With new challenges and more questions than answers, the new season in the First MFL begins on August 8th (Friday). Shkendija – Shkupi (Friday, 5:00 PM) and Vardar – Pelister (Friday, 8:00 PM) open the new 2025/26 season in the First MFL.
With high expectations and even greater ambitions, the First MFL begins with a clear message. The fight for the top will be more even and uncertain, probably, than ever before.
The current champion Shkendija enters the season as a team that aims to retain the throne. With an experienced roster and an already established system, the Tetovo club remains the main favorite, but will face serious competition. Even more so since the Tetovo team is part of the main round of European club competitions for the first time in its history.
After years of instability, Vardar again acts as a club with structure and results expectations. The season ahead will be a real test of whether the "red and black" are ready to fully return to the top of Macedonian football.
Silex and Workers, encouraged by their European performances, will strive to maintain the positive momentum in the domestic championship. For both clubs, continuity is the key word, something they have been lacking in recent years.
Struga Trim Lum, although without a title last season, remains one of the well-organized clubs in the league. As a two-time champion and with stable management, the ambitions for European qualification are realistic and justified.
Bashkirs After more than a decade, it is returning to the strongest competition, but its ambitions are not just for survival. The club from Kumanovo is building its team based on a combination of young players and experienced names, with the aim of being a factor from the first round.
The group of teams that will seek a place in the top half of the table includes: Macedonia Gjorce Petrov, a team that knows how to play for results, as well as Tikvesh, which always receives a strong impulse from the home audience in Kavadarci.
AP Brera and Aresimi They need to show that they can compete against anyone. Their role will be significant in shaping the standings.
The situation will be specific in Pelister, a club that will start with a strong motive to show that football in Bitola always deserves respect. The audience remains the strongest ally and the biggest critic. With a new coach and many changes in the playing staff, the ambitions are a place among the best teams in the league.
Shkup is a big question mark before the start of the new season. With many changes in the lineup, an uncertain sporting direction and internal reorganization, the status of the team from Chair is still far from clear. But despite that, they remain a team that always has the potential to surprise.
SCHEDULE – 1st round, 1 MFL:
Friday, August 8
Shkendija – Shkupi 1927 | 17:00 | City Stadium, Tetovo
Vardar – Pelister | 20:00 | National Arena "Todor Proeski", Skopje
Saturday, August 9
Bashkimi 1947 – Aresimi 1973 | 17:30 | Bashkimi Stadium, Kumanovo
Struga Trim Lum – Macedonia GP 1932 | 17:30 | Karaorman Stadium, Struga
Sunday, August 10
Tikvesh 1930 – Rabotnicki | 17:30 | City Stadium, Kavadarci
Monday, August 11
Sileks – AP Brera Strumica | 17:30 | Sileks Stadium, Kratovo
