Paraguayan Primera División

División Profesional
Founded 1906
Country Paraguay
Confederation CONMEBOL
Number of teams 12
Level on pyramid 1
Relegation to División Intermedia
Domestic cup(s) Copa Paraguay
International cup(s) Copa Libertadores
Copa Sudamericana
Current champions Olimpia (41st title)
(2018 Apertura)
Most championships Olimpia (41 titles)
TV partners Tigo Max (all games per matchday)
Tigo Sports (Four games per matchday)
Telefuturo (highlights per matchday)
Paravisión (Only are broadcast live El Partido del Viernes at 20:30)
Website APF
2018 season

The División Profesional de la Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol (locally [diβiˈsjon pɾofesjoˈnal de la asosjaˈsjon paɾaˈɣwaʝa ðe ˈfutβol]; Professional Division of the Paraguayan Football Association), also known as the Primera División [pɾiˈmeɾa ðiβiˈsjon] (first division), or due to sponsorship reasons Copa TIGO [ˈkopa ˈtiɣo], is the top-flight professional football league in Paraguay. Currently, there are 12 teams in the first division.

The most successful club is Olimpia, with 41 championships. Olimpia are the most recent champions, having won the 2018 Apertura. IFFHS ranked the league as the ninth strongest in the world in 2012,[1] and the eleventh strongest in the world in 2013.[2] In 2017, the Primera División returned to 9th position in the world and the 4th from South America, after Brazil (3rd), Colombia (6th) and Argentina (7th).[3]

History

Liga Paraguaya's first game was played in 1906, after the director of the El Diario newspaper, Don Adolfo Riquelme, brought to his office on 18 June 1906, the representatives of the five existing football teams in Paraguay at that time (Olimpia, Guaraní, Libertad, General Díaz, and Nacional) to create the governing body of football in Paraguay: the Liga Paraguaya de Fútbol (known today as Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol). The representatives were William Paats and Junio Godoy (Olimpia) Ramón Caballero, Manuel Bella and Salvador Melián (Guaraní), Juan Escalada (Libertad), César Urdapilleta (General Díaz), and Vicente Gadea (Nacional).[4] The Liga Paraguaya saw Club Guaraní as the first champion in 1906, after defeating Olimpia in the final.

The Primera División was founded in 1906 with 5 teams, and turned professional in 1935 when 10 clubs broke away from the amateur leagues to form a professional league. Since 1996 the format of tournament was changed to Torneo Apertura and Clausura, but since 2008 each tournament is independent.

Traditionally, the dominance of Olimpia and Cerro Porteño went mostly unchallenged for decades. All of this changed at the turn of the 21st century. Since then, Libertad has been the most dominant club, while Nacional and Guarani have also experienced success at the local level.

Format

The system of the tournaments is round-robin. 12 teams play two rounds of 11 dates either away or home games, in total 22 dates in each tournament. Each year tournaments are divided in two independents tournaments: the Torneo Apertura (Opening Tournament) from February to July, and the Torneo Clausura (Closing Tournament) from July to December.

Relegation is based on an averaging system. At the end of each season, the two teams with the worst three-year averages are relegated, and the two best teams in the "División Intermedia" (second division) are promoted to Primera División.

International cup participation

Since 2012, Paraguay have seven slots in international cups (three in the Copa Libertadores de America and four in the Copa Sudamericana). These seven slots will be filled by five teams.

In the Copa Libertadores, the winner of the Apertura and Clausura tournaments qualify automatically. The third representative (going into the first round play-off) is the best placed non-champion from the cumulative table of both the Apertura and Clausura.

In the Copa Sudamericana, the champion of the Apertura and Clausura tournaments qualify, with the 4th and 5th best placed teams from the Apertura and Clausura cumulatives.

First Division teams

The following are the teams in the first division in 2018:

Stadia and location

Team Manager Home city Stadium Capacity
3 de FebreroBrazil Marcio MarollaCiudad del EsteAntonio Aranda23,500
Cerro PorteñoColombia Leonel ÁlvarezAsunciónGeneral Pablo Rojas45,000
Deportivo CapiatáParaguay Gustavo FlorentínCapiatáLic. Erico Galeano Segovia10,000
Deportivo SantaníParaguay Pedro SarabiaSan EstanislaoJuan José Vázquez8,000
General DíazParaguay Aldo BobadillaLuqueGeneral Adrián Jara3,500
GuaraníArgentina Sebastián SajaAsunciónRogelio Livieres6,000
IndependienteParaguay Pablo CaballeroAsunciónRicardo Gregor1,500
LibertadSpain Fernando JuberoAsunciónDr. Nicolás Leoz10,000
NacionalParaguay Celso AyalaAsunciónArsenio Erico4,000
OlimpiaArgentina Daniel GarneroAsunciónManuel Ferreira15,000
Sol de AméricaParaguay Héctor MarecosVilla ElisaLuis Alfonso Giagni5,000
Sportivo LuqueñoArgentina Javier SanguinettiLuqueFeliciano Cáceres25,000

