The 2012–13 A Group was the 89th season of the Bulgarian national top football division, and the 65th of A Group as the top-tier football league in the country. The season began on 11 August 2012[1] and ended with the last games on 25 May 2013. Ludogorets Razgrad won the A Group title for a second consecutive season, after Levski were leading prior to the last round match, but made a draw with Slavia.[2][3][4][5]

A Group
Season2012–13
Dates11 August 2012 – 25 May 2013
ChampionsLudogorets Razgrad
(2nd title)
RelegatedBotev Vratsa
Minyor Pernik
Etar 1924
Montana
Champions LeagueLudogorets Razgrad
Europa LeagueLevski Sofia
Botev
Beroe
Matches played240
Goals scored600 (2.5 per match)
Top goalscorerGuinea-Bissau Basile de Carvalho
(19 goals)
Biggest home winLevski 7–1 Etar 1924
Biggest away winPirin 0–5 CSKA Sofia
Highest scoringLevski 7–1 Etar 1924

Teams

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Vidima-Rakovski, Kaliakra and Svetkavitsa were relegated after finishing in the bottom three places of the table at the end of season 2011–12.[6][7][8] Vidima and Kaliakra return to the second tier after two-year spells in the elite, while Svetkavitsa return after just one season in the top tier.

The relegated teams were replaced by Pirin (Gotse Delchev), champions of West B Group, Etar 1924 (Veliko Tarnovo), champions of East B Group and promotion play-off winners Botev (Plovdiv). Botev returned to A Group after two years of absence, Pirin made their debut on the highest level of Bulgarian football, while Etar 1924 made its debut in the top level, although it’s unofficial predecessor, Etar Veliko Tarnovo played in the top level 14 years ago, season 1997–98.

Stadia and locations

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As in the previous year, the league comprised the best thirteen teams of season 2011–12, the champions of the two B Groups and the winners of the promotion play-offs.

Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.[9]

Sofia 2012–13 A Group football clubs
Team Location Stadium Capacity
Beroe Stara Zagora Beroe 12,300
Botev Plovdiv Hristo Botev 18,000
Botev Vratsa Hristo Botev 32,000
Cherno More Varna Ticha 8,250
Chernomorets Burgas Lazur 18,037
CSKA Sofia Balgarska Armiya 22,015
Etar 1924 Veliko Tarnovo Ivaylo 18,000
Levski Sofia Georgi Asparuhov 19,200
Litex Lovech Lovech 8,100
Lokomotiv Plovdiv Lokomotiv 10,000
Lokomotiv Sofia Lokomotiv 22,000
Ludogorets Razgrad Ludogorets Arena 6,000
Minyor Pernik Minyor 8,000
Montana Montana Ogosta 8,000
Pirin Gotse Delchev Gradski 5,000
Slavia Sofia Ovcha Kupel 15,992

Personnel and sponsoring

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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
Beroe Stara Zagora   Petar Hubchev   Doncho Atanasov Uhlsport Bulsatcom
Botev Plovdiv   Stanimir Stoilov   Asen Karaslavov adidas KTB AD
Botev Vratsa   Antoni Zdravkov   Iliya Iliev Zeus
Cherno More Varna   Georgi Ivanov   Georgi Iliev Misho Armeets
Chernomorets Burgas   Dimitar Dimitrov   Trayan Dyankov Legea
CSKA Sofia   Milen Radukanov   Ivan Bandalovski Legea GLOBUL
Etar   Serdar Dayat   Dormushali Saidhodzha Jumper CBA
Levski Sofia   Nikolay Mitov   Stanislav Angelov Puma VTB Bank, M-tel
Litex Lovech   Hristo Stoichkov   Nebojša Jelenković adidas b-connect
Lokomotiv Plovdiv   Stefan Genov   Zdravko Lazarov Uhlsport
Lokomotiv Sofia   Emil Velev   Kristian Dobrev Joma MALIZIA, Casa Boyana
Ludogorets Razgrad   Ivaylo Petev   Emil Gargorov adidas Navibulgar
Minyor Pernik   Nikolay Todorov   Ivaylo Tsvetkov Jumper Municipal Insurance Company
Montana   Stoycho Stoev   Georgi Mechedzhiev Jako Ogosta Icecream
Pirin   Tencho Tenev   Petar Lazarov Tinger
Slavia Sofia   Velislav Vutsov   Bogomil Dyakov Joma

