Toppserien


The Toppserien is the top level of women's association football in Norway. It was founded in 1984.

History

Women's league football was introduced on a county basis in 1977. These leagues acted as qualification for the regional league in 1979. Regional leagues were in operation until the formation of the First Division 1984, when the league was divided into three regions, Group Eastern-Norway, Group Western-Norway, and Group Mid-Norway. No teams from Northern-Norway played, however. The winners of the three groups met each other for a play-off. Regional leagues for women had been played before 1984, and a championship play-off had been done between the winners of Mid-Norway and Eastern-Norway in 1983, but this championship was considered unofficial by the Football Association of Norway. In 1986, a group for Northern-Norway was added, and in 1987, the groups and play-off matches were dropped, and one single league with teams from all over the country was played.
The league was known as 1. divisjon from 1984 to 1995, the Eliteserien from 1996 to 1999, and the Toppserien from 2000.
Traditionally, Trondheims-Ørn and Asker was the two power-houses of Toppserien, with 7 and 6 championship wins respectively. Trondheims-Ørn finished in the top three 16 out of 23 times from the beginning in 1984 to their current last medal in 2006. In 1998, Asker managed the almost unthinkable, winning every single one of their 18 league games that season. However Asker FK, the women's team within Asker Fotball, became bankrupt at the end of 2008 and most of the players were transferred to a new team within the nearby Stabæk IF, named Stabæk FK. Asker finished among the top three 18 out of the 25 seasons the club existed. The new Stabæk team began playing in the Toppserien from the 2009 season and won the league in 2010 and 2013. Røa won Toppserien five times from 2004 to 2011. Lillestrøm SK Kvinner won six consecutive titles from 2014 to 2019.

Competition format

The league currently consists of 12 teams, which play each other 2 times, for a total of 24 matches. The season lasts from April to November. Teams are ranked by:

Current members

TeamHome cityHome groundSeasons
Bodø/GlimtBodøAspmyra Stadion202520252
BrannBergenBrann Stadion2013200436
HaugesundHaugesundHaugesund Stadion2026201312
HønefossHønefossAKA Arena202520252
LSK KvinnerLillestrømLSK-Hallen1984198443
LynOsloKringsjå201820188
MoldeMoldeMolde202619942
RosenborgTrondheimLerkendal Stadion1984198443
RøaOsloRøa-banen2022200125
StabækBærumNadderud Stadion2021200917
VålerengaOsloIntility Arena2012201215
AalesundÅlesundColor Line Stadion202620092

;Notes

List of champions

Medalists by year

The following medals have been awarded:
YearChampionsRunners-upThird placeName of league
1984Sprint-Jeløy Trondheims-ØrnNymark1. divisjon
1985Nymark AskerTrondheims-Ørn1. divisjon
1986Sprint-Jeløy TrollKlepp
Grand		1. divisjon
1987Klepp Sprint-JeløyAsker1. divisjon
1988Asker KleppTrondheims-Ørn1. divisjon
1989Asker Sprint-JeløyKlepp1. divisjon
1990Sprint-Jeløy AskerKlepp1. divisjon
1991Asker Sprint-JeløySandviken1. divisjon
1992Asker Setskog/HølandSprint-Jeløy1. divisjon
1993Sprint-Jeløy Trondheims-ØrnAsker1. divisjon
1994Trondheims-Ørn AskerSprint-Jeløy1. divisjon
1995Trondheims-Ørn Setskog/HølandSandviken1. divisjon
1996Trondheims-Ørn SandvikenAskerEliteserien
1997Trondheims-Ørn AskerKleppEliteserien
1998Asker Trondheims-ØrnAthene MossEliteserien
1999Asker Trondheims-ØrnKleppEliteserien
2000Trondheims-Ørn AskerKolbotnToppserien
2001Trondheims-Ørn KolbotnArna-BjørnarToppserien
2002Kolbotn AskerTrondheims-ØrnToppserien
2003Trondheims-Ørn KolbotnAskerToppserien
2004Røa Trondheims-ØrnFløyaToppserien
2005Kolbotn Team StrømmenFløyaToppserien
2006Kolbotn Trondheims-ØrnRøaToppserien
2007Røa KolbotnAskerToppserien
2008Røa Team StrømmenAskerToppserien
2009Røa StabækKolbotnToppserien
2010Stabæk RøaKolbotnToppserien
2011Røa StabækKolbotnToppserien
2012LSK Kvinner StabækArna-BjørnarToppserien
2013Stabæk LSK KvinnerArna-BjørnarToppserien
2014LSK Kvinner StabækArna-BjørnarToppserien
2015LSK Kvinner AvaldsnesRøaToppserien
2016LSK Kvinner AvaldsnesStabækToppserien
2017LSK Kvinner AvaldsnesStabækToppserien
2018LSK Kvinner KleppArna-BjørnarToppserien
2019LSK Kvinner VålerengaKleppToppserien
2020Vålerenga RosenborgAvaldsnesToppserien
2021Sandviken RosenborgLSK KvinnerToppserien
2022Brann VålerengaRosenborgToppserien
2023Vålerenga RosenborgLSK KvinnerToppserien
2024Vålerenga BrannRosenborgToppserien
2025Brann VålerengaRosenborgToppserien

Below is a list of the gold, silver and bronze medalists in the Toppserien since its beginning in 1984. The Norwegian Women's Cup has been played since 1978. From 1984 to 1995 the name of the league was 1. divisjon, and between 1996 and 1999 the name was Eliteserien before getting its current name, Toppserien in 2000.
From 1984 to 1985, the league was divided into three sections, and after the inclusion of teams from Northern Norway there was four sections in 1986, with the championship decided through a play-off. Since then it has been a round-robin decided through a league table.

Medalists by club

The following clubs have won the top division in Norwegian football since 1984.
ClubWinnerRunner-upThird
Rosenborg4796
LSK Kvinner3752
Asker1666
Røa512
Sprint/Jeløy2433
Kolbotn334
Vålerenga330
Brann5322
Stabæk1242
Klepp126
Nymark101
Haugesund6031
Troll010
Arna-Bjørnar005
Fløya002
Grand Bodø7001

1 = In 2008 Stabæk was handed the license to play in the top league, and also took over the best players from Asker, because of financial problems in the latter. But the rest of Asker remains, and they still have their top female team - in league three. Therefore, Stabæk is not to be considered the successor of Asker.
2 = Athene Moss was Sprint/Jeløy successor, so one bronze as Athene Moss in 1998 is included.
3 = LSK Kvinner is the successor of Setskog/Høland and Team Strømmen.
4 = Rosenborg is the successor of Trondheims-Ørn.
5 = Brann is the successor of Sandviken.
6 = Haugesund is the successor of Avaldsnes.
7 = In 2025 Bodø/Glimt took over the women's team of Grand Bodø, but Grand Bodø continues to field a senior women's team in the lower leagues. Therefore, Bodø/Glimt is not to be considered the successor of Grand Bodø.