List of champions

Amateur era

SeasonChampionRunner-upThird Place
1906Guaraní (1)OlimpiaLibertad
1907Guaraní (2)OlimpiaLibertad
1908
No Tournament
1909Nacional (1)LibertadOlimpia
1910Libertad (1)AtlántidaNacional
1911Nacional (2)AtlántidaSol de América
1912Olimpia (1)Sol de AméricaNacional
1913Cerro Porteño (1)Sol de AméricaNacional
1914Olimpia (2)Cerro PorteñoRiver Plate
1915Cerro Porteño (2)OlimpiaGuaraní
1916Olimpia (3)GuaraníNacional
1917Libertad (2)OlimpiaCerro Porteño
1918Cerro Porteño (3)NacionalOlimpia
1919Cerro Porteño (4)River PlateOlimpia
1920Libertad (3)OlimpiaCerro Porteño
1921Guaraní (3)NacionalSol de América
1922
No Tournament
1923Guaraní (4)OlimpiaLibertad
1924Nacional (3)LibertadOlimpia
1925Olimpia (4)GuaraníNacional
1926Nacional (4)OlimpiaRiver Plate
Sol de América
1927Olimpia (5)Libertad
Nacional		No third-place awarded
1928Olimpia (6)LibertadNacional
1929Olimpia (7)LibertadSportivo Luqueño
River Plate
1930Libertad (4)River PlateOlimpia
1931Olimpia (8)LibertadNo third-place awarded
1932
No Tournament
1933
No Tournament
1934
No Tournament

Professional Era

SeasonChampionRunner-upThird Place
1935Cerro Porteño (5)Sol de AméricaLibertad
1936Olimpia (9)AtlántidaNacional
1937Olimpia (10)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1938Olimpia (11)Cerro PorteñoLibertad
1939Cerro Porteño (6)OlimpiaNacional
1940Cerro Porteño (7)Sol de AméricaGuaraní
1941Cerro Porteño (8)OlimpiaNacional
1942Nacional (5)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1943Libertad (5)OlimpiaSol de América
1944Cerro Porteño (9)LibertadGuaraní
1945Libertad (6)Cerro PorteñoPresidente Hayes
1946Nacional (6)Sol de AméricaCerro Porteño
1947Olimpia (12)GuaraníNacional
1948Olimpia (13)Cerro PorteñoSportivo Luqueño
1949Guaraní (5)NacionalCerro Porteño
1950Cerro Porteño (10)LibertadOlimpia
1951Sportivo Luqueño (1)Cerro PorteñoNacional
1952Presidente Hayes (1)Libertad
Sol de América		No third-place awarded
1953Sportivo Luqueño (2)Libertad
Cerro Porteño		No third-place awarded
1954Cerro Porteño (11)LibertadOlimpia
1955Libertad (7)OlimpiaCerro Porteño
1956Olimpia (14)LibertadSol de América
1957Olimpia (15)Cerro Porteño
Sol de América
Guaraní		No third-place awarded
1958Olimpia (16)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1959Olimpia (17)Cerro PorteñoSportivo Luqueño
1960Olimpia (18)Cerro PorteñoSportivo Luqueño
1961Cerro Porteño (12)OlimpiaSportivo Luqueño
1962Olimpia (19)NacionalRiver Plate
1963Cerro Porteño (13)OlimpiaLibertad
River Plate
1964Guaraní (6)Nacional
Cerro Porteño		No third-place awarded
1965Olimpia (20)Guaraní
1966Cerro Porteño (14)Guaraní
1967Guaraní (7)Libertad
1968Olimpia (21)Cerro Porteño
1969Guaraní (8)Olimpia
1970Cerro Porteño (15)Guaraní
1971Olimpia (22)Cerro Porteño
1972Cerro Porteño (16)Olimpia
1973Cerro Porteño (17)Olimpia
1974Cerro Porteño (18)Olimpia
1975Olimpia (23)Sportivo Luqueño
1976Libertad (8)Cerro Porteño
1977Cerro Porteño (19)Libertad
1978Olimpia (24)Sol de América
1979Olimpia (25)Sol de América
1980Olimpia (26)Cerro Porteño
1981Olimpia (27)Sol de América
1982Olimpia (28)Nacional
1983Olimpia (29)Sportivo LuqueñoLibertad
1984Guaraní (9)Cerro PorteñoOlimpia
1985Olimpia (30)NacionalSol de América
1986Sol de América (1)OlimpiaCerro Porteño
1987Cerro Porteño (20)OlimpiaSol de América
1988Olimpia (31)Sol de AméricaLibertad
1989Olimpia (32)GuaraníCerro Porteño
1990Cerro Porteño (21)LibertadOlimpia
Sportivo Luqueño
1991Sol de América (2)Cerro PorteñoOlimpia
Guaraní
1992Cerro Porteño (22)LibertadOlimpia
Sportivo Luqueño
1993Olimpia (33)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1994Cerro Porteño (23)OlimpiaSport Colombia
1995Olimpia (34)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
Nacional
1996Cerro Porteño (24)GuaraníOlimpia
1997Olimpia (35)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1998Olimpia (36)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
1999Olimpia (37)Cerro PorteñoColegiales
2000Olimpia (38)GuaraníCerro Porteño
2001Cerro Porteño (25)Sportivo Luqueño12 de Octubre
2002Libertad (9)12 de OctubreCerro Porteño
2003Libertad (10)GuaraníOlimpia
2004Cerro Porteño (26)LibertadTacuary
2005Cerro Porteño (27)LibertadNacional
2006Libertad (11)Cerro PorteñoTacuary
2007Libertad (12)Sportivo LuqueñoCerro Porteño
2008AperturaLibertad (13)NacionalCerro Porteño
ClausuraLibertad (14)GuaraníCerro Porteño
2009AperturaCerro Porteño (28)LibertadNacional
ClausuraNacional (7)LibertadGuaraní
2010AperturaGuaraní (10)Cerro PorteñoOlimpia
ClausuraLibertad (15)Cerro PorteñoNacional
2011AperturaNacional (8)OlimpiaLibertad
ClausuraOlimpia (39)Cerro PorteñoLibertad
2012AperturaCerro Porteño (29)OlimpiaLibertad
ClausuraLibertad (16)NacionalGuaraní
2013AperturaNacional (9)GuaraníCerro Porteño
ClausuraCerro Porteño (30)LibertadCapiatá
2014AperturaLibertad (17)GuaraníOlimpia
ClausuraLibertad (18)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
2015AperturaCerro Porteño (31)GuaraníLibertad
ClausuraOlimpia (40)Cerro PorteñoGuaraní
2016AperturaLibertad (19)OlimpiaSol de América
ClausuraGuaraní (11)OlimpiaLibertad
2017AperturaLibertad (20)GuaraníOlimpia
ClausuraCerro Porteño (32)OlimpiaGuaraní
2018AperturaOlimpia (41)Cerro PorteñoLibertad
Clausura

