Lebanese Premier League
Association football league in Lebanon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lebanese First Division (Arabic: الدوري اللبناني الدرجة الأولى), commonly known as the Lebanese Premier League (Arabic: الدوري اللبناني الممتاز, romanized: ad-dawrī al-lubnānī al-mumtāz), is the top division of the Lebanese football league system. Established in 1934 and organized by the Lebanese Football Association (LFA), the Lebanese Premier League is one of the oldest in the Middle East, originally launched under the name Edmond Rubeiz Cup.
| Organising body | Lebanese Football Association |
|---|---|
| Founded | May 1934 |
| Country | Lebanon |
| Confederation | AFC |
| Number of clubs | 12 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Lebanese Second Division |
| Domestic cups | |
| League cup | Lebanese Federation Cup |
| International cup | AFC Challenge League |
| Current champions | Ansar (16th title) (2025–26) |
| Most championships | Ansar (16 titles) |
| Top scorer | Hassan Maatouk (131) |
| Broadcaster(s) | MTV Lebanon, FIFA+ |
| Website | the-lfa |
| Current: 2026–27 Lebanese Premier League | |
As of the 2025–26 season, the league features 12 clubs and employs a split-season format, with a regular season followed by championship and relegation rounds. The league champion qualifies for the AFC Challenge League, while the bottom two teams are relegated to the Lebanese Second Division. The league introduced Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology in 2023.
Prominent early clubs included Nahda (who won the first edition), Homenetmen, and Homenmen. In recent years, clubs such as Ahed, Ansar, and Nejmeh have dominated the competition. Ansar holds the record for most league titles with 16, including a streak of 11 consecutive championships between 1988 and 1999.[a] Throughout its history, the league has experienced several interruptions due to political instability and conflict.
History
On 22 March 1933, representatives of 13 football clubs gathered in the Minet El Hosn district in Beirut to form the Lebanese Football Association (LFA).[1][2] The Lebanese Premier League began in May 1934 as the Edmond Rubeiz Cup, in honour of Nahda player Edmond Rubeiz who had died of typhoid the previous year.[3] The competition was held in a knockout format, with Nahda beating DPHB 7–1 in the final to win the inaugural competition.[3][4]
Nahda, AUB, and DPHB shared the titles during the first decade of the league.[4] Between the 1940s and 1960s Armenian clubs, mainly Homenetmen and Homenmen, were the most prominent in the Lebanese footballing scene.[5] The two clubs shared 11 titles in 16 seasons between 1943 and 1969.[4] Following a 12-year interruption of the league due to the Lebanese Civil War, Ansar dominated the league winning 11 consecutive league titles between 1988 and 1999.[4] They set a Guinness World Record for most consecutive league titles, which has been since broken by Skonto of Latvia in 2002.[6]
Nejmeh broke Ansar's streak, winning four out of five league titles between 2000 and 2005.[4] Since the late 2000s, Ahed have emerged as the dominant force in Lebanese football. They won their inaugural league title in 2008 and have since been crowned champions a total of nine times.[4] After having won the league title in 2019, Ahed became the three-time defending champions, a feat accomplished only one other time, by Ansar in 1992.[7] Due to financial and political issues in the country, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, the LFA decided to cancel the ongoing 2019–20 season.[8][9]
Competition format
There are 12 clubs in the Lebanese Premier League. Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss.
Teams are ranked by total points, followed by head-to-head points and head-to-head goal difference. If still equal, overall goal difference and then overall goals scored are taken into consideration. If teams remain tied, disciplinary points are considered.[10]
Split
Prior to the 2020–21 season, each club played the others twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 22 matches.[10]
Starting from the 2020–21 season, the league adopted a split system in which the season was divided into two phases.[10] In the first phase, each club played each other once, for a total of 11 matches, before the league was divided into a top six and a bottom six. In 2020–21, clubs played each team in their respective section once more, while from 2021–22 to 2022–23 they played each team twice.[11] From the 2023–24 season, each club played the other teams in its section three times.[12]
From the 2022–23 season, clubs carried over half of their points from the first phase into the second phase.[11]
The format was changed for the 2025–26 season. The Lebanese Football Association announced that the regular phase would be played on a home-and-away basis, after which the clubs' points would be halved and the league divided into two final groups.[13] The four highest-ranked clubs were to enter a championship group and the next four a relegation group, with both groups to be played on a home-and-away basis.[13]
