Albanian Superliga

[Simboli i Diellit]

Only hope is on Tomori Berat

Well not exactly. The 8th team has a play-off match

But Second division points after the first two phases become half of what they have before playing in promotion and relegation groups. Anything can happen.

Today Partizani couldn’t manage to beat Apolonia. Tirana tied Bylis and Laci beat Kukesi. Skenderbeu’s team is full if youngsters and seems destined to relegation.

[MercedesBenz240]

But Second division points after the first two phases become half of what they have before playing in promotion and relegation groups. Anything can happen.

Not anymore

[artan]

Does Dinamo still have a decent following? How much fans have they normally have per match in the first division (pre pandemic)? Kinda fun to have another derby match between the three Tirana teams.

[MercedesBenz240]

They play they matches in the Internacional Complex in Pezë, which has very few seats, but from what i've seen there is some minimal organization by the ''Blue Boys'' equivalent to ''UG'' and ''TF''. Obviously there is still a decent following (mostly older generations) and i assume the attendance will be good when they play in an actual stadium.

[Plako]

Does Dinamo still have a decent following? How much fans have they normally have per match in the first division (pre pandemic)? Kinda fun to have another derby match between the three Tirana teams.

Dinamo does not have a large following. I grew up in Tirana and as a little kid when the three Tirana teams were battling it out for Superliga supremacy I could count the Dinamo fans on one hand. They might have gained some new fans during their Besnik Sula years but after all these years of decline I doubt they were able to maintain even the small contingent of fans they had. It might have been best for them to move to Kamza and be adopted as the Kamza team, which currently has more fans than Dinamo.

Dinamo's real issue is, unlike Partizani which was associated with the Ministry of Defense, that they were associated with the hated Ministry of Interior, which even the commies despised. It was a once great sports club but destined to fail after the regime fell. Partizani on the other hand was able to flourish despite its connection to the commie regime as it was more of a people's club than Dinamo.

Sometimes, I think Tirana would have been served better if major neighborhoods like Lapraka and Kinostudio built their own teams and Tirana had 7-8 teams in our football pyramid, London style. The local derbies would be immense.

[MercedesBenz240]

Sometimes, I think Tirana would have been served better if major neighborhoods like Lapraka and Kinostudio built their own teams and Tirana had 7-8 teams in our football pyramid, London style. The local derbies would be immense.

Then we would probably have a completely Tirana centralized league, which would not be good

Dinamo does not have a large following. I grew up in Tirana and as a little kid when the three Tirana teams were battling it out for Superliga supremacy I could count the Dinamo fans on one hand. They might have gained some new fans during their Besnik Sula years but after all these years of decline I doubt they were able to maintain even the small contingent of fans they had.

Of course Dinamo does not have a following as large as Partizani or Tirana, but i think you are really underestimating it. Then again, Tirana is not even a very large city population-wise compared to other European capitals with a tradition of multiple clubs. Considering the population and the fact that Partizani and Tirana have historically been the most followed, i think Dinamo does have a decent following even though nowadays it's mostly older generations. Btw, Dinamo won 3 titles since 1990, most notably in 2010, almost 20 years after the regime fell.

[artan]

Sometimes, I think Tirana would have been served better if major neighborhoods like Lapraka and Kinostudio built their own teams and Tirana had 7-8 teams in our football pyramid, London style. The local derbies would be immense.

Then we would probably have a completely Tirana centralized league, which would not be good

Dinamo does not have a large following. I grew up in Tirana and as a little kid when the three Tirana teams were battling it out for Superliga supremacy I could count the Dinamo fans on one hand. They might have gained some new fans during their Besnik Sula years but after all these years of decline I doubt they were able to maintain even the small contingent of fans they had.

Of course Dinamo does not have a following as large as Partizani or Tirana, but i think you are really underestimating it. Then again, Tirana is not even a very large city population-wise compared to other European capitals with a tradition of multiple clubs. Considering the population and the fact that Partizani and Tirana have historically been the most followed, i think Dinamo does have a decent following even though nowadays it's mostly older generations. Btw, Dinamo won 3 titles since 1990, most notably in 2010, almost 20 years after the regime fell.

I don't even think Tirana has more than three professional teams anyways. Kamza disbanded and a quick search shows that Shkendija & Spartak Tirana both disbanded too. There should be more than three Tirana teams in the first three divisions and it would help the quality of play in the first division sine realistically there's only like 3-5 competitive teams in the first division. I agree with Plako and that different areas in Tirana should get clubs which will create grassroot teams and better youth development. Just seems like a waste from a talent standpoint.

[MercedesBenz240]

There are plenty of clubs in Tirana that don't have a first team and are youth-oriented. Internacional, Shkëndija, Football Republic, Akademia e Futbollit, Juventus Academy, Kinostudio, Studenti without including Tirana, Partizani and Dinamo.

[Plako]

There are plenty of clubs in Tirana that don't have a first team and are youth-oriented. Internacional, Shkëndija, Football Republic, Akademia e Futbollit, Juventus Academy, Kinostudio, Studenti without including Tirana, Partizani and Dinamo.

Kamza was expelled from Superliga a couple of years when it president beat up the ref in a match against Laci. They got banned again for not fielding a team for their cup game against Apollonia. I think they'll come back in two years time.

[Plako]

Then we would probably have a completely Tirana centralized league, which would not be good

I would take that over a league with Kukesi, Bylis, Laci and Kastrioti in it. Kukesi already trains in Tirana and only plays its matches in Kukes. The only reason they're in Supeliga is because Safet Gjici used it as a vehicle for his political ambitions. Also a centralized league would not necessarily be bad for Albanian football. It reminds me of the Kosovo Judo approach where all of its best judokas come from this one neighborhood:

https://www.france24.com/en/20190824-ko ... stronghold

I don't even think Tirana has more than three professional teams anyways. Kamza disbanded and a quick search shows that Shkendija & Spartak Tirana both disbanded too. There should be more than three Tirana teams in the first three divisions and it would help the quality of play in the first division sine realistically there's only like 3-5 competitive teams in the first division. I agree with Plako and that different areas in Tirana should get clubs which will create grassroot teams and better youth development. Just seems like a waste from a talent standpoint.

Shkendija and Spartaku are the cases I would cite of teams that played in the City and have 0 connection to the City. I have known of Shkendija all of my life and I don't think I've ever seen them play. At the time I was growing up they were associated with the Institute of Physical Education "Vojo Kushi". It comes from the top down approach in Abanian football. Most teams post-WWI were formed with orders from the Party and to this day it's Duka who sanctions new teams it seems.

Back in the day there was a state run neighborhood championship between the 10 Tirana neighborhoods and a high school championship in Tirana. I remember as a kid going to a championship final between Petro Nini and Skenderbeg Academy (military high school) played at Selman Stermasi and there might have been close to 2,000 people there. This approach died after 1990 and it never recovered to my knowledge. Now the focus is on private youth academies which are pay for play and have failed miserably.

Tirana must have at least 25-30 middle school and at least 8-10 high schools. There is no reason whatsoever why there shouldn't be a championship between these schools which would generate massive local interest and helps clubs identify talent. It's a system used commonly in the US where a club system like in Europe doesn't exist.