Argentine Primera División
The Primera División (Spanish pronunciation: [pɾiˈmeɾa ðiβiˈsjon]; English: "First Division"), known officially as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Sur Finanzas for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in Argentina, organised by the Argentine Football Association (AFA).
| Organising body | AFA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 12 April 1891 |
| First season | 1931 |
| Country | Argentina |
| Confederation | CONMEBOL |
| Number of teams | 28 (22 from 2026) |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Primera Nacional |
| Domestic cup(s) | Copa Argentina Supercopa Argentina Copa Liga Profesional Trofeo de Campeones Supercopa Internacional |
| International cup(s) | Copa Libertadores Copa Sudamericana |
| Current champions | River Plate (2023) (38th title) |
| Most championships | River Plate (38 titles) |
| Most appearances | Hugo Gatti (765) |
| Top goalscorer | Ángel Labruna (296) |
| TV partners | ESPN Premium TNT Sports (Argentina) List of international broadcasters |
| Website | ligaprofesional.ar |
| Current: 2024 Argentine Primera División | |
The Primera División is the country's premier football division and is the top division of the Argentine football league system. It operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Primera Nacional (Second Division), with the teams placed lowest at the end of the season being relegated. Since 2020, relegation has been suspended due to COVID-19 pandemic.
With the first championship held in 1891, Argentina became the first country outside the United Kingdom (where the Football League had debuted in 1888, and the Scottish and Irish Football Leagues in 1890) to establish a football league. In the early years, only teams from Buenos Aires, Greater Buenos Aires, La Plata and Rosario were affiliated to the national association. Teams from other cities would join in later years.
The Primera División turned professional in 1931 when 18 clubs broke away from the amateur leagues to form a professional one. Since then, the season has been contested annually in four different formats and calendars.
The Argentine championship was ranked as one of the top ten strongest leagues worldwide for the 2015 calendar year by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS). Argentina placed 4th after La Liga (Spain), Serie A (Italy), and Bundesliga (Germany), but has since descended to 19th in the 2021 list.