One Point, One City, and a Showdown That Divides Sofia
Capital football rarely carries more tension than it does when Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia prepare to meet in the eternal derby. The opening whistle promises more than a league fixture: it brings together two of Bulgarian football’s defining institutions, with pride, pressure and the finely balanced table shaping every touch. A single goal can alter the standings, while a draw may preserve the rivalry’s habit of leaving supporters divided over which side deserves the greater credit.
The current race for the top of the First League is exceptionally tight. Levski Sofia occupy first place with 32 points from 10 wins and two draws, while CSKA Sofia sit just one point behind with 31 points after nine victories and four draws. Neither club has lost, and the head-to-head record reinforces how difficult the gap is to bridge: across 27 recent competitive meetings, Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia each won eight times, with 11 draws. The goals have almost perfectly matched, 26 for Levski against 27 for CSKA, creating a remarkably even contest.
Recent form has placed Levski Sofia in the stronger position. Their five-match sequence of W-W-D-W-W includes four wins and no defeats, with seven goals scored and only two conceded. CSKA Sofia’s form—L-D-W-D-W—is less conclusive, although they too remain unbeaten in the league and have scored seven goals while conceding four. The difference is therefore narrow but meaningful: the leaders have carried greater consistency into this matchday, while their closest rivals can approach without fear.
Derby-day patterns add another layer of suspense. CSKA Sofia’s eight home draws in 15 recent meetings demonstrate how often their home support has produced a cagey, resistant contest, while Levski Sofia’s four wins from 12 at home underline their ability to turn the venue into an advantage. Timing also favours the drama: 14 goals in the last quarter of an hour and another 10 between the 61st and 75th minutes show that many decisive moments arrive when the game appears to be settling. With only one point separating them and an entire city’s expectations attached, the next meeting is ready to be settled by whichever side controls the rhythm, survives the pressure and finds the decisive moment.
History: How the balance shifted in the modern rivalry
Levski’s early edge in the recent sample
The last decade and a half of competitive meetings has produced one of the tightest head-to-head records in the modern history of the Вечното дерби. Across 27 matches, Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia each won eight times, while 11 ended in draws. The goals are almost perfectly balanced at 26 for Levski and 27 for CSKA, underlining how little either side has managed to separate itself from the other over this period.
The balance began to move in Levski’s favour in 2017 and 2018. In the former season, Levski recorded one victory and one draw; in the latter, it took two wins alongside a CSKA success and a draw. That gave Levski the stronger start to the competitive sample, even though its overall advantage remained modest rather than dominant.
CSKA’s period of control from 2019 to 2023
The middle phase belongs to CSKA. The 2019 season produced three draws and no wins for either team, but CSKA asserted itself in 2020 with two victories. The pattern continued through 2021 and 2022, when both sides won once in each season and the remaining meetings were shared. The clearest statement came in 2023, when CSKA won twice and drew once without conceding a victory.
This stretch helps explain CSKA’s formidable unbeaten sequence of ten matches in the supplied head-to-head record. Levski’s longest unbeaten run was five, while CSKA also assembled a three-match winning streak. The contrast was especially visible at Sofia’s home ground, where CSKA’s 15 matches brought three wins, eight draws and four defeats. Eight of those home fixtures ended level, reinforcing the character of the rivalry as a contest in which CSKA often proved difficult to beat without necessarily taking control.
The late reversal towards Levski
The trend has since turned sharply. In 2024, each team won once and drew once, leaving the overall picture balanced, but the scorelines revealed a significant swing in fortunes: CSKA won 3-1 at home and 2-0 away, only for Levski to answer with a 1-0 home victory. In 2025, Levski moved ahead with two wins compared with one for CSKA, plus a draw.
The latest sequence strengthens that late shift. Levski won 3-1 away, followed 1-1 and then beat CSKA 2-0, taking three points from its three most recent listed meetings. The 2-0 result is also the largest Levski victory in the modern sample, while the 3-1 away win represented its first listed success at Sofia in the last ten meetings. CSKA’s most recent victory in that run came in November 2025, when it won 1-0 at Levski’s ground.
Draws and tight scorelines define the pattern
Despite the shifting winning streaks, draws remain central to the record. Eleven of the 27 matches ended level, including five scoreless 0-0s. There were also three 2-2s, with another five matches finishing 1-0, 0-2 or 2-0. Only 26% of the fixtures produced more than 2.5 goals, and both teams scored in just 33%. The average of two goals per match confirms that this modern rivalry has generally been defined by restraint rather than repeated high-scoring spectacle.
