The SM-liiga, colloquially called the Finnish Elite League in English or FM-ligan in Swedish, is the top professional ice hockey league in Finland. It was created in 1975 to replace the SM-sarja, which was fundamentally an amateur league. The SM-liiga is not directly overseen by the Finnish Ice Hockey Association, but the league and association have an agreement of cooperation. SM is a common abbreviation for Suomen mestaruus, "Finnish championship".
SM-liiga's 30 year anniversary (1975–2005) badge
SM-liiga clubs' former jerseys
Opening match of Tampere Deck Arena: Tappara vs. Ilves in December 2021
SM-liiga studio in the semifinals in 2006
SM-Sarja was the top level of ice hockey in Finland from 1928 to 1975. SM-sarja is a common abbreviation for Suomen mestaruussarja, "Finnish Championship Series".
Anssi Koskinen as the host of the Tamvision´s hockey television show Lätkäruutu, 1964
Viipurin Reipas was first Finnish Champions in 1928
TBK (Tammerfors Bollklubb) in 1945
Ilves against HJK in 1949