Liga 4 (Georgia)

Liga 4
Founded2019 (2019)
Country Georgia
ConfederationUEFA
Number of clubs16
Level on pyramid4
Promotion toLiga 3
Relegation toRegionuli Liga
Domestic cupGeorgian Cup
Current championsIberia 2010
(2025)
Websiteliga.gff.ge

Liga 4 (Georgian: ლიგა 4), organized by the Georgian Football Federation, is the fourth tier of the national football league. It was founded in 2019 as a part of comprehensive reorganization of the league system.

As of the 2026 season, Algeti hold the longest tenure in this division. They have been in Liga 4 since its inaugurating season.

There will be two former top-division teams in the 2026 season: Borjomi (2005–09) and Mertskhali (1990–92, 2003–04). Eight junior teams of higher league members are also represented in the division this year.

Structure and format

In 2018, the GFF decided to form an additional division between Liga 3 and Regionuli Liga by introducing Liga 4 for the 2019 season. After the first year the top two clubs were promoted to Liga 3 and the bottom two were supposed to be relegated to Regional league. However, in February 2020 the league regulation sustained new changes, which saved the doomed teams from relegation and enlarged the tournament with four more Regionuli Liga clubs.[1]

In January 2021, the Federation announced that the number of clubs participating in the upcoming season would be increased to twenty,[2] although for the next year they were reduced back to sixteen.

Since the 2022 season, the top three teams earn automatic promotion to Liga 3 and the bottom four clubs are relegated to Regionuli Liga.[3] The league underwent one change in 2023: with fourteen clubs competing this season, the drop zone was reduced to two places.

The number of teams in each season:

2019 = 10

2020, 2022, 2025, 2026 = 16

2021 = 20

2023 = 14

2024 = 15

Each club play each of the other clubs twice (once at home and once away) and obtain three points for a win, one for a draw and no points for a loss. From these points a league table is constructed.

At the end of the season the top three teams gain promotion to Liga 3. Similarly, the three teams that finish at the bottom are relegated to Regionuli Liga. A team can be spared relegation if another team either resigns or is expelled from the league.

Final league position is determined, in order, by points obtained, head-to-head points, head-to-head goal difference, head-to-head goals scored, head-to-head away goals scored (only if two teams), goal difference and goals scored.

Since Liga 4 is the bottom national tier, this is where the Federation may expel a team from higher divisions. Shukura is the latest club demoted in January 2024.[4]

It is the only national division where no play-offs are held.

Current members

Sixteen teams are competing in the league in 2026, half of them being the reserve teams of higher league members.

The clubs are listed below in alphabetical order.

Club Position last season Location Region Venue
Algeti 6th Marneuli Kvemo Kartli Central stadium
Aragvelebi 4th Tbilisi Tbilisi
Aragvi-2 1st in Reg.Liga A Tbilisi Tbilisi
Bakhmaro 16th in Liga 3 Chokhatauri Guria Boris Paichadze stadium
Borjomi 15th in Liga 3 Borjomi Samtskhe Grigol Jomartidze Stadium, Khashuri
Gagra-2 10th Tbilisi Tbilisi Central stadium, Mukhrani
Kolkheti-2 8th Poti Samegrelo Fazisi Stadium
Locomotive-2 13th in Liga 3 Tbilisi Tbilisi
Merani-2 7th Martvili Samegrelo Murtaz Khurtsilava stadium
Mertskhali 11th Ozurgeti Guria Megobroba stadium
Samgurali-2 12th Tskaltubo Imereti 26 May stadium
Samtskhe 1st in Reg.Liga B Akhaltsikhe Samtskhe Mikheil Iadze Stadium
Skuri 5th Tsalenjikha Samegrelo Sasha Kvaratskhelia stadium
Torpedo-2 Regionuli Liga PO winner Kutaisi Imereti
West Georgia 1st in Reg.Liga C Batumi Adjara
WIT Georgia-2 9th Tbilisi Tbilisi Mtskheta Park, Mtskheta

