HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The División Profesional de la
Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol The Paraguayan Football Association ( ; APF) (Guarani language, Guarani: ''Paraguái Mangapy Atyguasu''), is the omnibus governing body of football (soccer), football in Paraguay. It organizes the Paraguayan football league system, Paraguayan fo ...
(; "Professional Division of the
Paraguayan Football Association The Paraguayan Football Association ( ; APF) (Guarani language, Guarani: ''Paraguái Mangapy Atyguasu''), is the omnibus governing body of football (soccer), football in Paraguay. It organizes the Paraguayan football league system, Paraguayan fo ...
"), also known as the Primera División (; "first division"), or due to sponsorship reasons Copa de Primera TIGO-Visión Banco, is the top-flight professional
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 ...
league in Paraguay. Currently, there are 12 teams in the first division. The most successful club is Olimpia, with 47 championships. Libertad are the most recent champions, having won the 2025 Apertura tournament. As of 2022,
IFFHS The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) is an organisation that chronicles the history and records of association football. It was founded in 1984 by Alfredo Pöge in Leipzig. The IFFHS was based in Abu Dhabi for so ...
ranked the league as the 10th strongest in the world and 3rd in South America.


History

Liga Paraguaya's first game was played in 1906, after the director of the El Diario newspaper, Don Adolfo Riquelme, brought to his office on 18 June 1906, the representatives of the five existing football teams in Paraguay at that time ( Olimpia, Guaraní, Libertad, General Díaz, and Nacional) to create the governing body of football in Paraguay: the Liga Paraguaya de Fútbol (known today as
Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol The Paraguayan Football Association ( ; APF) (Guarani language, Guarani: ''Paraguái Mangapy Atyguasu''), is the omnibus governing body of football (soccer), football in Paraguay. It organizes the Paraguayan football league system, Paraguayan fo ...
). The representatives were William Paats and Junio Godoy (Olimpia) Ramón Caballero, Manuel Bella and Salvador Melián (Guaraní), Juan Escalada (Libertad), César Urdapilleta (General Díaz), and Vicente Gadea (Nacional).Historia de la APF
The Liga Paraguaya saw Club Guaraní as the first champion in 1906, after defeating Olimpia in the final. The Primera División was founded in 1906 with 5 teams, and turned professional in 1935 when 10 clubs broke away from the amateur leagues to form a professional league. Since 1996 the format of tournament was changed to Torneo Apertura and Clausura, but since 2008 each tournament is independent. Traditionally, the dominance of Olimpia and Cerro Porteño went mostly unchallenged for decades. All of this changed at the turn of the 21st century. Since then, Libertad has been the most dominant club, while Nacional and Guaraní have also experienced success at the local level.


Format

The league is currently contested by 12 teams that play home and away games in a round-robin format. The league is traditionally divided into two halves: the Torneo Apertura (Opening Tournament) from February to July, and the Torneo Clausura (Closing Tournament) from July to December. Relegation is based on an averaging system. At the end of each season, the two teams with the worst three-year averages are relegated, and the two best teams in the "División Intermedia" (second division) are promoted to Primera División.


International cup participation

Since 2017, Paraguay have eight slots in international cups (four in the Copa Libertadores de America and four in the
Copa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, also known as Copa Sudamericana (; ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL, the governing body of football in South America, since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club com ...
). These eight slots will be filled by eight teams. In the Copa Libertadores, the winner of the Apertura and Clausura tournaments qualify automatically. The third (going into the second round play-off) and fourth (going into the first round play-off) representatives are the best placed non-champion teams from the accumulative table of both the Apertura and Clausura. In the Copa Sudamericana, the 4th, 5th and 6th best placed teams from the Apertura and Clausura accumulative table qualify for the first stage, alongside the winners of the
Copa Paraguay The Copa Paraguay is a knockout football competition in men's domestic Paraguayan football, starting in 2018 and succeeding the defunct Torneo República. The project for its creation was officially presented in December 2017 and approved by the ...
.


Teams

The following are the teams in the first division in 2024: ;Notes


List of champions

Complete list of champions since 1906. Paraguayan football turned professional since the 1935 season.


Titles by club

*Teams in bold compete in the Primera División as of the 2024 season. *''Italics'' indicates clubs that no longer exist or disaffiliated from the APF.


Topscorers


Sponsors


Main sponsors

*
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
(1997-1998) *
Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...
(1997-1998) * Lloyds TSB (1998-1999) * Banco del Paraná (2000 only) *
Gillette Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gil ...
(2005-2007) * Tigo (2008-present) * Visión Banco (2010-present)


Current official sponsors

*
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
(1987-2004/2011-present) * Pilsen (1988-2007/2011-present) * Caña Fortin * Vino Toro * Lácteos Trébol * Lácteos Lactolanda * Pastas Anita * Supermercado Superseis * Supermercado La Bomba * Supermercado Arete * Supermercados Kingo * Bein TV (1999-present) *
DirecTV DirecTV, LLC is an American Multichannel television in the United States, multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital Satellite television, s ...
(1999-present) * GOL TV (2003-presente)


Former official sponsors

*
Daewoo Motor Daewoo Motors ( ) was a South Korean Automotive industry, automotive company established in 1937 as "National Motors". The company changed its name several times until 1982 when it became "Daewoo Motors" following its acquisition by the Daewoo, ...
* Suzuki Motor *
Pirelli Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is an Italian multinational tyre manufacturer based in the city of Milan, Italy. The company, which has been listed on the Borsa Italiana since 1922, is the 5th-largest tyre manufacturer, and is focused on the consumer pro ...
* (2005-2010) *
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
(1994-1999) *
Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...
(1995-1999) *
Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, a brand of Belgian company AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. Budweiser is a filte ...
(2007-2008) * Multicanal (1996-2006) * Nuevo Siglo Cable TV (1996-2007) *
SKY The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the planetary surface, surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from ...
(2000-2004) * Supermercado Real * Supermercado Gran Vía * Supermercado Ycua Bolaños * Shopping Multiplaza * González Giménez


Media coverage


See also

* Football in Paraguay * Paraguayan football league system * División Intermedia * Paraguayan Tercera División * Paraguayan Primera División B * Primera División B Nacional * Paraguayan Cuarta División * Campeonato Nacional de Interligas * Unión del Fútbol del Interior * Paraguayan women's football championship * Football Federation of the 1st Department Concepción * Football Federation of the 2nd Department San Pedro * Football Federation of the 3rd Department Cordillera * Football Federation of the 4th Department Guairá * Football Federation of the 5th Department Caaguazú * Football Federation of the 6th Department Caazapá * Football Federation of the 7th Department Itapúa * Football Federation of the 8th Department Misiones * Football Federation of the 9th Department Paraguarí * Football Federation of the 10th Department Alto Paraná * Football Federation of the 11th Department Central * Football Federation of the 12th Department Ñeembucú * Football Federation of the 13th Department Amambay * Football Federation of the 14th Department Canindeyú * Football Federation of the 15th Department Presidente Hayes * Football Federation of the 16th Department Alto Paraguay * Football Federation of the 17th Department Boquerón


References


External links


RSSSF

Paraguayan Football Association Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paraguayan Primera Division 1
Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...
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 ...