Veikkausliiga (Swedish: Tipsligan) is the premier division of Finnish football, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. As of 2011^[update] Veikkausliiga is ranked as the 28th best league in Europe. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikkaus, hence the league's name. Veikkausliiga was founded in 1990; before that the top division was called Mestaruussarja (championship series) since 1930 which was an amateur or semi-professional league. Between 1908 and 1930 the championship was decided in a cup competition.

Ykkönen (division one) has been the second highest level of Finnish football since 1973.

Like in some other cold-climate European countries (including Norway, Sweden and Russia), league matches in Finland are played in summer, with a schedule usually from April to October. The format and number of teams has changed frequently, and in the season 2012 there will be 12 teams and each team playing all other teams three times, altogether thus 33 rounds during the season. Uneven number of matches means that the best six teams from 2011 season will have 17 home matches and the other six teams will have 16 home matches. At the end of the season, the lowest-placed team is relegated to Ykkönen, whose winner will be promoted to Veikkausliiga.