The Peruvian football champions are the winners of the highest league in Peruvian football, which is currently named as Liga 1 and organized by Peruvian Football Federation. The Liga Peruana de Football was established in 1912. It was an amateur league that lasted until 1921 due to scheduling and organizing conflicts. In this league only teams from Lima participated. In 1926, the Peruvian Football Federation took control of organizing the tournament and continued the Peruvian Primera División with the introduction of teams from Callao. In 1951, the Primera División turned professional and in 1966, the Torneo Descentralizado was founded in which the first non-capital teams were invited to play the first national championship. [1] Between 1996 and 2008, the Apertura and Clausura format was adopted.
In its early stages the first division was dominated by Universitario and Alianza Lima. Other notable teams were Atlético Chalaco, Sport Boys and Deportivo Municipal. The professional era saw Sporting Cristal rise to challenge the dominance of Universitario and Alianza Lima. These three teams account for nearly a third of the titles won. Melgar, Juan Aurich and Binacional are the only teams outside the Lima Region to have won national titles. [2] As of 2024, the league title has been won by over 21 clubs but Universitario, Alianza Lima, and Sporting Cristal share a total of 73 titles of the 108 titles contested. Universitario and Alianza Lima alone account for 53 of the titles contested.
Peruvian football had amateur status since its foundation until 1950. In the course of this era, Alianza Lima, Atlético Chalaco, Municipal, Sport Boys, and Universitario de Deportes shared the most titles. The first run from 1912 to 1921 featured clubs only from Lima and Callao under the Liga Peruana de Football and were awarded the Escudo Dewar (Dewar Shield, after a trophy gifted to the League by the British Embassy). In 1926, the Peruvian Football Federation organized its first championship and included teams from the Callao league. [3] In 1936 no tournament took place due the 1936 Olympic games. [4] In 1951 the league obtained professional status and in 1966 expanded the league to the entire nation, beginning the Descentralizado.
Universitario and Alianza Lima have a clear advantage of titles won over the other clubs in Peru. They have won a combined total of 52 Primera División championships of the 106 seasons contested, 26 and 26 respectively. Sporting Cristal trails behind with 20 professional era titles since their debut in 1956 and further behind is the traditional Sport Boys having conquered 6 league titles. Newcomer Universidad de San Martín de Porres has begun to challenge the dominance of the Big Three with back-to-back titles in 2007 and 2008 and a third i 2010. In addition, Melgar and Unión Huaral are the only clubs outside the metropolitan area of Lima to have won a national championship. Other noteworthy clubs to have won championships include 4-time winner Deportivo Municipal.
Universitario is the club with the longest spell in the Primera División, playing since 1928 when they debuted in the Primera División. They are followed by archrivals Alianza Lima who competed in the first edition of the Primera División but were relegated in 1938 and returning a year later for an uninterrupted spell since 1940. Melgar is the team with the longest run in the Primera División outside Lima, competing since 1971. [10]
The oldest clubs currently participating in the Primera División are Alianza Lima and Cienciano which were founded at the beginning of the turn of the century in 1901. The newest clubs active in the Primera División include Ayacucho, Sport Huancayo, Cusco and Universidad de San Martín. The current Juan Aurich participating in the Descentralizado is not the same club that competed in previous seasons.
