What Is 2016 Faroe Islands Premier League

Overview

The 2016 Faroe Islands Premier League, known as Formuladeildin for sponsorship reasons, marked the 64th season of the nation's top-flight football competition. Organized by the Faroe Islands Football Association (FSF), the league featured a 10-team format with a quadruple round-robin structure, resulting in 36 matches per team.

This season was notable for HB Tórshavn reclaiming the title after a one-year gap, finishing just three points ahead of rivals B36 Tórshavn. The league ran from 9 April to 22 October 2016, with all clubs based across the Faroese archipelago, playing on natural grass pitches despite the challenging North Atlantic climate.

• HB Tórshavn secured their 22nd league title, finishing with 51 points from 18 wins, 3 draws, and 3 losses.
• B36 Tórshavn finished second with 48 points, narrowly missing out on the championship despite a strong campaign.
• The league operated under a quadruple round-robin format, meaning each team played every other side four times (twice home, twice away).
• Rógvi Jacobsen of HB Tórshavn was the top scorer with 17 goals, edging out B36's Høgni Egilstoft Nielsen by one goal.
• Bottom-placed AB Argir was relegated after accumulating only 10 points in 36 matches, finishing 17 points from safety.

How It Works

The Faroe Islands Premier League follows a unique structure due to the small number of teams and geographical constraints, making scheduling and travel logistics central to the competition's design.

• Season Duration: The 2016 season began on 9 April and concluded on 22 October, lasting just over six months.
• Match Format: Each of the 10 teams played 36 matches—four against each opponent—making it one of Europe’s longer domestic league schedules relative to team count.
• Scoring System: Teams earned 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a loss, standard across UEFA-affiliated leagues.
• Relegation: The team finishing in last place, AB Argir, was automatically relegated to the 1. deild (First Division).
• European Qualification: The league champion, HB Tórshavn, qualified for the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League preliminary round.
• Runner-up Prize: Second-place B36 Tórshavn earned a spot in the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round.

Comparison at a Glance

Here's how the top five teams in the 2016 Faroe Islands Premier League compared in key performance metrics:

This table highlights the tight competition in the upper half of the table, with only 14 points separating first and fifth place. HB Tórshavn’s consistency, particularly at home, proved decisive, while B36 Tórshavn’s strong finish kept pressure on the leaders until the final matchday. The data also shows a clear offensive advantage for the top teams, with HB and B36 both scoring over 55 goals.

Why It Matters

The 2016 Faroe Islands Premier League season was significant both domestically and in the broader context of European minnow leagues, showcasing resilience and competitive balance despite limited resources.

• The title win reinforced HB Tórshavn as the most successful club in Faroese history, extending their record to 22 championships.
• Qualification for UEFA competitions gave both HB and B36 rare opportunities to compete internationally, raising the profile of Faroese football.
• The league’s high-scoring nature—with 304 goals in 180 matches—reflected an open, attacking style despite small squad sizes.
• AB Argir’s relegation highlighted structural challenges for smaller clubs in maintaining competitiveness with limited youth infrastructure.
• The season demonstrated the effectiveness of the quadruple round-robin format in maximizing fixtures within a short playing window.
• HB’s triumph was a testament to long-term stability, as they have won 10 of the last 15 titles since 2002.

Ultimately, the 2016 season exemplified how a small, isolated football league can maintain excitement and parity while contributing to national pride and UEFA representation.