Soviet Second League

Soviet Second League

Country	Soviet Union
Founded	1936
Folded	1991 after 52 seasons
Level on pyramid	Level 3
Promotion to	Soviet First League
Relegation to	Soviet Second League B or KFK competitions
Last champions	Karpaty Lviv Asmaral Moscow Okean Nakhodka
Most championships	11 clubs (2)

The Soviet Second League was the third highest division of Soviet football, below the Soviet First League. The division lasted from the inception of Soviet league football in 1936 to the dissolution of USSR in 1991.

Overview

The League was established in 1936, but was discontinued after the 1937 season for over 15 years. The experimental edition of the League was introduced in 1946. But the consistent League takes its roots from 1963. Prior to 1990, the league was divided into multiple regional zones (as many as 9) and the top finishers of those zones would take part in an additional mini-tournament to determine which teams get promoted to the Soviet First League. In 1991, the regional zones became a part of Soviet Second League B, while the Soviet Second League was split into 3 major regional zones, West, Center, and East. The group winners of these zones would now qualify for the Soviet First League.

The most titles of the League won was two by 11 different teams out of various now independent republics. The last winners of the League were FC Karpaty Lviv, FC Asmaral Moscow, and FC Okean Nakhodka.

Names

• 1936-1937 Group V (third letter in the Russian alphabet)
• 1946-1946 Third Group
• 1963-1969 Class B
• 1970-1970 Second Group (Class A)
• 1971-1989 Second League
• 1989-1991 Buffer League

