Hungary. Ranked 18th. Political changes affected the country, football included, as elsewhere in Eastern Europe – Honved was in decline as a result, players were looking to play abroad, and clubs were looking for imports largely from Africa and USSR. 3 points for a win and dramatic battle for the title decided by one goal. Two teams were relegated from First Division directly and the 13th and the 14th went to promotion/relegation play-offs against the second-placed teams in the two groups of Second Division.
Second Division. Two groups of 16 teams each, the champions promoted and the second-placed going to promotion/relegation play-offs. The last 3 teams in each group relegated to third level. Both groups were dominated by single team, so nothing exciting at the end.
Szeged SC won the Keleti group with 61 points.
Diosgyori VTK ended 5th with 46 points: one of the former top-league teams now in Second Division, but unable to climb back to top flight.
Volan SC won the Nyugati group with 65 points. Both teams were promoted to the top league.
Second in Keleti group was Kazincbarcikai Vegyesz SE with 52 points – they lost the promotion/relegation play-off against Honved (Budapest) 0-1 and 2-2.
Dunaferr SE was 2nd in Nyugati group with 57 points – they also lost the promotion/relegation play-off against Debreceni MVSC 1-1 and 0-1.
First Division.
Csepel ended last and relegated with 25 points. They were the outsider of the league this season.
Haladas – 15th with 33 points was the other relegated team.
Debreceni MVSC finished 14th with 35 points, but won the promotion/relegation play-off and remained in the top league.
Honved suffered terribly and finished in the danger zone – 13th with 35 points. Like Debreceni MVSC, they managed to survive, but barely.
Gyori ETO – 12th with 35 points. Like Honved, Gyori ETO suffered and avoided relegation only on goal-difference.
Vaci IZZO – 11th with 36 points. Escaping relegation was largely their aim and it was achieved.
Bekescsabai Elore – 10th with 38 points.
Videoton – 9th with 38 points. Like Honved and Gyori ETO, Videoton’s decline was mostly likely related to the political changes in the country.
Vasas SC – 8th with 39 points.
Siofoki Banyasz – 7th with 39 points.
Veszpremi LC – 6th with 41 points.
A possible photo of Tatabanyai Banyasz 1989-90 – they finished 5th with 43 points.
Pecsi MSC – 4th with 48 points. Their strongest season ever, as it happened.
Ferencvarosi TC – 3rd with 48 points.
Two teams were entangled in the fight for the title and at the end the victors triumphed on one-goal better goal-difference. The leaders left the rest of the league far behind.
MTK-VM was bitterly disappointed: they finished with 58 points from 18 wins, 4 ties, and 8 losses. 48-26 scoring record gave them +22 goal-difference. It was not enough…
Ujpesti Dosza clinched the title on goal-difference: like MTK, they finished with 18 wins, 4 ties, and 8 losses and 58 points. They scored less than MTK – 43 goals – but also had better defensive record, permitting 20 goals in their net. This gave them goal-difference of +23 – one goal better than MTK – and the title. Symbolically, the results showed the transitional struggle between Communist and democratic forces – although Hungary for years lacked the big involvement of state forces in sports, still Honved represented the Army and Ujpesti Dosza – the Police. Even the names remained unchanged yet and the ‘old regime’ seemingly was not ready to give up: old and considered victims of Communism clubs like Ferencvaros and MTK were unable to prevail (and in the case of Ferencvaros even to challenge Ujpesti Dosza). Honved was in shambles, but Ujpesti Dosza was not fading away, but actually coming back: this title was the first they won since 1978-79 and their 19th altogether. Soon they were going to get rid of Communist taint – ‘Dosza’ will be removed and the club will restore its original name Ujpesti TE – but it will be many years until they won a title again and generally stopped playing leading role in Hungarian football. So… their dramatic victory could be seen as the last gasp of the Communist regime and not as real revival of the club.