About Czech First League

The Czech First League (established in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia) became the official top tier of Czech football, but its early history was strongly shaped by the legacy of earlier regional and national championships. In the first season (1993–94), Sparta Prague immediately won the inaugural title, marking the beginning of its long-term dominance in the modern era of Czech football. Other major clubs such as Slavia Prague, Baník Ostrava, and newly promoted sides from the second division also took part in building the league’s early structure.

During the 1990s, the league was largely controlled by Prague-based clubs, especially Sparta Prague, which won multiple consecutive titles in the early years. Slavia Prague emerged as the main challenger, while clubs like Viktoria Žižkov, Jablonec, and Teplice occasionally broke into top positions or qualified for European competitions. The competitive balance gradually improved as more regional clubs stabilized in the top division, but Sparta remained the dominant force throughout most of the decade.

By the early 2000s up to 2010, the league became more competitive, with Slovan Liberec (2001–02) and Baník Ostrava (2003–04) winning rare titles outside the Prague giants. Later, a new era of competition began with Viktoria Plzeň and Slavia Prague joining Sparta as regular title contenders, especially from the 2010s onward. However, in the formative 1993–2017 period, Sparta Prague remained the most successful club overall, setting the foundation for the modern Czech football hierarchy.