| Season | 1983 | 
|---|---|
| Champions | Dnepr Dnepropetrovsk | 
| Relegated | Torpedo Kutaisi, Nistru Kishinev | 
| European Cup | Dnepr Dnepropetrovsk | 
| Cup Winners' Cup | Dinamo Moscow | 
| UEFA Cup | Spartak Moscow Dinamo Minsk | 
| Matches played | 306 | 
| Goals scored | 725 (2.37 per match) | 
| Top goalscorer | (18) Yuri Gavrilov (Spartak) | 
| ← 1982  1984 →  | |
Statistics of Soviet Top League for the 1983 season.
Teams
Promoted teams
- Zhalgiris Vilnius – champion (returning after 21 seasons)
- Nistru Kishinev – 2nd place (returning after nine seasons)
Location
League standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | .svg.png.webp) Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (C) | 34 | 22 | 5 | 7 | 63 | 36 | +27 | 49 | Qualification for European Cup first round | 
| 2 | .svg.png.webp) Spartak Moscow | 34 | 18 | 9 | 7 | 60 | 25 | +35 | 45 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round | 
| 3 | .svg.png.webp) Dinamo Minsk | 34 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 51 | 34 | +17 | 43 | |
| 4 | .svg.png.webp) Zenit Leningrad | 34 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 42 | 32 | +10 | 40[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 5 | .svg.png.webp) Žalgiris Vilnius | 34 | 15 | 9 | 10 | 38 | 36 | +2 | 39 | |
| 6 | .svg.png.webp) Torpedo Moscow | 34 | 14 | 11 | 9 | 40 | 34 | +6 | 38[lower-alpha 1] | |
| 7 | .svg.png.webp) Dynamo Kyiv | 34 | 14 | 10 | 10 | 50 | 34 | +16 | 38 | |
| 8 | .svg.png.webp) Chornomorets Odesa | 34 | 16 | 5 | 13 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 37 | |
| 9 | .svg.png.webp) Shakhtar Donetsk | 34 | 16 | 5 | 13 | 48 | 40 | +8 | 37 | |
| 10 | .svg.png.webp) Pakhtakor Tashkent | 34 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 37 | 34 | +3 | 35 | |
| 11 | .svg.png.webp) Metalist Kharkiv | 34 | 12 | 8 | 14 | 38 | 40 | −2 | 32 | |
| 12 | .svg.png.webp) CSKA Moscow | 34 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 37 | 33 | +4 | 32[lower-alpha 2] | |
| 13 | .svg.png.webp) Neftchi Baku | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 32 | 38 | −6 | 30 | |
| 14 | .svg.png.webp) Ararat Yerevan | 34 | 11 | 7 | 16 | 29 | 47 | −18 | 29 | |
| 15 | .svg.png.webp) Dynamo Moscow | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 30 | 37 | −7 | 28[lower-alpha 1] | Qualification for Cup Winners' Cup first round | 
| 16 | .svg.png.webp) Dinamo Tbilisi | 34 | 9 | 9 | 16 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 27 | |
| 17 | .svg.png.webp) Torpedo Kutaisi (R) | 34 | 4 | 10 | 20 | 26 | 58 | −32 | 18 | Relegation to First League | 
| 18 | .svg.png.webp) Nistru Kishinev (R) | 34 | 3 | 4 | 27 | 19 | 73 | −54 | 10 | 
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Results
Top scorers
- 18 goals
- Yuri Gavrilov (Spartak Moscow)
- 17 goals
- Igor Gurinovich (Dinamo Minsk)
- 15 goals
- Volodymyr Fink (Chornomorets)
- Khoren Hovhannisyan (Ararat)
- Mykhaylo Sokolovsky (Shakhtar)
- Andrei Yakubik (Pakhtakor)
- 14 goals
- Sigitas Jakubauskas (Žalgiris)
- 13 goals
- Viktor Kolyadko (CSKA Moscow)
- Oleh Taran (Dnipro)
- 11 goals
- Valery Gazzaev (Dynamo Moscow)
- Valeriy Petrakov (Torpedo Moscow)
- Igor Ponomaryov (Neftchi)
- Ramaz Shengelia (Dinamo Tbilisi)
- Aleksandr Tarkhanov (CSKA Moscow)
- Vadym Yevtushenko (Dynamo Kyiv)
Medal squads
(league appearances and goals listed in brackets)
| 1. FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk | 
| Goalkeepers: Serhiy Krakovskyi (34). Manager: Volodymyr Yemets. Transferred out during the season: Volodymyr Ustinov (to FC Kolos Nikopol), Valeriy Zuyev (retired). | 
| 2. FC Spartak Moscow | 
| Goalkeepers: Rinat Dasayev (34), Andrei Mikhalychev (1). Manager: Konstantin Beskov. Transferred out during the season: Oleg Romantsev (retired), Mikhail Dubinin (to FC Metallurg Aldan). | 
| 3. FC Dinamo Minsk | 
| Goalkeepers: Yury Kurbyko (30), Mikhail Vergeyenko (4), Arkadi Batalov (1). Manager: Eduard Malofeyev. Transferred out during the season: Aleksandr Prokopenko (released). |