2017–18 Second Professional Football League (Bulgaria)

The 2017–18 Second League was the 62nd season of the Second League, the second tier of the Bulgarian football league system, and the 2nd season under this name and current league structure. The fixture list was released on 22 June 2017.[5]

Second Professional Football League
Season2017–18
Dates22 July 2017–19 May 2018
ChampionsBotev Vratsa
PromotedBotev Vratsa
RelegatedNeftochimic
Sozopol
Maritsa Plovdiv
Oborishte
Matches played240
Goals scored592 (2.47 per match)
Top goalscorerSvetoslav Dikov (25)
Biggest home winBotev Vratsa 5–0 Ludogorets Razgrad II
(28 April 2018)[1]
Biggest away winSozopol 0–5 Montana
(20 October 2017)[2]
Highest scoringStrumska Slava 3–6 Maritsa Plovdiv
(12 August 2017)[3]
Longest winning run7 games by Tsarsko Selo[4]
Longest unbeaten run11 games by Tsarsko Selo[4]
Longest winless run19 games by Neftochimic[4]
Longest losing run12 games by Neftochimic[4]
All statistics correct as of 19 May 2018.

Teams edit

The following teams have changed division since the 2016–17 season.

a.^ Zagorets, the champions of South-East Third League, declined promotion due to financial and organizational reasons; Maritsa Plovdiv took their place as runners-up.[6]
b.^ CSKA Sofia II officially declined to participate in the South-West Third League and was dissolved.[7]

Stadia and locations edit

Team City Stadium Capacity
Botev Galabovo Energitik 3,000
Botev Vratsa Hristo Botev 12,000
Chernomorets Balchik Gradski, Balchik 3,100
Litex Lovech Gradski, Lovech 8,100
Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa Lokomotiv, Gorna Oryahovitsa 10,500
Lokomotiv Sofia Lokomotiv, Sofia 22,000
Ludogorets II Razgrad Eagles' Nest 2,000
Maritsa Plovdiv Botev 1912 Football ComplexA 3,500
Montana Montana Kiprovets, ChiprovtsiB 1,600
Neftochimic Burgas Gradski, BalgarovoC 3,000[8]
Nesebar Nesebar Nesebar Stadium 7,000
Oborishte Panagyurishte Orcho Voyvoda 3,000
Pomorie Pomorie Lazur, BurgasD 18,037[9]
Sozopol Sozopol Arena Sozopol 3,500
Strumska Slava Radomir Gradski, Radomir 3,500[10]
Tsarsko Selo Sofia Tsarsko Selo 2,000

A.^ Maritsa Plovdiv will play at Botev 1912 Football Complex because their Maritsa Stadium is not licensed for Second League.[11]
B.^ Montana will play at Kiprovets Stadium in Chiprovtsi due to ongoing renovation works at their Ogosta Stadium.[12]
C.^ Neftochimic will play at Gradski Stadium in Balgarovo for financial reasons.[13]
D.^ Pomorie will play at Lazur Stadium in Burgas due to renovation works at their Pomorie Stadium.[14]

Personnel and sponsorship edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor Kit sponsor
Botev Galabovo   Lyudmil Kirov   Georgi Kirilov KRASIKO Galabovo Municipality Knauf
Botev Vratsa   Sasho Angelov   Ivaylo Mihaylov Jumper WinBet
Chernomorets Balchik   Georgi Ivanov   Genadi Lugo Legea Balchik Municipality
Litex   Zhivko Zhelev   Ivaylo Radentsov adidas
Lokomotiv Sofia   Mladen Dodić   Aleksandar Branekov Joma Efbet Malizia
Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa   Aleksandar Dimitrov   Mariyan Ivanov KRASIKO Efbet Prity, Enel, Go Grill
Ludogorets Razgrad II   Radoslav Zdravkov   Ventsislav Kerchev Umbro bet365 Vivacom, Spetema
Maritsa   Dimcho Belyakov   Iliya Nikolov Sportika Hristov Commerce
Montana   Ferario Spasov   Ivan Mihov Jako Efbet
Neftochimic   Diyan Petkov   Stanislav Zhekov KRASIKO Masterhaus
Nesebar   Nikolay Zhechev   Nikolay Kostov Joma Efbet
Oborishte   Ivan Atanasov   Tsvetomir Tsonkov KRASIKO Asarel Medet
Pomorie   Veselin Branimirov   Georgi Petkov Erreà[15] Pomorie Municipality, Efbet[15]
Sozopol   Margarit Dimov   Ivan Yanchev KRASIKO
Strumska Slava   Vladimir Dimitrov[16]   Nikolay Nikolov Sportika
Tsarsko Selo   Velislav Vutsov   Simeon Ganchev Nike

Note: Individual clubs may wear jerseys with advertising. However, only one sponsorship is permitted per jersey for official tournaments organised by UEFA in addition to that of the kit manufacturer (exceptions are made for non-profit organisations). Clubs in the domestic league can have more than one sponsorship per jersey which can feature on the front of the shirt, incorporated with the main sponsor or in place of it; or on the back, either below the squad number or on the collar area. Shorts also have space available for advertisement.