League table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Ludogorets Razgrad (C) 30 22 6 2 58 13 +45 72 Qualification for Champions League second qualifying round
2 Levski Sofia 30 22 5 3 59 20 +39 71 Qualification for Europa League first qualifying round
3 CSKA Sofia 30 19 6 5 54 20 +34 63 Excluded from European competitions[a]
4 Botev Plovdiv 30 18 6 6 51 21 +30 60 Qualification for Europa League first qualifying round
5 Litex Lovech 30 15 5 10 56 24 +32 50
6 Chernomorets Burgas 30 14 5 11 32 28 +4 47
7 Beroe 30 13 6 11 36 38 −2 45 Qualification for Europa League second qualifying round[b]
8 Slavia Sofia 30 12 6 12 39 35 +4 42
9 Lokomotiv Plovdiv 30 10 9 11 37 34 +3 39
10 Cherno More 30 9 8 13 33 39 −6 35
11 Pirin Gotse Delchev 30 10 4 16 27 57 −30 34
12 Lokomotiv Sofia 30 7 10 13 27 38 −11 31[c]
13 Botev Vratsa (R) 30 8 7 15 23 51 −28 31[c] Relegation to 2013–14 B Group
14 Minyor Pernik (R) 30 5 5 20 20 49 −29 20
15 Montana (R) 30 4 4 22 27 57 −30 16
16 Etar (R) 30 4 4 22 20 75 −55 16
Source: A PFG (in Bulgarian)
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head goals scored; 5th head-to-head away goals scored; 6th goal difference; 7th goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ PFC CSKA Sofia were excluded from European competitions due to debts.
  2. ^ Beroe Stara Zagora qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round by winning the 2012–13 Bulgarian Cup.
  3. ^ a b Lokomotiv Sofia ahead of Botev Vratsa on head-to-head record; Lokomotiv Sofia–Botev Vratsa 3–0, Botev Vratsa–Lokomotiv Sofia 0–0.

Results

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Home \ Away BSZ BOT BVR CHM CHB CSK ETA LEV LIT LPL LSO LUD MIN MON PGD SLA
Beroe 2–1 4–0 1–0 0–1 0–1 1–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 1–1 0–0 1–0 2–2 2–3 2–1
Botev Plovdiv 1–2 5–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 3–0 2–0 1–0 0–0 2–0 0–1 2–0 3–1 5–0 3–0
Botev Vratsa 0–0 0–0 1–0 0–2 3–4 2–1 1–3 0–4 1–0 0–0 1–1 0–0 3–1 1–2 1–0
Cherno More 2–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 2–0 0–3 2–0 2–1 5–1 0–0
Chernomorets Burgas 0–1 1–2 2–1 3–3 1–1 2–1 0–2 0–0 1–1 3–1 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–0
CSKA Sofia 2–0 1–0 3–0 3–2 2–0 3–1 1–0 0–2 0–0 1–1 0–0 3–0 1–0 3–0 2–1
Etar 0–2 1–2 1–0 0–1 0–3 0–4 0–3 0–4 1–1 2–2 1–5 0–3 2–1 0–1 1–1
Levski Sofia 2–0 3–1 2–0 4–0 1–0 2–1 7–1 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 2–1 0–0 2–0 1–1
Litex Lovech 1–2 0–1 5–1 4–1 1–0 1–0 6–1 1–2 2–2 1–2 0–2 0–0 2–0 5–0 5–0
Lokomotiv Plovdiv 1–2 2–2 0–1 1–0 2–0 0–2 3–0 0–1 1–1 2–0 2–5 5–1 4–0 1–0 1–0
Lokomotiv Sofia 2–2 1–2 3–0 0–0 0–3 2–1 3–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–0 0–1 1–0
Ludogorets Razgrad 3–1 2–0 4–1 2–0 3–0 1–0 4–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 3–0 1–1 2–1
Minyor Pernik 3–0 0–2 0–1 0–2 0–1 1–4 1–0 0–4 1–2 1–1 0–0 1–2 2–1 2–0 2–4
Montana 1–3 0–2 0–0 3–1 1–0 1–3 2–3 0–2 1–3 1–2 2–3 0–3 2–0 3–0 0–1
Pirin Gotse Delchev 0–0 0–1 2–1 3–2 0–1 0–5 2–2 1–1 0–2 2–1 2–0 0–2 2–1 4–2 0–3
Slavia Sofia 6–1 2–2 1–2 1–0 3–0 0–2 3–0 1–3 2–1 2–0 2–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 2–0
Source: A PFG (in Bulgarian)
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Champions

