This page summarizes everything related to Estonian football in the year 2024. It contains information about different league systems, national teams, futsal, beach football and most important transfers.
In 2024, Estonian football experienced a year of significant transitions and notable events. The Estonia men's national football team participated in the Euro 2024 qualifying play-offs for the second time, where they were defeated by Poland with a score of 5-1. Long-time head coach Thomas Häberli resigned after three years and 39 matches, marking the end of his tenure, and was succeeded by former assistant coach Jürgen Henn. Häberli and record international player Konstantin Vassiljev both played their last game in the match against Switzerland. Vassiljev retired from national team duty, capping off a distinguished career, which saw him play 158 matches and score 26 goals over 18 years. In Jürgen Henn's initial matches as head coach, Estonia achieved a narrow victory in the Baltic Cup, triumphing over Lithuania in a penalty shootout. The year concluded with another Nations League campaign, where Estonia earned four points from six matches, both coming in their encounters against Azerbaijan. This marked a significant milestone, as for the first time, Estonia avoided finishing last in a C-League season, demonstrating progress in their competitive performance on the European stage.
The season starts on 23 March and ends on 27 October. The teams in both regions compete in a home-and-away system: all teams face each other twice, accumulating a total of 26 league matches over the course of the season. Reserve teams, which do not have "U21" or "U19" in their name, are ineligible for promotion.[10]
North / East
The 2024 II liiga North/East (N/E) division saw significant changes from the previous season. Despite winning the division in 2023, Maardu Linnameeskond was not promoted to Esiliiga B due to non-compliance with league requirements. Consequently, Jõhvi FC Phoenix and JK Noova, who finished as runners-up, secured promotion instead. On the other end of the table, Valga FC Warrior and Kohtla-Järve JK Järve were relegated after finishing last. The departure of these three teams opened up spots for new entrants: Põhja-Tallinna JK Puuma (who joined forces with JK Volta after winning the III liiga West in 2023), Sillamäe FC NPM Silmet (finishing 5th in III liiga East but winning their promotion play-offs), and FC Elva II (returning to II liiga after a fourth-place finish in the 2023 III liiga South).[11] Notably, before the season began, Maardu strengthened their squad by signing two players who had competed in the Meistriliiga the previous year: 31-year-old Aleksandr Kulinitš and 28-year-old Vladimir Avilov.[12]
The season saw Maardu Linnameeskond clinch the title for the second consecutive year, showcasing even greater dominance by remaining undefeated with only three draws. Newcomers Põhja-Tallinna JK Puuma made an impressive debut, finishing in second place and securing a spot in the promotion playoffs after an astonishing tally of 132 goals in 26 matches. At the bottom of the table, Ararat and Ajax were relegated. Remarkably, a comparison between last season’s top 10 and this year's reveals that seven teams maintained their positions. Tartu JK Welco II and FC Tallinn U21 swapped places (Welco moved from 6th to 7th, and FC Tallinn from 7th to 6th), while Puuma replaced Jõhvi FC Phoenix in the rankings. Additionally, former Estonian national team player Albert Prosa, playing for Puuma, set a new II liiga North/East record by finishing as the league's top scorer with 40 goals.[13]
South / West
The 2024 II liiga South/West (S/W) division experienced several notable changes from the previous season. Despite clinching the top spot in 2023, Harju JK Laagri U21 was not promoted to Esiliiga B. Meanwhile, the bottom two teams, FC Kose and Pärnu JK Poseidon, were relegated. Additionally, Pärnu JK Tervis, which finished 7th, did not rejoin the Estonian league system in 2024. To fill the vacant spots, three clubs were promoted from III liiga: Tallinna FC Zapoos (champions of the 2023 III liiga North), Paide Linnameeskond III (champions of the 2023 III liiga East), and Tabasalu Ulasabat C.F. (2nd place in III liiga West and winners of the promotion playoffs). Notably, Paide III returns to the division, where they were dominant champions from 2018 to 2022.[11]
The season saw FC Nõmme United U21 emerge as champions, finishing seven points clear of the second-placed Pärnu JK Vaprus U21. At the other end of the table, JK Tabasalu U21 and Saue JK were relegated after finishing in the bottom two. The third from last place went to Raplamaa JK, who managed to be ahead of Saue by only head-to-head games. On the individual front, Oliver Karlson of Tallinna FC Zapoos claimed the top scorer title, netting 23 goals to lead the scoring charts.[13]
Post-season games: The II Liiga relegation play-outs were not held in 2024 due to a lack of clubs interested in promotion from the lower divisions. Similarly, the championship match between the winners of the league's two groups was canceled after FC Nõmme United U21 was forced to forfeit due to an insufficient number of available players.[13][14]
In 2024, nine beach soccer clubs will compete for the Baltic Sea League ("Läänemere liiga") title, with four of the teams hailing from Estonia and one team each from Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, and Sweden.. The league comprises three stages: the first stage was held on July 13-14 in Pärnu at Düün Beach, the second stage will take place in Germany from July 28-29, and the final stage will be hosted in Pärnu from August 23-24.
