Liga AUF Uruguaya
Professional association football league in Uruguay
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Liga AUF Uruguaya, also known as Liga Profesional de Primera División (American Spanish [ˈliɣa pɾofesjoˈnal de pɾiˈmeɾa ðiβiˈsjon], English: First Division Professional League, local: [pɾiˈmeɾa ðiβiˈsjon], First Division), named "Torneo Uruguayo Copa Coca-Cola" for sponsorship reasons, is the highest professional football league in Uruguay organized by the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF).
| |
| Founded | 1900 |
|---|---|
| Country | Uruguay |
| Confederation | CONMEBOL |
| Number of clubs | 16 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Segunda División |
| Domestic cup(s) | Copa Uruguay Supercopa Uruguaya Copa de la Liga AUF |
| International cup(s) | Copa Libertadores Copa Sudamericana |
| Current champions | Nacional (50th title) (2025) |
| Most championships | |
| Top scorer | Fernando Morena (230) |
| Broadcaster(s) | DirecTV Sports, Disney+, Tenfield, Antel TV |
| Website | auf.org.uy |
| Current: 2026 season | |
The first championship was held in 1900, being an amateur competition until 1932 when the league became professional. From 1900 to the 2024 season there have been 121 first division seasons.
In 2011, the Uruguayan Primera División was regarded as the 23rd most difficult football league in the 21st century by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS).[1]
If considered the same club, Peñarol/CURCC is the most successful Uruguayan club with 52 titles. Otherwise, it is Nacional with 50 titles. Of clubs to win titles, only Rampla Juniors did not win multiple titles. Rampla Juniors and Wanderers were the only clubs to not win titles consecutively.
History
The Uruguayan Primera División was held for the first time in 1900. Between 1923 and 1925, under the Uruguayan football schism, a dissident league, the Federación Uruguaya de Football, was established. The body operated in parallel with the official Association (AUF). After an intervention by the Uruguayan government to impose the dissolution of the FUF, in 1926 a Provisional Council ("Concejo Provisorio") organised a championship to unify the two organizations. Peñarol was the winner of the Serie A of the tournament. Nevertheless, neither the AUF nor the FIFA recognised the titles of the championships organized by FUF or CP.[2]
From 1930 to 1975, either Nacional or Peñarol won every title. This streak was finally broken when Defensor won its first title in 1976. Besides Nacional or Peñarol, no other club has won titles consecutively. Both Peñarol (1958 to 1962 and 1993 to 1997) and Nacional (from 1939 to 1943) hold the record title streaks winning five titles consecutively. The longest period of time without neither Peñarol nor Nacional winning the title was from 1987 to 1991, when Defensor, Danubio, Progreso, Bella Vista, and again Defensor won the five tournaments played during that period.[3]
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.
Originally, like other South American football leagues, the league was contested according to the calendar year, from austral summer to summer in the Southern Hemisphere. In 2005, the league started to play the "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 short season was held to decide the qualification to international competition. In the 2005–06 season, the winners of the Apertura and Clausura tournaments played a two (or three) legged play-off; 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. 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 the Apertura (opening) tournament and the Clausura (closing). However, the transition did not take place for several years. After a regular 2015–16 season was played, a short 2016 was played in the latter half of the year, with the full calendar year system in place once again beginning with the 2017 season.
Division levels
| Year | Level | Relegation to |
|---|---|---|
| 1903–1914 | 1 | Segunda División |
| 1915–1941 | 1 | Divisional Intermedia |
| 1942–1995 | 1 | Primera División B |
| 1996–present | 1 | Segunda División Profesional |
Participating teams
A total of 60 teams have participated in the Primera Division since its inception in 1900. Nacional has played the most seasons followed by Peñarol/CURCC. Peñarol and Nacional are also the only two teams to have never been relegated out of the Primera Division. Of the so-called 'minor' teams the record for most seasons lies with Montevideo Wanderers.
2026 season
All statistics pertain only to the Uruguayan Championships organized by the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF), not including FUF tournaments of 1923, 1924 and the 1926 Consejo Provisorio tournament in seasons counted. The founding dates of clubs are those declared by the clubs themselves involved.[n 1] The column "stadium" reflects the stadium where the team play their home matches, but does not indicate that the team in question owns the stadium.[n 2]
| Club | City | Stadium | Capacity | Est. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albion | Montevideo | Luis Franzini | 16,000 | 1891 |
| Boston River | Montevideo | Campeones Olímpicos | 5,124 | 1939 |
| Central Español | Montevideo | Parque Palermo | 6,500 | 1905 |
| Cerro | Montevideo | Luis Tróccoli | 25,000 | 1922 |
| Cerro Largo | Melo | Antonio Ubilla | 9,000 | 2002 |
| Danubio | Montevideo | Jardines del Hipódromo | 18,000 | 1932 |
| Defensor Sporting | Montevideo | Luis Franzini | 16,000 | 1913 |
| Deportivo Maldonado | Maldonado | Domingo Burgueño Miguel | 22,000 | 1928 |
| Juventud | Las Piedras | Parque Artigas | 12,000 | 1935 |
| Liverpool | Montevideo | Belvedere | 10,000 | 1915 |
| Montevideo City Torque | Montevideo | Centenario | 60,235 | 2007 |
| Montevideo Wanderers | Montevideo | Parque Alfredo Viera | 11,000 | 1902 |
| Nacional | Montevideo | Gran Parque Central | 34,000 | 1899 |
| Peñarol | Montevideo | Campeón del Siglo | 40,000 | 1891 / 1913[n 1] |
| Progreso | Montevideo | Abraham Paladino | 8,000 | 1917 |
| Racing | Montevideo | Osvaldo Roberto | 8,500 | 1919 |
Champions
List of champions (1900–present)
All tournaments organized by the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) except where indicated.
