A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Season | 1977–78 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 14 August 1977 – 28 May 1978 |
| Champions | Partizan (8th title) |
| Relegated | Čelik Trepča |
| European Cup | Partizan |
| Cup Winners' Cup | Rijeka |
| UEFA Cup | Red Star Hajduk Split |
| Matches played | 272 |
| Top goalscorer | Radomir Savić (21) |
| Average attendance | 9,845 |
← 1976–77 1978–79 → | |
Teams
A total of eighteen teams contested the league, including sixteen sides from the 1976–77 season and two sides promoted from the 1976–77 Yugoslav Second League (YSL) as winners of the two second level divisions East and West. The league was contested in a double round robin format, with each club playing every other club twice, for a total of 34 rounds. Two points were awarded for wins and one point for draws.
Napredak and Željezničar were relegated from the 1976–77 Yugoslav First League after finishing the season in bottom two places of the league table. The two clubs promoted to top level were Trepča and NK Osijek.
| Team | Location | Federal Republic | Position in 1976–77 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Borac Banja Luka | Banja Luka |  SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
6th |
| Budućnost | Titograd |  SR Montenegro
|
9th |
| Čelik | Zenica | SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
13th |
| Dinamo Zagreb | Zagreb |  SR Croatia
|
2nd |
| Hajduk Split | Split | SR Croatia
|
8th |
| OFK Belgrade | Belgrade | SR Serbia
|
15th |
| Olimpija Ljubljana | Ljubljana |  SR Slovenia
|
12th |
| Osijek | Osijek | SR Croatia
|
— |
| Partizan | Belgrade | SR Serbia
|
4th |
| Radnički Niš | Niš | SR Serbia
|
7th |
| Red Star | Belgrade | SR Serbia
|
1st |
| Rijeka | Rijeka | SR Croatia
|
5th |
| Sarajevo | Sarajevo | SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
16th |
| Sloboda | Tuzla | SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
3rd |
| Trepča | Kosovska Mitrovica | SR Serbia
|
— |
| Velež | Mostar | SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
11th |
| Vojvodina | Novi Sad | SR Serbia
|
14th |
| NK Zagreb | Zagreb | SR Croatia
|
10th |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Partizan (C) | 34 | 22 | 10 | 2 | 55 | 19 | +36 | 54 | Qualification for European Cup first round |
| 2 | Red Star Belgrade | 34 | 21 | 7 | 6 | 58 | 26 | +32 | 49 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 3 | Hajduk Split | 34 | 14 | 11 | 9 | 49 | 37 | +12 | 39 | |
| 4 | Dinamo Zagreb | 34 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 54 | 49 | +5 | 37 | |
| 5 | Rijeka | 34 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 47 | 42 | +5 | 37 | Qualification for Cup Winners' Cup first round |
| 6 | Sloboda Tuzla | 34 | 15 | 5 | 14 | 47 | 46 | +1 | 35 | |
| 7 | Velež | 34 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 42 | 43 | −1 | 35 | |
| 8 | Vojvodina | 34 | 14 | 4 | 16 | 46 | 38 | +8 | 32 | Qualification for Intertoto Cup |
| 9 | Sarajevo | 34 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 32 | |
| 10 | Olimpija | 34 | 13 | 6 | 15 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 32 | |
| 11 | Budućnost | 34 | 12 | 7 | 15 | 41 | 51 | −10 | 31 | |
| 12 | Borac Banja Luka | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 44 | 50 | −6 | 30 | |
| 13 | Osijek | 34 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 32 | 42 | −10 | 30 | |
| 14 | Radnički Niš | 34 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 31 | 42 | −11 | 30 | |
| 15 | NK Zagreb | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 37 | 46 | −9 | 29 | |
| 16 | OFK Belgrade | 34 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 38 | 54 | −16 | 28 | |
| 17 | Čelik (R) | 34 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 34 | 50 | −16 | 28 | Relegation to Yugoslav Second League |
| 18 | Trepça (R) | 34 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 28 | 52 | −24 | 24 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated