Baltic Power Rankings after GW14: Kauno Žalgiris move into the Top 5

With game week (GW) 14 completed across the Baltics, the top four positions remain unchanged but there was significant movement just below, most notably involving Lithuanian clubs.

FK Liepāja, despite briefly recovering form in GW13 with a win over RFS, were unable to build momentum and dropped to 9th following a loss to Riga FC in GW14 that cost them 11 coefficient points. They were overtaken by Paide, who reversed their recent downward trend with a +10 coefficient gain and returned to 8th place. Liepāja’s inconsistency mirrors that of several mid-table Latvian clubs whose week-to-week fluctuations are increasingly influenced by tightly clustered ratings in the 650–800 range.

Further down the table, FS Jelgava’s impressive rise through the rankings appears to have stabilised. After breaking into the Top 20, they now hold 19th place with 624 coefficient points, but a 5-point loss this week in a 0-0 loss to Super Nova suggests potential vulnerability to pressure from FK Metta and Super Nova, just 4 and 8 points behind, respectively.

One of the biggest news from GW14 comes, again, from Estonia in the form of Nõmme Kalju. Kalju, who have been flying up the rankings recently, have now risen to the 13th position on the back of winning the Estonian Cup (despite losing in the league). In addition to gaining coefficient points from the win, they have also received the ‘Cup winners’ coefficient boost to their rating (+10 points).

The standout narrative of GW14 is the continued rise of Kauno Žalgiris, who have now overtaken FCI Levadia to reach 5th place. Their consistent form since GW8 has resulted in an upward trajectory that places them within 141 coefficient point distance of FK Žalgiris, whose form continues to deteriorate. While this is a considerable buffer, FK Žalgiris already lost 154 coefficient points this season while their Kaunas rivals gained 75, so it’s no longer out of realm of possibility that the junior Žalgiris might overtake the Vilnius club later on in the season if current trends persist.

Elsewhere in the rankings, FK Sūduva returned to the Top 10 following a brief absence. This rise came at the expense of FK Panevėžys, who dropped to 11th from 9th on the back of their 2-1 loss to FA Šiauliai.

Tallinna Kalev are now the lowest ranked club in the Baltics, claiming the honours from Tartu, who jumped up to 27th. They are 11 coefficient points behind the only winless club in the Baltics – DFK Dainava. Joining the sub-500 coefficient club are FK Riteriai, who have hit their season low of 499 coefficient points whilst remaining 26th.