The third-ever Latvian Super Cup will be contested between domestic Champions FC RFS and league runner-ups Riga FC today at 14:00 at LNK Sporta Parks. Riga FC are the defending Super Cup Champions, having won the trophy in the same match-up last year following a dramatic penalty shoot-out.
As Lithuanian and Estonian competitive football is beginning to gain momentum, Latvia are about to contest the traditional pre-season trophy – the Latvian Super Cup. The 2025 match-up will be identical to the one the year prior, with RFS hosting Riga FC at the LNK Sporta Parks artificial pitch. Unlike last year, however, RFS are coming into this bout as both the league and the cup holders, with Riga FC only able to boast the league silver from the previous season.
The match will kick-off at 14:00 and will be available to watch live via the futbols.tv platform for a EUR 1.00 fee.
RFS versus Riga FC: what to expect?
Looking at the Super Cup ‘Big Riga derby’ from afar, one could be forgiven for experiencing a sense of déjà vu. On the surface of it, not much has changed from last year when the competition was revived following an 11-year hiatus. RFS are still led by Viktors Morozs whereas Riga FC are coming in with yet another new manager. Last year it was Simo Valakari, this year it is Adrian Gula. RFS, again, underwent minimal squad rotation whereas Riga FC were, again, quite active on the winter transfer market, once again bringing in some very exciting foreign players to Latvia. The venue is the same also – LNK Sporta Parks artificial pitch.
There are, however, very important and even nuanced differences in 2025 that could turn this Super Cup into a fierce fight between two arch-rivals.
For starters, Riga FC must be furious after last season. If, in 2024, they could console themselves with having won the Latvian Cup and only missed out on the league title by a single point on the very final matchday, the 2025 season saw them well and truly beaten by RFS, who not only won the league with a week to spare but also humiliated the wealthiest football club in the Baltics by knocking them out of the Latvian Cup semi-finals with what was not even RFS’s reserve squad. To add insult to injury, they then went on to win the competition against Riga FC’s sister club – Auda – whilst also playing a reserve squad and coming back from 2-0 down. Say what you wish, but this one must have been a hard pill to swallow for the entire leadership of the Riga FC system and, possibly, even further up.
Unlike last year, when Riga FC were led into the Super Cup by a new manager, this year’s new manager is also new to Latvia. Before taking over Riga FC in 2024, Simo Valakari had a successful season with FK Auda, having had the time to learn the peculiarities of local football and to play a few games against notoriously (or famously) tactically stable RFS. Adrian Gula, however, has no such prior experience. Having joined Riga FC mid-January from Cypriot Apollon Limassol, the Slovak specialist will get his first taste of competitive Latvian football in this fixture later today. Whether this will help or hinder his squad remains to be seen but it should also be noted that some of his assistant coaches – specifically Kristaps Blanks and Mareks Zuntners, the latter of whom took over as Riga FC’s caretaker manager for a few final weeks last season – do remain and will be able to provide plenty of insight into what to expect.
Squad rotation will also have a role to play, possibly more for RFS than for Riga FC. Having sold their outstanding box-to-box midfielder Adam Markhiev to Aris Limassol following the completion of their Europa League campaign, the reigning Champions may find themselves on the back foot. Markhiev was, without a doubt, a key player for RFS and, while Yukiyoshi Karashima was brought in from Lithuanian FK Žalgiris to replace him, it is yet to be determined whether he will be up for the task.
Riga FC, on the other hand, signed some very exciting and potentially impactful players over the winter. Iago Siqueira and Joao Grimaldo are, perhaps, the most noteworthy of the lot, with Orlando Galo being back from injury that he sustained at the very beginning of last season. These three South American attacking players could cause RFS’s high defensive line some issues, especially playing on artificial pitch. Another important change could be the addition of goalkeeper Zviedris from Auda, who is swapping clubs with Matrevics. Zviedris put up some incredible saves last year and will be keen to show his new club what he is capable of.
Fatigue will also play a role in today’s Super Cup. Riga FC should be well-rested, having spent much of winter in pre-season camps in Dubai and Turkey. RFS, on the other hand, played their final competitive match of the 2024 season on the 30th of January this year. Their historic debut in the Europa League to blame, the fact remains that RFS starting lineup players will only have had two or three weeks of rest in the past 12 months. Does this mean that Viktors Morozs will field a squad of those who either did not play in Europa league or joined the club since? We shall find out in just a few hours.
Magic season going on to magic pre-season?
It is difficult to call Riga FC vs RFS matches, with most of them ending in a draw over the past few years. Indeed, such was also the case last year, when the Super Cup had to be decided in a penalty shoot-out. Over the course of the previous season, RFS won Riga FC twice (once in the league and once in the cup), Riga FC won once (in the final matchday of the league), and they drew twice. When the teams drew, however, it was Riga FC that were coming in from behind to rescue a point.
Taking into account a manager new to Latvian football and intensive squad rotation in the attacking third, as well as that they are playing away at the sold out LNK Sporta Parks, we believe that Riga FC are slight underdogs in today’s Super Cup. How it will actually turn out, we will find out at 14:00 Riga time (13:00 CET)!