B-Liga (formerly the Danish Women's 1st Division) is an association football league in Denmark and the second-highest division of the Danish football league system. Contested by 8 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation within the Danish Women's Football League.
| Organising body | Danish FA (DBU) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1992 |
| First season | 1993 |
| Country | Denmark |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Divisions | 1 (2021–present) |
| Number of clubs | 8 (2021–present) |
| Level on pyramid | 2 |
| Promotion to | A-Liga |
| Relegation to | C-Liga |
| Domestic cup | Danish Cup (1992–present) |
| Website | B-liga |
| Current: 2025–26 B-Liga | |
Format
editThe B-Liga consists of 8 teams playing in a double round-robin tournament, with home and away games.[1] The teams that finish in the top four spots compete in the qualification play-offs against the two worst ranked A-Liga teams to determine two promotion spots. The four bottom placed teams instead play against the two top placed teams from each of the C-Liga groups in the B-Liga qualification play-offs. The two bottom placed teams from the 1st division qualification play-offs are relegated to C-Liga. Both the A-Liga and B-Liga qualification play-offs consist of a double round-robin tournaments among the six participating teams.[2] This has been the format since the 2021–2022 season.
Scope
editUntil and including the 2006–07 season, the B-Liga comprised 12 teams playing a double round-robin tournament – each team playing each other twice; once home, once away. The champion was promoted to the A-Liga, called Elitedivisionen at the time. The runner-up played a promotion game against the second worst placed team of the A-Liga for a spot in the next season of A-Liga. Meanwhile, the two worst ranked teams were relegated to C-Liga, known as the Women's Denmark Series at the time.
B-Liga was reduced to 10 teams from the 2007–08 season.
From 2013–14 until the 2019–20 season, the B-Liga was expanded to include 16 teams, divided into two groups - East and West - each consisting of eight teams. The highest ranked team from each group would play in the A-Liga qualification play-offs together against the four lowest-ranked teams of A-Liga. The top two teams in the qualification play-offs achieved promotion to the A-Liga.
The 2020–21 B-Liga contained 20 teams, split into four groups of five, each playing a double roun-robin tournament. The top two teams of each group advanced to promotion qualifiers, split into two groups of four. A total of four teams advanced to the qualification play-offs. The remaining 12 teams were in the relegation play-offs, consisting of two groups of six teams each.
Teams
edit2025–26 season
edit| Club | # | Since | Total | C-Liga | A-Liga | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ASA Fodbold | 3 | 2023 | 2022–23 | |||
| B.93 | 1 | 2025 | 2024–25 | |||
| Copenhagen | 1 | 2025 | 1 | 2024–25 | N/a | Established in 2024. |
| Esbjerg fB[a] | 1 | 2025 | N/a | N/a | ||
| Næstved HG[b] | 5 | 2021 | N/a | N/a | Established in 2021. | |
| Thy-Thisted | 2 | 2024 | 2023–24 | |||
| Østerbro | 4 | 2022 | 2021–22 | |||
| AaB | 2 | 2024 | 2017–18 | 2023–24 |
Source: Danish Football Association
- ↑ Esbjerg is an amalgamation of Varde IF and Esbjerg fB. The club inherited Varde IF's license when Varde was promoted to B-Liga in 2025.
- ↑ Næstved is an amalgamation of Herlufsholm GF and Næstved IF.
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Ny landsdækkende 1. division og to 2. divisioner" (in Danish). Kvindedivisionsforeningen. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ↑ "Love og Regler" [Laws and Rules] (in Danish). DBU. 23 July 2024.