Pos
Team
Pld
W
W+
WP
LP
L
GF
GA
GD
Pts
1
Rostock Robben
4
3
0
0
0
1
30
16
+14
9
2
SK Augur Enemat/Coolbet
4
3
0
0
0
1
24
20
+4
9
3
BSC Copenhagen
4
3
0
0
0
1
16
12
+4
9
4
Riga FC
3
2
0
0
0
1
14
11
+3
6
5
BSC Kaunas-Top Sport
3
1
0
0
0
2
9
11
−2
3
6
BSC Thunder Arvutitark
3
1
0
0
1
1
14
12
+2
3
7
Nõmme BSC Olybet
4
1
0
0
0
3
11
20
−9
3
8
BSC Pärnu Tervis
4
0
0
2
0
2
10
18
−8
2
9
Bemannia FC Stockholm
3
0
0
0
1
2
9
17
−8
0
Updated to match(es) played on 14 July. Source: jalgpall.ee
The Estonian county competition is an annual competition, where all Estonian countys and the capital Tallinn play each other once a year. In 2024, only teams that did not play a match last year, will compete.
Players are listed in an alphabetical order. Players with an "*" behind their name have changed teams inside and outside of Meistriliiga. Player's last team is listed as "free agent" if he has not represented a team in the previous six months. Player's next team is listed as "free agent" if he has not found a new club within the following six months.
Inside Meistriliiga
Listed are players, who have joined or left a club participating in the 2024 Meistriliiga. The player must have represented the Estonian national team at least once. The list may also contain more known players, who have either changed their club inside the lower leagues or retired from football.
Name
Pos.
Age
From
To
Date
Notes
Ref
Outside Meistriliiga
Listed are all Estonian footballers, who have joined or left a foreign team.
Listed are all clubs, who play in the top divisions (Meistriliiga, Esiliiga, Esiliiga B), and national teams who changed managers after the end of the 2024 season.
Name
Pos.
Age
From
To
Date
Notes
Ref
Notes
↑ EEST (UTC+3) for dates between 31 March and 27 October 2024 and EET (UTC+2) for all other dates.
↑ The Israel v Estonia match was originally to be played on 12 October 2023, 18:00 (19:00 IST), but was postponed due to the Israel–Hamas war.[8]
↑ Tallinna Kalev play their home match at the Kadriorg Stadium, instead of their regular stadium, Kalevi Keskstaadion, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
↑ Bala Town play their home match at Park Hall in Oswestry, instead of their regular stadium, Maes Tegid, in Bala, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
1 2 3 Paide play their home matches at Pärnu Rannastaadion in Pärnu, instead of their regular stadium, Paide linnastaadion, in Paide, which did not meet UEFA requirements.
Related Research Articles
The 2014–15 Estonian Cup was the 25th season of the Estonia's most prestigious football knockout tournament. The defending champions Levadia were eliminated after a walkover loss against 4 tier club in the third round as they fielded an unregistered player. Nõmme Kalju won their first title and qualified for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.
The 2016 Meistriliiga was the 26th season of the Meistriliiga, the highest division of Estonian football system. The season began on 4 March 2016 and concluded on 5 November 2016.
