# 2012–13 Ukrainian First League

The 2012–13 Ukrainian First League was the 22nd since its establishment. The competition commenced on 13 July 2012 when Obolon Kyiv visited Sumy and played a goalless draw against FC Sumy. The competition had a winter break that started 25 November 2012 and resumed on 23 March 2013.

## Promotion and relegation
### Promoted teams

Three teams were promoted from the 2011–12 Ukrainian Second League

#### Group A

* FC Sumy – champion (debut, however in the 2006–07 Ukrainian First League season Spartak represented the city of Sumy)

#### Group B

* FC Poltava – champion (debut)
* Avanhard Kramatorsk – promotion/relegation playoff finalist (debut)

### Relegated teams

Two teams were relegated from the 2011–12 Ukrainian Premier League
* Obolon Kyiv – 15th place (returning after three seasons)
* PFC Oleksandria – 16th place (returning after one season)

### Withdrawn teams

Prior to the season starting Nyva Vinnytsia withdrew from the PFL.

## Team locations
### Map

The following displays the location of teams.

### Stadiums

The following stadiums are considered home grounds for the teams in the competition.
| Rank | Stadium | Capacity | Club | Notes |
| 1 | Yuvileiny Stadium, Sumy | 25,800 | FC Sumy | |
| 2 | Lobanovskyi Dynamo Stadium, Kyiv | 16,873 | Dynamo-2 Kyiv | |
| 3 | Central Stadium, Mykolaiv | 16,700 | MFK Mykolaiv | |
| 4 | Zirka Stadium, Kirovohrad | 13,667 | Zirka Kirovohrad | |
| 5 | Labor Reserve, Bila Tserkva | 13,500 | Arsenal Bila Tserkva | |
| 6 | Bukovyna Stadium, Chernivtsi | 12,000 | Bukovyna Chernivtsi | |
| 7 | Stal Stadium, Alchevsk | 9,200 | Stal Alchevsk | |
| 8 | CSC Nika Stadium, Oleksandria | 7,000 | PFC Oleksandria | |
| 9 | SK Sevastopol, Sevastopol, Crimea | 5,563 | FC Sevastopol | |
| 10 | Naftovyk Stadium, Okhtyrka | 5,256 | Naftovyk-Ukrnafta Okhtyrka | |
| 11 | Obolon Arena, Kyiv | 5,100 | Obolon Kyiv | |
| 12 | Sonyachny Stadium, Kharkiv | 4,924 | Helios Kharkiv | Used from Round 4 as home ground |
| 13 | Spartak Stadium, Odesa | 4,610 | FC Odesa | |
| 14 | Avanhard Stadium, Kramatorsk | 4,000 | Avanhard Kramatorsk | |
| 15 | Khimik Stadium, Armyansk, Crimea | 3,450 | Tytan Armyansk | |
| 16 | ST Sport Arena, Ahrarne, Crimea | 3,250 | Krymteplitsia Molodizhne | |
| 17 | Lokomotiv Stadium, Poltava | 2,500 | FC Poltava | |
| 18 | Helios Arena, Kharkiv | 2,057 | Helios Kharkiv | |
| 19 | Mashynobudivnyk Stadium, Karlivka | 1,300 | FC Poltava | Completion of Round 33 suspended match |
| 20 | Dynamo Club Stadium, Chapayevka | 1,250 | Dynamo-2 Kyiv | Used from Round 6 onwards as home ground |
| 21 | Training Base Knyazha, Schaslyve, Kyiv Oblast | 1,000 | Arsenal Bila Tserkva | Used in Round 24 & 26 as home ground |
| 22 | Sports Complex Olimpik, Donetsk | 680 | Olimpik Donetsk | |

