1988–89 Iraqi National League
| Season | 1988–89 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
Al-Rasheed (3rd title) |
| Relegated |
Wahid Huzairan Al-Mosul Salahaddin Duhok Al-Sulaymaniya Al-Nasr Diyala Al-Jamahir Babil Al-Diwaniya Al-Tijara Al-Minaa Al-Nasiriya Al-Samawa Al-Hurriya Al-Numaniya |
| Asian Club Championship | Al-Rasheed |
| Arab Club Champions Cup | Al-Tayaran |
| Arab Cup Winners' Cup | Al-Rasheed |
| Top goalscorer |
Karim Saddam (22 goals) |
|
← 1987–88 1989–90 → | |
The 1988–89 Iraqi National League was the 15th season of the competition since its foundation in 1974 and the first that was played in a group stage format rather than a round-robin format. Al-Rasheed won the title by defeating Al-Talaba on penalties in the final, to be become the first team to win three Premier League titles in a row. During this season, if a match ended in a draw, it would go to extra time and then penalties if necessary. A team would earn three points if they won a game by two goals or more (after normal or extra time). They would earn two points if they won a game by just one goal (after normal or extra time), and they would gain one point for winning a penalty shootout.[1]
Group stage
North Group
| Team | Result |
| Erbil | Qualified to Elite Stage |
| Wahid Huzairan | |
| Al-Mosul | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
| Salahaddin | |
| Duhok | |
| Al-Sulaymaniya |
Central Group
| Team | Result |
| Al-Najaf | Qualified to Elite Stage |
| Al-Nasr | |
| Diyala | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
| Al-Jamahir | |
| Babil | |
| Al-Diwaniya |
Baghdad Group
| Pos | Team | Pld | W[a] | L[b] | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Al-Zawraa | 20 | 17 | 3 | 38 | 21 | +17 | 39 | Qualified to Elite Stage |
| 2 | Al-Rasheed | 20 | 15 | 5 | 34 | 12 | +22 | 37 | |
| 3 | Al-Tayaran | 20 | 15 | 5 | 40 | 29 | +11 | 30 | |
| 4 | Al-Talaba | 20 | 13 | 7 | 30 | 21 | +9 | 28 | |
| 5 | Al-Shorta | 20 | 12 | 8 | 19 | 18 | +1 | 22 | |
| 6 | Al-Jaish | 20 | 9 | 11 | 30 | 25 | +5 | 20 | |
| 7 | Al-Shabab | 20 | 8 | 12 | 19 | 29 | –10 | 14 | |
| 8 | Al-Naft | 20 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 30 | –10 | 12 | |
| 9 | Al-Sulaikh | 20 | 7 | 13 | 17 | 29 | –12 | 10 | |
| 10 | Al-Sinaa | 20 | 4 | 16 | 11 | 24 | –13 | 9 | |
| 11 | Al-Tijara | 20 | 4 | 16 | 21 | 39 | –18 | 8 | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
South Group
| Team | Result |
| Al-Bahri | Qualified to Elite Stage |
| Al-Minaa | |
| Al-Nasiriya | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
| Al-Samawa | |
| Al-Hurriya | |
| Al-Numaniya |
Elite stage
Group 1
| Team | Result |
| Al-Zawraa | Qualified to semi-finals |
| Al-Talaba | |
| Erbil | |
| Al-Minaa | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
| Al-Nasr |
Group 2
| Team | Result |
| Al-Tayaran | Qualified to semi-finals |
| Al-Rasheed | |
| Al-Najaf | |
| Al-Bahri | |
| Wahid Huzairan | Relegated to Iraq Division 1 |
Golden stage
Semi-finals
| Al-Zawraa | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Al-Rasheed |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 2–4 | ||
| Al-Tayaran | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Al-Talaba |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 5–6 | ||
3rd Place Match
| Al-Tayaran | 4–1 | Al-Zawraa |
|---|---|---|
Ibrahim  Allawi Ibrahim |
|
Final
| Al-Rasheed | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | Al-Talaba |
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Penalties | ||
| 5–4 | ||
Qualification to international competitions
| Team | Qualification method | Competition(s) qualified to |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Rasheed | League champions | 1989–90 Asian Club Championship |
| 1989 Arab Cup Winners' Cup 1 | ||
| Al-Tayaran | FA Cup runners-up 2 | 1989 Arab Club Champions Cup 1 |
1 For reasons unclear, the Iraq Football Association decided to admit Al-Rasheed into the Arab Cup Winners' Cup rather than the Arab Club Champions Cup despite the fact that they were the league champions and not the cup winners.
2 FA Cup runners-up Al-Tayaran were chosen (rather than FA Cup winners Al-Zawraa) due to the fact that Al-Zawraa were to participate in a friendly tournament organised by the Arab Cooperation Council that year.
Top goalscorers
| Pos | Scorer | Goals | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karim Saddam | Al-Zawraa | ||
| Natiq Hashim | Al-Tayaran | ||
| Hussein Saeed | Al-Talaba | ||
| Saad Abdul-Raheem | Al-Zawraa |