Goals also tend to arrive late. The 76th-to-90th minute accounted for 14 of the 53 goals, while another ten came between the 61st and 75th minutes. That concentration creates a familiar form of tension: even when the first hour is controlled and cautious, the closing stages can transform the result. The draw rate provides the clearest illustration, since so many matches remained unresolved when the final third began.
A rivalry still without a clear historical favourite
Individual scoring has also been spread across several players. Levski’s S. Buș and I. Stefanov each scored three goals, the highest totals in the sample, while seven listed CSKA players contributed two goals each. No striker has broken away from the collective pattern, another reason the head-to-head balance remains so even.
Recent competitive history therefore moves through distinct phases: early Levski advantage, sustained CSKA control from 2019 to 2023, and a pronounced Levski resurgence over the latest meetings. Yet the aggregate figures resist the idea of a genuine favourite. With identical win totals, almost identical goal totals and more draws than victories, this is a rivalry shaped by fluctuations within a narrow band. The present standings add one final layer of tension, with Levski first on 32 points and CSKA immediately behind on 31, ensuring that the next meeting carries both historical context and an exceptionally tight present-day contest.
Iconic Moments That Shaped the Recent Derby
CSKA Sofia 3–3 Levski Sofia
The 3–3 encounter on 20 June 2020 remains the highest-scoring match in the recent history of the Вечното дерби, with six goals and no possibility of a single breakthrough. Neither side could establish control for long, and the draw became the defining example of this rivalry’s fluctuating, unpredictable character. For a matchday build-up, it offers the clearest benchmark: whenever possession, defensive balance and finishing appear to settle, another derby can reset the narrative in an instant.
CSKA Sofia 3–1 Levski Sofia
The 3–1 victory on 27 April 2024 stands as CSKA Sofia’s biggest win in the supplied recent record and delivered a significant home success over Levski Sofia. The two-goal margin separated the teams after a competitive afternoon, producing the sort of result that can fuel confidence and place pressure on the visiting side. It also formed part of an unusually demanding period for the rivalry, with the teams drawing 1–1 on 19 October 2024 before CSKA Sofia added another 2–0 victory on 7 April 2024.
Levski Sofia 0–1 CSKA Sofia
A one-goal margin was enough for CSKA Sofia on 8 November 2025, as the narrow 1–0 away victory added another decisive chapter to the recent meetings. With no room for a Levski Sofia equaliser, the result demonstrated how a derby can be settled by the smallest of margins. The scoreline also intensified the tension in the subsequent meeting: on 2 March 2025, CSKA Sofia and Levski Sofia had drawn 2–2, a contest in which two goals apiece underlined the fine balance between the capital’s two strongest sides.
CSKA Sofia 1–3 Levski Sofia
Levski Sofia produced a major away victory on 25 April 2026, winning 3–1 in CSKA Sofia’s stadium. The two-goal margin was the clearest competitive statement in this run of recent results and represented a notable success on the road. Coming shortly after the 1–1 draw on 13 April 2026, the victory gave Levski Sofia momentum and a sharper edge. It also made the next meeting particularly compelling, with CSKA Sofia under pressure to respond and prevent another damaging defeat.
Levski Sofia 2–0 CSKA Sofia
The 2–0 result on 16 May 2026 is listed as Levski Sofia’s biggest win in the recent record, adding a clean sheet to a commanding scoreline against CSKA Sofia. It was an emphatic conclusion to a sequence in which Levski Sofia had also won 3–1 away, while the 1–1 draw and two earlier narrow outcomes had kept the rivalry closely balanced. The victory provided the strongest recent statement from the Sofia side and supplied a dramatic final chapter to the buildup for their next meeting with CSKA Sofia.
Key Players: Former Glories and the Next Chapter
Levski Sofia: No New Name at the Top Yet
None of the leading scorers in the supplied list is identified as an active member of Levski Sofia’s current squad. That means the club’s leading figures from the recent history of Вечното дерби are now historical references rather than threats for the next meeting. The current attacking challenge therefore rests on an unnamed group of players whose ability to produce a decisive moment will determine how effectively Levski approaches its Sofia rivals.