Managerial changes edit

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Oborishte   Emil Velev End of contract 1 June 2017[17] Pre-season   Georgi Chilikov 9 June 2017[18]
Lokomotiv Sofia   Yavor Valchinov Mutual consent 2 June 2017[19]   Mladen Dodić 9 June 2017[20]
Neftochimic   Hristo Yanev Resigned 3 June 2017[21]   Nikolay Krastev 23 June 2017[22]
Montana   Atanas Atanasov End of contract 11 June 2017[23]   Yavor Valchinov 14 June 2017[24]
Botev Galabovo   Ivan Vutov Signed by Etar 16 June 2017   Svetoslav Todorov 16 June 2017[25]
Nesebar   Nikolay Rusev Appointed as Head of Academy 18 June 2017   Nikolay Zhechev 18 June 2017[26]
Oborishte   Georgi Chilikov Signed by Ludogorets Razgrad 14 August 2017 4th   Angel Slavkov 14 August 2017[27]
Montana   Yavor Valchinov Resigned 27 August 2017[28] 12th   Ferario Spasov 28 August 2017[29]
Pomorie   Malin Orachev 27 September 2017 14th   Veselin Branimirov 27 September 2017[30]
Neftochimic   Nikolay Krastev Demoted to assistant 6 October 2017 16th   Blagomir Mitrev 6 October 2017[31]
Botev Galabovo   Svetoslav Todorov Mutual consent 16 November 2017[32] 12th   Lyudmil Kirov 21 November 2017[33]
Oborishte   Angel Slavkov 2 December 2017[34] 12th   Ivan Atanasov 12 December 2017[35]
Neftochimic   Blagomir Mitrev Signed by Vereya 2 January 2018[36] 16th   Diyan Petkov 3 January 2018[37]
Tsarsko Selo   Nikola Spasov Signed by   Kyzylzhar 3 January 2018 2nd   Veselin Velikov 3 January 2018[38]
Sozopol   Rumen Dimov Resigned 24 April 2018 15h   Margarit Dimov 24 April 2018[39]
Maritsa Plovdiv   Stoyan Dimitrov 30 April 2018 14th   Dimcho Belyakov 30 April 2018[40]
Tsarsko Selo   Veselin Velikov Mutual consent 8 May 2018 3rd   Velislav Vutsov 8 May 2018[41]

League table edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion, qualification or relegation
1 Botev Vratsa (C, P) 30 19 7 4 46 20 +26 64 Promotion to the First League
2 Lokomotiv Sofia 30 19 6 5 51 27 +24 63[a] Qualification for the promotion play-offs
3 Tsarsko Selo 30 19 6 5 56 28 +28 63[a]
4 Montana 30 17 5 8 50 20 +30 56
5 Nesebar 30 13 5 12 42 43 −1 44
6 Pomorie 30 10 11 9 36 32 +4 41[b]
7 Botev Galabovo 30 11 8 11 37 40 −3 41[b]
8 Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa 30 10 10 10 42 39 +3 40[c]
9 Ludogorets Razgrad II 30 11 7 12 40 50 −10 40[c] Ineligible for promotion
10 Litex Lovech 30 10 9 11 26 26 0 39[d]
11 Chernomorets Balchik 30 10 9 11 37 40 −3 39[d]
12 Strumska Slava Radomir 30 10 6 14 31 43 −12 36
13 Oborishte (R) 30 9 6 15 26 32 −6 33[e] Relegation to the Third League
14 Maritsa Plovdiv (R) 30 9 6 15 34 45 −11 33[e]
15 Sozopol (R) 30 6 6 18 25 47 −22 24
16 Neftochimic (R) 30 2 3 25 15 62 −47 9
Source: bulgarian-football.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams); 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fairplay ranking; 9) Draw.[42]
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Lokomotiv Sofia is ahead of Tsarsko Selo on head-to-head points: Lokomotiv Sofia–Tsarsko Selo 0–0, Tsarsko Selo–Lokomotiv Sofia 1–2.
  2. ^ a b Pomorie is ahead of Botev Galabovo on head-to-head points: Pomorie–Botev Galabovo 0–0, Botev Galabovo–Pomorie 0–1.
  3. ^ a b Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa is ahead of Ludogorets Razgrad II on overall goal difference.
  4. ^ a b Litex Lovech is ahead of Chernomorets Balchik on head-to-head goal difference: Litex Lovech–Chernomorets Balchik 4–0, Chernomorets Balchik–Litex Lovech 1–0.
  5. ^ a b Oborishte is ahead of Maritsa Plovdiv on head-to-head goal difference: Oborishte–Maritsa Plovdiv 1–2, Maritsa Plovdiv–Oborishte 0–3.

