (14) Etar (24) Etar 1924 (1) Kaliakra (2) Litex (21) Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa (10) Lokomotiv Mezdra (2) Lokomotiv Sofia (67) Lyubimets 2007 (1) Maritsa (4) Metalurg (2) Minyor (38) Montana (9) Neftochimic (14) Nesebar (1) Pirin 1922 (6) Pirin GD (2) Rilski Sportist (2) Rodopa (4) Rozova Dolina (1) Septemvri (3) Shumen (7) Sliven (25) Spartak Pleven (35) Spartak Plovdiv (17) Spartak Sofia (15) Spartak Varna (43) Sportist (1) Svetkavitsa (1) Velbazhd (7) Vidima-Rakovski (5) Vihren (4) Yantra (7) Former clubs (from Macedonia & Thrace) Belomorets Kavala Bitola Gotse Delchev Prilep Makedonija Bitola Makedonija Skopje Vardar Skopje ZhSK Skopje Competition Champions Players (foreign) Associated competitions Second League Third League Bulgarian Cup Bulgarian Supercup UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League Seasons 1948–49 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 * In the brackets is the number of seasons in the league. Bulgarian football championship seasons State Championship (National Football Division) 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1941 1942 1943 1944 Republic Championship 1945 1946 1947 1948 A Group 1948–49 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 First League 2016–17 2017–18 2012–13 in Bulgarian football « 2011–12 2013–14 » Domestic leagues A PFG B PFG V AFG Domestic cups Bulgarian Cup (Final) Bulgarian Supercup European competitions Champions League Europa League Related to national team 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (Group B) Lyuboslav Penev A PFG Beroe Botev Plovdiv Botev Vratsa Cherno More Chernomorets CSKA Etar Levski Litex Lokomotiv Plovdiv Lokomotiv Sofia Ludogorets Minyor Montana Pirin Gotse Delchev Slavia Summer transfers Winter transfers 2012–13 in European football (UEFA) Domestic leagues Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus '12 '13 Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark England Estonia '12 '13 Faroe Islands '12 '13 Finland '12 '13 France Georgia Germany Gibraltar Greece Hungary Iceland '12 '13 Israel Italy Kazakhstan '12 '13 Latvia '12 '13 Lithuania '12 '13 Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Montenegro Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '12 '13 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland '12 '13 Romania Russia San Marino Scotland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden '12 '13 Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Wales Domestic cups Albania Andorra Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark England Estonia Faroe Islands '12 '13 Finland '12 '13 France Georgia Germany Gibraltar Greece Hungary Iceland '12 '13 Israel Italy Kazakhstan '12 '13 Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malta Moldova Montenegro Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '12 '13 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland '12 '13 Romania Russia San Marino Scotland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Wales League cups England Finland '12 '13 France Hungary Iceland '12 '13 Israel Latvia Northern Ireland Portugal Republic of Ireland '12 '13 Scotland Wales UEFA competitions Champions League Qualifying phase and play-off round Group stage Knockout phase Final Europa League Qualifying phase and play-off round Group stage Knockout phase Final Super Cup