The 2022–23 Iraqi First Division League was the 49th season of what is now called the
Iraqi Premier Division League
The Iraqi Premier Division League ( ar, دوري الدرجة الممتازة العراقي) is the second-highest division of the Iraqi football league system after the Iraq Stars League. The league is contested by 22 clubs and is operated by t ...
, the second tier of the
Iraqi football league system
The Iraqi football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in Iraq. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at differ ...
, since its establishment in 1974. The number of clubs in the league have varied throughout history for various reasons. The top two teams are promoted to the
Iraq Stars League, while the bottom two teams in each group are directly relegated to the
Iraqi Second Division League.
In the last round of the league, in the Group 1,
Amanat Baghdad
Amanat Baghdad Sport Club ( ar, نادي أمانة بغداد الرياضي, lit=Mayoralty of Baghdad) is a football team based in Karkh District, Baghdad, Iraq, that competes in the Iraq Division One, the second tier of Iraqi football. For ...
was able to topped the group after achieving 38 points, while in the Group 2,
Al-Minaa
Al-Minaa Sports Club ( ar, نادي الميناء الرياضي, lit=Port Sports Club) is an Iraqi multi-sport club based in Al-Maqal, Basra that participates in the Iraq Division One, the second tier of Iraqi football. It is one of the mo ...
topped the group after achieving 46 points. Both teams were promoted to the Stars League, and it was decided that the final match between the two teams will be held in
Baghdad on May 26, 2023 to determine the league champion. The Al-Minaa administration demanded that the match be transferred to
Basra due to the large number of fans of the Al-Minaa, so that the match would be more attended, and the Amanat Baghdad administration agreed to that. Later, the
Football Association
The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world an ...
decided that the match would be held on 2 June in
Al-Fayhaa Stadium
Al-Fayhaa Stadium ( ar, مَلْعَب ٱلْفَيْحَاء, Malʿab al-Fayḥāʾ) is a multi-use stadium in Damascus, Syria, currently used mostly for football matches and serves as the home venue of the Syria national football team football ...
.
In the final, Al-Minaa was able to defeat Amanat Baghdad, 2–1, and win the title. The goals of Al-Minaa were scored by Sajjad Alaa (6') and Salem Ahmed (37'), while the goal of Amanat Baghdad was scored by Karrar Ali Bari (53').
Al-Jinsiya (who withdrew from the start) and
Al-Hawija from Group 1, and
Al-Sulaikh and
Al-Samawa from Group 2 were relegated to the Iraqi Second Division League after finishing in the bottom positions in the standings.
Team changes
The following teams have changed division since the 2021–22 season:
To
Iraqi First Division League
The Iraqi First Division League is a football league that is the third tier of the Iraqi football league system. The league consists of 26 teams and was founded in 1974. The number of clubs in the league have varied throughout history for various ...
Promoted from
Iraqi Second Division League
*
Al-Etisalat
*
Al-Hawija
*
Al-Jolan
*
Masafi Al-Wasat
Relegated from the
Premier League
*
Amanat Baghdad
Amanat Baghdad Sport Club ( ar, نادي أمانة بغداد الرياضي, lit=Mayoralty of Baghdad) is a football team based in Karkh District, Baghdad, Iraq, that competes in the Iraq Division One, the second tier of Iraqi football. For ...
*
Al-Minaa
Al-Minaa Sports Club ( ar, نادي الميناء الرياضي, lit=Port Sports Club) is an Iraqi multi-sport club based in Al-Maqal, Basra that participates in the Iraq Division One, the second tier of Iraqi football. It is one of the mo ...
*
Samarra
Samarra ( ar, سَامَرَّاء, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The city of Samarra was founded by Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutasim for his Turkish professional army ...
From
Iraqi First Division League
The Iraqi First Division League is a football league that is the third tier of the Iraqi football league system. The league consists of 26 teams and was founded in 1974. The number of clubs in the league have varied throughout history for various ...
Promoted to the
Premier League
*
Al-Hudood
*
Duhok
Duhok ( ku, دهۆک, translit=Dihok; ar, دهوك, Dahūk; syr, ܒܝܬ ܢܘܗܕܪܐ, Beth Nohadra) is a city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It's the capital city of Duhok Governorate.
History
The city's origin dates back to the Stone ...
*
Karbalaa
Relegated to
Iraqi Second Division League
*
Al-Alam
*
Babil
''Bābili(m)''
* sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠
* arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel''
* syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel''
* grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn''
* he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel''
* peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru''
* elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...
*
Ghaz Al-Shamal
Ghaz Al-Shamal ( ar, نادي غاز الشمال) is an Iraqi football team based in Kirkuk, that plays in Iraq Division one.
Managerial history
* Waleed Mohammed Qader
* Karim Qambel
* Mohammed Qasim
* Jumaa Jodaya
* Natiq Haddad
Honour ...
*
Suq Al-Shuyukh
Overview
Changes
In November 2020, The Iraq FA announced that the number of teams will decrease from 28 to 24 in total starting from 2021-2022 season. To make these changes possible, the Iraq FA announced that in 2022–23 season, a two teams are promoted to the Premier League, where the winner and runner-up of each group will play a play-off match, so that the winners will be promoted directly to the Premier League, while 6 teams in total are directly relegated to Second Division League.
On April 8, 2023, the promotion and relegation mechanism was changed, and the Football Association announced the promotion of the winning team in each group directly to the Premier League, and the relegation of the last two teams in the standings in each group to the Second Division League, as a result, two teams are promote and 4 teams are relegate.
Developments
On December 27, 2022, the
Iraq Football Association decided to stop the championship matches, starting from the ninth round, due to the holding of the
Arabian Gulf Cup
The Arabian Gulf Cup ( ar, كأس الخليج العربي, ''Kass Al-Khaleej Al-Arabi''), often referred to simply as the Gulf Cup, is a biennial football competition governed by the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation for its eight member nat ...
in Iraq, and decided that the championship would resume after the end of the Arabian Gulf Cup. Indeed, the ninth round of the championship resumed on January 18, 2023.
Teams
A total of 24 teams are contesting the league, including 17 sides from the
2021–22 season and the 3 relegated sides from the
Iraqi Premier League and the 4 promoted sides from the
Iraqi Second Division League, because of the recent changes necessary to adjustment to having 24 teams possible this season. The teams were divided into two groups, and the draw was held on October 27, 2022, and it was decided that the championship will start on November 18, 2022.
2022–23 season
Managerial changes
League table
Group 1
Results
Group 2
Results
Final