| Season | 1980–81 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 24 July 1980 – 2 June 1981 |
| Champions | Saint-Étienne (10th title) |
| Relegated | Nîmes Angers |
| European Cup | Saint-Étienne |
| UEFA Cup | Nantes Bordeaux Monaco |
| Cup Winners' Cup | Bastia |
| Matches | 380 |
| Goals | 1,064 (2.8 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Delio Onnis (24 goals) |
← 1979–80 1981–82 → | |
1980–81 Division 1 was the 43rd season of the French top association football league, played from July 1980 to June 1981. The league was won by AS Saint-Etienne with 57 points, for whom this was their 10th title.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saint-Étienne (C) | 38 | 23 | 11 | 4 | 68 | 26 | +42 | 57 | Qualification to European Cup first round |
| 2 | Nantes | 38 | 22 | 11 | 5 | 74 | 36 | +38 | 55 | Qualification to UEFA Cup first round |
| 3 | Bordeaux | 38 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 57 | 34 | +23 | 49 | |
| 4 | Monaco | 38 | 19 | 11 | 8 | 58 | 41 | +17 | 49 | |
| 5 | Paris Saint-Germain | 38 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 62 | 50 | +12 | 46 | |
| 6 | Lyon | 38 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 70 | 54 | +16 | 41 | |
| 7 | Strasbourg | 38 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 44 | 47 | −3 | 40 | |
| 8 | Nancy | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 55 | 49 | +6 | 37 | |
| 9 | Metz | 38 | 10 | 16 | 12 | 48 | 53 | −5 | 36 | |
| 10 | Auxerre | 38 | 10 | 16 | 12 | 46 | 52 | −6 | 36 | |
| 11 | Valenciennes | 38 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 51 | 70 | −19 | 36 | |
| 12 | Bastia | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 50 | 55 | −5 | 35 | Qualification to Cup Winners' Cup first round [a] |
| 13 | Lens | 38 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 46 | 48 | −2 | 34 | |
| 14 | Sochaux | 38 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 51 | 59 | −8 | 34 | |
| 15 | Nice | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 47 | 61 | −14 | 32 | |
| 16 | Laval | 38 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 49 | 55 | −6 | 31 | |
| 17 | Lille | 38 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 55 | 71 | −16 | 31 | |
| 18 | Tours (O) | 38 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 54 | 71 | −17 | 31 | Qualification to relegation play-offs |
| 19 | Nîmes (R) | 38 | 6 | 14 | 18 | 46 | 66 | −20 | 26 | Relegation to French Division 2 |
| 20 | Angers (R) | 38 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 66 | −33 | 24 |
Promoted from Division 2, who will play in Division 1 season 1981/1982
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tours | 3–2 | Toulouse | 1–0 | 2–2 |
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Tours | 24 |
| 2 | | Laval | 23 |
| 3 | | Lyon | 21 |
| 4 | | Saint-Étienne | 20 |
| 5 | | Bordeaux | 18 |
| | Monaco | ||
| 7 | | Paris Saint-Germain | 16 |
| | Auxerre | ||
| | Nancy | ||
| 10 | | Bordeaux | 14 |
| | Strasbourg | ||
| | Saint-Étienne | ||
| | Nancy |
| # | Club | Average |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PSG | 23,329 |
| 2 | Saint-Étienne | 18,524 |
| 3 | Lyon | 17,441 |
| 4 | Nantes | 15,241 |
| 5 | Tours | 11,676 |
| 6 | Girondins | 11,397 |
| 7 | Lens | 11,385 |
| 8 | LOSC | 10,104 |
| 9 | Metz | 9,460 |
| 10 | Strasbourg | 8,607 |
| 11 | AJA | 8,450 |
| 12 | Nice | 7,691 |
| 13 | Nancy | 7,614 |
| 14 | Stade lavallois | 7,590 |
| 15 | Sochaux | 5,788 |
| 16 | Valenciennes | 5,558 |
| 17 | Nîmes | 5,183 |
| 18 | Angers | 4,664 |
| 19 | Monaco | 3,745 |
| 20 | Bastia | 2,971 |
Source: [1]