Awardees

Season	Winner	Runner-ups	Notes
1936 (spring)	FC Dinamo Rostov/Don	Stroiteli Baku Dynamo Odessa
1936 (autumn)	Dinamo Kazan	Spartak Kharkiv Dynamo Dnipropetrovsk
1937	Dynamo Odessa	Lokomotyv Kyiv Stakhanovets Staline
1938-45			no competition due to various reasons
1946	Spartak Uzhhorod Dinamo Riga	Krylya Sovetov Tbilisi Zenit Kaliningrad	five groups winners and runners-up of which qualified for the two final groups
1947-62			disbanded, restored in 1963
1963	Volga Kalinin (Russia) SCA Odessa (Ukraine) Lokomotivi Tbilisi (other republics)	Dinamo Kirov (Russia) Lokomotyv Vinnytsia (Ukraine) Dinamo Batumi(other republics)	three zones
1964	Rostselmash Rostov/Don (Russia) Lokomotiv Vinnytsia (Ukraine) Granitas Klapeida (other republics)	Terek Grozny (Russia) SKA Kyiv (Ukraine) Vostok Ust-Kamenogorsk (other republics)	three zones
1965	Spartak Nalchik (Russia) SKA Lviv (Ukraine) Dinamo Kirovabad (other republics)	Rubin Kazan (Russia) SKA Kyiv (Ukraine) Dinamo Baku (other republics)	three zones
1966	Lokomotiv Kaluga (Russia) Avanhard Zhovti Vody (Ukraine) Pamir Leninabad (Central Asia) Meshakhte Tkibuli (other republics)	Spartak Orjonikidze (Russia) Dynamo Khmelnytskyi (Ukraine) Metallurg Chimkent (Central Asia) Polad Sumgait (other republics)	four zones
1967	Dinamo Makhachkala (Russia) Avtomobilist Zhytomyr (Ukraine) Zarafshon Nawoyi (Central Asia) Neman Grodno (other republics)	Volga Ulyanovsk (Russia) Khimik Severodonetsk (Ukraine) Sverdlovets Tashkent Oblast (Central Asia) Polad Sumgait (other republics)	four zones
1968	Mashuk Pyatigorsk (Russia) Avanhard Ternopil (Ukraine) Sverdlovets Tashkent Oblast (Central Asia) Enbek Djezkazghan (Kazakhstan)	Kalinenets Sverdlovsk (Russia) Bukovyna Chernivtsi (Ukraine) Ak Altyn Andizhan Oblast (Central Asia) ADK Alma‑Ata (Kazakhstan)	four zones
1969	Druzhba Maykop (Russia) Spartak Ivano-Frankivsk (Ukraine) Tashavtomash Tashkent (Central Asia) Traktor Pavlodar (Kazakhstan) Dila Gori (Georgia)	Saturn Rybinsk (Russia) Shakhtar Horlivka (Ukraine) Samarkand (Central Asia) Tsementnik Semipalatinsk (Kazakhstan) Guria Lanchkhuti (Georgia)	five zones
1970	Metalurh Zaporizhia Shinnik Yaroslavl Kuzbass Kemerevo	Tavriya Simferopol Avtomobilist Nalchik Spartak Yoshkar‑Ola	three zones
1971	Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih	Iskra Smolensk	six groups
1972	Spartak Ivano-Frankivsk	Dinamo Riga	seven groups
1973	Uralmash Sverdlovsk	Tavriya Simferopol Kuban Krasnodar	winners of seven groups play in final
1974	Alga Frunze	Rubin Kazan Metalist Kharkiv	six groups
1975	Terek Grozny	Dinamo Riga Stroitel Asgabat	six groups
1976	Dinamo Leningrad	Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih Uralmash Sverdlovsk	six groups
1977	Kuban Krasnodar	Zalgiris Vilnuis SCA Odessa	six groups
1978	FC Zvezda Perm	Spartak Nalchik Metalist Kharkiv	six groups
1979	Iskra Smolensk Kolos Nikopol Dinamo Stavropol Guria Lanchkhuti Sugdiyona Jizzakh SKA Khabarovsk	Textilschik Ivanovo SKA Kyiv Rotor Volgograd Lokomotivi Samtredia Shakhrikhonchi Shakhrikhan FC Shakhter	six groups, no final, six winners
1980	Spartak Kostroma Traktor Pavlodar CSKA Kyiv	Rotor Volgograd Dynamo Samarqand Khimik Grodno	nine groups, three final groups
1981	Daugava Riga Dinamo Kirov Rotor Volgograd	Kotayk Abovyan Kryvbas Kryvyi Rih Textilschik Ivanovo	nine groups, three final groups
1982	Textilschik Ivanovo Dnepr Mogilev Kuzbass Kemerevo	Spartak Orjonikidze Dynamo Samarqand Shakhter	nine groups, three final groups
1983	Irtysh Omsk Spartak Orjonikidze Dinamo Batumi	Metallurg Lipetsk Znamya Truda Orekhovo-Zuevo Krylya Sovetov Kuybyshev	nine groups, three final groups
1984	Krylya Sovetov Kuybyshev Kotayk Abovyan Dinamo Stavropol	Nyva Vinnytsia Geolog Tumen Dynamo Samarqand	nine groups, three final groups
1985	Rostselmash Rostov/Don Atlantas Klapeida Iskra Smolensk	Tavriya Simferopol FC Zvezda Perm Meliorator Chimkent	nine groups, three final groups
1986	Krylya Sovetov Kuybyshev Geolog Tumen Zoria Voroshilovgrad	Kepez Kirovobad Metallurg Lipetsk Sokhibkor Khalkabad	nine groups, three final groups
1987	Tavriya Simferopol FC Zvezda Perm Kuban Krasnodar	Iskra Smolensk Meliorator Chimkent Nistru Chisinau	nine groups, three final groups
1988	Nistru Chisinau Torpedo Kutaisi Fakel Voronezh	Neftchi Fergona Tsement Novorossiysk Bukovyna Chernivtsi	nine groups, three final groups
1989	Lokomotiv Gorkiy Textilschik Tiraspol Dinamo Sukhumi	Irtysh Omsk Volyn Lutsk Neftchi Fergona	nine groups, three final groups
1990	Bukovyna Chernivtsi Uralmash Sverdlovsk Neftchi Fergona	Daugava Riga Textilschik Kamyshyn Novbakhor Namangan	three groups
1991	Karpaty Lviv Asmaral Moscow Okean Nakhodka	Zorya Luhansk Krylya Sovetov Samara Kopetdag Asgabat	three groups

See also

• Ukrainian Zone - the Ukrainian Republican competitions of the Soviet Second League only, not including the interzonal tournaments.