The 2009–10 Liga de Honra season (also known as Liga Vitalis due to sponsorship reasons) was the 20th season of the second-tier football in Portugal. It began on 13 August 2009 and ended on 9 May 2010. Olhanense were the defending champions.
Teams Trofense were relegated to the Liga de Honra after finishing 16th and last in the Portuguese Liga 2008–09 season. Trofense were to be accompanied by Belenenses, who finished in 15th place. Belenenses were ending a ten-year stretch in the Portuguese top-level league, while Trofense returned to the Liga da Honra after just one year in the top flight.
However, Estrela de Amadora, who finished in 11th place, were instead relegated to the Liga Vitalis for economic problems. The club was eventually relegated to the Second Division, the third-tier of Portuguese football due to the same problems, alongside Vizela, who had finished 10th last season but were relegated due to the Apito Dourado scandal.
Due to those relegations, Boavista and Gondomar, the 15th and 16th teams, respectively, should have remained in the Liga de Honra but both were still relegated due to economic difficulties for Boavista and involvement in the Apito Dourado case for Gondomar. To make up for the loss of four teams (instead of the regular two), Penafiel and Carregado, losers of the previous year's Second Division promotion play-offs, were invited to the Liga de Honra.
Stadia and locations Club City Stadium Capacity2008 Season Beira-Mar Aveiro Estádio Municipal de Aveiro 30,127 12th in Liga Vitalis Carregado Carregado Campo Lacerda Pinto Barreiros 1,000 II Division runner-up Chaves Chaves Estádio Municipal de Chaves 22,000 II Division playoff Covilhã Covilhã Complexo Desportivo da Covilhã 3,000 7th in Liga Vitalis Desportivo das Aves Vila das Aves Estádio do CD das Aves 10,250 11th in Liga Vitalis Estoril Praia Estoril Estádio António Coimbra da Mota 8,000 4th in Liga Vitalis Fátima Fátima Estádio Municipal de Fátima 1,545 II Division champion Feirense Santa Maria da Feira Estádio Marcolino de Castro 4,667 5th in Liga Vitalis Freamunde Freamunde Complexo Desportivo do SC Freamunde 5,000 6th in Liga Vitalis Gil Vicente Barcelos Estádio Cidade de Barcelos 12,374 9th in Liga Vitalis Oliveirense Oliveira de Azeméis Estádio Carlos Osório 9,100 14th in Liga Vitalis Penafiel Penafiel Estádio Municipal 25 de Abril 7,000 II Division playoff Portimonense Portimão Estádio Municipal de Portimão 9,544 13th in Liga Vitalis Santa Clara Ponta Delgada Estádio de São Miguel 15,277 3rd in Liga Vitalis Trofense Trofa Estádio do Clube Desportivo Trofense 3,164 16th in Liga Sagres Varzim Póvoa de Varzim Estádio do Varzim SC 11,000 8th in Liga Vitalis
League table
Results
Top goalscorers
PositionPlayerClub Goals1 Reguila Trofense152 João Silva Desportivo das Aves143 Leandro Tatu Santa Clara134 Michel Penafiel115 CascavelFreamunde10 Carlos PintoChaves10 Roberto Alcântara Feirense10 Miguel Rosa Carregado109 Nuno Sousa Fátima8 Artur Beira-Mar8 Cícero Oliveirense8 Updated to games played on 2 May 2010Source: Liga Vitalis – Match Statistics
References
External links Official webpage Official regulation Official Statistics