As of 2023, Universitario, Alianza Lima and Sporting Cristal have won 26, 26 and 20 official league titles respectively. They are regarded as the Big Three of Peru. However, other teams have risen to new heights. In particular, a team from Cusco, Cienciano, has been the only Peruvian team to win international tournaments || Copa Sudamericana 2003 and Recopa Sudamericana 2004 ||, though it has yet to win the domestic league title. Other notable teams include Binacional, Juan Aurich, Melgar and Unión Huaral, which are the only non-capital teams to have won a national championship. [10]
Club | Total | Amateur era (1912–1950) | Professional era (1951–) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liga Peruana de Football Lima & Callao | Liga Provincial Lima & Callao | Liga Provincial Lima & Callao | Descentralizado (1966–2018) | Liga 1 (2019–) | |||
Universitario [C] | 28 | — | 7 | 3 | 16 | 2 | |
Alianza Lima [D] | 25 | 2 | 6 | 6 | 9 | 2 | |
Sporting Cristal | 20 | — | — | 2 | 17 | 1 | |
Sport Boys | 6 | — | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
Deportivo Municipal | 4 | — | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Universidad San Martín | 3 | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | |
Atlético Chalaco | 2 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Melgar | 2 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |
Mariscal Sucre | 2 | — | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | |
Lima Cricket | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Unión Huaral | 2 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |
Sport Progreso | 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | |
Sport José Gálvez [F] | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | |
Juan Aurich | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |
Jorge Chávez N°1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | |
Binacional | 1 | — | — | — | 0 | 1 | |
Centro Iqueño | 1 | — | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | |
Defensor Lima | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
San Agustín | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | — | |
Sport Juan Bielovucic | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | |
Sport Inca | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — |
Region | Nº of titles | Clubs |
---|---|---|
Lima | 96 | Universitario (28), Alianza Lima (25), Sporting Cristal (20), Deportivo Municipal (4), Universidad San Martín (3), Sport José Gálvez (2), Lima Cricket (2), Mariscal Sucre (2), Sport Progreso (2), Unión Huaral (2), Centro Iqueño (1), San Agustín (1), Defensor Lima (1), Jorge Chávez N°1 (1), Sport Inca (1), Sport Juan Bielovucic (1) |
Callao | 8 | Sport Boys (6), Atlético Chalaco (2) |
Arequipa | 2 | Melgar (2) |
Lambayeque | 1 | Juan Aurich (1) |
Puno | 1 | Binacional (1) |
Several matches to define champions have been played over the course of Peruvian football history. The earliest title-defining matches were played between teams that tied for first place at the end of the season or tournament phase and forced an extra match to determine the champion. Eventually, finals were organized to be played at the end of the season after set conditions were fulfilled or tournament winners. The first of these finals started in the eighties when winners of each regional tournament played each other to determine the season champion; if the same team won both tournaments, they were champions by default. In the late nineties the Apertura and Clausura tournaments were hosted so that the winners of each tournament would also face each other in the final. If the same team won both tournaments, they were champions by default.
In 2001, Alianza Lima won the Apertura tournament, but their performance in the Clausura tournament suffered and placed a shocking 10th place—which led to a rule change. A tournament-winning team had to place above a set place in order to be able to play the final. In the cases of the seasons of 2002, 2007 and 2008, one or both of the tournament winners failed to place above a set position therefore no final was played and the season champion was determined by the aggregate table or by the tournament winner that had satisfied the set conditions.
Match went to extra time † |
Match decided by a penalty shootout after extra time |
Match replayed |
These matches were played when teams were tied for first in the general league or in a specific tournament.
The Torneo de Primeros Equipos was a football championship that was played in Peru between 1931 and 1934. The tournament was part of the Campeonato de Selección y Competencia of the Peruvian Primera División. The sum of points from this tournament plus the fourth part of the Torneo de Equipos de Reserva (Reserve Tournament) gave the title of Campeón Absoluto (Absolute Champion) of the First Division.
Season | Champion | Runner-up |
---|---|---|
1931 | Alianza Lima | Sporting Tabaco |
1932 | Alianza Lima | Federación Universitaria |
1933 | Alianza Lima | Universitario |
1934 | Universitario | Alianza Lima |
These were the filler tournaments played parallel to or in between the national championship. Some of these tournaments awarded the winning clubs with a qualification to an international tournament or guaranteed a spot in a further round whilst two of these filler tournaments did not award anything to its winner. The purpose of these tournaments was so that the national team could participate in its compromises without affecting the national championship when calling domestic players. [11]
Season | Tournament | Champion | Runner-up | Award |
---|---|---|---|---|
1969 | Apertura | Atlético Grau | Universitario | Advanced to end-of-season Liguilla |
1972 | Interzonal | José Gálvez Sporting Cristal | — | Advanced to end-of-season Liguilla |
1977 | Interzonal | Alianza Lima Coronel Bolognesi | — | Advanced to end-of-season Liguilla |
1981 | Regional | Deportivo Municipal | Universitario | Advanced to Copa Libertadores second berth play-off |
1992 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | Sporting Cristal | Ovación Sipesa | Qualified for 1993 Copa Libertadores |
