Bulgarian Hockey League

The Bulgarian Hockey League is the top-level ice hockey league in Bulgaria.

A league match in 1956-57.

History

The Bulgarian Hockey League was first contested for the 1951-52 season. Prior to its formation, championships of various names had been organized.

Cerveno Zname Sofia was the top team in the league during its early years, winning the title eight times between 1952 and 1963, before merging with HC CSKA Sofia. CSKA then became the dominant force in the league for much of the 1960s and 1970s, winning 11 titles in 13 years. Only Metallurg Pernik, who won the title in 1968 and 1970, was able to break their streak of dominance.

Levski-Spartak Sofia won seven consecutive championships between 1976 and 1982. The title then changed hands between CSKA, Slavia, and Levski-Spartak from 1983 to 1992.

Between 1993 and 2012, HC Slavia Sofia won the title 15 times, only having their run broken by Levski in 1995, 1999, and 2003, and Akademika Sofia in 2006 and 2007. CSKA Sofia claimed back-to-back titles in 2013 and 2014, which were their first since 1986.

The quality of the Bulgarian Hockey League, and Bulgarian hockey as a whole, is generally considered to have regressed in recent years. In 2013-14, only eight games were played in total, due to many forfeits and cancellations. The lack of adequate funds and the poor condition of Sofia's ice rinks has contributed to the league's decline.

A league match in 1962-63.

Bulgarian League Champions

1952 Cherveno Zname Sofia 1953 HK Udarnik Sofia 1954 HK Udarnik Sofia 1955 HK Torpedo Sofia 1956 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1957 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1958 Not Played 1959 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1960 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1961 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1962 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1963 Cerveno Zname Sofia 1964 CDNA Sofia 1965 HK CSKA Sofia 1966 HK CSKA Sofia 1967 HK CSKA Sofia 1968 Metallurg Pernik 1969 HK CSKA Sofia 1970 HK Krakra Pernik 1971 HK CSKA Sofia 1972 HK CSKA Sofia 1973 HK CSKA Sofia 1974 HK CSKA Sofia 1975 HK CSKA Sofia 1976 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1977 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1978 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1979 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1980 Levski-Spartak Sofia

1981 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1982 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1983 HK CSKA Sofia 1984 HK CSKA Sofia 1985 HK Slavia Sofia 1986 HK CSKA Sofia 1987 HK Slavia Sofia 1988 HK Slavia Sofia 1989 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1990 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1991 HK Slavia Sofia 1992 Levski-Spartak Sofia 1993 HK Slavia Sofia 1994 HK Slavia Sofia 1995 HK Levski Sofia 1996 HK Slavia Sofia 1997 HK Slavia Sofia 1998 HK Slavia Sofia 1999 HK Levski Sofia 2000 HK Slavia Sofia 2001 HK Slavia Sofia 2002 HK Slavia Sofia 2003 HK Levski Sofia 2004 HK Slavia Sofia 2005 HK Slavia Sofia 2006 Akademika Sofia 2007 Akademika Sofia 2008 HK Slavia Sofia 2009 HK Slavia Sofia 2010 HK Slavia Sofia 2011 HK Slavia Sofia 2012 HK Slavia Sofia 2013 HK CSKA Sofia 2014 HK CSKA Sofia 2015 HK CSKA Sofia 2016 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2017 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2018 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2019 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2020 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2021 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2022 NSA Sofia 2023 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia 2024 Irbis-Skate SK Sofia

Titles by team

Titles	Team	Year
21	Slavia Sofia HK Udarnik Sofia (1951-1957)	1953, 1954, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
16	CSKA Sofia CDNA Sofia	1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1983, 1984, 1986, 2013, 2014, 2015
13	HC Levski Sofia Levski-Spartak Sofia (1969-1990)	1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1999, 2003
8	Cerveno Zname Sofia	1952, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963
8	Irbis-Skate SK Sofia	2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024
2	Akademika Sofia	2006, 2007
1	NSA Sofia	2022
1	HK Krakra Pernik	1970
1	Metallurg Pernik	1968
1	Torpedo Sofia	1955

See also

• List of Bulgarian Hockey League seasons

External links

• www.bghockey.com (Bulgarian)
• www.kunki.org (Bulgarian)

European Hockey Overview

Top-Level Leagues

International Alps Hockey League - BeNe League - Erste Liga - International Hockey League - Kontinental Hockey League National Andorra - Armenia - Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany - Greece - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - United Kingdom

Second-Level Leagues

Belarus - Belgium - Bulgaria - Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Russia - Slovakia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine

Third-Level Leagues

Austria - Belgium - Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Italy - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Russia - Scotland - Slovakia - Sweden - Switzerland

Fourth-Level and lower Leagues

Austria - Belgium (4, 5) - Czech Republic (4, 5) - Finland (4, 5, 6, 7) - France - Germany (4, 5) - Hungary - Italy - Netherlands (4, 5, 6, 7) - Norway (4, 5, 6, 7) - Poland - Russia (Night League, Amateur Leagues) - Sweden (4, 5, 6, 7, 8), Switzerland (4, 5, 6, 7)

Cup Competitions

Cups Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Czech Republic - Denmark - East Germany - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Netherlands (Cup, Ron Berteling Schaal) - Norway - Poland - Romania - Scotland - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Soviet Union - Spain - Switzerland - Ukraine - Yugoslavia Supercups Belgium - Estonia - Hungary - Italy - Poland - Netherlands - Slovenia - Spain

Defunct Leagues

Soviet Union - Russia - Czechoslovakia - Yugoslavia - West Germany - East Germany - Ireland - Luxembourg - Macedonia - Malta - Portugal - Alpenliga - Interliga - Inter-National League - North Sea Cup - Panonian League - Eastern European - Balkan League (1994-1997) - Baltic League (2001) - Baltic Hockey League (2020) - Carpathian League - Slohokej Liga - Balkan Ice Hockey League - English League - English National League - Scottish National League - British Hockey League - Ice Hockey Superleague - German Championship - Swedish Championship - Klass I - Svenska Serien - Elitserien - Swedish Division I - SM-sarja - Swiss National Championship - Swiss International Championship

Women's Leagues

International leagues European Women's Hockey League - EWHL Super Cup National leagues Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bulgaria - Croatia - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland (1, 2, 3, U20, U18, U16) - France - Germany (1, 2, 3, Cup) - Great Britain (England U16) - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Russia (U18) - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden (1, 2, 3, 4, U20) - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine Defunct leagues Czechoslovakia - Interliga - Low Countries Cup

Junior Leagues

Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia - Czech Republic (Czechoslovakia) - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany (East Germany) - Great Britain - Hungary - Iceland - Italy - Kazakhstan - Latvia - Lithuania - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Romania - Russia (Soviet Union) - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - Yugoslavia

University Leagues

European University Hockey League - Czech Republic - Great Britain - Netherlands - Russia (RSHL, MSHL, SHLC, SHLMO, SibSHL, SPSHL) - Sweden

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