2023–24 Czech First League

The 2023–24 Czech First League, known as the Fortuna liga for sponsorship reasons, was the 31st season of the Czech Republic's top-tier football for professional clubs since its establishment, in 1993. Sparta Prague were the reigning champions. The season was scheduled to start in July 2023. The first half of the season had 19 rounds, finishing in December, and the other half commenced in February 2024. The season ended on 31 May 2024 with two extra play-out fixtures on 29 May and 2 June 2024.[1]

Czech First League
Season2023–24
Dates22 July 2023 – 31 May 2024
ChampionsSparta
RelegatedZlín
Champions LeagueSparta, Slavia
Europa LeaguePlzeň
Conference LeagueOstrava, Mladá Boleslav
Matches played277
Goals scored804 (2.9 per match)
Top goalscorerVáclav Jurečka (19 goals)
Biggest home winOstrava 6–0 Slovácko
26 May 2024
Biggest away winZlín 1–7 Plzeň
17 September 2023
Highest scoringZlín 5–9 Mladá Boleslav
21 October 2023
Longest winning runSparta
(9 matches)
Longest unbeaten runSlavia
(13 matches)
Longest winless runZlín & České Budějovice
(8 matches)
Longest losing runČeské Budějovice
(7 matches)
Highest attendance19,370
Slavia 1–1 Sparta
24 September 2023
Lowest attendance783
Č. Budějovice 0–2 Hr. Králové
13 December 2023
Total attendance1,782,387
Average attendance6,435

In the 12th round, the highest number of goals in one game in the history of the Czech First League was seen in the match Zlín–Mladá Boleslav, which ended 5–9.[2]

Format

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The season format is unchanged from last season, each team will play in the league format home and away matches. The lowest-ranked team will be relegated directly to the second league, and the two teams positioned 14th and 15th will play a play-out with two teams from the second league positioned 2nd and 3rd in a home and away format. This will be the sixth season to use VAR, featuring it in all matches played. The only change in the rules is the limited number of players that can be sent on loan.[1]

Teams

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Promotion and relegation (pre-season)

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A total of sixteen teams contested the league, including thirteen sides from the 2022–23 season, the winner of last season's second league, and two winners of the play-out, determined on 4 June.

Team promoted to Czech First League

After being relegated in the 2021–22 season, MFK Karviná returned to Czech First League as the champion of the 2022–23 Czech National Football League.[3]

Teams relegated from Czech First League

The lowest positioned team from the last season, Zbrojovka Brno, was relegated to the Czech National Football League.

Locations and stadiums

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Managerial changes

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Ahead of the season:

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Replaced by Date of appointment Contract valid until
Hradec Králové   Miroslav Koubek[20] End of contract 30 June 2023   Jozef Weber[21] 10 May 2023 Undisclosed
Viktoria Plzeň   Michal Bílek[22]   Miroslav Koubek[23] 5 June 2023 June 2024
Jablonec   David Horejš[24] Sacked 29 May 2023   Radoslav Látal[25] 30 June 2023 Undisclosed
Mladá Boleslav   Pavel Hoftych[26] Mutual consent 26 May 2023   Marek Kulič[26] 26 May 2023

During the season:

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Match-week Position in table Replaced by Date of appointment Contract valid until
Hradec Králové   Jozef Weber[27] Sacked 18 September 2023 8 11th   Václav Kotal[27] 18 September 2023 Undisclosed
Karviná   Tomáš Hejdušek[28] 8 15th   Juraj Jarábek[29] 27 September 2023
Zlín   Pavel Vrba[30] 23 October 2023 12 16th   Bronislav Červenka[30] 25 October 2023
České Budějovice   Marek Nikl[31] 15 None None None
  Tomáš Zápotočný[32] Mutual consent 13 December 2023 18   Jiří Lerch[33] 13 December 2023 Undisclosed
Mladá Boleslav   Marek Kulič[34] Sacked 30 December 2023 19 7th   David Holoubek[35] 2 January 2024 June 2028
Sigma Olomouc   Václav Jílek[36] 26 February 2024 22 8th Jiří Saňák[36] 26 February 2024 Undisclosed
Hradec Králové   Václav Kotal[37] Mutual consent 28 February 2024 12th   David Horejš[37] 28 February 2024
Karviná   Juraj Jarábek[38] Sacked 12 March 2024 25 16th   Marek Bielan[39] 12 March 2024 June 2024