1993 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | Alianza Lima | Sporting Cristal | Qualified for 1994 Copa Libertadores |
1994 | Apertura | Sporting Cristal | Ciclista Lima | Qualified for 1995 Copa CONMEBOL |
1994 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | Alianza Lima | Deportivo Sipesa | Qualified for 1995 Copa Libertadores |
1996 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | Alianza Lima | Universitario | Qualified for 1997 Copa Libertadores |
1997 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores | Sporting Cristal | Universitario | Qualified for 1998 Copa Libertadores |
2017 | Torneo de Verano | Melgar | UTC | Qualified for 2018 Copa Libertadores |
2018 | Torneo de Verano | Sporting Cristal | Sport Huancayo | Qualified for 2018 Torneo Descentralizado Semifinals |
The first regional seasons began in 1984 where teams were divided into regional groups and would advance to the Descentralizado or descend to the División Intermedia for a promotion/relegation tournament against second division teams. Only the 1984 regional did not crown a champion. Starting in 1989, the Descentralizado was temporarily replaced by two regional tournaments, each crowning a champion and contesting a national season final. [11]
Season | Champion | Runner-up | |
---|---|---|---|
1984 | Regional | No champion; only a qualification tournament | |
Descentralizado | Sport Boys | CNI | |
1985 | Regional | Universitario | CNI |
Descentralizado | Universitario | UTC | |
1986 | Regional | San Agustín | Alianza Lima |
Descentralizado | Alianza Lima | San Agustín | |
1987 | Regional | Universitario | Unión Huaral |
Descentralizado | Alianza Lima | Unión Huaral | |
1988 | Regional | Universitario | Unión Huaral |
Descentralizado "B" | Alianza Lima | Deportivo Cañaña | |
Descentralizado | Sporting Cristal | Universitario | |
1989 | Regional I | Sporting Cristal | Alianza Atlético |
Regional II | Unión Huaral | Universitario | |
1990 | Regional I | Sport Boys | Universitario |
Regional II | Universitario | Alianza Lima | |
1991 | Regional I | Sporting Cristal | Sport Boys |
Regional II | Sporting Cristal | Universitario | |
In 1997, the first Apertura and Clausura half-year tournaments were introduced and had its champions face each other in a season final as in the regional tournaments between 1989 and 1991. They were abolished at the end of 2008 season, and restored in 2014 to 2019.
Club | Total | Half-year tournaments | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Torneo Apertura (1997–) | Torneo Clausura (1997–) | Fase 1 (2020–2021) | Fase 2 (2020–2021) | Torneo Regional (1984–1991) | Torneo Descentralizado (1984–1988) | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores (1992–1997) | Torneo de Verano (2017–2018) | ||
Alianza Lima | 19 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
Sporting Cristal | 17 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Universitario | 16 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Melgar | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Cienciano | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Universidad San Martín | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Sport Boys | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Coronel Bolognesi | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Ayacucho | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Binacional | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Juan Aurich | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
San Agustín | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Unión Huaral | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Throughout the history of Peruvian football, tournaments have been divided into a few stages or have employed filler tournaments played alongside the Descentralizado due to the Peru national football team's compromises, be it FIFA World Cup qualification, FIFA World Cup participation, or Copa América. [11]
Season | Cup | Champion | Runner-up | Award |
---|---|---|---|---|
1970 | Copa Presidente de la República | Universitario | Melgar | None |
1989 | Torneo Plácido Galindo | Defensor Lima | Universitario | Advanced to Regional II end-of-season pre-Liguilla |
1993 | Torneo Intermedio | Deportivo Municipal | Deportivo Sipesa | Qualified for 1994 Copa CONMEBOL |
2011 | Torneo Intermedio | José Gálvez | Sport Áncash | Qualified for 2012 Copa Federación |
2014 | Torneo del Inca | Alianza Lima | Universidad San Martín | Qualified for 2015 Copa Libertadores |
2015 | Torneo del Inca | Universidad César Vallejo | Alianza Lima | Qualified for 2015 Torneo Descentralizado Semifinals |
2019 | Copa Bicentenario | Atlético Grau | Sport Huancayo | Qualified for 2020 Copa Sudamericana |
2021 | Copa Bicentenario | Sporting Cristal | Carlos A. Mannucci | Qualified for 2022 Copa Sudamericana |
2025 | Copa LFP - FPF | Qualified for 2026 Copa Sudamericana |
Season | Cup | Champion | Runner-up | Award |
---|---|---|---|---|
1919 | Copa de Campeones del Perú | Alianza Lima | Jorge Chávez N°1 | None |
2012 | Copa Federación | José Gálvez | Juan Aurich | None |
2020 | Supercopa Peruana | Atlético Grau | Binacional | None |
Rank | Club | Titles | Winning years |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Alianza Lima | 2 | 1919 Copa de Campeones del Perú, 2014 Torneo del Inca |
Atlético Grau | 2 | 2019 Copa Bicentenario, 2020 Supercopa Peruana | |
José Gálvez | 2 | 2011 Torneo Intermedio, 2012 Copa Federación | |
4 | Defensor Lima | 1 | 1989 Torneo Plácido Galindo |
Deportivo Municipal | 1 | 1993 Torneo Intermedio | |
Sporting Cristal | 1 | 2021 Copa Bicentenario | |
Universidad César Vallejo | 1 | 2015 Torneo del Inca | |
Universitario | 1 | 1970 Copa Presidente de la República | |
Foot Ball Club Melgar, known simply as FBC Melgar or Melgar, is a Peruvian professional football club based in Arequipa, Peru. It is one of Peru's oldest football teams, founded in 1915 under the name Juventud Melgar by a group of football enthusiasts from Arequipa. The club currently participates in the Peruvian Primera División, the top tier of Peruvian football.
