''Ykkönen'' ( Finnish for 'Number One'; sv, Ettan) is the second highest level of the Finnish football league system (after the

Veikkausliiga Veikkausliiga (; sv, Tipsligan) is the premier division of Finnish football, the highest tier of the Finnish football league structure, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikka ...

), although it is the highest league managed by the

Football Association of Finland The Football Association of Finland ( fi, Suomen Palloliitto, abbr. SPL; sv, Finlands Bollförbund) is the governing body of football in Finland. It was founded in Helsinki on 19 May 1907. The SPL organises the men's and women's national footb ...

. The teams also play a pre-season league cup, the Ykköscup.

History

The first league format competition in the second level of Finnish football was called , which was founded in 1936. Before the inauguration of the , from 1930 to 1935, there had been special qualification matches for the right to play in the '' Mestaruussarja''. In the autumn of 1969, the Finnish football underwent a league system reform, and the was renamed ''II divisioona'', or 2nd Division, with regional sections. In 1973, this level of football in Finland became nationwide, and the new name was (First Division). The name has been used since 1995.

Competition

Like the ''

'', the first division is played mainly during the summer. It comprises 12 clubs, all of whom play 27 matches. After 22 games the division is divided to teams who finished 1-6 and 7-12. These teams play against each other once. The winner of the ''Ykkönen'' qualifies directly for promotion to ''

'', and the team finishing second in the league will play a two-legged promotion playoff against the team finishing 11th in the Veikkausliiga. The bottom 3 clubs are directly relegated to ''

Kakkonen Kakkonen or II divisioona is the third level in the league system of Finnish football and comprises 36 Finnish football teams. The II divisioona was introduced in 1973 and in the mid-1990s became known as the Kakkonen ( Finnish for 'Number Tw ...

''.

Clubs

The clubs in the ''Ykkönen'' for the 2022 season are:

Champions and top scorers 1973–2021

References

External links

League information
at the

List of League Second Level tables since 1930
- Finnish football league tables, records & statistics database.
Football scores for Finnish Football Leagues
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ykkonen 2 Fin 1973 establishments in Finland Recurring sporting events established in 1973 Professional sports leagues in Finland