Linköping FC Relegated from Damallsvenskan for the First Time Since 2003
Linköping FC suffers historic relegation from Damallsvenskan after a challenging 2025 season, ending their top-tier run since 2003.
- • Linköping FC relegated from Damallsvenskan for the first time since 2003 with only 15 points in 2025 season.
- • Manager Erik Nordqvist expressed disappointment and cited poor club decisions in recent years.
- • Key losses by rival teams in penultimate round sealed Linköping's fate despite their efforts.
- • New coach Willie Kirk could not turn around the team's performance after taking over during the season.
Key details
Linköping FC has been relegated from the Swedish top-tier women's league, Damallsvenskan, for the first time in 22 years, marking a significant setback for the club. The team ended the 2025 season with just 15 points, finishing second-to-last and confirming their drop to the lower division, Elitettan, for the next season.
The relegation was confirmed after unfavorable results in the penultimate round: Rosengård defeated Piteå, and BP secured a win over AIK, eliminating Linköping’s chances of survival. Despite fighting hard to stay up and the efforts of the players, the club's manager, Erik Nordqvist, expressed deep disappointment over the season’s outcome, saying, “It feels incredibly tough. Nothing has gone our way. We have fought hard, but it hasn’t been enough.”
Nordqvist also pointed to poor decisions over the past decade as contributing factors to the decline and acknowledged that the team had become trapped in a cycle of trying without success to maintain their top-tier status. For a club that had previously enjoyed success, winning Damallsvenskan titles in 2009, 2016, and 2017, and even competing in the Champions League the prior season, this relegation marks a dramatic fall from grace.
The team underwent several changes during the season, including the appointment of new coach Willie Kirk, who was unable to reverse their fortunes. The relegation effectively ends a difficult season for Linköping FC, who will now aim to regroup in Elitettan alongside newly relegated Alingsås.