Regular season

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League table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Sparta Prague 30 24 4 2 70 26 +44 76 Qualification for the Championship group
2 Slavia Prague 30 22 6 2 62 23 +39 72
3 Viktoria Plzeň 30 19 5 6 67 33 +34 62
4 Baník Ostrava 30 13 6 11 48 39 +9 45
5 Mladá Boleslav 30 12 8 10 50 46 +4 44
6 Slovácko 30 11 8 11 39 40 −1 41
7 Slovan Liberec 30 10 10 10 46 46 0 40 Qualification for the Play-off
8 Sigma Olomouc 30 10 7 13 40 45 −5 37
9 Hradec Králové 30 9 10 11 32 38 −6 37
10 Teplice 30 9 9 12 31 40 −9 36
11 Bohemians 1905 30 8 11 11 29 40 −11 35 Qualification for the Relegation group
12 Jablonec 30 6 12 12 35 45 −10 30
13 Pardubice 30 7 7 16 29 42 −13 28
14 Karviná 30 6 7 17 30 52 −22 25
15 Zlín 30 5 10 15 36 61 −25 25
16 České Budějovice 30 6 6 18 34 62 −28 24
Source: Fortuna Liga
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Goal difference; 6) Goals scored; 7) Fair-play ranking; 8) Draw.[40]

Results

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Home \ Away BOH CBU HKR JAB KAR LIB MLA OLO OST PCE PLZ SLA SLO SPA TEP ZLN
Bohemians 1905 0–0 2–1 2–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 3–2 1–1 2–1 0–2 0–2 0–1 1–3 1–2 0–0
České Budějovice 3–0 0–2 2–1 1–0 3–2 1–2 2–1 3–0 0–1 2–5 1–3 2–2 0–1 0–1 2–2
Hradec Králové 2–2 5–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 1–3 2–3 2–0 1–1 1–2 1–0 1–3 1–0 2–0
Jablonec 0–1 5–2 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–3 2–1 1–2 1–1 2–0 1–5 3–2 0–0
Karviná 1–1 2–1 1–0 1–1 5–2 1–2 0–2 1–3 0–3 0–0 0–3 1–3 0–3 0–1 4–1
Slovan Liberec 0–1 1–0 0–0 3–3 1–0 2–1 2–0 3–1 1–0 3–0 2–3 4–1 0–2 3–3 5–3
Mladá Boleslav 2–1 3–1 5–1 3–1 2–2 2–2 2–1 1–3 1–0 1–3 0–1 0–1 3–1 1–2 3–2
Sigma Olomouc 2–2 2–1 0–0 1–0 3–1 2–0 4–0 0–3 0–2 1–3 1–3 1–1 1–4 2–1 0–0
Baník Ostrava 1–1 2–0 2–0 0–1 2–2 2–2 2–0 1–2 1–1 0–1 2–3 0–0 0–1 4–1 5–1
Pardubice 0–1 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 2–0 1–2 1–1 0–1 2–3 0–1 0–1 1–2 1–1 0–1
Viktoria Plzeň 2–0 5–0 1–1 3–2 0–1 1–3 1–1 2–1 3–1 6–2 1–0 1–4 4–0 3–0 3–0
Slavia Prague 2–1 2–1 2–0 4–3 5–1 3–0 2–0 2–2 1–0 3–0 1–2 2–0 1–1 4–0 2–1
Slovácko 5–2 4–1 0–0 0–1 2–0 1–1 2–2 0–2 2–0 1–2 1–1 1–3 1–3 2–0 1–0
Sparta Prague 2–0 4–0 2–1 3–0 3–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 4–3 5–2 2–1 0–0 5–0 2–1 2–0
Teplice 1–1 2–2 0–1 0–0 2–2 2–0 1–0 2–0 0–1 0–1 1–0 0–0 1–1 1–1 2–1
Zlín 2–2 1–1 4–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 5–9 3–2 0–1 1–1 1–7 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–1
Source: Fortuna Liga
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Championship group