Levski Sofia’s Historic Scoring Standards
S. Buș and I. Stefanov share the highest scoring return among Levski’s listed derby scorers, with three goals each. Their contributions belong to earlier passages of the rivalry, when they helped set the standard for a forward to influence one of the capital’s most intense fixtures. Although Levski’s current squad contains no listed top scorer, that inherited benchmark adds pressure to every attacking assignment: matching the level of former contributors could alter the balance before the next meeting.
CSKA Sofia: A Collective Search for the Next Scorer
CSKA Sofia likewise has no player from the provided leading-scorer list marked as active. The burden of threatening Levski consequently falls on the club’s present collective rather than on a named former standout. In a derby shaped by small margins and concentrated moments of pressure, the current CSKA side needs its active players to combine positional discipline with the finishing ability required to turn possession into meaningful scoring opportunities.
CSKA Sofia’s Deep Bench of Former Contributors
Evandro, G. Carey, A. Sowe, J. Caicedo, T. Heintz and J. Lindseth each recorded two goals in the recent history of Вечното дерби. Their shared return illustrates how several former CSKA attackers made their mark without one name dominating the list. Evandro and Carey contributed at the same level as Sowe, Caicedo, Heintz and Lindseth, creating a broad historical foundation for the rivalry’s scoring narrative.
As the next meeting approaches, the absence of active names among the listed scorers sharpens the contrast between past achievement and present responsibility. Buș and Stefanov represent Levski’s established benchmark, while CSKA’s six former contributors form a similarly competitive band. The players now carrying those traditions must supply the goals, tempo and composure required to turn historical prestige into matchday momentum.
Current Form and Season Context
Levski Sofia arrive at Sunday’s Вечното дерби with the stronger momentum. Their five-match run has produced four wins and one defeat-free unbeaten record, with seven goals scored and only two conceded. That defensive record separates them from CSKA Sofia, who have scored the same seven goals across their last five but conceded four. Levski’s unbeaten run in the championship group is particularly important: after 12 matches they sit first with 32 points, and their latest results show a side combining control with increasing scoring consistency. CSKA, meanwhile, have won twice, drawn twice and lost once in the same period. Their unbeaten league position remains excellent, but the more frequent slips in their recent form make this meeting less comfortable than a one-point gap at the top might suggest.
The standings sharpen the tension. CSKA are only one point behind Levski at 31 points, although they have played one more match, making the chase entirely alive. Both clubs remain in the title and championship race, so there is no room for either side to treat this fixture as anything less than a major test. The previous 2025 season meetings also point toward a slight Levski edge: the Sofia leaders won twice, while CSKA recorded one victory and one draw. Both teams have had three days of rest and each has played two matches in the last ten days, leaving no meaningful advantage from preparation. The form therefore suggests that Levski carry the greater weight of expectation, but CSKA’s position behind them and their ability to stay unbeaten in the league make the derby a genuine contest for momentum.
Bet365’s 1X2 prices—Levski Sofia at 2.2, the draw at 3.25 and CSKA Sofia at 3.3—reflect a market that sees the leaders as the narrow favourite without treating them as an overwhelming choice. For Levski, the objective is to turn superior recent form into another statement in the title race; for CSKA, it is to prove that one point and one additional match played do not define the hierarchy. Kickoff is at 15:00 GMT, London time, on Sunday, 8 November 2026. With both clubs top of the championship group, this is not merely a local rivalry: it is a derby shaped by the season’s closest standings and a recent run that gives Levski the edge, but leaves CSKA perfectly positioned to challenge.
Prediction and Betting Analysis: Levski Sofia Seek Another Statement Win
1X2 outlook: Levski hold the market edge, but the head-to-head balance points to resistance
Across the supplied 27-match head-to-head sample, Levski Sofia won eight, CSKA Sofia won eight and 11 ended in a draw. That produces a raw 1X2 distribution of roughly 30% for a Levski win, 41% for a draw and 30% for a CSKA win. The competition is therefore much tighter than the raw market price suggests, with the draw a central part of the matchup rather than a marginal outcome.
Bet365 prices the meeting at 2.2 for Levski Sofia, 3.25 for the draw and 3.3 for CSKA Sofia, with kickoff at 15:00 GMT on Sunday 2026-11-08. After allowing for the bookmaker’s margin, those prices imply approximate market probabilities of 43%, 29% and 28%. Levski are the nominal favourite, but their head-to-head win rate does not justify treating them as clear favourites. The more convincing reason for that price is current momentum: Levski sit first on 32 points after 12 matches and have produced the sequence W-D-W-D-W, while CSKA are second on 31 points from 13 games with D-W-W-D-W.