## Managers

| Club | Coach | Replaced coach |
| Arsenal Bila Tserkva | Yevhen Feschenko (caretaker) | Oleh Lutkov Oleh Sokyrko (caretaker) Ihor Artymovych |
| Avanhard Kramatorsk | Serhiy Shevchenko | |
| Bukovyna Chernivtsi | Vadym Zayats | |
| Dynamo-2 Kyiv | Andriy Husin | |
| Helios Kharkiv | Serhiy Yesin (caretaker) | Anatoliy Chantsev Serhiy Yesin (caretaker) Volodymyr Shekhovtsov (caretaker) |
| Krymteplytsia Molodizhne | Serhiy Shevtsov | |
| PFC Oleksandria | Vitaliy Pervak (caretaker) | Andriy Kuptsov (caretaker) |
| MFC Mykolaiv | Ruslan Zabranskyi | |
| Naftovyk-Ukrnafta Okhtyrka | Yevhen Yarovenko | |
| Obolon Kyiv | Serhiy Konyushenko | |
| FC Odesa | Andriy Parkhomenko | |
| Olimpik Donetsk | Roman Sanzhar (caretaker) | Roman Pylypchuk Ihor Petrov |
| FC Poltava | Anatoliy Bezsmertnyi | |
| FC Sevastopol | Aleh Konanaw | |
| Stal Alchevsk | Anatoliy Volobuyev | |
| FC Sumy | Andriy Kononenko (caretaker) | Serhiy Strashnenko (caretaker) Ihor Zakharyak |
| Tytan Armyansk | Oleh Leshchynskyi | Oleksandr Haydash |
| Zirka Kirovohrad | Samir Hasanov | Ilya Blyznyuk |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing head coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Table | Incoming head coach | Date of appointment |
| Zirka Kirovohrad | Vadym Yevtushenko | Leaves for Vorskla Poltava | 6 June | Pre-season | Ilya Blyznyuk | 7 June |
| PFC Sevastopol | Serhiy Puchkov | Replaced | 12 June | Pre-season | Aleh Konanaw | 12 June |
| Krymteplytsia Molodizhne | Mykola Fedorko (caretaker) | Replaced | 15 June | Pre-season | Serhiy Shevtsov | 15 June |
| Tytan Armyansk | Oleksandr Haydash | Resigned | 7 September | 18th | Oleh Leshchynskyi | 7 September |
| Olimpik Donetsk | Ihor Petrov | Resigned | 7 September | 8th | Roman Pylypchuk | 7 September |
| Arsenal Bila Tserkva | Ihor Artymovych | Resigned | 29 September | 16th | Oleh Sokyrko (caretaker) | 29 September |
| Helios Kharkiv | Volodymyr Shekhovtsov (interim) | Resigned | 10 November | 11th | Serhiy Yesin (interim) | 10 November |
| Krymteplytsia Molodizhne | Serhiy Shevtsov | Replaced | 3 December | 14th | Mykhailo Sachko | 5 January |
| Helios Kharkiv | Serhiy Yesin (interim) | End of interim | 9 January | 9th | Anatoliy Chantsev | 9 January |
| Arsenal Bila Tserkva | Oleh Sokyrko (caretaker) | End of interim | 15 January | 16th | Oleh Lutkov | 16 January |
| Sumy | Ihor Zakharyak | Sacked | 11 April | 14th | Serhiy Strashnenko (caretaker) | 11 April |
| Sumy | Serhiy Strashnenko (caretaker) | End as interim | 18 April | 11th | Andriy Kononenko (caretaker) | 18 April |
| Olimpik Donetsk | Serhiy Pylypchuk | Sacked | 17 April | 12th | Roman Sanzhar (caretaker) | 17 April |
| Arsenal Bila Tserkva | Oleh Lutkov | Sacked | 21 April | 17th | Yevhen Feschenko (caretaker) | 26 April |
| Helios Kharkiv | Anatoliy Chantsev | Resigned | 27 April | 12th | Serhiy Yesin (caretaker) | 29 April |
| Oleksandria | Andriy Kuptsov (caretaker) | Resigned | 13 May | 4th | Vitaliy Pervak (caretaker) | 13 May |
| Zirka Kirovohrad | Ilya Blyznyuk | Sacked | 4 June | 5th | Samir Hasanov | 4 June |

