# 2020 Eliteserien

The 2020 Eliteserien was the 76th season of top-tier football in Norway. This was fourth season of Eliteserien as rebranding from Tippeligaen.
The season was scheduled to begin on 4 April. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway the opening games of the season were delayed. It was first delayed until 2 May, then further delayed until 23 May. The season was scheduled to end 29 November 2020, not including play-off matches, but was rescheduled to conclude on 22 December. On 7 May, the Norwegian government allowed the league to start on 16 June with full training starting immediately.
Molde were the defending champions. Aalesund, Sandefjord and Start joined as the promoted clubs from the 2019 1. divisjon. They replaced Lillestrøm, Tromsø and Ranheim who were relegated to the 2020 1. divisjon.

## Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic

The season was scheduled to begin on 4 April, but on 12 March it was revealed that the first five rounds of the season were postponed and the opening game therefore would be delayed until 2 May due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Norway. On 24 March, the Norwegian Football Federation announced that the football season was further delayed till 23 May. On 7 May, the Norwegian government allowed the teams to begin with full training starting immediately, and opened for the league season to start on 16 June. On 12 June, the NFF announced that 200 spectators would be allowed to attend the games. On 30 September, the Minister of Culture and Church Affairs, Abid Raja, announced that clubs would be able to have crowds of 600 at games from 12 October.

## Teams

Sixteen teams compete in the league – the top thirteen teams from the previous season, and three teams promoted from 1. division. The promoted teams were Aalesund (after an absence of two years), Sandefjord and Start (both returning to the top flight after one season's absence). They replaced Lillestrøm, Tromsø and Ranheim, ending their top flight spells of forty-five, five and two years respectively.

### Stadiums and locations

    Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Team | Ap. | Location | Arena | Turf | Capacity |
| Aalesund | 17 | Ålesund | Color Line Stadion | Artificial | 10,778 |
| Bodø/Glimt | 25 | Bodø | Aspmyra Stadion | Artificial | 5,635 |
| Brann | 63 | Bergen | Brann Stadion | Natural | 17,049 |
| Haugesund | 14 | Haugesund | Haugesund Stadion | Natural | 8,754 |
| Kristiansund | 4 | Kristiansund | Kristiansund Stadion | Artificial | 4,444 |
| Mjøndalen | 21 | Mjøndalen | Consto Arena | Artificial | 4,200 |
| Molde | 44 | Molde | Aker Stadion | Artificial | 11,249 |
| Odd | 39 | Skien | Skagerak Arena | Artificial | 11,767 |
| Rosenborg | 57 | Trondheim | Lerkendal Stadion | Natural | 21,421 |
| Sandefjord | 8 | Sandefjord | Sandefjord Arena | Natural | 6,582 |
| Sarpsborg 08 | 9 | Sarpsborg | Sarpsborg Stadion | Artificial | 8,022 |
| Stabæk | 24 | Bærum | Nadderud Stadion | Natural | 4,938 |
| Start | 42 | Kristiansand | Sør Arena | Artificial | 14,448 |
| Strømsgodset | 33 | Drammen | Marienlyst Stadion | Artificial | 8,935 |
| Vålerenga | 60 | Oslo | Intility Arena | Artificial | 16,555 |
| Viking | 70 | Stavanger | Viking Stadion | Artificial | 15,900 |