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Ludogorets Razgrad
Goalkeepers
01   Uroš Golubović 06 0(0)
21   Vladislav Stoyanov 14 0(0)
91   Ivan Čvorović 10 0(0)
Defenders
04   Tero Mäntylä 05 0(0)
05   Alexandre Barthe 14 0(3)
20   Guilherme Choco 06 0(0)
25   Yordan Minev 24 0(0)
27   Cosmin Moți 21 0(1)
33   Ľubomír Guldan 22 0(2)
77   Vitinha 04 0(0)
80   Júnior Caiçara 28 0(0)
Midfielders
06   Georgi Kostadinov 06 0(0)
07   Mihail Aleksandrov 15 0(5)
08   Stanislav Genchev 28 0(3)
10   Sebastián Hernández 09 0(0)
14   Mitchell Burgzorg 12 0(2)
15   Nemanja Milisavljević 06 0(0)
18   Svetoslav Dyakov 28 0(3)
19   Dimo Bakalov 15 0(4)
22   Miroslav Ivanov 26 0(4)
84   Marcelinho 25 0(6)
99   Franck Guela* 13 0(1)
Forwards
09   Roman Bezjak 14 0(5)
11   Juninho Quixadá 17 0(3)
23   Emil Gargorov 22 0(6)
73   Ivan Stoyanov 28 0(9)
Manager
  Ivaylo Petev
  • Guela left the club during a season.

Season statistics

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Top scorers

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Rank Scorer Club Goals[10]
1   Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia 19
2   Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv 17
3   Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech 16
4   Georgi Andonov Beroe Stara Zagora 12
5   Ismail Isa Litex Lovech 11
6   Todor Nedelev Botev Plovdiv 9
  Ivan Stoyanov Ludogorets Razgrad 9
  Armando Vajushi Litex Lovech 9
9   Rangel Abushev Lokomotiv Plovdiv 8
  Ventsislav Hristov Beroe Stara Zagora / Chernomorets Burgas 8
  Michel Platini CSKA Sofia 8

Awards

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Weekly awards

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Player of the Round

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Round Player of the Round
Player Club
Round 1[11]   Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv
Round 2[12]   Simeon Raykov Levski Sofia
Round 3   Marcelinho Ludogorets Razgrad
Round 4[13]   Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia
Round 5[14]   Anicet Andrianantenaina CSKA Sofia
Round 6[15]   Marcelinho Ludogorets Razgrad
Round 7[16]   Emil Gargorov Ludogorets Razgrad
Round 8[17]   Todor Nedelev Botev Plovdiv
Round 9[18]   Serge Nyuiadzi CSKA Sofia
Round 10[19]   Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech
Round 11[20]   Ismail Isa Litex Lovech
Round 12   Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv
Round 13[21]   Stanislav Genchev Ludogorets Razgrad
Round 14[22]   Basile de Carvalho Levski Sofia
Round 15[23]   João Silva Levski Sofia
Round 16[24]   Armando Vajushi Litex Lovech
Round 17[25]   Serginho CSKA Sofia
Round 18[26]   Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech
Round 19[27]   Georgi Bozhilov Cherno More
Round 20[28]   Michel Platini Mesquita Cska Sofia
Round 21[29]   Georgi Milanov Litex Lovech
Round 22[30]   Zdravko Lazarov Slavia Sofia
Round 23[31]   Garry Rodrigues Levski Sofia
Round 24[32]   João Silva Levski Sofia
Round 25[33]   Marcinho CSKA Sofia
Round 26[34]   Yordan Gospodinov Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Round 27[35]   Ivan Tsvetkov Botev Plovdiv
Round 28[36]   Stanislav Angelov Levski Sofia
Round 29[37]   Iliya Iliev Botev Vratsa