The announced format was altered during the season following the withdrawal of one of the participating clubs. The club completed 11 matches before withdrawing, and its remaining fixtures were cancelled. The Lebanese Football Association subsequently placed the club last and relegated it to the Lebanese Second Division.[14][15]
As a result, the final stage of the 2025–26 season consisted of a four-team championship group and a three-team relegation group. The groups were played on a home-and-away basis, with each club in the championship group playing six additional matches and each club in the relegation group playing four.[14] The points carried over from the regular phase were halved and rounded upwards.[14]
Promotion and relegation
A system of promotion and relegation has existed between the Lebanese Premier League and the Lebanese Second Division since 1935. In April 1935, Second Division clubs requested that a promotion system be implemented.[16] It was proposed that, at the end of the season, every Second Division team seeking promotion to the First Division would have to play against three First Division teams and win all three matches.[16] The First Division teams were required to have at least seven players from their previous season's squad.[16]
The number of clubs relegated from the Lebanese Premier League varies according to the regulations adopted for each season. In the 2025–26 season, two clubs were relegated to the Lebanese Second Division, one following its withdrawal from the competition and the other through its final league position.[15]
Video assistant referee
Video assistant referee (VAR) was introduced to the Lebanese Premier League during the second half of the 2023–24 season. It uses video technology and match officials to assist the referee in reviewing decisions during matches. A match between Ahed and Racing Beirut on 6 August 2023 was used to test the VAR system before its introduction.[17]
Clubs
Champions
| Club | Wins | Winning seasons |
|---|---|---|
Ansar  | 16 | 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2020–21, 2024–25, 2025–26 |
| Ahed | 9 | 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23 |
| Nejmeh | 1972–73, 1974–75, 1999–00, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2008–09, 2013–14, 2023–24 | |
| Homenetmen | 7 | 1943–44, 1945–46, 1947–48, 1950–51, 1954–55, 1962–63, 1968–69 |
| Nahda | 5 | 1933–34, 1941–42, 1942–43, 1946–47, 1948–49 |
| Homenmen | 4 | 1944–45, 1953–54, 1956–57, 1960–61 |
| AUB | 3 | 1934–35, 1936–37, 1937–38 |
| DPHB | 1935–36, 1938–39, 1940–41 | |
| Racing Beirut | 1955–56, 1964–65, 1969–70 | |
| Safa | 2011–12, 2012–13, 2015–16 | |
| Shabiba Mazraa | 1 | 1966–67 |
| Olympic Beirut | 2002–03 |
2026–27 season
The following 12 clubs will compete in the Lebanese Premier League during the 2026–27 season.
| Club | Home city | Position in 2025–26 | Top division titles | Most recent top division title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahed | Beirut (Ouzai) | 4th | 9 | 2022–23 |
| Akhaa Ahli Aley | Aley | 2nd in the Second Division | 0 | N/a |
| Ansar | Beirut (Tariq el-Jdideh) | 1st | 16 | 2025–26 |
| Jwaya | Jwaya | 3rd | 0 | N/a |
| Mabarra | Beirut (Tariq el-Matar) | 8th | 0 | N/a |
| Nejmeh | Beirut (Ras Beirut) | 2nd | 9 | 2023–24 |
| Riyadi Abbasiyah | Abbassiyeh | 9th | 0 | N/a |
| Safa | Beirut (Wata el-Msaytbeh) | 5th | 3 | 2015–16 |
| Sagesse | Beirut (Achrafieh) | 6th | 0 | N/a |
| Shabab Sahel | Beirut (Haret Hreik) | 7th | 0 | N/a |
| Tadamon Sour | Tyre | 10th | 0 | N/a |
| Tripoli | Tripoli | 1st in the Second Division | 1 | 2002–03 |
  Beirut Locations of the 2026–27 Lebanese Premier League clubs |
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Media coverage
Broadcasting rights for the Lebanese Premier League were distributed to MTV Lebanon starting from the 2016–17 season, on a five-year contract worth $600,000 per season;[18] the contract was renewed in 2022 for a further four seasons.[19] Live coverage of three games is broadcast each week, and weekly highlights of each match are produced once a week.[20] The LFA broadcast the other weekly games on its YouTube channel between 2020 and 2022.[21][22]
In October 2022, the LFA and FIFA signed an agreement to show all matches in the Lebanese Second Division, Lebanese Super Cup and Lebanese Women's Football League through the FIFA+ platform;[23] FIFA+ also replaced the LFA YouTube channel in transmitting the remaining Lebanese Premier League games not covered by MTV.[24]
Stadiums
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At the start of the 2005–06 season, the Lebanese government imposed a ban on spectators due to fears of political and sectarian-inspired violence in the stadiums.[25][26] After six years, in 2011, the ban was lifted and fans were allowed to regularly attend matches.[26] While attendance was initially scarce, spectators started to show up more regularly season after season. Indeed, in 2018 ultras groups started to form, with Nejmeh's "Ultras Supernova" being the first.[27][28][29] Other teams quickly followed, such as Ansar, Ahed and Bourj.[30][29][31]