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Aalesund | Lars Arne Nilsen | Fredrik Carlsen | Umbro | Sparebanken Møre |
| Bodø/Glimt | Kjetil Knutsen | Ulrik Saltnes | Diadora | Sparebanken Nord-Norge |
| Brann | Kåre Ingebrigtsen | Kristoffer Barmen | Nike | Sparebanken Vest |
| Haugesund | Jostein Grindhaug | Christian Grindheim | Macron | Haugaland Kraft |
| Kristiansund | Christian Michelsen | Dan Peter Ulvestad | Macron | SpareBank 1 Nordvest |
| Mjøndalen | Vegard Hansen | Christian Gauseth | Umbro | Sparebanken Øst |
| Molde | Erling Moe | Magnus Wolff Eikrem | Nike | Sparebanken Møre |
| Odd | Jan Frode Nornes | Steffen Hagen | Hummel | SpareBank 1 Telemark |
| Rosenborg | Åge Hareide | Tore Reginiussen | Adidas | SpareBank 1 SMN |
| Sandefjord | Martí Cifuentes | Lars Grorud | Macron | Jotun |
| Sarpsborg 08 | Mikael Stahre | Joachim Thomassen | Select | Borregaard |
| Stabæk | Jan Jönsson | Yaw Amankwah | Macron | SpareBank 1 Østlandet |
| Start | Jóhannes Harðarson | Erlend Segberg | Macron | Sparebanken Sør |
| Strømsgodset | Henrik Pedersen | Mikkel Maigaard | Puma | DNB |
| Vålerenga | Dag-Eilev Fagermo | Jonatan Tollås | Umbro | DNB |
| Viking | Bjarne Berntsen | Viljar Vevatne | Diadora | Lyse |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment | Table |
| Sarpsborg 08 | Geir Bakke | Signed by Lillestrøm | 1 January 2020 | Pre-season | Mikael Stahre | 13 January 2020 | Pre-season |
| Vålerenga | Ronny Deila | Signed by New York City | 6 January 2020 | Pre-season | Dag-Eilev Fagermo | 31 January 2020 | Pre-season |
| Odd | Dag-Eilev Fagermo | Signed by Vålerenga | 31 January 2020 | Pre-season | Jan Frode Nornes | 11 March 2020 | Pre-season |
| Rosenborg | Eirik Horneland | Mutual consent | 26 June 2020 | 12th | Trond Henriksen (interim) | 21 July 2020 | |
| Brann | Lars Arne Nilsen | Mutual consent | 1 August 2020 | 8th | Kåre Ingebrigtsen | 8 August 2020 | 7 |
| Aalesund | Lars Bohinen | Sacked | 23 August 2020 | 16th | Lars Arne Nilsen | 25 August 2020 | 16 |
| Rosenborg | Trond Henriksen (interim) | End of caretaker spell | 1 September 2020 | 4th | Åge Hareide | 1 September 2020 | 4 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Bodø/Glimt (C) | 30 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 103 | 32 | +71 | 81 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Molde | 30 | 20 | 2 | 8 | 77 | 36 | +41 | 62 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Vålerenga | 30 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 51 | 33 | +18 | 55 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 4 | Rosenborg | 30 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 50 | 35 | +15 | 52 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 5 | Kristiansund | 30 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 57 | 45 | +12 | 48 | |
| 6 | Viking | 30 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 54 | 52 | +2 | 44 | |
| 7 | Odd | 30 | 13 | 4 | 13 | 52 | 51 | +1 | 43 | |
| 8 | Stabæk | 30 | 9 | 12 | 9 | 41 | 45 | −4 | 39 | |
| 9 | Haugesund | 30 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 39 | 51 | −12 | 39 | |
| 10 | Brann | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 40 | 49 | −9 | 36 | |
| 11 | Sandefjord | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 31 | 43 | −12 | 35 | |
| 12 | Sarpsborg 08 | 30 | 8 | 8 | 14 | 33 | 43 | −10 | 32 | |
| 13 | Strømsgodset | 30 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 41 | 57 | −16 | 31 | |
| 14 | Mjøndalen (O) | 30 | 8 | 3 | 19 | 26 | 45 | −19 | 27 | Qualification for the relegation play-offs |
| 15 | Start (R) | 30 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 33 | 56 | −23 | 27 | Relegation to First Division |
| 16 | Aalesund (R) | 30 | 2 | 5 | 23 | 30 | 85 | −55 | 11 | Relegation to First Division |

## Results

| Home \ Away | AAL | BOD | BRA | HAU | KRI | MIF | MOL | ODD | ROS | SAN | SRP | STB | IKS | STM | VÅL | VIK |
| Aalesund | — | 1–6 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 3–2 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 2–2 |
| Bodø/Glimt | 7–0 | — | 5–0 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 6–1 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 5–2 | 6–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 3–0 |
| Brann | 3–1 | 1–3 | — | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 |
| Haugesund | 0–1 | 0–4 | 1–2 | — | 2–2 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 4–4 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–2 |
| Kristiansund | 7–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | — | 1–0 | 2–2 | 4–3 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–5 |
| Mjøndalen | 3–0 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | — | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| Molde | 2–1 | 4–2 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | — | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 5–0 | 4–1 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 5–0 |
| Odd | 3–2 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 6–1 | 1–4 | — | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 4–1 | 3–0 |
| Rosenborg | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 4–1 | — | 2–1 | 5–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 |
| Sandefjord | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | — | 0–3 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 2–2 |
| Sarpsborg 08 | 4–0 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | — | 4–0 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| Stabæk | 4–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | — | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| Start | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 5–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 2–3 | 0–5 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | — | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 |
| Strømsgodset | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 3–4 | 0–0 | 0–4 | 1–1 | — | 0–2 | 0–2 |
| Vålerenga | 2–2 | 2–2 | 5–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 4–0 | 2–0 | — | 2–1 |
| Viking | 5–2 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 2–2 | — |

## Relegation playoffs

The 14th-placed team in Eliteserien will play against the winners of the 1. divisjon promotion play-offs on neutral ground to decide who will play in the 2021 Eliteserien.
Mjøndalen IF won 3–2 and maintained their position in the Eliteserien; Sogndal Fotball stayed in the 1. divisjon.

