Uruguayan Primera División

Primera División

Countries	Uruguay
Confederation	CONMEBOL
Founded	1900
Number of teams	16
Levels on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Segunda División
International cup(s)	Copa Libertadores Copa Sudamericana
Current champions	Penãrol (2009–10)
2009–10 season

The Liga Profesional de Primera División (English: First Division Professional League), also known as the Primera División Uruguaya or Primera División de Uruguay (English: Uruguayan First Division), is the top-flight professional football league in Uruguay. It is organized by the Asociación Uruguaya de Fútbol and is contested by 16 teams.

History

Professionalism

Between 1900 and 1931, the league was an amateur competition. Since 1932, the league has been a professional competition.

Format

After 1994, the competition was divided in two stages, called the Opening Championship (Torneo Apertura) and Closing Championship (Torneo Clausura), with an end-of-season two-legged final match between the winners of these two tournaments.

In the 2005/06 season, the winners of the Apertura and Clausura tournaments played a two (or three) legged playoff; the winner of that playoff played against the best team in the aggregate table to decide the 2005/06 season champion.

In the 2006/07 season, the competition was reduced to 16 clubs.

Season

Originally, like other South American football leagues, the league was contested according to calendar year, from austral summer to summer in Southern Hemisphere. In 2005, the league started to play in "European season", from boreal summer to summer in Northern Hemisphere starting in August, with the aim of preventing clubs from losing many players in the middle of the season. In the first semester of 2005, a special tournament was held to decide the qualification to international competition.

The season of 2008/09 was intended to be the last one to be played in "European season", as the system appeared to be unable to prevent clubs from losing players between Apertura (opening) tournament to Clausura (closing). As of 2010 the European calendar style remains,but before the beginning of each season there have been talks and votations to change it back to a year calendar, with no positive results so far.

As a side note, Indonesia U-17 competes in the youth system.

Current Teams 2010-11

• Bella Vista
• Central Español
• Cerro
• Danubio
• Defensor Sporting
• El Tanque Sisley
• Fénix
• Liverpool
• Miramar Misiones
• Montevideo Wanderers
• Nacional
• Peñarol
• Racing
• Rampla Juniors
• River Plate
• Tacuarembó FC

Relegated in 2009/10

• CA Atenas
• Cerrito
• Cerro Largo

List of champions

Amateur Era

Amateur champions

• Nacional 11
• CURCC/Peñarol 9
• River Plate FC 4
• Montevideo Wanderers 3
• Rampla Juniors 1

Notes:

1. There is controversy over CURCC and Peñarol. The official club position claims that these clubs are the same (position helped by the fact that AUF allowed Peñarol to play the national championship in the spot inherited from CURCC, from 1913 to 1914), while rivals Nacional position claims that these clubs are different, alleging that CURCC continued to exist and was even affiliated to AUF until 1915. Without conclusive evidence, it's better to treat them as different entities.
2. The 1904 championship was not played due to civil war in Uruguay.
3. River Plate F.C. is a different club from that of C.A. River Plate. (although it seems to be minor controversy on this statement)
4. Due to internal differences in Uruguayan football, a Uruguayan Federation was created (led by Peñarol) in 1923. The Federation organised two parallel tournaments, one in 1923 won by Wanderers, the other in 1924 won by Peñarol. These tournaments are not recognised by the Uruguayan Football Association as Uruguayan championships.
5. The 1925 championship was not finished, the Uruguayan government ended the internal difference mentioned above.
6. In 1926, the Uruguayan championship was played under a Consejo Provisorio (Provisory Council), as the official and dissident Uruguayan Football Associations were reunited. AUF doesn't recognise that championship as official.
7. The 1930 championship was not played due to the organisation of the first FIFA World Cup in Uruguay.

Professional Era

Notes:

• The 1948 championship was not completed due to a players strike.
• C.A Defensor merged with Sporting C.U in 1989, winning the 1991 title as Defensor Sporting.
• The seasons of 1989 and 2005 were the only ones played in single round roubin (no home and away system)
• Since 1994 the year champion emerged from either winning one semester and the finals, or the two semesters without needing final games, this last happened in 1998 and 2006/07.

Professional champions

Top-three finishes

Total of Uruguayan League titles (amateur and professional)

• Peñarol/C.U.R.C.C. 46^[7]
• Nacional 42
• Defensor Sporting 4
• River Plate F.C. 4
• Danubio 3
• Montevideo Wanderers 3
• Rampla Juniors 1
• Central Español 1
• Progreso 1
• Bella Vista 1

notes:

• River Plate FC is not the same club than actual CA River Plate, with whom it only shares the colours and name as it is a complete different entity created from the merge of two other clubs (Capurro and Olimpia).
• Montevideo Wanderers claims 4 titles, represented as 4 stars in the official jersey, although AUF as in the case of Peñarol 1923 title, don't recognize the FUF title won in 1924 and states the 4 star as inaccurate.

See also

• Campeonato Uruguayo de Fútbol
• Segunda División Uruguaya

References

External links

• RSSSF
• current tourney
• Primera Division Uruguayo