1980–81 Iraqi National League
| Season | 1980–81 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
Al-Talaba (1st title) |
| Relegated | Al-Adhamiya |
| Top goalscorer |
Hussein Saeed (11 goals) |
|
← 1979–80 1981–82 → | |
The 1980–81 Iraqi National League was the 7th season of the competition since its foundation in 1974. Al-Talaba won the league title for the first time in their history, but in very controversial circumstances. Reigning champions Al-Shorta, unbeaten in the league for almost two straight years, played against Al-Zawraa in the last game of the season; an unlikely 3–0 win for Al-Shorta against the three-time champions would put Al-Shorta on equal points and equal goal difference to Al-Talaba but with two more goals scored, so Al-Shorta believed a 3–0 win would win them the title.
They managed to surprise the country by achieving the 3–0 win they needed thanks to an Ali Hussein Mahmoud hattrick. However, the Iraq Football Association did not officially announce the champions until the next day when they announced that Al-Talaba had won the league due to having won more matches than Al-Shorta. This rule had never been used before and in fact was never used again, leading to many people believing there had been some sort of corruption involved in the IFA's decision.[1]
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Al-Talaba 1 (C) | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 19 | 5 | +14 | 17 |
| 2 | Al-Shorta 1 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 7 | +14 | 17 |
| 3 | Al-Tayaran | 11 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 7 | +10 | 16 |
| 4 | Al-Shabab | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 9 | +4 | 13 |
| 5 | Al-Tijara | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 13 |
| 6 | Al-Jaish | 11 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 8 | +2 | 12 |
| 7 | Al-Zawraa | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 16 | –2 | 10 |
| 8 | Al-Minaa | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 14 | –6 | 10 |
| 9 | Al-Sinaa | 11 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 12 | –4 | 8 |
| Salahaddin | 11 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 12 | –4 | 8 | |
| 11 | Al-Amana | 11 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 15 | –2 | 7 |
| 12 | Al-Adhamiya | 11 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 4 | 29 | –25 | 1 |
| Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
1 Al-Talaba ranked ahead of Al-Shorta by number of wins, due to equal points and goal difference.
Top goalscorers
| Pos | Scorer | Goals | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hussein Saeed | Al-Talaba | ||
| Ali Hussein Mahmoud | Al-Shorta | ||
| Faisal Aziz | Al-Shorta | ||
| Karim Mousa | Al-Shabab |