The Peru First Division, officially known as Liga 1, is the top flight of association football in Peru. It has been referred to as Torneo Descentralizado since 1966, when the first teams residing outside the Lima and Callao provinces were invited to compete in the inaugural league national competition.
The 2006 Torneo Descentralizado was the ninetieth season of Peruvian football. A total of 12 teams competed in the tournament, with Sporting Cristal as the defending champion. Alianza Lima won its twenty-second Primera División title after beating Cienciano in the final playoffs. The season began on February 3, 2006, and ended on December 27, 2006.
The 2005 Torneo Descentralizado was the eighty-ninth season of Peruvian football. A total of 12 teams competed in the tournament. Sporting Cristal won its fifteenth Primera División title after beating Cienciano in the season final. The season started on March 5, 2005, ended on December 21, 2005.
The 2004 Torneo Descentralizado was the eighty-eighth season of Peruvian football. A total of 14 teams competed in the tournament, with Alianza Lima as the defending champion. Alianza Lima won its twenty-first Primera División title after beating Sporting Cristal in the final playoff.
The 2003 Torneo Descentralizado was the eighty-seventh season of top-flight Peruvian football. A total of 12 teams competed in the tournament, with Sporting Cristal as the defending champion. Alianza Lima won its twentieth Primera División title after beating Sporting Cristal in the final playoff.
The 2000 season of the Torneo Descentralizado was the 85th season of the top category of Peruvian football (soccer). It was played by 12 teams. The national champion was Universitario.
The 1999 season of the Torneo Descentralizado was the 84th season of the top category of Peruvian football (soccer). It was played by 12 teams. The national champion was Universitario.
The 1998 season of the Torneo Descentralizado was the 83rd season of the top category of Peruvian football (soccer). It was played by 12 teams. The national champion was Universitario.
The 2007 Torneo Descentralizado is the ninety-first season of Peruvian football. A total of 12 teams competed in the tournament, with Alianza Lima as the defending champion. Universidad San Martín won its first national title as it did not have to play in the season finals due to Coronel Bolognesi's poor performance in the Torneo Apertura. The season began on February 3, 2007, and ended on December 16, 2007.
The 2008 Torneo Descentralizado was the ninety-second season of Peruvian football. A total of 14 teams competed in the tournament, with Universidad San Martín defending their national title. The season began on February 17, 2008 and ended on December 14, 2008.
The 1993 Torneo Descentralizado was the 78th season of the top category of Peruvian football (soccer). A total of 16 teams competed in the tournament. Universitario de Deportes conquered its twenty-first Primera División.
The 1985 Torneo Descentralizado, the top category of Peruvian football, was played by 30 teams. The national champion was Universitario.
The 2011 Torneo Descentralizado de Fútbol Profesional was the ninety-fifth season of Association Peruvian football. A total of 16 teams competed in the tournament, with Universidad de San Martín as the defending champion. The Torneo Descentralizado began on 12 February and concluded on 14 December with the victory of Juan Aurich over Alianza Lima in the penalty kicks of the final Play-off, giving Juan Aurich its debut Peruvian title.
The Torneo Descentralizado is the national Peruvian professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the Peruvian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. The responsibility for its organization lies within the Asociación Deportiva de Fútbol Profesional. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Segunda División and the Copa Peru. Seasons run from February to December but the competition format varies from season to season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. It is currently sponsored by Movistar TV and therefore commercially known as the Torneo Descentralizado Copa Movistar.
The 2014 Torneo Descentralizado de Fútbol Profesional was the 98th season of the highest division of Peruvian football. A total of 16 teams competed in the tournament. The Torneo Descentralizado began on June 7 and ended on December 21 2014.
The 2019 Liga 1 de Fútbol Profesional was the 103rd season of the highest division of Peruvian football. A total of 18 teams competed in the season, with Sporting Cristal coming in as defending champions.
The 2022 Copa Bicentenario was a planned tournament with the participation of the 19 teams of the Liga 1, and 14 teams of the Liga 2. The champions would have been entitled to qualify for the 2023 Copa Sudamericana, as well as the Supercopa Peruana against the Liga 1 champions. Sporting Cristal were the defending champions.
Unión Huaral y FBC Melgar son los dos únicos equipos del interior que se han logrado consagrar campeones nacionales.