The 2016–17 Estonian Cup was the 27th season of the Estonian main domestic football knockout tournament. FCI Tallinn won their first title after defeating Tammeka 2–0 in the final.
The 2017 Meistriliiga was the 27th season of the Meistriliiga, the top Estonian league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992. The season began on 3 March 2017 and concluded on 4 November 2017. FCI Tallinn began the season as defending champions of the 2016 season.
The 2017–18 Estonian Cup was the 28th season of the Estonian main domestic football knockout tournament. FCI Levadia won their ninth title after defeating Flora in the final.
The 2018 Meistriliiga was the 28th season of the Meistriliiga, the highest division of Estonian football system. The season was scheduled to begin on 25 February 2018, but was postponed due to a cold wave. On 3 March, the season began with four out of five second round matches held in indoor arena. This marked the first time Estonian league football was played indoor. The season concluded on 10 November 2018. Flora were the defending champions. Nõmme Kalju won their 2nd Meistriliiga title completing an entire season undefeated.
This page summarizes 2018 in Estonian football.
The 2018–19 Estonian Cup was the 29th season of the Estonian main domestic football knockout tournament. Narva Trans won their second title after defeating Nõmme Kalju in the final and qualified for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.
The 2019 Meistriliiga was the 29th season of the Meistriliiga, the top Estonian league for association football clubs. The season began on 8 March 2019 and concluded on 9 November 2019. Nõmme Kalju were the defending champions. Flora won their 12th Meistriliiga title.
This page summarizes 2019 in Estonian football.
The 2019–20 Estonian Cup was the 30th season of the Estonian main domestic football knockout tournament. Flora won their eight title after defeating Narva Trans in the final. The winner of the Cup were to qualify for the first qualifying round of the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League, but as Flora were already qualified for the Champions League the spot passed on to Paide Linnameeskond.
The 2020 Meistriliiga was the 30th season of the Meistriliiga, the top Estonian league for association football clubs. The season began on 6 March 2020, but was suspended after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The league continued on 19 May 2020. The season concluded on 6 December, with the last match between Flora and FCI Levadia cancelled due to COVID-19 cases in both teams. The defending champions Flora successfully defended their title, winning second title in a row and their 13th in total.
This page summarizes Estonian football in 2021. It contains information about the league system, national teams, beach football and futsal.
The 2021 season is Flora's 31st season as a professional football club, all coming in the Meistriliiga, the highest division of the Estonian Football Association annual football championship. In addition to the domestic league, the club will also compete in both the 2020–21 and 2021–22 editions of the Estonian Cup, the Estonian Supercup, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League, and the inaugural edition of the UEFA Europa Conference League.
The 2021–22 Estonian Cup was the 32nd season of the Estonian main domestic football knockout tournament. Paide Linnameeskond won their first title and qualified for the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League.
This page summarizes everything related to Estonian football in the year 2022. It contains information about different league systems, national teams, futsal, beach football and most important transfers.
The 2022 Esiliiga was the 32nd season of the Esiliiga, the second tier of Estonian football. The season started on 3 March 2022 and concluded on 13 November 2022.
The 2023 Meistriliiga, also known as A. Le Coq Premium Liiga due to sponsorship reasons, was the 33rd season of the Meistriliiga, the top Estonian league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1992. It was the first Meistriliiga season with video assistant referee (VAR).
This page summarizes everything related to Estonian football in the year 2023. It contains information about different league systems, national teams, futsal, beach football and most important transfers.
The 2024 Meistriliiga, also known as A. Le Coq Premium Liiga due to sponsorship reasons, was the 34th season of the Meistriliiga, the top Estonian league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1992. The season began on 1 March, and concluded on 9 November 2024.
References
↑ "Poland vs. Estonia"(JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 21 March 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
↑ "Estonia vs. Slovakia"(JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
↑ "Sweden vs. Estonia"(JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 8 September 2024. Retrieved 8 September 2024.
↑ "Estonia vs. Azerbaijan"(JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 11 October 2024. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
↑ "Estonia vs. Sweden"(JSON). Union of European Football Associations. 14 October 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
