2008–09 Umaglesi Liga
# 2008–09 Umaglesi Liga

The 2008–09 Umaglesi Liga was the twentieth season of top-tier football in Georgia. It was scheduled to begin in August 2008, but the start of the league was delayed due to the 2008 South Ossetia war. The first round of games finally took place on 13 and 14 September 2008. The season ended with the 33rd round played on 23 May 2009. Dinamo Tbilisi were the defending champions.

The league was reduced from 14 to 12 teams prior to this season. However, Ameri Tbilisi voluntarily withdrew from the competition in mid-July because of financial reasons. As no replacement team was announced, the league featured only 11 teams.

## Promotion and relegation

Merani Tbilisi, Dinamo Batumi and Dila Gori were relegated at the end of the previous season due to finishing 12th through 14th, respectively. Spartaki Tskhinvali, who finished the previous season in 11th place, retained their spot in Umaglesi Liga after defeating Pirveli Liga runners-up Gagra by 1–0.

Due to the reduction of league size, only Pirveli Liga champions Chiatura were promoted. However, they did not want to compete in 2008–09 Umaglesi Liga because of unknown reasons, so Gagra took their spot.

## Stadia and locations

| Team | Location | Venue | Capacity |
| - | - | - | - |
| FC Borjomi | Borjomi | Jemal Zeinklishvili Stadium | 5,000 |
| Dinamo | Tbilisi | Boris Paichadze Stadium | 54,549 |
| Gagra | Tbilisi | Ameri Stadium | 1,000 |
| Locomotive | Tbilisi | Mikheil Meskhi Stadium | 27,223 |
| Meskheti | Akhaltsikhe | Central Stadium | 3,000 |
| Mglebi | Zugdidi | Gulia Tutberidze Stadium | 3,000 |
| Olimpi | Rustavi | Poladi Stadium | 10,720 |
| Sioni | Bolnisi | Tamaz Stephania Stadium | 3,000 |
| Spartaki-Tskhinvali | Tbilisi | Kartli Stadium | 1,500 |
| WIT Georgia | Tbilisi | Shevardeni Stadium | 4,000 |
| FC Zestafoni | Zestaponi | David Abashidze Stadium | 10,000 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | WIT Georgia (C) | 30 | 20 | 9 | 1 | 57 | 19 | +38 | 69 | Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round |
| 2 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 30 | 19 | 6 | 5 | 70 | 21 | +49 | 63 | Qualification for the Europa League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Olimpi Rustavi | 30 | 16 | 9 | 5 | 40 | 20 | +20 | 57 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Zestafoni | 30 | 16 | 4 | 10 | 43 | 27 | +16 | 52 | Qualification for the Europa League first qualifying round |
| 5 | Sioni Bolnisi | 30 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 35 | 29 | +6 | 44 | |
| 6 | Locomotive Tbilisi | 30 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 35 | 33 | +2 | 38 | |
| 7 | Mglebi Zugdidi (R) | 30 | 10 | 6 | 14 | 36 | 41 | −5 | 36 | Withdrew from the league |
| 8 | Meskheti Akhaltsikhe (R) | 30 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 42 | −19 | 29 | Relegation to Pirveli Liga |
| 9 | Gagra | 30 | 7 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 48 | −25 | 28 | |
| 10 | Spartaki Tskhinvali | 30 | 6 | 7 | 17 | 28 | 46 | −18 | 25 | |
| 11 | Borjomi (R) | 30 | 2 | 7 | 21 | 21 | 85 | −64 | 13 | Withdrew from the league |
| — | Ameri Tbilisi (R) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Withdrew from the league |

* 1 2 Dinamo Tbilisi won the 2008–09 Georgian Cup and thereby qualified for the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League. Since they also finished second in the league, fourth-placed Zestafoni qualified for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.
* ↑ Mglebi withdrew from the league. The club was merged with FC Baia Zugdidi.
* ↑ Meskheti withdrew from the league after the season concluded due to financial reasons. Therefore, Gagra and Spartaki Tskhinvali, who originally were to be demoted, were spared from relegation and play in the 2009–10 season of Umaglesi Liga.
* ↑ Ameri Tbilisi voluntarily withdrew their participation before the start of the season due to financial reasons.