Seasons

Previous years

In the first season, ten teams played 27 games each. Eventually, two clubs from Tbilisi finished in top places awarding them promotion to the upper league.[5]

The 2020 season was scheduled to start in April, but COVID-19 postponed it for four months. In July, the Georgian Football Federation decided to form White and Red Groups with winners getting automatic promotion and bottom two clubs going down.[6] 16 teams were split into two groups. The football season started in August and lasted five months with each team playing 14 games only. Two winners and two runners-up were promoted to Liga 3.

The next year, Promotion and Relegation Groups were created after the first phase. In the end, the first four teams of the former advanced to Liga 3, while the bottom four of the latter dropped down a further level to Regionuli Liga.

In contrast, starting from 2022 the seasons have been held as a single two-round tournament.

2019 Spaeri • Tbilisi City
2020 VarketiliDidubeMerani-2 TbilisiMagaroeli
2021 Dinamo-2 TbilisiZestaponiBorjomi • Irao
2022 Locomotive-2ShturmiMatchakhela
2023 GonioBetlemiGardabani
2024 DidubeMargveti 2006Odishi 1919
2025 Iberia 2010IveriaGuria

Note: Teams indicated in bold are champions.

Relegated teams

2019 N/A
2020 N/A
2021 Torpedo-2 • Tbilisi • ImeretiEgrisi
2022 Didube • SamegreloMagaroeli • Iberia
2023 Kolkheti-2 1913Dinamo Zugdidi
2024 Varketili-2 • Merani-2 TbilisiChikhura
2025 ZestaponiSuloriZanaMatchakhela

Participation per club

Taking into account the 2026 season, 46 teams have been members of this league for at least one year.

Team Par.
Algeti 8
Skuri 7
WIT Georgia-2 7
Merani-2 Martvili 6
Odishi 1919 6
Sulori 6
Samgurali-2 5
Betlemi 4
Margveti 2006 4
Matchakhela 4
Samegrelo 4
Borjomi 4
Didube 3
Egrisi 3
Gagra-2 3
Team Par.
Iberia 3
Imereti 3
Kolkheti-2 1913 3
Locomotive-2 2
Magaroeli 3
Mertskhali 3
Zestaponi 3
Aragvelebi 2
Merani-2 Tbilisi 2
Shturmi 2
Torpedo-2 2
Tbilisi 2025 2
Tbilisi-2 2025 2
Zana 2
Aragvi-2 1
Team Par.
Bakhmaro 1
Chikhura 1
Dinamo Tbilisi-2 1
Dinamo Zugdidi 1
Gardabani 1
Gareji 1
Gonio 1
Guria 1
Iberia 2010 1
Iveria 1
Orbi 1
Samtskhe 1
Spaeri 1
Tbilisi 1
Tbilisi City 1
West Georgia 1

Their current status as of 2026:

Erovnuli Liga 1
Erovnuli Liga 2 3
Liga 3 11
Liga 4 16
Regionuli Liga 11
Defunct 4

References

  1. ^ "დიდი ცვლილებები ლიგა 4-ში" [Big changes in Liga 4 as Zestaponi confirm promotion]. lelo.ge (in Georgian). 13 February 2020.
  2. ^ "სიახლე საქართველოს ჩემპიონატში". popsport.com (in Georgian). 25 Jan 2021.
  3. ^ "სფფ-ში აღმასრულებელი კომიტეტის სხდომა გაიმართა". gff.ge (in Georgian). 22 February 2022.
  4. ^ "ეროვნული ლიცენზირების შედეგები". gff.ge (in Georgian ). Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  5. ^ "Liga 4 in 2019". gff.ge.
  6. ^ "ლიგა 4 და თასი: წილი ნაყარია!." lelo.ge (in Georgian). 23 Jul 2020.