## Final standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Sevastopol (C, P) | 34 | 22 | 8 | 4 | 71 | 22 | +49 | 74 | Promoted to Ukrainian Premier League |
| 2 | Stal Alchevsk | 34 | 20 | 6 | 8 | 58 | 35 | +23 | 66 | Refused promotion |
| 3 | Oleksandriya | 34 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 48 | 35 | +13 | 60 | Refused promotion |
| 4 | Bukovyna Chernivtsi | 34 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 49 | 33 | +16 | 58 | Not allowed for promotion |
| 5 | Naftovyk-Ukrnafta Okhtyrka | 34 | 15 | 9 | 10 | 39 | 31 | +8 | 54 | |
| 6 | Mykolaiv | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 45 | 41 | +4 | 54 | |
| 7 | Avanhard Kramatorsk | 34 | 15 | 8 | 11 | 37 | 26 | +11 | 53 | |
| 8 | Zirka Kirovohrad | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 46 | 37 | +9 | 52 | |
| 9 | Sumy | 34 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 32 | 35 | −3 | 50 | |
| 10 | Helios Kharkiv | 34 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 33 | 21 | +12 | 49 | |
| 11 | Olimpik Donetsk | 34 | 15 | 4 | 15 | 34 | 37 | −3 | 49 | |
| 12 | Tytan Armyansk | 34 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 44 | 40 | +4 | 48 | |
| 13 | Poltava | 34 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 35 | 35 | 0 | 45 | |
| 14 | Krymteplytsia Molodizhne (D) | 34 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 30 | 45 | −15 | 35 | Withdrew from PFL |
| 15 | Dynamo-2 Kyiv (O) | 34 | 8 | 6 | 20 | 31 | 55 | −24 | 30 | Qualification for relegation play-off |
| 16 | Odesa (D) | 34 | 7 | 3 | 24 | 21 | 63 | −42 | 24 | Relegation play-off – Withdrew from PFL |
| 17 | Obolon Kyiv (D) | 34 | 5 | 7 | 22 | 19 | 28 | −9 | 22 | Withdrew from PFL |
| 18 | Arsenal Bila Tserkva (R) | 34 | 5 | 5 | 24 | 23 | 76 | −53 | 20 | Relegated to Ukrainian Second League |
* ↑ See results
* 1 2 Stal Alchevsk finished in second place were to be promoted to the Ukrainian Premier League but their club administration refused promotion indicating that they did not have adequate resources and infrastructure and would have to play to their games away from Alchevsk.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000044-QINU`"' PFC Oleksandria that placed third also refused promotion to the Ukrainian Premier League. The reason is that the club did not earn the promotion on the sports principle.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000045-QINU`"' Bukovyna Chernivtsi submitted all required documentation to the Football Federation of Ukraine and the Ukrainian Premier League on June 13, 2013.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000046-QINU`"' On June 14, 2013 the Attestation Committee of FFU refused to issue attestation for Bukovyna. The reason is that the club never applied for the Premier League attestation.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000047-QINU`"' On June 18, 2013 the Executive Committee of FFU allowed both Hoverla Uzhhorod and Metalurh Zaporizhzhia to stay in the Premier League.
* ↑ MFK Mykolaiv was given one month by the PFL to pay their league dues. The club failed to pay the dues in time and were deducted 3 points. (21 August 2012)'"`UNIQ--ref-0000004A-QINU`"'
* ↑ Krymteplitsia Molodizhne completed the season but withdrew from the PFL. The team's administration informed the PFL that their club will exist only with a youth sports program.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000004C-QINU`"' (11 June 2013)
* ↑ Obolon Kyiv withdrew from the PFL during the attestion meeting held in the winter break. The team's administration informed the PFL that they lack sufficient funds to continue participating in the league.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000004E-QINU`"' (21 February 2013)

