Editing Tromsø IL (section)

=== 1986–2001: 16 years in the top division ===
The first season in the top division would be very hard for Tromsø, the club eventually had to play qualification to survive. The club was highly successful in the [[Norwegian football cup|cup]] the same year, however, beating top division champions [[Lillestrøm SK]] 4–1 in the final match, a match that had been thought to be a walk in the park for Lillestrøm before it was played.

An experiment in the 1987 season proved valuable to Tromsø: tied matches would be decided on penalty shootouts, awarding three points for a win, two for a shootout win, one for a shootout loss and zero for a loss. Thanks to [[Bjarte Flem]]'s exceptional penalty saves, Tromsø won seven out of nine shootouts this year. The experiment was dropped after the season. However, the system with three points for a victory was kept. In 1988, Tromsø ended fifth in the league, the season of Bjarte Flems' infamous own goal.

The 1989 and 1990 seasons would become the two most successful top division seasons to date, with Tromsø winning a bronze and a silver medals, respectively. The club's coach during this time, [[Tommy Svensson]], would eventually coach the [[Sweden men's national football team|Sweden national team]] to a bronze medal in the [[1994 FIFA World Cup]].

The following seasons saw Tromsø end sixth, eighth, sixth and seventh (all safe mid-table positions) before the expansion of the [[Eliteserien|Norwegian top flight]] from 12 to 14 teams in 1995, when Tromsø again ended sixth.

In 1996, ten years after the club's first cup championship, Tromsø would again qualify for a cup final. This time, the opponents were FK Bodø/Glimt, which made the final match historical, the first time in history two Northern Norwegian clubs would play each other in a cup final. This also meant that the club winning the match would have bragging rights as the best club in Northern Norway. Tromsø eventually won the match, after a late 2–1 goal by [[Sigurd Rushfeldt]] in his last match before leaving for [[Rosenborg BK]]. The 1996 cup championship was the club's last championship to date. Tromsø also ended 5th in the league.

1997 did not go too well for Tromsø, and after earning only two points during the last seven matches of the season, the club ended 12th in the league and had to play qualification matches to survive. The opponents were [[Eik-Tønsberg]], and Tromsø won 4–0 and 2–1, which meant Tromsø would still be in the top division. Another poor season followed in 1998, but Tromsø avoided qualification matches this time, ending 11th in the league. 1999 saw Tromsø back in the mid-table sections when the club won sixth place, scored 70 goals, and became the first (and only) Northern Norwegian club to have the [[Norwegian top scorers|top scorer of the top division]] with [[Rune Lange]]'s 23 goals. Tromsø then had one of its best seasons ever in 2000, finishing fourth in the league.

In 2001, Tromsø was relegated from the top division for the first time in history. After two very strong opening wins, the club went on a seven-match losing streak where not a single goal was scored. Tromsø eventually ended last, scoring only 23 goals in 26 matches.