Campionato Sammarinese di Calcio (English translation: Sammarinese Football Championship) is the highest competition for

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

clubs located at the only level of the

Sammarinese Sammarinese () are citizens and people of the Republic of San Marino. Language San Marino recognizes Italian as the official language. The indigenous Sammarinese language is a variety of Romagnol spoken by approximately 83 percent of the populati ...

football league system Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' generally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

(no relegation system exists) and has been operating since the 1985–1986 season. Currently, Campionato Sammarinese di Calcio is ranked last (55th) among

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an leagues according to UEFA's league coefficient, which is based on the performance of Sammarinese clubs in the Champions League,

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

and the Conference League.

Rules

Until 1996, the league had two levels, ''Serie A1'' and '' Serie A2'', and a relegation/promotion system. However, the teams promoted from the second level could also participate in the championship

play-off The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eith ...

against Serie A1's first teams. All the clubs play at the same level since then. Before 2018–2019 season, they were split into two divisions called ''Girone'' (or "Groups"). The teams played home and away matches in their ''girone'' and once against the teams from the other ''girone''. The first three teams in each ''girone'' entered a

double-elimination A double-elimination tournament is a type of elimination tournament competition in which a participant ceases to be eligible to win the tournament's championship upon having lost ''two'' games or matches. It stands in contrast to a single-elimin ...

play-off tournament, which was the only seen in association football world, to decide the championship winners, who qualified for the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

preliminary phase. In the 2018–2019 season, the rules changed. All the clubs were still split into two ''girone''. The teams played once against the other teams in the same ''girone''. The top four teams in each ''girone'' proceeded to group 1 in the second stage, while the others proceeded to group 2. Teams played twice against each team in the same group. The second and the third team in group 2 proceeded to the play-off. The winner of the play-off, the top team in group 2 and the top 6 teams in group 1 proceeded to the final stage. The championship winner qualified for the

preliminary phase and the first runner-up qualified for the

preliminary phase. In the 2020–2021 season, a new format was applied. Now, all the teams play in the same league and play each other twice. At the end of the regular season, the top twelve teams proceed to the play-off tournament, deciding the winner who qualifies for the

preliminary phase, and the loser of the final for the Conference League preliminary phase. In the 2023-24 season, the double-round robin format remained, but the play-offs and final were discontinued for the first time in the competition’s history. This time round, the team top of the table after every team has played each other twice, are awarded the title thus keeping in line with the majority of most European leagues. The domestic cup winners qualify for the Conference League preliminary phase.

Stadiums

Sanmarinese teams do not have home grounds of their own. Instead, the following venues are randomly chosen for every match: Sometimes the

San Marino Stadium The San Marino Stadium (formerly Stadio Olimpico di Serravalle) is a multi-purpose stadium in Serravalle, San Marino. First opened in 1969, it is currently used mostly for football matches. It is the national stadium of San Marino. Overview Th ...

, based in Serravalle, is also used. Since there are not many grounds, matches are played on two days of each week, usually Saturday and Sunday. The play-off finals and the European fixtures are always played in the Stadio Olimpico.

Teams (2023–24)

There are 16 teams in championship. Campionato Dilettanti San Marino

Champions

Winners by season

The 2019–20 season was abandoned due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Tre Fiori, with the highest points obtained before the suspension, was crowned champions and qualified for the

Titles by team

Top scorers

;Most time goalscorers: *4 times: **

Imre Badalassi Imre () is a Hungarian language, Hungarian masculine first name, which is also in Estonian language, Estonian use, where the corresponding name day is 10 April. It has been suggested that it relates to the name Emeric, Emmerich (name), Emmerich o ...

(2017-18, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2023-24) ;Most goals by a player in a single season: *30 goals. **

(2023-24)

References

External links

Federazione Sammarinese Giuoco Calcio official site
RSSSF.com
Campionato Sammarinese di Calcio summary
– Soccerway {{UEFA leagues 1

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

1985 establishments in San Marino Sports leagues established in 1985