Titles by club

Club Winners Runners-up Winning years Runners-up years
Olimpia41251912, 1914, 1916, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1947, 1948, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1965, 1968, 1971, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2011 Clausura, 2015 Clausura, 2018 Apertura1906, 1907, 1915, 1917, 1920, 1923, 1926, 1939, 1941, 1943, 1955, 1961, 1963, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1986, 1987, 1994, 2011 Apertura, 2012 Apertura, 2016 Apertura, 2016 Clausura, 2017 Clausura
Cerro Porteño32311913, 1915, 1918, 1919, 1935, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1944, 1950, 1954, 1961, 1963, 1966, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1987, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009 Apertura, 2012 Apertura, 2013 Clausura, 2015 Apertura, 2017 Clausura1914, 1937, 1938, 1942, 1945, 1948, 1951, 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1964, 1968, 1971, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2006, 2010 Apertura, 2010 Clausura, 2011 Clausura, 2014 Clausura, 2015 Clausura, 2018 Apertura
Libertad20211910, 1917, 1920, 1930, 1943, 1945, 1955, 1976, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008 Apertura, 2008 Clausura, 2010 Clausura, 2012 Clausura, 2014 Apertura, 2014 Clausura, 2016 Apertura, 2017 Apertura1909, 1924, 1927, 1928, 1929, 1931, 1944, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1967, 1977, 1990, 1992, 2004, 2005, 2009 Apertura, 2009 Clausura, 2013 Clausura
Guaraní11161906, 1907, 1921, 1923, 1949, 1964, 1967, 1969, 1984, 2010 Apertura, 2016 Clausura1916, 1925, 1947, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1970, 1989, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2008 Clausura, 2013 Apertura, 2014 Apertura, 2015 Apertura, 2017 Apertura
Nacional9101909, 1911, 1924, 1926, 1942, 1946, 2009 Clausura, 2011 Apertura, 2013 Apertura1918, 1921, 1927, 1949, 1962, 1964, 1982, 1985, 2008 Apertura, 2012 Clausura
Sol de América2111986, 19911912, 1913, 1935, 1940, 1946, 1952, 1957, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1988
Sportivo Luqueño241951, 19531975, 1983, 2001, 2007
Presidente Hayes101952 —

Topscorers

See also

References

  1. ↑ Daily "Hoy" (ed.): Paraguay tiene la 9na mejor liga del mundo. (in Spanish) 8 January 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  2. ↑ "THE STRONGEST NATIONAL LEAGUE OF THE WORLD". Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "THE STRONGEST NATIONAL LEAGUE OF THE WORLD : SPAIN'S LA LIGA AGAIN NUMBER 1 ! - IFFHS". iffhs.de. 14 January 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Historia de la APF Archived 22 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
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