The 1976 Soviet Top League was the 38th and 39th season of the first tier football competitions in the Soviet Union.
By the end of the previous season, it was decided to shift to fall-spring calendar competition, but later in January the decision was reversed. However, it was decided to split competitions in the top tier in spring half and autumn half. According to the season's regulations, the split season championship was carried with consideration to the interest of the national team which was preparing for the 21st Olympic Games (1976 Summer Olympics) and the Europe Championship (UEFA Euro 1976).ФУТБОЛ - 1976. О ПРОВЕДЕНИИ СОРЕВНОВАНИЙ. football.lg.ua
Qualification for the European competitions and league relegation was based only on the autumn half portion (39th season). Qualification for the 1976–77 UEFA Cup was reserved for the 1976 spring Champion. This reservation was canceled after Dinamo Moscow, which already qualified for the European competition, won the title.
Spring
Overview It was contested by 16 teams, and Dynamo Moscow won the championship.
League standings
Results
Top scorers 8 goals Arkady Andreasyan (Ararat)
7 goals Nikolai Kazaryan (Ararat)
6 goals Ravil Aryapov (Krylya Sovetov) Vladimir Danilyuk (Karpaty) David Kipiani (Dinamo Tbilisi) Boris Kopeikin (CSKA Moscow) Anatoliy Shepel (Dynamo Moscow)
5 goals Lev Brovarsky (Karpaty) Anatoli Degterev (Torpedo Moscow) Sergei Grishin (Torpedo Moscow) Sergei Malko (Dnipro) Aleksandr Markin (Zenit) Yuri Smirnov (Krylya Sovetov) Pyotr Vasilevsky (Dinamo Minsk)
Autumn
Overview It was performed in 16 teams, and Torpedo Moscow won the championship.
League standings
Results
Top scorers 13 goals Aleksandr Markin (Zenit)
8 goals Vladimir Danilyuk (Karpaty) Boris Kopeikin (CSKA Moscow)
6 goals Mikhail Bulgakov (Spartak Moscow)
5 goals Oleg Blokhin (Dynamo Kyiv) Fyodor Chorba (Karpaty) Yevgeni Khrabrostin (Torpedo Moscow) Nazar Petrosyan (Ararat) Aleksandr Pogorelov (Chornomorets) Vladimir Sakharov (Torpedo Moscow) Pyotr Yakovlev (Dnipro) Andrei Yakubik (Dynamo Moscow)
Status of Spartak Moscow After Spartak's relegation, there were some figures in the Soviet government who believed the team should be allowed to stay in the first division due to its size and history, but this idea was opposed by Leonid Brezhnev, himself a Spartak supporter, and was ultimately discarded.
Attendances No. Club Average 1 Dinamo Tbilisi 29,867 2 Karpaty 28,467 3 Dinamo Minsk 28,438 4 Ararat 26,193 5 Shakhtar 22,067 6 Dynamo Kyiv 21,107 7 Krylia Sovetov 19,800 8 Zenit 15,781 9 Dynamo Moscow 15,529 10 Chornomorets 15,357 11 Zorya 14,800 12 Dnipro 14,313 13 Spartak Moscow 13,629 14 PFC CSKA 12,694 15 Torpedo Moscow 11,550 16 Lokomotiv Moscow 7,007Source:
References
External links Soviet Union - List of final tables (RSSSF) ФУТБОЛ - 1976. О ПРОВЕДЕНИИ СОРЕВНОВАНИЙ (Regulations). football.lg.ua (in Russian)