Players
Foreign players and transfer regulations
Prior to the 2023–24 season, Lebanese clubs were permitted three foreign players on the field simultaneously.[32] Additionally, up to two extra Palestinian players born in Lebanon could be listed on a match sheet, but only one Palestinian player was allowed among the eleven players on the field.[32] Furthermore, each club competing in an AFC competition could field one additional foreign player exclusively for continental matches, as the AFC permitted four foreign players in the starting eleven, one of whom from an AFC country.[33]
Starting from 2023–24, the foreign player limit increased to four,[34] and Palestinian players on a team sheet became unlimited, with the field restriction remaining.[12] Following an alteration in AFC regulations, allowing six foreign players in the starting eleven, including one from an AFC country, clubs in AFC competitions are now allowed two extra foreign players to be only fielded in continental competitions.[35]
Since the 1998–99 season, the Lebanese Football Association (LFA) has prevented the acquisition of foreign goalkeepers.[36][37] Due to the economic situation in Lebanon, clubs were barred from fielding foreign players in the league in 2020–21 and the first half of 2021–22.[10]
Players may only be transferred during transfer windows that are set by the LFA. The two transfer windows run from 15 May to 25 July and from 1 January to 30 January.[38]
Homegrown players
Starting from the 2019–20 season, all teams in the Lebanese Premier League and Lebanese Second Division must involve a certain number of under-21 players in both the league and the Lebanese FA Cup.[39] In case a club were to not meet the required number of minutes at the end of the season, they would have three points deducted from their total in the league.[12][39] Initially, the quota was set at a minimum of 1,000 minutes for one under-22 player, a minimum of 1,500 aggregate minutes for two players and a minimum of 2,000 aggregate minutes for three players.[39]
As the 2019–20 season was cancelled, the player quota was ultimately implemented for the 2020–21 season, with a few amendments.[40] Each club had to involve one player for at least 600 minutes, two players for at least 800 combined minutes, and three players for at least 1,200 combined minutes.[40] Also, each club is allowed a maximum of eight players over the age of 30, with only five being able to be fielded in a game.[40] In the 2022–23 season, the quotas changed to 2,000 combined minutes for two under-21 players and 3,000 combined minuted for three players.[11] In 2023–24, the quotas changed once again, to 750 minutes for one under-21 player and 1,000 combined minutes for two players.[12]
Top scorers
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Bold indicates a player still active in the Lebanese Premier League. Italics indicates a player still active outside the Lebanese Premier League.
| Rank | Player | Club(s) | Years active | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Hassan Maatouk[43] |
Ahed, Nejmeh, Ansar, Jwaya | 2004–2011, 2017–present | 131 |
| 2 | Vardan Ghazaryan |
Homenetmen, Sagesse | 1992–2002, 2003–2004, 2006–2009 | 129 |
| 3 | Fadi Alloush |
Ansar, Akhaa Ahli Aley, Homenmen | 1985–1999 | 124 |
| 4 | Abbas Ahmad Atwi |
Nejmeh, Shabab Arabi, Shabab Sahel, Akhaa Ahli Aley | 1997–2012, 2012–2022 | 115 |
| 5 | Mohammad Kassas |
Shabab Sahel, Sagesse, Olympic Beirut, Nejmeh, Ahed, Safa | 1999–2005, 2006–2008, 2008–2011, 2016–2017 | 114 |
| 6 | Haitham Zein |
Tadamon Sour, Nejmeh, Chabab Ghazieh, Islah Borj Shmali, Salam Sour | 1995–2006, 2008–2012 | 113 |
| 7 | Ghassan Choueikh |
Bourj, Majd, Shabab Sahel, Tadamon Sour, Safa, Rayyan Sarafand, Mabarra | 1997–2012 | 97 |
| 8 |  Elhadji Malick Tall |
Ansar | 2017–2020, 2022–2024, 2026–present | 94 |
| 9 | Abbas Ali Atwi |
Bourj, Olympic Beirut, Ahed | 2000–2022 | 91 |
| 10 | Zaher Al Indari |
Akhaa Ahli Aley, Safa | 1992–2005 | 85 |
Hassan Maatouk holds the record for most Lebanese Premier League goals, with 131.[41] Seven players were top scorers more than once: Elhadji Malick Tall four times, Hassan Maatouk three times, and Levon Altonian, Fadi Alloush, Mohammad Kassas, Mohammed Ghaddar, and Lucas Galán twice.[44] Fadi Alloush holds the record for most goals in a season (32) while playing for Ansar.[45]
Official match ball
On 30 July 2019, the LFA announced a three-year deal with German sportswear company Jako for €120,000, with the Jako Match 2.0 becoming the league's official match ball starting from the 2019–20 season.[46] In August 2023, the LFA announced that Spanish sportswear company Kelme would be sponsoring the league.[citation needed]
- 2019–2020: Jako Match 2.0
- 2020–2023: Jako Galaxy Match 2.0
- 2023–present: Kelme Professional Pelota de Futbol
