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Superpesis

The Superpesis is the highest level of the Finnish pesäpallo league system. Contested by 13 clubs in men's league and 12 clubs in women's league, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Ykköspesis. Seasons usually run from May to August, with each men's team playing around 30 matches and women's teams 24 matches in the regular and continuation series: two against each other, one at home and one away. After the regular season, a continuation series will be played to determine the 8 teams that make the play-offs and the teams that qualify for the knockout stage and the teams that are relegated.

Popularity
The men's Superpesis is third most-watched men's sports league in Finland, and the women's league is the most-watched women's one. In 2021, Superpesis matches were streamed more than a million times on Ruutu, and larger matches are broadcast on national television on the channels of Nelonen Media and in 2024 also Yle. Most popular in semi-urban and rural Finnish-speaking municipalities (most of them inland), along with some notability in larger cities like Tampere and Oulu, the pesäpallo matches gain a significant number of attendances compared to the population in the areas. The league (especially the men's league) has however had only limited presence in the largest coastal cities (e.g. Helsinki, Turku, or Pori), where either the attendances are low or where no teams have been from. In the 2023 season, the average of men's Superpesis match attendance was 1,381, and women's average match attendance was 661. This puts the league a bit behind the men's ice hockey 2023–24 Liiga (Average attendance: 4,568) and men's association football 2024 Veikkausliiga (Average attendance: 2,957). The highest known match attendance between 2 clubs in the Superpesis era is 7,640, which was a match between Hyvinkään Tahko and Sotkamon Jymy in 1992. == History ==
History
Origins In the 1980s, as Finnish society changed, the role of pesäpallo had to be re-examined. The sport had long drawn its strength from the countryside and village game culture, but with urbanisation, the rural population was dwindling and pesäpallo needed a new direction. In the 1980s, the Finnish Pesäpallo Association launched the "Pesäpallo is the most Finnish Game" (, POPS) project, which aimed to communicate the new future of pesäpallo to clubs, local politicians and the media. The project gave pesäpallo a social profile and practical marketing and visibility measures, as well as efforts to turn pesäpallo into a television product. Superpesis Oy was set up as the marketing organisation for the men's and women's main league clubs. At the same time, work began on improving conditions, including the development of match venues, the introduction of sand artificial turf fields and the construction of pesäpallo stadiums. The boom in pesäpallo (1990s) The first Superpesis season was played in 1990. With the new Superpesis, pesäpallo also gained a new dominant team when Sotkamon Jymy won the Finnish championship for the first time since 1963. Sotkamon Jymy was regularly ranked in the top three or higher for eight years and won six championships during the decade. Kitee made a return to the gold medal in 2005, but Jymy returned as champions again in 2006 and 2009. Throughout the decade, Sotkamo Jymy played at least in the top three. During the decade, Pattijoen Urheilijat became champions for the first time in their history in 2008 and the club won several medals during the decade. After a long bronze medal season, Joensuun Maila became the leading pesäpallo club and won the Finnish championship in 2018 and 2019, while Kouvolan Pallonlyöjät established itself as the fourth largest club. ==Clubs==
Clubs
The Superpesis clubs in the 2025 season are: Men Past participants Relegated Teams relegated were relegated to second-tier Ykköspesis in the year shown, and are there today unless noted otherwise. • Vaasan Maila (relegated 1992) • Muhoksen Pallo-Salamat (relegated 1994; was in the Tier 3 Suomensarja as of 2025) • Riihimäen Pallonlyöjät (relegated 1995; was in Suomensarja as of 2025) • Haapajärven Pesä-Kiilat (relegated 1998; was in Suomensarja as of 2025) • Juvan Pallo (relegated 1998, now Juvan Nuorisopesis) • Loimaan Palloilijat (relegated 2001; was in Suomensarja as of 2025) • Kinnarin Pesis (relegated 2004, now Kinnarin Pesis 2006) • Puijon Pesis (relegated 2009) • Ulvilan Pesä-Veikot (relegated 2010; was in Suomensarja as of 2025) • Jyväskylän Kiri (relegated 2016) • Oulun Lippo (relegated 2018) • Kankaanpään Maila (relegated 2022) • Koskenkorvan Urheilijat (relegated 2023) • Seinäjoen JymyJussit (relegated 2024 mid-season due to economic problems, now Seinäjoen Maila-Jussit) Withdrew from league Kaisaniemen Tiikerit (went bankrupt at the end of 1998) • Seinäjoen Maila-Jussit (left after 2008) • Nurmon Jymy (left after 2012) • Siilinjärven Pesis (left after 2021) Women Past participants Relegated Teams relegated were relegated to second-tier in the year shown, and are there today unless noted otherwise. • Kokemäen Kova-Väki (relegated 1991) • Ikaalisten Tarmo (relegated 1996) • Vähänkyrön Viesti (relegated 1997) • Tyrnävän Tempaus (relegated 2009) • Jyväskylän Valo (relegated 2010) • Lappajärven Veikot (relegated 2019) • Mynämäen Vesa (relegated 2021) • Pesä Ysit (relegated 2021) • Siilinjärven Pesis (relegated 2021) • Kempeleen Kiri (relegated 2023) • Haminan Palloilijat (relegated 2024) Withdrew from league Kajaanin Hymy (left after 2001) • Vimpelin Veto (left after 2002) • Hämeenlinnan Paukku (left after 2003) • Pattijoen Urheilijat (left after 2003) • Peräseinäjoen Toive (left after 2004) • Sotkamon Jymy (left after 2006) • Ylihärmän Pesis-Junkkarit (left after 2012) • PeTo-Jussit (left after 2012) • Turku-Pesis (left after 2013) • Vuokatin Veto (left after 2014) • Kankaanpään Maila (left after 2015) • Vihdin Pallo (left after 2016) • Viinijärven Urheilijat (left after 2016) • Kajaanin Pallokerho (left after 2017) • Oulun Lipottaret (left after 2018) Alternate stadiums In addition to the team's ordinary stadiums, regular season matches have also been played at Bolt Arena, Helsinki, at Hiiu Stadium in Tallinn, Estonia, at Complejo Deportivo Municipal Elola in Fuengirola, Spain, and at Vikingavallen in Jomala, Åland. The selected stadiums for such events have usually been association football pitches with artificial turf. In comparison, plans to play the 2022 Superpesis finals at Helsinki Olympic Stadium as best-of-1 series were scrapped in part due to teams' opposition to playing on natural grass (though with sand drizzled on) and large portions of track and field surfacing. ==Competition format==
Competition format
During league play, the teams earn: • 3 points for winning in 2 periods (8 innings; ordinary time). • 2 points for winning in extra time (9th inning or shootout). • 1 point for losing in extra time. Men's Superpesis The men's league began using a partially split league table in the 2024 season, similar to that of the Scottish Premiership in association football. After 24 matches, the top 7 teams enter a top section, while the bottom 6 teams enter a bottom section. The top section plays an additional 6 matches. Top 6 progress to the quarter-finals, while the 7th-placed team goes to the preliminary knockout round. The bottom section plays an additional 5 matches. Top 3 progress to the preliminary knockout round, the 4th-placed team finished their season, while the 5th- and 6th-placed teams play a best-of-5 relegation play-out. The play-out winner finishes their season, while the loser enters a promotion/relegation best-of-3 against the Ykköspesis winner. The loser is relegated to, or remains in, the Ykköspesis. In the knockout rounds, the preliminary round is played best-of-3, and the winners go to the quarter-finals. The quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final are played best-of-5. Additionally, a bronze match is played as best-of-3. Women's Superpesis As of the 2024 season, the women's league uses a similar system to the men's league, but without a split table. Instead the top 6 progress to the quarter-finals, while the 7th- through 10th-placed teams went to the preliminary knockout round. == List of champions ==
List of champions
1985. Championship Series 1922–1989 Superpesis ==Talvisuper==
Talvisuper
Talvisuper is the main winter competition in pesäpallo. Although treated as a separate competition from Superpesis, it features many of the same teams, along with a few teams from Ykköspesis. The competition runs from December through April. In contrast to the main Superpesis, where matches are generally held at stadiums dedicated solely to pesäpallo, Talvisuper is mostly held in indoor halls with artificial grass, with the halls being designed primarily for association football and occasionally track and field. The finals of Talvisuper are known as Halli-SM (Hall Finnish Championship). ==Attendances==
Attendances
The men's Superpesis clubs in the table are listed by average home attendance in 2023. The average attendance was 986. 474,866 people attended the men's and women's Superpesis games in 2023. These figures include both regular season matches from the men's and women's competitions as well as the play-offs. ==See also==
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