The latest meetings add another layer of tension. Levski won the two most recent listed fixtures, scoring twice in a 2-0 victory and three times in a 3-1 away success. CSKA’s most recent win, however, came 1-0 at Levski, while the game before that finished 2-2. The prediction is a narrow Levski victory, with the most defensible 1X2 conclusion being Levski or draw rather than a confident home selection. A score of 1-0 Levski fits both the scoring distribution and the pattern of close recent encounters.
Goals market: under 2.5 and “no” for both teams to score
Only 26% of the matches in the provided sample have gone over 2.5 goals, while 33% featured both teams scoring. Those figures strongly favour the under-2.5 side and make “no” for both teams to score the more coherent goal-market option. The match average is two goals, placing the meeting around the boundary between a low-scoring contest and a modest three-goal game.
The scoreline frequencies support that interpretation. The most common result was 0-0, appearing five times, followed by 1-0 and 0-2 on four occasions each. A 2-0 win appeared three times, as did 2-2, while 1-1 occurred twice. Five of the six listed scorelines are contained within two goals, and even 2-2 belongs to a minority of the higher-scoring outcomes.
Recent meetings provide some counterweight, with 2-0, 3-1, 1-1, 0-1 and 2-2 all appearing in the supplied list since 2023. Nevertheless, the broader sample shows that CSKA’s 1-0 win and Levski’s 1-0 victory are more recurring individual scorelines than a high-scoring draw. Under 2.5 therefore carries the stronger statistical foundation, while both teams to score is less attractive despite the presence of three recent scoring contests in the last four listed meetings.
Goal timing: late pressure is most likely
The timing data indicates that the opening half is rarely decisive. Six goals were recorded between minutes 0 and 15, another six between 16 and 30, and 12 between 31 and 45. The second half contains the heaviest concentration: 10 goals between 61 and 75 minutes and 14 between 76 and 90, compared with five between 46 and 60.
That pattern reinforces a cautious match script. The middle of the first half and the final quarter are the prime windows for a goal, while a 0-0 scoreline at the interval would not be unusual. With both teams unbeaten in five matches and separated by only one point, neither side has a major rest advantage or a clear permission to abandon structure. The value proposition lies in a tight, late-resolved contest rather than an early goal or an open second-half exchange.
Ultimately, the numbers favour Levski Sofia to edge it, most plausibly 1-0, but the 11 draws in the head-to-head sample and the 41% raw draw rate prevent this from being a one-sided forecast. The strongest market angles are under 2.5 goals, no for both teams to score and a Levski result protected by the draw option.
Venue Analysis: A Tight Margin Between Control and Risk
Levski Sofia have held the stronger recent home profile, winning four of 12 matches and drawing three in their 4-3-5 record. That is a 1.25-point-per-game return, with eight goals scored and 11 conceded. The numbers make Levski’s home ground look demanding rather than impenetrable: their defeat rate is higher than CSKA Sofia’s, but their attacking output has been sufficiently consistent to turn a significant share of close fixtures into points. For the hosts, the challenge is to turn home advantage into greater attacking pressure without exposing the spaces that have produced their 11 concessions.
CSKA Sofia’s home record offers a different kind of threat. Across 15 matches, they have won three and drawn eight, giving them the better unbeaten ratio at 73.3%, although their 1.13 points per game falls marginally below Levski’s return over a smaller sample. Their attack has been the more productive at home, with 16 goals compared with Levski’s eight, but 18 conceded make their defensive platform notably less secure. CSKA can overwhelm opponents through greater scoring volume, yet they have also allowed opponents to find enough openings to keep the margin narrow. That tension could prove central to the next meeting: a more dangerous CSKA attack may be offset by the greater likelihood of conceding the first meaningful chance.
The supplied figures do not include separate away records, so they cannot establish which team is more dangerous away from home without invention. What they do show is that Levski have been the more efficient home side, while CSKA have combined greater attacking production with a heavier defensive burden. Home advantage therefore appears meaningful at Levski’s stadium, but not overwhelming: CSKA’s eight draws in 15 home matches demonstrate how effectively they can neutralize an opponent and force a result back toward a knife-edge. The venue analysis points to a match built on fine margins, where Levski’s structure and CSKA’s attacking potential could produce sharply different outcomes depending on who controls the decisive moments.
