2018 Latvian Higher League
| Season | 2018 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Riga |
| Champions League | Riga |
| Europa League | Ventspils RFS Liepāja |
| Matches played | 112 |
| Goals scored | 315 (2.81 per match) |
← 2017 2019 → | |
The 2018 Latvian Higher League was the 27th season of top-tier football in Latvia. Spartaks Jūrmala were the defending champions, having won their second title in the previous season.
Teams
At the end of the 2017 season, Babīte were excluded from the league due to match-fixing. This resulted in METTA/LU ending up as the bottom-placed team. They were sent to the relegation playoffs against FK Progress/AFA Olaine. METTA/LU won, keeping them in the Latvian Higher League.
Babīte were replaced by the champions of the 2017 Latvian First League, Valmieras FK.
| Club | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valmieras | Valmiera | J. Daliņa stadions | 2,000 |
| Jelgava | Jelgava | Olympic Sports Center of Zemgale | 1,560 |
| Liepāja | Liepāja | Daugava Stadium | 5,008 |
| Metta/LU | Riga | Hanzas vidusskolas laukums | 2,000 |
| RFS | Riga | Stadions Arkādija | 1,000 |
| Riga | Riga | Skonto Stadium | 8,207 |
| Spartaks Jūrmala | Jūrmala | Slokas Stadium | 2,800 |
| Ventspils | Ventspils | Ventspils Olimpiskais Stadions | 3,044 |
Source: Scoresway
Kits manufacturer and sponsors
| Club | Kit manufacturer | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| FK Jelgava | Nike | Igate |
| FK Liepāja | Adidas | Mogo |
| FS Metta/LU | Nike | |
| Riga FC | Jako | |
| Rīgas Futbola skola | Nike | LNK Group |
| FK Spartaks Jūrmala | Nike | Hanseatisches Fußball Kontor |
| FK Ventspils | Adidas | VK Tranzīts |
| Valmiera Glass ViA | Nike | Valmiera Glass |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riga (C) | 28 | 20 | 4 | 4 | 45 | 16 | +29 | 64 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Ventspils | 28 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 54 | 22 | +32 | 60 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 3 | RFS | 28 | 18 | 1 | 9 | 57 | 23 | +34 | 55 | |
| 4 | Liepāja | 28 | 15 | 6 | 7 | 46 | 25 | +21 | 51 | |
| 5 | Spartaks Jūrmala | 28 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 48 | 37 | +11 | 42 | |
| 6 | Jelgava | 28 | 6 | 3 | 19 | 19 | 48 | −29 | 21 | |
| 7 | METTA/LU (O) | 28 | 5 | 4 | 19 | 24 | 52 | −28 | 19 | Qualification for the relegation play-offs |
| 8 | Valmiera Glass ViA | 28 | 2 | 2 | 24 | 22 | 92 | −70 | 8 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Goal difference; 5) Goals scored; 6) Fair-play ranking; 7) Play-off.[1][2]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
Results
Each team played the other seven teams home-and-away twice, for a total of 28 games each.
|
|
Relegation play-offs
The seventh-placed team from the 2018 Higher League faced the runners-up of the 2018 Latvian First League in a two-legged play-off. The winner, METTA/LU, earned the right to participate in the 2019 Higher League.
| 14 November 2018 1st leg | METTA/LU | 7–2 | SK Super Nova |
| 17 November 2018 2nd leg | SK Super Nova | 0–3 (2–10 agg.) | METTA/LU |
Top scorers
- As of 13 November 2018[3]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Darko Lemajić
|
Riga | 15 |
| 2 |  Maksym Marusych
|
RFS | 14 |
| 3 |  Aleksejs Višņakovs
|
Spartaks Jūrmala | 13 |
 Adeleke Akinyemi
|
Ventspils | 13 | |
| Tosin Aiyegun
|
Ventspils | 13 | |
| 4 | Ģirts Karlsons
|
Liepāja | 10 |
| 5 | Jānis Ikaunieks
|
Liepāja | 9 |
| 6 | Roberts Uldriķis
|
RFS | 7 |
 Tamirlan Dzhamalutdinov
|
METTA/LU | 7 |
References
- ^ "2017. GADA LATVIJAS VIRSLĪGAS FUTBOLA ČEMPIONĀTA REGLAMENTS" (PDF) (in Latvian). Latvian Football Federation. 29 November 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ "Virslīga 2017 - Season rules". Scoresway. Archived from the original on 28 March 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ "Latvian First Division - Top scorers". uefa.com. UEFA. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
External links
- Official website (in Latvian)