2019 Eliteserien Promotion/Relegation play-offs

The 2019 Eliteserien Promotion/Relagetion play-offs was the 46th time a spot in the Eliteserien was decided by play-off matches between top tier and second level clubs. In the play-offs, five teams competed for one spot in the 2020 Eliteserien.

At the end of the 2019 season, Tromsø and Ranheim were relegated directly to 2020 1. divisjon, and were replaced by Aalesund and Sandefjord who were directly promoted.

Format change

The 2019 season was marked by a change to the format of the qualification rounds for the 1. divisjon teams. ^[1] In previous seasons, the first two knockout-rounds began with the four teams in the 1. divisjon playing single-legged rounds with home advantage for the best placed team: 3rd v 6th and 4th v 5th, and the winner then played each other to determine who would meet the Eliteserien club in the final. Following these changes, the first round would be played 5th v 6th, and the winner would advance to play away to 4th in the second round. The winner of the second round would advance to play away to 3rd in the third round. The winner of the third round would meet the 14th placed team in Eliteserien in a two-legged final.

Background

The play-offs between Eliteserien and 1. divisjon have been held every year since 1972 with exceptions in 1994 and 2011. They take place for the two divisions following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the fourteenth-placed club in Eliteserien and the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places in the 1. divisjon. The fixtures are determined by final league position – the first round will be played 5th v 6th, and the winner will advance to play away to 4th in the second round. The winner of the second round will advance to play away to 3rd in the third round. The winner of the third round will meet the 14th placed team in Eliteserien in a two-legged final.

Qualified teams

Five teams entered a play-off for the last Eliteserien spot for the 2020 season. These were:

• Lillestrøm (14th placed team in Eliteserien)
• Start (third placed team in the 1. divisjon)
• KFUM Oslo (fourth placed team in the 1. divisjon)
• Kongsvinger (fifth placed team in the 1. divisjon)
• Sogndal (sixth placed team in the 1. divisjon)

Matches

The third to sixth-placed teams take part in the promotion play-offs; these are single leg knockout matches, three rounds involving 1. divisjon teams and a final between the winner of these rounds and the fourteenth-placed team in Eliteserien. ^[2]

Final league position – 1. divisjon
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
3	Start	30	19	5	6	54	31	+23	62
4	KFUM	30	13	9	8	58	42	+16	48
5	Kongsvinger	30	14	4	12	37	36	+1	46
6	Sogndal	30	13	6	11	51	38	+13	45

First round

23 November 2019

18:00 CET (UTC+1)

Kongsvinger	1–0	Sogndal
Skagestad 17'	Report

Gjemselund Stadion , Kongsvinger

Attendance: 1,433

Referee: Ola Hobber Nilsen (Nordstrand)

Second round

27 November 2019

18:30 CET (UTC+1)

KFUM Oslo	2–0	Kongsvinger
Brix 24' Larsen 74'	Report

Intility Arena , Oslo

Attendance: 1,311

Referee: Kristoffer Hagenes (Hovding)

Third round

1 December 2019

15:00 CET (UTC+1)

Start	1–0	KFUM Oslo
Lowe 32'	Report

Sør Arena , Kristiansand

Attendance: 2,615

Referee: Rohit Saggi (Drafn)

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Final

The 14th-placed team in Eliteserien, Lillestrøm, will play a two-legged play-off against Start, the winners of the 1. divisjon promotion play-offs, to decide who will play in the 2020 Eliteserien.

7 December 2019

18:00 CET (UTC+1)

Start	2–1	Lillestrøm
Sigurðarson 54' (pen.), 69'	Report	Gustavsson 28'

Sør Arena , Kristiansand

Attendance: 4,013

Referee: Trygve Kjensli (Nesodden)

11 December 2019

19:00 CET (UTC+1)

Lillestrøm	4–3	Start
Mikalsen 2' Lowe 22' (o.g.) Gustavsson 49' Melgalvis 61'	Report	Ramsland 76', 79', 82'

Åråsen Stadion , Lillestrøm

Attendance: 7,892

Referee: Ola Hobber Nilsen (Nordstrand)

The tie ended with a 5–5 draw on aggregate, Start won on the away goals rule and retained promoted to Eliteserien.

Bracket

	First round					Second round					Third round					Final round
																3	Start (a)	2
											3	Start	1			14	Lillestrøm	1
						4	KFUM Oslo	2			4	KFUM Oslo	0
	5	Kongsvinger	1			5	Kongsvinger	0
	6	Sogndal	0

References

1. "Kvalifiseringen til Eliteserien endres". aftenposten.no (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 10 March 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
2. "Slik spilles kvalifiseringskampene". fotball.no (in Norwegian). Football Association of Norway. 16 October 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2019.