H2H Trends and Betting Insights
The recent history of Вечното дерби points to a closely balanced rivalry. Across 27 competitive matches, Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia have each won eight times, while 11 ended in draws, with the goals split 26–27. The average of two goals per game and an Over 2.5 rate of only 26% make the Under 2.5 market the clearest pre-match trend. Both teams to score has succeeded in just 33% of meetings, suggesting that the safer approach is to consider No for Both Teams to Score, particularly when the cautious scorelines of 0–0, 1–0 and 0–2 are considered.
There have, however, been distinct seasonal swings beneath that overall stability. CSKA Sofia won twice in 2020 and 2023, while Levski Sofia recorded two victories in 2018 and 2025. Draws have been especially prominent in several campaigns: all three matches in 2019 were level, and four of the seven league meetings from 2019 to 2021 ended without a winner. The venue split strengthens the case for caution. CSKA Sofia’s 15 home matches produced eight draws, three wins and four defeats, whereas Levski Sofia’s 12 home games yielded four wins, three draws and five losses. A draw-oriented angle therefore carries historical support, but the teams’ current unbeaten records justify seeking protection rather than committing blindly to a single result.
Goal timing adds another layer to the matchday narrative. There have been 53 goals in total, but 29 arrived after the interval, including 14 between minutes 76 and 90 and 12 in first-half stoppage time from minutes 31 to 45. This concentration makes live betting around late goals more compelling than an aggressive pre-match Over 2.5 selection, especially as the same match data shows that high-scoring outcomes remain uncommon. Levski Sofia arrive with four wins and a draw in their last five outings, scoring seven and conceding only two. CSKA Sofia are unbeaten in three of their last five and have also scored seven, but four goals against shows greater defensive volatility. With a one-point separation at the top, the most persuasive combinations are Under 2.5, No for Both Teams to Score and draw protection, while the timing data leaves room for a decisive late goal to break the deadlock.
Frequently Asked Questions: Levski Sofia vs CSKA Sofia
Who has won more derbies in recent history?
Neither side has established a decisive advantage in the provided sample of 27 competitive matches. Levski Sofia and CSKA Sofia have each recorded eight wins, while 11 matches have ended in a draw. The balance therefore belongs equally to the two clubs, with the frequency of draws showing how often the rivalry has denied either team a winner.
What is the biggest win in the recent derby record?
The largest winning margin belongs to CSKA Sofia, whose 3-1 victory represents the biggest success listed for either team. Levski Sofia’s biggest win in the same period is a 2-0 result. These outcomes illustrate the different routes to success in this rivalry: CSKA’s winning margin has been one goal larger, while Levski’s clean sheet provided the basis for its stated maximum victory.
How many goals are scored in an average derby?
The average is approximately two goals per match, with 53 goals divided across 27 contests. Levski Sofia have scored 26 and CSKA Sofia 27, an almost perfectly even attacking contribution. Low-scoring matches are also relatively common: only 26% of fixtures have produced more than 2.5 goals, while both teams have scored in 33%. The overall profile points to tight, controlled encounters rather than routinely high-scoring spectacle.
Who is the leading scorer in the recent derby record?
S. Buș is the leading scorer among the listed players, with three goals. That total accounts for only a small portion of the 53 goals scored across the 27 matches, underlining the collective nature of the scoring in this rivalry. The absence of one player with a substantially larger share also reinforces the impression that derby goals have been spread across different contributors rather than concentrated around a single prolific forward.
Does home advantage shape the recent derby record?
The supplied figures do not provide a home-and-away breakdown, so it is not possible to quantify the effect of venue from this data. What can be said is that the overall balance has been remarkably close: eight wins apiece and 11 draws. Levski Sofia’s 26 goals are only one fewer than CSKA Sofia’s 27, leaving no clear scoring dominance. Any discussion of home advantage must therefore remain cautious rather than assigning a measurable edge to either Sofia club.
When is the next derby meeting?
The next listed fixture is scheduled for 8 November 2026 and is presented in the supplied data as Array vs Array. No venue, kick-off time or additional scheduling details are provided. Whichever side emerges with an advantage in the buildup, the broader recent record suggests another closely balanced contest: the teams have shared eight victories each, the goals totals differ by only one, and more than a third of the listed matches have been drawn.