- (In bracket, title count):
Titles by club
- As of 30 November 2025
- Clubs participating in the 2026 Liga AUF Uruguaya are denoted in bold type.
- Clubs no longer active are denoted in italics.
Half-year / Short tournaments
Apertura and Clausura seasons
Torneo Intermedio
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Nacional | 1–0 | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2018 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2018 | Nacional | 3–2 | Torque | Qualified for 2019 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2019 | Liverpool | 2–2 (5–4 p) | River Plate | Qualified for 2020 Copa Sudamericana and 2020 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2020 | Nacional | 0–0 (4–1 p) | Montevideo Wanderers | Qualified for 2021 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2021 | (Not held)[n 11] | |||
| 2022 | Nacional | 1–0 | Liverpool | Qualified for 2023 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2023 | Liverpool | 1–0 | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2024 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2024 | Nacional | 1–1 (8–7 p) | Peñarol | Qualified for 2025 Supercopa Uruguaya |
| 2025 | Peñarol | 0–0 (5–3 p) | Nacional | Qualified for 2026 Supercopa Uruguaya |
Torneo Clasificatorio
Liguilla Pre-Libertadores de América
| Season | Champion | Runner-up | Award |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Peñarol | Montevideo Wanderers | Qualified for 1975 Copa Libertadores |
| 1975 | Peñarol | Nacional | Qualified for 1976 Copa Libertadores |
| 1976 | Defensor Sporting | Peñarol | Qualified for 1977 Copa Libertadores |
| 1977 | Peñarol | Danubio | Qualified for 1978 Copa Libertadores |
| 1978 | Peñarol | Nacional | Qualified for 1979 Copa Libertadores |
| 1979 | Defensor Sporting | Nacional | Qualified for 1980 Copa Libertadores |
| 1980 | Peñarol | Bella Vista | Qualified for 1981 Copa Libertadores |
| 1981 | Defensor Sporting | Peñarol | Qualified for 1982 Copa Libertadores |
| 1982 | Nacional | Montevideo Wanderers | Qualified for 1983 Copa Libertadores |
| 1983 | Danubio | Nacional | Qualified for 1984 Copa Libertadores |
| 1984 | Peñarol | Bella Vista | Qualified for 1985 Copa Libertadores |
| 1985 | Peñarol | Montevideo Wanderers | Qualified for 1986 Copa Libertadores |
| 1986 | Peñarol | Progreso | Qualified for 1987 Copa Libertadores |
| 1987 | Montevideo Wanderers | Nacional | Qualified for 1988 Copa Libertadores |
| 1988 | Peñarol | Danubio | Qualified for 1989 Copa Libertadores |
| 1989 | Defensor Sporting | Progreso | Qualified for 1990 Copa Libertadores |
| 1990 | Nacional | Bella Vista | Qualified for 1991 Copa Libertadores |
| 1991 | Defensor Sporting | Nacional | Qualified for 1992 Copa Libertadores |
| 1992 | Nacional | Bella Vista | Qualified for 1993 Copa Libertadores |
| 1993 | Nacional | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 1994 Copa Libertadores |
| 1994 | Peñarol | Cerro | Qualified for 1995 Copa Libertadores |
| 1995 | Defensor Sporting | Peñarol | Qualified for 1996 Copa Libertadores |
| 1996 | Nacional | Peñarol | Qualified for 1997 Copa Libertadores |
| 1997 | Peñarol | Nacional | Qualified for 1998 Copa Libertadores |
| 1998 | Bella Vista | Nacional | Qualified for 1999 Copa Libertadores |
| 1999 | Nacional | Bella Vista | Qualified for 2000 Copa Libertadores |
| 2000 | Defensor Sporting | Peñarol | Qualified for 2001 Copa Libertadores |
| 2001 | Montevideo Wanderers | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2002 Copa Libertadores |
| 2002 | Fénix | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2003 Copa Libertadores |
| 2003 | Fénix | Danubio | Qualified for 2004 Copa Libertadores |
| 2004 | Peñarol | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2005 Copa Libertadores |
| 2005 | (Not held) | ||
| 2005–06 | Defensor Sporting | Danubio | Qualified for 2007 Copa Libertadores |
| 2006–07 | Nacional | Montevideo Wanderers | Qualified for 2008 Copa Libertadores |
| 2007–08 | Nacional | Defensor Sporting | Qualified for 2009 Copa Libertadores |
| 2008–09 | Cerro | Racing | Qualified for 2010 Copa Libertadores |
Top scorers
See also
Notes
- Albion and Boston River present Estadio Luis Franzini in Montevideo and Estadio Campeones Olímpicos in Florida as their respective stadiums, but the former is owned by Defensor Sporting and the latter is owned by the Departamental Intendancy of Florida.
- During the early years of football, teams did not have designated managers; instead, leadership responsibilities were typically assumed by the players themselves, most often by the team captain, who took on both organizational and tactical roles.
- The 1904 championship was not played due to the Battle of Masoller
- Title count considering C.A. Peñarol as a continuity of CURCC
- The 1925 championship was not finished because of internal differences.
- As the AUF did not organise a championship, a "Concejo Provisorio" was established to hold a tournament, which was won by Peñarol
- No championship was played because of the 1930 FIFA World Cup.
- Not played due to a players strike
- (1901–1911): Titles won by the CURCC. With FIFA [5] and CONMEBOL[6] recognising Peñarol as CURCC's continuity, the club included those championship in their list of honours. On the other side, some historians say that football became active in CURCC until its dissolution in 1913 so Peñarol was a different institution.[4]
- The Torneo Intermedio was not played in 2021 due to schedule constraints caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