Transfers

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References

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  1. ^ The new season begins
  2. ^ Ludogorets Razgrad completed a remarkable league-and-cup double by being crowned champions of Bulgaria
  3. ^ "Ludogorets wins the championship". Archived from the original on 2012-11-10. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
  4. ^ Ludogorets Razgrad - the new champion of Bulgaria
  5. ^ Ludogorets wins A PFG
  6. ^ Vidima was relegated from A PFG, after losing against Levski Sofia
  7. ^ Litex send Kaliakra into B PFG after –-0 win
  8. ^ Svetkavica is relegated from A PFG
  9. ^ "News, standings, rounds, seasons, teams, grounds, cities, matches at a-pfg.com". Archived from the original on 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
  10. ^ "Извеждане на голмайсторите в "А" Група". A PFG (in Bulgarian). Bulgarian A Professional Football Group. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
  11. ^ Ivan Tsvetkov named for Bulgarian Player of the First Round (in Bulgarian)
  12. ^ Simeon Raykov is the top player of the Second Round (in Bulgarian)
  13. ^ Basile de Carvalho wins the award ahead of Anton Karachanakov and Stanko Yovchev (in Bulgarian)
  14. ^ Anicet wins the award after scoring twice against Botev Vratsa
  15. ^ "Marcelinho wins the award after scoring against CSKA". Archived from the original on 2012-09-27. Retrieved 2012-09-25.
  16. ^ Emil Gargorov is picked for the best player of the round (in Bulgarian)
  17. ^ Stars of Botev (Plovdiv) blew the competition in 'A' group away (in Bulgarian)
  18. ^ The hero of the derby scoops Player of the round award (in Bulgarian)
  19. ^ Georgi Milanov became player of the tenth round (in Bulgarian)
  20. ^ Ismail Isa - number one player of the eleventh round (in Bulgarian)
  21. ^ Stanislav Genchev number one of the round (in Bulgarian)
  22. ^ Basile de Carvalho named Footballer of the round
  23. ^ Joao Silva with first individual trophy at Levski
  24. ^ Armando Vajushi named as footballer of the 16th round
  25. ^ "Serginho named as footballer of the 17th round". Archived from the original on 2013-04-10. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  26. ^ "Georgi Milanov became player of the 18th round (in Bulgarian)". Archived from the original on 2013-06-16. Retrieved 2013-04-09.
  27. ^ Joro Bozhilov became player of the 19 round (in Bulgarian)
  28. ^ Michel Platini became player of the 20 round (in Bulgarian)
  29. ^ "Milanov won the again (in Bulgarian)". Archived from the original on 2013-07-05. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  30. ^ Elektrichkata player of the 22nd round (in Bulgarian)
  31. ^ Convincing Garry Rodrigues (in Bulgarian)
  32. ^ Convincing Garry Rodrigues (in Bulgarian)
  33. ^ Marcinho player of the round (in Bulgarian)
  34. ^ Yordan Gospodinov number 1 of the round (in Bulgarian)
  35. ^ Ivan Tsvetkov best player of the round (in Bulgarian)
  36. ^ Stanislav Angelov: Luck is part of life (in Bulgarian)
  37. ^ "Iliya Iliev number 1 of the 29th round (in Bulgarian)". Archived from the original on 2013-06-27. Retrieved 2013-05-23.