First League – or Second Division. Luckily, the season program was made after the Georgian teams withdrew, so at least it was a normal schedule for the 20 remaining teams in the league. Yet, the league was reduced and because of the reduction of the top division the numbers had to be made up for the next season and some teams benefited by that: 3 teams were directly promoted up and the 4th placed had to go to promotion/relegation play-off – that made possible for 4 teams to be promoted instead of the usual 2. At the bottom of the table only 1 team faced relegation instead of the usual 3. All that to make again 22-teams league next year. The clubs in the league presented little trouble, at least from the momentary standpoint, for the disintegration of the USSR was unlikely – 11 Russian teams, 2 from Ukraine, 2 from Moldova, 1 from Uzbekistan, 1 from Kazakhstan, 1 from Azerbaijan, 1 from Armenia, and 1 from… Georgia, to further complicate matters: the Georgian Federation left the Soviet Federation and Georgian clubs withdrew to play in their own national championship, but Abkhazia rebelled against that and decided to remain in the Soviet system – thus, Georgia was out and yet represented in the Soviet Second Division by Dinamo (Sukhoumi) just promoted from third level. The club, however, was in trouble before the championship started – most players were Georgians and left in the last minute and Dinamo had hastily to organize a new squad somehow. Other changes involved names – both of cities and clubs: Soviet names were replaced by either original names or names with national flavour: this, the city of Ordzhonikidze became Vladikavkaz, Gorky – Nizhny Novgorod and Moldovan newcomer Tekstilshchik (Tirasppol) was renamed Tiras after the river crossing the town. Finally, the war over Nagorno-Karabakh was a great concern – it was unsafe for other teams to play in Armenia and Azerbaijan and the fixtures between Kotaik and Neftchi even on neutral ground had to be played under heavy security measures. Kotaik could not even play in Abovyan, but had to host its home matches in Erevan, where was quieter and safer. The rest was football – a troubled football, mostly, but the season was played and finished without canceled games at least. Some suffered, some, however, benefited – traditional clubs were in great decline, particularly Zenit (Leningrad), which not only was relegated from the First Division in the previous season, but had hard time to survive in Second Division. On the other hand clubs with no great history adapted better to the new and uncertain reality and even flourished.
Kuzbass (Kemerovo), one of the traditional Second Division clubs, was absolute outsider this season – they finished last with 14 points and were relegated. Above them finished three well-known names, all former members of the First Division – Kuban (Krasnodar), 19th with 28 points, Zenit (Leningrad) – 18th with 30 points, and Kayrat (Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan) was 17th with 30 points. The trio was never in danger of relegation, but they also benefited by Georgian and Lithuanian separation from Soviet football: if they did not and both top leagues were normal size and with normal number of promoted and relegated teams… who knows, may be at least one of the three would have been relegated. Debutante Lokomotiv, which was promoted as team from the city of Gorky, now represented the same city, but its original name Nyzhny Novgorod – they finished 16th with 31 points, which was not bad for a newcomer.
Rostselmash (Rostov) was 15th with 31 points. Not clear yet, but in the long run this club was to be the number one club of the city – SKA (Rostov) not only suffered great decline already, but eventually they never recovered.
Kotaik (Abovyan, Armenia) – 14th with 33 points. Another debutante, Tiras (Tiraspol), which played under the name of Tekstilshchik (Tiraspol) in the previous season, ended 13th with 35 points.
And the last debutante, the confusing Dinamo (Sukhumi), which was and was not a Georgian team, thus, nominally representing Georgia, but was not part of Georgia… Abkhazia did not serve the purpose really, for Abkhazia was part of Georgia. Anyhow, they finished 12th with 36 points, thus going to confuse things in the next season as well. Apart from that, they were the strongest of the newly promoted clubs.
Geolog (Tyumen), another anomaly, for they came from the deep North, hardly a football place, but on the other hand, Tyumen had money from gas and oil production, thus, a team, ended 11th with 37 points. Fakel (Voronezh) was 10th with 37 points, Tavria (Simferopol, Ukraine) – 9th with 38 points.
Neftchi (Baku, Azerbaijan) was not a factor this season, most likely Nagorno-Karabakh war affected negatively football – they were 8th with 38 points. Nistru (Kishinev, Moldova) – 7th with 40 points, the ‘eternal’ Shinnik (Yaroslavl) was just as ever: solid, but unambitious – 6th with 46 points. Dinamo (Stavropol) – 5th with 46 points. They came close to promotion zone, but only that.
Lokomotiv (Moscow), just relegated from the top league, ended 4th with 47 points. Direct promotion was not up to them, but they reached at least the promotion/relegation play-off – thanks to the peculiarity of this season. They won the play-off and returned to top flight, which was great in the long run – lucky or not, the promotion started the steady climb of modest Lokomotiv to prominence. Lokomotiv also represented the new crop of leading coaches – Yury Semin was at their helm, soon to become one the best Russian coaches.
Metallurg (Zaporozhye, Ukraine) finished 3rd with 52 points. Were they to reach promotion under normal circumstances is mere speculation – they were involved in the three-team race for top positions, so who knows. The fact is, they were promoted – the greatest achievement in the club history. Nobody thought of them for years, for in the Ukrainian hierarchy they were lowly – a second division club, no more – but the new environment of lack of heavy-handed state control and professionalism, there were certain leveling based on money – if Metallurg had cash, it had equal opportunity with traditionally big clubs. For the moment, they were going up to play top-league football and it was great.
Pakhtakor (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) finished 2nd with 54 points and were once again promoted – seemingly, their meandering between First and Second Division had no end. They were the best scorers of the season with 80 goals – if anything, they scored goals. The photo may or may nor be from this season – the team left no picture of itself and this showcase of newcomers, most likely, at least presents interesting kit.
Spartak (Vladikavkaz) won the championship with 57 points: 24 wins, 9 ties, 5 losses, 73-30 goal-difference. The new winds restored the original name of the city – so far, it had been Ordzhonikidze. Those winds eventually changed the name of the club too, but they still were Spartak in 1990. The club had short appearance of First Division at the end of 1960s and now was promoted for a second time, hoping for longer stay – at least, that could have been an outside view, judging by the history of club: rather sedated Second Division existence. But now money talked. Not just money, but money too, were motivating their young talented coach Valery Gazzaev – he had ideas and the club had money to buy or keep the players he needed. Along with Semin, Gazzaev was the bright up and coming new crop of coaches, who led Russian football in the next two decades. At the moment, though, the great future was perhaps not even imagined – Spartak had wonderful season, got promoted, there was some promise, but no more.