## Season statistics

    As of 19 December 2020

### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Kasper Junker | Bodø/Glimt | 27 |
| 2 | Amahl Pellegrino | Kristiansund | 25 |
| 3 | Philip Zinckernagel | Bodø/Glimt | 19 |
| 4 | Veton Berisha | Viking | 16 |
| 5 | Mushaga Bakenga | Odd | 15 |
| 6 | Jens Petter Hauge | Bodø/Glimt | 14 |
| 7 | Leke James | Molde | 13 |
| 8 | Dino Islamovic | Rosenborg | 12 |
| 8 | Ohi Omoijuanfo | Molde | 12 |
| 8 | Ulrik Saltnes | Bodø/Glimt | 12 |
| 8 | Kristoffer Zachariassen | Rosenborg | 12 |

### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Kasper Junker | Bodø/Glimt | Haugesund | 6–1 (H) | 21 June 2020 |
| Amahl Pellegrino | Kristiansund | Aalesund | 7–2 (H) | 21 June 2020 |
| Torgeir Børven | Odd | Vålerenga | 4–1 (H) | 24 June 2020 |
| Kasper Junker | Bodø/Glimt | Brann | 5–0 (H) | 5 July 2020 |
| Viðar Örn Kjartansson | Vålerenga | Brann | 5–1 (H) | 13 September 2020 |
| Daouda Bamba | Brann | Aalesund | 3–1 (H) | 28 November 2020 |
| Kasper Junker | Bodø/Glimt | Haugesund | 0–4 (A) | 9 December 2020 |
| Mushaga Bakenga | Odd | Kristiansund | 4–3 (A) | 9 December 2020 |
| Lars-Jørgen Salvesen | Strømsgodset | Odd | 1–3 (A) | 19 December 2020 |
| Ibrahima Wadji | Haugesund | Kristiansund | 1–3 (A) | 22 December 2020 |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
| 1 | David Mitov Nilsson | Sarpsborg 08 | 10 |
| 1 | Jacob Storevik | Sandefjord | 10 |
| 3 | Marcus Sandberg | Stabæk | 9 |
| 4 | Kristoffer Klaesson | Vålerenga | 8 |
| 4 | Sondre Rossbach | Odd | 8 |
| 6 | Andreas Linde | Molde | 7 |
| 6 | Nikita Khaykin | Bodø/Glimt | 7 |
| 6 | Sosha Makani | Mjøndalen | 7 |
| 6 | Helge Sandvik | Haugesund | 7 |
| 10 | André Hansen | Rosenborg | 5 |

### Discipline
#### Player

* Most yellow cards: 9
** Niklas Gunnarsson (Strømsgodset)
* Most red cards: 2
** Alexander Betten Hansen (Mjøndalen)
** Ipalibo Jack (Strømsgodset)

#### Club

* Most yellow cards: 69
** Aalesund
* Most red cards: 3
** Mjøndalen
** Molde
** Sandefjord
** Vålerenga

## Awards
### Annual awards

| Award | Winner | Club |
| Player of the Year | Philip Zinckernagel | Bodø/Glimt |
| Young Player of the Year | Jens Petter Hauge | Bodø/Glimt |
| Manager of the Year | Kjetil Knutsen | Bodø/Glimt |
| Goal of the Year | Ola Brynhildsen | Stabæk |

## League attendances

Due to COVID-19 restrictions only 200 people were allowed in each match at the beginning of the season.
Two clubs were punished for incidents of racism during their matches, having to play certain games without attendants.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | Kristiansund | 5,400 | 600 | 200 | 360 | −91.2%$^†$ |
| 2 | Molde | 5,400 | 600 | 200 | 360 | −94.8%$^†$ |
| 3 | Bodø/Glimt | 5,000 | 600 | 200 | 333 | −90.0%$^†$ |
| 4 | Brann | 5,000 | 600 | 200 | 333 | −97.0%$^†$ |
| 5 | Haugesund | 5,000 | 600 | 200 | 333 | −92.0%$^†$ |
| 6 | Viking | 5,000 | 600 | 200 | 333 | −96.3%$^†$ |
| 7 | Sandefjord | 4,800 | 600 | 0 | 320 | −87.1%$^1$ |
| 8 | Rosenborg | 4,600 | 600 | 200 | 307 | −97.6%$^†$ |
| 9 | Start | 4,600 | 600 | 200 | 307 | −94.2%$^1$ |
| 10 | Odd | 4,450 | 600 | 200 | 297 | −94.7%$^†$ |
| 11 | Aalesund | 4,000 | 600 | 0 | 267 | −93.5%$^1$ |
| 12 | Mjøndalen | 3,800 | 600 | 200 | 253 | −89.2%$^†$ |
| 13 | Sarpsborg 08 | 3,800 | 600 | 200 | 253 | −95.4%$^†$ |
| 14 | Strømsgodset | 3,800 | 600 | 200 | 253 | −95.2%$^†$ |
| 15 | Stabæk | 3,187 | 387 | 200 | 212 | −94.2%$^†$ |
| 16 | Vålerenga | 3,000 | 200 | 200 | 200 | −97.4%$^†$ |
| | League total | 70,837 | 600 | 0 | 295 | −94.9%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 19 December 2020 Source: nifs.no Notes: 1: Team played last season in 1. divisjon.