2011–12 Czech First League


The 2011–12 Czech First League, known as the Gambrinus liga for sponsorship reasons, was the 19th season of the Czech Republic's top-tier football league. It began on 29 July 2011 and was originally due to end on 26 May 2012, although due to the [Czech Republic national Association football|football team|Czech Republic]'s qualification for the UEFA Euro 2012, the end of the season was brought forward to 12 May 2012. Viktoria Plzeň were the defending champions, having won their first Czech Republic championship the previous season.
Sparta Prague started the season with eight consecutive wins, the first such occurrence in league history. Sparta broke their own record when they won their ninth straight league match and opened up a 10-point lead at the top of the table.
The title was decided on the last day of the season, with Liberec hosting Viktoria Plzeň in the knowledge that a win for either team would seal the title, with a draw being enough for Liberec to retain first place. In front of a sold-out stadium at Stadion u Nisy, Liberec held the visitors to a goalless draw, winning the league for the third time since 2002.

Teams

Ústí nad Labem and Zbrojovka Brno were relegated to the 2011–12 Czech 2. Liga after finishing last and second to last, respectively, in the 2010–11 season. Ústi nad Labem therefore immediately returned to the second tier, while Brno completed a nineteen-year tenure in the top flight.
The relegated terms were replaced by 2010–11 2. Liga champions Dukla Prague and Viktoria Žižkov. Viktoria Žižkov returned after a two-year absence, while Dukla Prague made their debut in the league; however, the Dukla Prague name returned to the league after seventeen seasons, with a club of the same name having played in the top Czech football division until then. The newly promoted clubs were granted licenses to play top-division football on 13 June 2011.
Viktoria Žižkov became the first team to be relegated on 5 May 2012 after Ostrava beat Příbram.

Stadia and locations

ClubLocationStadiumCapacity2010–11 position
OstravaBazaly17,37214th
Bohemians 1905PragueSynot Tip Arena Note 121,0006th
Dukla PraguePragueStadion Juliska Note 24,5602L, 1st
Dynamo České BudějoviceE-On Stadion6,68111th
Všesportovní stadion7,2208th
JablonecStadion Střelnice6,2803rd
Městský stadion (Mladá Boleslav)5,0005th
Na Litavce9,10012th
Sigma OlomoucOlomoucAndrův stadion12,5664th
Slavia PraguePragueSynot Tip Arena21,0009th
Městský fotbalový stadion Miroslava Valenty8,12113th
Slovan LiberecLiberecStadion u Nisy9,9007th
Sparta PraguePragueGenerali Arena20,5582nd
TepliceNa Stínadlech18,22110th
Viktoria PlzeňStadion města Plzně13,0001st
Viktoria ŽižkovPragueFK Viktoria Stadion5,6002L, 2nd

Notes:
  1. Ďolíček stadion does not meet the football association criteria, therefore Bohemians are forced to play at Synot Tip Arena.
  2. FK Dukla Prague played one home match at Stadion Evžena Rošického due to the implementation of under-soil heating at Juliska.

Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
TeamManager1CaptainKit manufacturerShirt sponsor
Baník Ostravasortname|Pavel|Malura

Managerial changes

League table


Top goalscorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1

Attendances

RankClubAverageHighest
1Sparta Praha10,32218,299
2Viktoria Plzeň7,00911,412
3Baník Ostrava5,96813,127
4Slovan Liberec5,78710,000
5Slavia Praha5,74516,516
6Sigma Olomouc5,4938,094
7Slovácko5,2747,638
8Hradec Králové4,7277,220
9Teplice3,8768,586
10Jablonec3,5916,040
11Mladá Boleslav3,3554,596
12České Budějovice3,1446,029
13Příbram3,1386,621
14Bohemians2,9247,545
15Viktoria Žižkov2,6495,200
16Dukla Praha2,4344,590

Source: