Gibraltar Football League

Last updated

Gibraltar Football League
Founded2019
CountryGibraltar
Confederation UEFA
Number of teams11
Level on pyramid1
Domestic cup(s) Rock Cup
International cup(s) UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa Conference League
Current champions Lincoln Red Imps (3rd title)
(2022–23)
Top goalscorerKike Gómez
(90)
TV partnersGibraltar FA TV
Website Official website
Gibraltar FA
Current: 2023–24 Gibraltar Football League

The Gibraltar Football League is the only senior tier of association football in Gibraltar, founded in 2019 as the Gibraltar National League after a merger of the Gibraltar Premier Division, which served as the top division of football on the Rock since 1905, and the Gibraltar Second Division, which had existed since 1909. It was announced in August 2019 by the Gibraltar Football Association. [1] The league is supported by the Gibraltar Intermediate League for U23 sides and Hound Dogs.

Contents

Format

Rumours of the new league began in 2018, when the Gibraltar FA announced plans for a single tier format in its league constitution for the 2018–19 Gibraltar Premier Division. [2] On 1 August 2019, the GFA confirmed details of the restructure of domestic football in Gibraltar, and the format of the new 16 team league. [3] After 4 teams left the league, the remaining 12 teams are to follow the same league format. [4] For the first 4 editions of the competition, teams played one round of games as a single league, before splitting into two groups: the Championship Group contested by the top 6 sides, and the Challenge Group between the bottom 6 sides. The winners of the Challenge Group will receive the GFA Challenge Trophy and receive a bye to the second round of the next season's Rock Cup. Hound Dogs, who participated in the final season of the Gibraltar Second Division, were granted special dispensation to compete in the Gibraltar Intermediate League.

The first season of the Gibraltar National League had no champion, as the season was declared null and void by the Gibraltar FA as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2021, the Gibraltar FA announced that every game of the 2021–22 Gibraltar National League season would be streamed online through a broadcasting deal with Footters. [5]

In July 2022, the league rebranded as the Gibraltar Football League, with a new identity and logo. [6] The following year saw a change of format for the league. Instead of a single round-robin before the league split, the league instead returned to a double round robin format, with each team playing each other twice. At the end of the regular season, only the top 6 progressed to the next stage, entering the GFL Championship Group to decide the champion. [7]

Teams

Of the 17 teams that formed the initial league, three founder teams withdrew before the inaugural season started: Gibraltar Phoenix, Gibraltar United, and Leo. Additionally, Olympique 13 were expelled from the league after forfeiting the first two matches of the 2019-20 season. [8] Hound Dogs, while a founding member, opted not to join the National League, instead competing in the Gibraltar Intermediate League for financial reasons. In December 2020, Boca Gibraltar were also expelled from the league. As such, the following 11 teams currently contest the competition.

Current clubs
TeamJoinedPrevious seasonPremier Division titlesGFL titlesGFA Challenge TrophiesHead coach
FCB Magpies 20193rd001 Flag of England.svg Nathan Rooney
College 1975 201910th000 Flag of Argentina.svg Leo Vela
Europa 20192nd700 Flag of Italy.svg Michele Di Piedi
Europa Point 201911th000 Flag of Sweden.svg Dalibor Savić
Glacis United 20196th1700 Flag of Argentina.svg Claudio Racino
Lincoln Red Imps 20191st2430 Flag of Spain.svg Javi Muñoz
Lions Gibraltar 20199th000 Flag of Gibraltar.svg Adrian Parral
Lynx 20194th000 Flag of Gibraltar.svg Albert Parody
Manchester 62 20198th701 Flag of England.svg Jamie McDonough
Mons Calpe 20197th001 Flag of Spain.svg Juan Marí Sánchez
St Joseph's 20195th100 Flag of Spain.svg Abraham Paz
Former clubs
TeamJoinedLast season
Gibraltar Phoenix 2019N/A [lower-alpha 1]
Gibraltar United 2019N/A [lower-alpha 1]
Leo 2019N/A [lower-alpha 1]
Olympique 13 2019 2019–20 [lower-alpha 2]
Boca Gibraltar 2019 2020–21 [lower-alpha 2]
  1. 1 2 3 Club folded before start of first season.
  2. 1 2 Club was expelled during the season.

List of winners

Table includes top three of the Championship Group (top half of table) and Challenge Group (bottom half of table)

SeasonChampionship GroupChallenge Group
ChampionsRunners UpThird PlaceFirst PlaceSecond PlaceThird Place
2019–20 none awarded [lower-alpha 1]
2020–21 Lincoln Red Imps Europa St Joseph's Bruno's Magpies Glacis United Manchester 62
2021–22 Lincoln Red Imps Europa St Joseph's Manchester 62 College 1975 Lynx
2022–23 Lincoln Red Imps Europa Bruno's Magpies Mons Calpe Manchester 62 Lions Gibraltar
2023–24 Not awarded [lower-alpha 2]
  1. ↑ The season was abandoned and declared null and void due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [9]
  2. ↑ The GFA Challenge Trophy was discontinued after the 2022–23 season.

See also

Related Research Articles

The Gibraltar Premier Division was a football league established by the Gibraltar Football Association (GFA) in 1905, and the top tier of football in Gibraltar. It originally contained eight member clubs, but it has grown over the years. In 1909 the league was split into two divisions between which clubs can be promoted and relegated at the end of each season. In the 2013–14 season, the Premier Division contained eight clubs with the Second Division containing 12 clubs. For sponsorship reasons it is known as the Argus Insurance Premier Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Red Imps F.C.</span> Football club in Gibraltar

Lincoln Red Imps Football Club is a professional association football club from Gibraltar. They play in the Gibraltar National League, and share Victoria Stadium with all other clubs in the territory. They are the country's record champion with 27 league titles, including fourteen consecutive titles between 2003 and 2016, and in 2014 were the first team to represent Gibraltar in the UEFA Champions League's qualifying stage. In August 2021, Lincoln became the first club from Gibraltar to ever reach the group stages of a European club competition after defeating the Latvian champions Riga FC in the play-off round of the UEFA Europa Conference League.

The 2017–18 Gibraltar Second Division was the fifth season of the second-tier football in Gibraltar since the Gibraltar Football Association joined UEFA. Like the previous season, this year the league was contested by 9 clubs. The season began on 26 September 2017, and is expected to end in May 2018, with a mid-season break anticipated while Victoria Stadium underwent improvements. There will be no Chesterton's Cup this season.

The 2017–18 Rock Cup was a single-leg knockout tournament played by clubs from Gibraltar. This season's version of the Rock Cup was sponsored by Gibtelecom, and is known as the Gibtelecom Rock Cup for sponsorship purposes. This season's edition was held throughout the season for the first time since 2011–12.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 Gibraltar Premier Division</span> Football league season

The 2018–19 Gibraltar Premier Division was the 120th season of the top-tier state football league in Gibraltar, as well as the sixth season since the Gibraltar Football Association joined UEFA in 2013. The league was contested by ten clubs, and began on 13 August 2018.

The Gibraltar Intermediate League is a semi-professional football league administered by the Gibraltar Football Association, launched in June 2018 as a replacement for the Gibraltar Reserves Division and the Under 18 Division in an effort to improve the standards of young Gibraltarian footballers.

The 2018–19 Gibraltar Second Division was the sixth season of the second tier football in Gibraltar since the Gibraltar Football Association joined UEFA. The season began on 15 August 2018. After the expulsion of Angels the previous season and withdrawal of Cannons, the league was contested by 7 clubs.

The Gibraltar Futsal First Division is the top Gibraltarian futsal league organized by the Gibraltar Football Association (GFA). Since the 2013-14 season, the champion qualifies to enter the preliminary round of the UEFA Futsal Champions League.

The 2019 Gibtelecom Rock Cup was a single-leg knockout tournament contested by clubs from Gibraltar. There were seventeen clubs participating in the cup this season. The final was played on 26 May 2019. The winner of the competition qualified to compete in the 2019–20 Europa League.

The 2018–19 Gibraltar Second Division Cup was the twelfth edition of the second division cup tournament on Gibraltar, and second under its current title. After a year without the tournament due to renovations to the only stadium on the territory, Victoria Stadium, the tournament returned in January 2019 during the 2018–19 Gibraltar Second Division's mid-season break.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019–20 Gibraltar National League</span> Football league season

The 2019–20 Gibraltar National League season is the first season of the new Gibraltar National League in Gibraltar, and the 121st season of football on the territory overall. The league was announced in June 2018 when the Gibraltar Football Association decided to merge the Gibraltar Premier Division and Gibraltar Second Division at the conclusion of the 2018–19 season.

The 2019–20 Gibraltar Intermediate League is the second season of under-23 football in Gibraltar, after reforms to reserve team football in June 2018. The league will be contested by 10 teams - nine under-23 sides plus Hound Dogs, and began on 18 August 2019.

The 2020 Gibtelecom Rock Cup was a single-leg knockout tournament contested by clubs from Gibraltar. There were thirteen clubs participating in the cup this season. The winner of the competition would have qualified to compete in the 2020–21 Europa League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020–21 Gibraltar National League</span> Football league season

The 2020–21 Gibraltar National League season is the second season of the new Gibraltar National League in Gibraltar, and the 122nd season of football on the territory overall. There are no reigning champions this season, as the previous season was declared abandoned as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The league is due to kick off on 16 October 2020. Instead of qualifying for the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League, teams placed 2nd, 3rd and the 2021 Rock Cup winners will qualify for the inaugural UEFA Europa Conference League.

The 2020–21 Gibraltar Intermediate League is the third season of under-23 football in Gibraltar, after reforms to reserve team football in June 2018. The league will be contested by 10 teams - nine under-23 sides plus Hound Dogs and began on 8 December 2020. Lincoln Red Imps are the reigning champions. The league was suspended from 17 December 2020 to 4 April 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, when the league resumed play, the format of the league changed so that they would only play each other once.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021–22 Gibraltar National League</span> Football league season

The 2021–22 Gibraltar National League season was the third season of the Gibraltar National League in Gibraltar, and the 123rd season of football on the territory overall. The league kicked off on 16 October 2021. Lincoln Red Imps were the reigning champions, winning the title on the final day of the 2020–21 season.

The 2021–22 Gibraltar Intermediate League is the fourth season of under-23 football in Gibraltar, after reforms to reserve team football in June 2018. The league will be contested by 12 teams - the eleven under-23 sides of the Gibraltar National League clubs plus Hound Dogs, and is set to begin on 18 October 2021. There are no reigning champions due to the previous season's abandonment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022–23 Gibraltar Football League</span> Football league season

The 2022–23 Gibraltar Football League season is the fourth season of the Gibraltar Football League in Gibraltar, and the 124th season of football on the territory overall. The league is due to kick off in Autumn 2022. Lincoln Red Imps are the reigning champions, winning their second title in April 2022. Due to the league's fall down the UEFA coefficient rankings, this season only 2 teams will qualify for the UEFA Europa Conference League.

The 2022–23 Gibraltar Intermediate League is the fifth season of under-23 football in Gibraltar, after reforms to reserve team football in June 2018. The league will be contested by 11 teams - ten under-23 sides of the Gibraltar Football League clubs plus Hound Dogs.

The 2023–24 Gibraltar Intermediate League is the sixth season of under-23 football in Gibraltar, after reforms to reserve team football in June 2018. The league will be contested by 11 teams - ten under-23 sides of the Gibraltar Football League clubs plus Hound Dogs.

References

  1. ↑ Restructuring of the Domestic Men's Senior League Gibraltar FA. 1 August 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  2. ↑ "Senior League Rules" (PDF). GFA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  3. ↑ Key changes to the domestic league revealed to clubs Gibraltar Chronicle. 1 August 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  4. ↑ "FC Olympique expelled from all GFA competitions". Gibraltar Football Association. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  5. ↑ Gibraltar National League to launch with new historic partnerships Gibraltar FA. 15 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  6. ↑ Introducing a new identity for the Gibraltar Football League Gibraltar FA. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  7. ↑ Mens Domestic Football Season to Kick off on Friday 15th September with the traditional Pepe Reyes Memorial Cup Gibraltar FA. 2 August 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  8. ↑ "FC Olympique expelled from all GFA competitions". Gibraltar Football Association. 11 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  9. ↑ "Gibraltar National League Season Declared Null and Void". Gibraltar Football Association. 7 May 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
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