### Results

    As of 8 June 2013
| Home \ Away | ABT | AVK | BUK | DK2 | HEL | KRM | MYK | NAF | OBO | ODS | OLK | OLD | POL | SEV | STA | SUM | TYA | ZIR |
| Arsenal Bila Tserkva | | 0–4 | 3–4 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–5 | +:- | 1–3 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 |
| Avanhard Kramatorsk | 2–1 | | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | +:- | 4–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 |
| Bukovyna Chernivtsi | 2–0 | 1–1 | | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 5–2 | 1–0 |
| Dynamo-2 Kyiv | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–2 | +:- | 3–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–2 |
| Helios Kharkiv | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | | 2–0 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 |
| Krymteplytsia Molodizhne | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | | 2–0 | 1–2 | +:- | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 0–2 |
| MFC Mykolaiv | 8–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | | 0–2 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 |
| Naftovyk-Ukrnafta Okhtyrka | 0–0 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 |
| Obolon Kyiv | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | -:+ | 1–1 | -:+ | -:+ | | -:+ | 1–3 | -:+ | -:+ | -:+ | 2–3 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| FC Odesa | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–3 | | 0–1 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–3 |
| PFC Oleksandriya | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | +:- | 4–1 | | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 1–1 |
| Olimpik Donetsk | 4–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–4 | | 3–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 4–0 |
| FC Poltava | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 |
| Sevastopol | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 5–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | +:- | 6–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | | 2–0 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 |
| Stal Alchevsk | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 2–2 | | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| PFC Sumy | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | | 0–0 | 1–0 |
| Tytan Armyansk | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–3 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | | 0–0 |
| Zirka Kirovohrad | 6–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | +:- | 4–1 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 1–1 | |
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 22 matches postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000005C-QINU`"''"`UNIQ--ref-0000005D-QINU`"' Match played after Round 30.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000005E-QINU`"' (15 May 2013)
* 1 2 Round 24 and 26 fixture played at Training Base Knyazha in Schaslyve, Kyivska Oblast.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000060-QINU`"'
* 1 2 Matchеs initially scheduled for Round 22 was postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000063-QINU`"' Two matches were played after Round 26.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000064-QINU`"' (23 April 2013)
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 23 matches postponed due to the inclement weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000066-QINU`"' Match played after Round 30.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000067-QINU`"' (16 May 2013)
* ↑ The President of Obolon Kyiv indicated that the team is to withdraw from the PFL and that they would not be playing their Round 19 match against Bukovyna Chernivtsi since the sponsorship of the club was withdrawn.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000069-QINU`"' However, several days later the President of the PFL informed that the club will pay their players and will continue to play.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000006A-QINU`"' Control-Disciplinary Committee of the FFU awards a 3–0 technical victory to Bukovyna Chernivtsi. (15 November 2012)'"`UNIQ--ref-0000006B-QINU`"'
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 22 was postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000006D-QINU`"' Match played after Round 24.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000006E-QINU`"' (9 April 2013)
* ↑ Round 22 match postponed because players from FC Sevastopol were participating for the Ukraine national under-21 football team in UEFA U21 qualification matches.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000070-QINU`"' Match played after Round 30.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000071-QINU`"' (16 May 2013)
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 22 matches postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000073-QINU`"' Match played after Round 30.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000074-QINU`"' (15 May 2013)
* ↑ Players from MFC Mykolaiv boycotted the Round 20 match due to not being paid.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000076-QINU`"' Control-Disciplinary Committee of the FFU awards a 3–0 technical victory to FC Sevastopol. (22 November 2012)'"`UNIQ--ref-00000077-QINU`"'
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 22 was postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000079-QINU`"' Match played after Round 23.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000007A-QINU`"' (31 March 2013)
* ↑ Round 9 match postponed because players from both teams were participating for the Ukraine national under-21 football team in UEFA U21 qualification matches.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000007C-QINU`"' The fixture was played after Round 17 on 31 October.
* ↑ Round 33 match was suspended in the 14th minute with the score 0–0 due to torrential rain. Both clubs agreed to continue the match the next day starting at the 15th minute at Karlivka.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000007E-QINU`"' (1 June 2013)
* ↑ Match was played in an empty stadium after the PFL imposed sanctions due to fan violence that occurred in the 2011–12 season in a match against Metalurh Zaporizhzhia.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000080-QINU`"'
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 23 was postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000083-QINU`"' Match played after Round 25.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000084-QINU`"' (17 April 2013)
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 29 was postponed due to FC Sevastopol's Ukrainian Cup semi final match on 8 May was played after Round 32. (29 May 2013)
* ↑ Match initially scheduled for Round 22 was postponed due to the frigid weather.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000087-QINU`"' Match played after Round 25.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000088-QINU`"' (17 April 2013)

### Top goalscorers

The following were the top ten goalscorers.
| # | Scorer | Goals (Pen.) | Team |
| 1 | Serhiy Kuznetsov | 18 (3) | FC Sevastopol |
| 2 | Ruslan Platon | 16 (4) | Bukovyna Chernivtsi |
| 3 | Vyacheslav Shevchenko | 15 | PFC Oleksandria |
| 4 | Vitaliy Prokopchenko | 13 (5) | Tytan Armyansk |
| 5 | Yaroslav Halenko | 12 | Zirka Kirovohrad |
| 5 | Ruslan Ivashko | 12 (2) | FC Poltava |
| 7 | Ruslan Stepanyuk | 11 | Stal Alchevsk |
| 8 | Dmytro Leonov | 10 (1) | Arsenal Bila Tserkva/Stal Alchevsk |
| 8 | Roman Loktionov | 10 (1) | Stal Alchevsk |
| 10 | Oleksandr Akymenko | 9 | Stal Alchevsk |
| 10 | Burnel Okana-Stazi | 9 (2) | Stal Alchevsk |
* ↑ Stal Alchevsk signed Dmytro Leonov during the winter break.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000090-QINU`"'

### Promotion/relegation play-off

A promotion/relegation home and away play-off were played by the 2nd team in Group 1 and 2 of 2012–13 Ukrainian Second League against the 15th and 16th placed teams of the 2012–13 Ukrainian First League competition. The draw for the play-off matches was held on 7 June.
Nyva Ternopil qualified from Ukrainian Second League.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| FC Odesa | 1–6 | FC Nyva Ternopil | 0–2 | 1–4 |
| FC Shakhtar Sverdlovsk | 1–2 | FC Dynamo-2 Kyiv | 1–1 | 0–1 |

### Match #1
#### Second leg

6–1 on aggregate. FC Odesa after being relegated to Second League withdrew.

### Match #2
#### Second leg

2–1 on aggregate. Dynamo-2 Kyiv remain in First League.