Results edit

Home \ Away GAL BVR CBA LIT LGO LSO LUD MAR MON NEF NES OBO POM SOZ STR TSS
Botev Galabovo 0–4 3–2 3–0 1–0 2–3 0–0 1–1 0–2 2–1 2–1 1–2 0–1 2–0 1–0 0–0
Botev Vratsa 0–0 3–2 1–0 0–0 2–2 5–0 2–1 2–1 4–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 1–0
Chernomorets Balchik 4–1 0–1 1–0 1–1 2–2 3–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 3–2 0–0 1–1 1–1 4–0 1–1
Litex 0–1 0–0 4–0 1–1 0–0 4–1 1–1 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 0–2 2–1 2–0 0–1
Lokomotiv Gorna Oryahovitsa 3–1 1–3 3–0 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 3–1 3–0 0–0 1–1 3–0 4–3 1–3
Lokomotiv Sofia 1–1 1–0 1–0 4–0 3–0 1–0 4–2 1–0 2–0 4–1 1–0 2–1 3–0 0–1 0–0
Ludogorets Razgrad II 2–1 4–1 2–2 1–1 2–2 2–1 0–2 1–0 2–0 0–2 3–0 2–1 1–0 1–2 3–2
Maritsa Plovdiv 1–2 1–1 0–1 0–1 3–1 1–3 3–3 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–3 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–3
Montana 3–1 0–1 4–0 2–1 1–0 4–0 4–0 2–1 4–0 1–3 2–0 2–1 2–1 1–1 1–0
Neftochimic 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–1 0–2 0–3 0–1 0–2 1–3 0–2 1–0 0–2
Nesebar 1–5 2–0 2–0 0–1 4–2 1–3 3–1 4–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–3 0–0 0–0 2–3
Oborishte 2–0 0–2 2–0 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–0 1–2 0–0 3–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 1–1 1–3
Pomorie 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–1 2–3 0–1 2–1 0–2 1–1 3–1 1–0 1–1 1–1 2–2
Sozopol 2–2 1–2 1–0 1–1 1–3 0–0 1–2 2–0 0–5 3–1 1–2 1–3 1–2 2–1 0–1
Strumska Slava Radomir 2–2 0–2 0–2 1–0 0–0 2–1 2–1 3–6 1–0 1–0 0–1 3–1 1–2 1–0 1–3
Tsarsko Selo 2–0 1–2 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–2 3–2 2–0 1–1 5–1 3–2 2–0 2–0 4–1 3–2
Source: bulgarian-football.com
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers edit

As of match(es) played on 19 May 2018[43]
Rank Player Club Goals
1   Svetoslav Dikov Tsarsko Selo 25
2   Iliya Dimitrov Lokomotiv Sofia 17
3   Ivan Kolev Botev Vratsa[n 1] 15
  Vladislav Mirchev Chernomorets Balchik
5   Pavel Petkov Tsarsko Selo 11
  Atanas Iliev Montana
7   Nikolay Kostov Nesebar 10
  Petar Atanasov Botev Vratsa[n 2]
9   Nikolay Tsvetkov Lokomotiv Sofia 9
  Ivan Kokonov Montana
  Ventsislav Gyuzelev Maritsa Plovdiv
  Deyan Hristov Lokomotiv GO
  Kristiyan Peshov Sozopol
14   Spas Georgiev Botev Vratsa 8
  Iliyan Kapitanov Oborishte[n 3]
  Ahmed Ahmedov Pomorie
  Denislav Aleksandrov Ludogorets Razgrad II
  Kristiyan Tasev Strumska Slava
  Zhivko Petkov Pomorie
20   Ivaylo Stoyanov Strumska Slava 7
  Rangel Ignatov Maritsa Plovdiv
  Ivan Tsachev Botev Galabovo
Notes
  1. ^ Including 8 goals for Nesebar.
  2. ^ Including 3 goals for Montana.
  3. ^ Including 6 goals for Botev Galabovo.

References edit

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  2. ^ "Sozopol vs. Montana 0–5". soccerway.com. 20 October 2017.
  3. ^ "Strumska Slava vs. Maritsa Plovdiv 3–6". soccerway.com. 12 August 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d "Bulgaria - 2nd league - streaks and sequences". soccerstats.com. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  5. ^ "Изтеглен бе жребият за определяне на програмата на Втора професионална лига за сезон 2017–18" (in Bulgarian). Bulgarian Football Union. 22 June 2017. Archived from the original on 28 June 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
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  7. ^ "ЦСКА II няма да участва в Трета лига" (in Bulgarian). cska.bg. 5 June 2017.
  8. ^ "Стадиони от България" (in Bulgarian). sporta.bg. Retrieved 27 July 2017.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "ФИФА даде лиценз на "Лазур" - Gol.bg". gol.bg. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
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