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Points and goals were carried over in full from the regular season.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation SPA SLA PLZ OST MLA SLO
1 Sparta Prague (C) 35 27 6 2 82 30 +52 87 Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round 0–0 1–1 2–1
2 Slavia Prague 35 26 7 2 76 24 +52 85 Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round[a] 3–0 5–0 4–0
3 Viktoria Plzeň 35 21 7 7 76 40 +36 70 Qualification for the Europa League third qualifying round 1–1 3–0 4–2
4 Baník Ostrava 35 14 7 14 56 48 +8 49 Qualification for the Conference League second qualifying round 0–1 6–0
5 Mladá Boleslav (O) 35 13 8 14 51 59 −8 47 Qualification for the Conference League play-off final 0–5 0–1
6 Slovácko 35 12 8 15 45 56 −11 44 2–4 1–2
Source: Fortuna Liga
Rules for classification: 1) Total points; 2) Points earned in regular season; 3) Head-to-head points (regular season); 4) Head-to-head goal difference (regular season); 5) Head-to-head goals scored (regular season); 5) Goal difference (all matches); 6) Goals scored (all matches); 7) Fair-play ranking; 8) Draw.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners
Notes:
  1. ^ Since the Europa League winners, Atalanta qualified for the Champions League via league position, Slavia Prague were promoted from the Champions League second qualifying round to the third qualifying round as one of the two teams with the highest coefficient in the second qualifying round.

Conference League play-off

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Teams placed between 7th and 10th position will take part in the Conference League play-off. The best of them will play against the fifth-placed of the championship play-offs to determine the Conference League play-off winners. The winners will qualify for the second qualifying round of the 2024–25 UEFA Conference League.

First roundSecond round
          
 
Teplice224
 
Slovan Liberec01 1
Teplice000
 
Hradec Králové12 3
Hradec Králové336
Sigma Olomouc11 2

Final

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Mladá Boleslav3–1Hradec Králové
Attendance: 4,173
Referee: Ondřej Berka

Relegation group

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Points and goals were carried over in full from the regular season.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation JAB PCE BOH KAR CBU ZLN
11 Jablonec 35 9 14 12 45 50 −5 41 3–0 3–2 1–0
12 Pardubice 35 11 7 17 39 47 −8 40 4–0 3–2 2–0
13 Bohemians 1905 35 9 12 14 34 48 −14 39 1–1 0–1 1–3
14 Karviná (O) 35 8 8 19 38 62 −24 32 Qualification for the relegation play-offs 1–0 2–2
15 České Budějovice (O) 35 7 8 20 41 70 −29 29 2–2 2–1
16 Zlín (R) 35 5 12 18 40 69 −29 27 Relegation to FNL 1–2 1–1
Source: Fortuna Liga
Rules for classification: 1) Total points; 2) Points earned in regular season; 3) Head-to-head points (regular season); 4) Head-to-head goal difference (regular season); 5) Head-to-head goals scored (regular season); 5) Goal difference (all matches); 6) Goals scored (all matches); 7) Fair-play ranking; 8) Draw.
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated

Relegation play-offs

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Teams placed 14th and 15th in the relegation group will face the teams placed 2nd and 3rd in the Czech National Football League for two spots in the next season.

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Vyškov 0–2 Karviná 0–1 0–1
České Budějovice 3–2 Silon Táborsko 2–1 1–1

Season statistics

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Top scorers

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[41]

Rank Player Club Goals
1   Václav Jurečka Slavia 19
2   Pavel Šulc Plzeň 18
3   Jan Kuchta Sparta 17
4   Veljko Birmančević 16
  Mojmír Chytil Slavia
6   Ewerton Ostrava 14
7   Lukáš Haraslín Sparta 12
  Marek Havlík Slovácko
  Lukáš Juliš Olomouc
  Tomáš Chorý Plzeň

Hat-tricks

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Matchweek Date Player For Against Result
4 13 August 2023   Pavel Šulc Plzeň České Budějovice 5–2 (A)[42]
18 9 December 2023   Marek Havlík4 Slovácko Bohemians 1905 5–2 (H)[43]
22 25 February 2024   Mojmír Chytil Slavia Pardubice 3–0 (H)[44]
32 11 May 2024   Pavel Šulc Plzeň Slovácko 4–2 (H)[42]
34 18 May 2024   Jan Kuchta4 Sparta Mladá Boleslav 5–0 (A)[45]
34 19 May 2024   Ladislav Krobot Pardubice Karviná 4–0 (H)[46]
Notes

4 Player scored 4 goals
(H) – Home team
(A) – Away team

Clean sheets

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[47]

Rank Player Club Clean sheets
1   Martin Jedlička Bohemians 1905 / Plzeň 13
2   Peter Vindahl Jensen Sparta 12
3   Jiří Letáček Ostrava 9
4   Milan Heča Slovácko 8
  Jindřich Staněk Plzeň / Slavia
  Aleš Mandous Slavia
  Adam Zadražil Hradec Králové
8   Jan Hanuš Jablonec 7
9   Tomáš Grigar Teplice 6
10   Pavol Bajza Hradec Králové 5
  Hugo Jan Bačkovský Liberec
  Dominik Holec Karviná
  Antonín Kinský Pardubice

See also

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References

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  2. ^ "Čtrnáct tref ve Zlíně! Liga zažila nejgólovější duel, Liberec zaskočil Plzeň" (in Czech). iDNES.cz. 2023-10-21. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
  3. ^ "Karviná zpět mezi elitu. Sestupuje rezerva Slavie, Opava a Jihlava slaví Vlašimi" (in Czech). isport.cz. 2023-05-28.
  4. ^ "Club info Bohemians 1905". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  5. ^ "Club info SK Dynamo České Budějovice". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  6. ^ "Club info FC Hradec Králové". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  7. ^ "Club info FK Jablonec". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  8. ^ "Club info MFK Karviná". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  9. ^ "Club info FC Slovan Liberec". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
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  11. ^ "Club info SK Sigma Olomouc". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  12. ^ "Club info FC Baník Ostrava". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  13. ^ "Club info FK Pardubice". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  14. ^ "Club info FC Viktoria Plzeň". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
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  16. ^ "Club info 1. FC Slovácko". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  17. ^ "Club info AC Sparta Praha". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
  18. ^ "Club info FK Teplice". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2023-06-01.
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  21. ^ "Hradec Králové povede do nové sezóny Jozef Weber". FC Hradec Králové (Press release) (in Czech). 10 May 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
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  23. ^ "Fotbalová Plzeň přivítala staronového trenéra, na lavičku po osmi letech usedne znovu Koubek". Czech Radio (in Czech). Czech News Agency. 5 June 2023.
  24. ^ "Trenér Horejš vydržel v Jablonci jen rok, klub ho po neúspěšné sezoně odvolal". Aktuálně.cz (in Czech). Czech News Agency. 29 May 2023.
  25. ^ Preisler, Hynek (30 June 2023). "Pelta posiluje! Jablonec potvrdil kouče Látala, má i útočníka z Turína". Sport.cz (in Czech). Borgis.
  26. ^ a b "Boleslav nově povede Kulič, čeká ho premiéra. Hoftych přijal jinou roli". Blesk (in Czech). Czech News Center. Czech News Agency. 26 May 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  27. ^ a b "Hradec má náhradu za odvolaného trenéra Webera. Jedenáctý tým ligové tabulky povede Kotal" (in Czech). Czech Radio. 18 September 2023.
  28. ^ Tomaškovič, Jiří (18 September 2023). "Další odvolaný kouč v lize! Hejdušek v Karviné skončil". Sport.cz (in Czech). Borgis.
  29. ^ Tomaškovič, Jiří (27 September 2023). "Karvinou povede její nejúspěšnější trenér Jarábek. Jako bych se vracel po dovolené, usmíval se". Sport.cz (in Czech). Borgis.
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  41. ^ "Statistiky: Hráči". fortunaliga.cz. Fortuna Liga.
  42. ^ a b "Pavel Šulc". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
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  46. ^ "Ladislav Krobot". Fortuna Liga. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  47. ^ "Statistiky: Brankáři". fortunaliga.cz. Fortuna Liga.