Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1

Pre-independence (1904–1956)

Football was born in Tunisia in 1904 with the unofficial creation of the Racing Club de Tunis, formalized in 1905 but which had to wait for the creation of other clubs in Tunis and Bizerte to participate in an official competition. Then the government is obliged to take an active interest in it. It distributed a few grants, though very small. A committee of the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques, responsible for the management of all sports in Tunisia, was then created. In 1910, a first series championship was organized with the participation of the Racing Club, Sporting Club de Tunis, Lycée Carnot de Tunis, the Colonial School of Agriculture, the Football Club of Tunis and the Red Star Club de l'Ariana, and a second series made up of the second teams of Racing Club de Tunis, Sporting and Gallia Club. The national title is awarded after a final between Racing and Stade maritime de Bizerte (champion of the Mediterranean squadrons) with a score of 2–0.

There are then very few Tunisian player. But, surprisingly, La Dépêche tunisienne published on 12 June 1910 the list of players of the Khereddine Club team, called to play against the Ariana Club and who are all Tunisians. It is the first fully Tunisian team but which we have not heard from later and which precedes the Comète Club team, created in 1914 but which did not survive the First World War. The Racing Club won the championship in 1909–10, 1910–11 and 1913–14,^[2][3] then in 1919–20 and 1920–21, while Sporting de Ferryville was crowned in 1911–12 and 1912–13. The championship became official with the creation of the Tunisian Football Association League in 1921 was established, which is the Tunisian branch of the French Football Federation. Until 1939, the title of champion was awarded following play-offs between regional champions. From 1946 to 1947, a championship of "excellence" (national division) is created and is contested at the national level. In 1944–45, 1945–46 and 1952–53, the championship was not contested and replaced by a criterium (a sort of group tournament where participation was not compulsory). These years saw the creation of the Stade Tunisien in 1948.

Post-independence (1956–present)

Following Tunisia's independence on 20 March 1956, a profound reorganization of national football took place. The main clubs associated with French colonialism, such as Racing Club de Tunis, Sporting Club de Tunis, Stade gaulois, and Avant-garde, were dissolved. On 29 March 1957, the Tunisian Football Federation was founded, which has administered Tunisian football ever since, and the championship began to be played under its auspices. The first season after independence saw CS Hammam-Lif crowned champion,^[4] followed by Étoile Sportive du Sahel, Club Africain, and Espérance Sportive de Tunis. In the 1956–57 season, Stade Tunisien won its first title,^[5] while in 1957–58, Étoile du Sahel secured its second championship.^[6] Espérance won its first post-independence titles in the 1958–59 and 1959–60 seasons,^[7][8] quickly establishing itself as one of the dominant teams. In 1960, the Tunisian Super Cup was created. Stade Tunisien continued its winning streak, becoming champions in 1960–61 and 1961–62,^[9][10] and the first team to achieve the double (league and Tunisian Cup) after independence. However, a dramatic event marked this period: on 20 March 1961, President Habib Bourguiba ordered the dissolution of Étoile Sportive du Sahel due to riots instigated by its fans. After a year's absence, the club returned triumphantly in the 1962–63 season, winning both the league and the cup, thus achieving its second double of the independent era.

During the 1960s, Club Africain won its first post-independence titles in 1963–64 and 1966–67.^[11][12] Stade Tunisien added another championship in 1964–65,^[13] consolidating its dominance in this decade with four titles. Étoile du Sahel was crowned champion again in 1965–66,^[14] while Sfax Railway Sport achieved its first post-independence title in 1967–68,^[15] following its victories in 1933–34 and 1952–53.^[16] The 1968–69 season marked the first championship for CS Sfaxien, securing the second consecutive title for the city of Sfax.^[17] The 1970s began with Espérance's fourth title in 1969–70.^[18] CS Sfaxien won its second post-independence championship in 1970–71,^[19] while Étoile du Sahel won in 1971–72.^[20] Club Africain secured two consecutive titles in 1972–73 and 1973–74,^[21][22] and Espérance added three more championships in 1974–75, 1975–76, and 1981–82.^[23][24][25] A notable event was the 1976–77 coronation of JS Kairouan, breaking the dominance of the larger clubs.^[26] CS Sfaxien won in 1977–78, a season in which the Tunisian Cup could not be completed due to the national team's participation in the 1978 FIFA World Cup. Club Africain closed out the decade with two consecutive titles in 1978–79 and 1979–80 seasons.

The 1980s were characterized by the alternating title wins of the four major Tunisian football clubs. CS Sfaxien won his fourth and fifth title in 1980–81 and 1982–83,^[27][28] while Espérance de Tunis dominated with four titles in 1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, and 1988–89, achieving their tenth championship. Étoile Sportive du Sahel secured three consecutive or nearly consecutive titles in 1985–86 and 1986–87,^[29][30] reaching their seventh championship. CA Bizertin won their fourth title in 1983–84, demonstrating that other teams could also compete for the title.^[31] Club Africain closed out the decade with their ninth championship in 1989–90.^[32]

Broadcasting rights

More information Country, Television Channel ...

Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 Media Coverage
Country	Television Channel	Matches
Qatar	Al-Kass Sports Channel	Main Matches
Tunisia	El Watania 1
	El Watania 2
	Diwan Sport	All Matches

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Association ranking for the 2025–26 CAF club season

The association ranking for the 2025–26 CAF Champions League and the 2025–26 CAF Confederation Cup will be based on results from each CAF club competition from 2020–21 to the 2024–25 season.

Legend

• CL: CAF Champions League
• CC: CAF Confederation Cup
• ≥: Associations points might increase on basis of its clubs performance in 2024–25 CAF club competitions
•   Associations ranked 1–12 are eligible to enter two teams in each CAF club competition.

More information Rank, Association ...

Rank			Association	2020–21 (× 1)		2021–22 (× 2)		2022–23 (× 3)		2023–24 (× 4)		2024–25 (× 5)		Total
2025	2024	Mvt		CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC
1	1	—	Egypt	8	3	7	4	8	2.5	7	7	10	4	190.5
2	2	—	Morocco	4	6	9	5	8	2	2	4	5	5	142
3	4	+1	South Africa	8	2	5	4	4	3	4	1.5	9	3	131
4	3	-1	Algeria	6	5	7	1	6	5	2	3	5	5	130
5	6	+1	Tanzania	3	0.5	0	2	3	4	6	0	2	4	82.5
6	5	-1	Tunisia	4	3	5	1	4	2	6	1	3	0.5	82.5
7	8	+1	Angola	1	0	5	0	2	0	3	1.5	2	2	55
8	7	-1	DR Congo	4	0	0	3	1	2	4	0	2	0	45
9	9	—	Sudan	3	0	3	0	3	0	2	0	3	0	41
10	11	+1	Ivory Coast	0	0	0	1	0	3	3	0	1	2	38
11	10	-1	Libya	0	0.5	0	5	0	0.5	0	3	0	0	24
12	12	—	Nigeria	0	2	0	0	0	2	0	2	0	1	21

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2026–27 season participating Clubs

Tunis

CAB

CSS

ESHS

ESM

ESS

ESZ

OB

PSS

USBG

USM

Tunis teams:
AS Marsa
Club Africain
CS Hammam-Lif
Espérance de Tunis
JS El Omrane
Stade Tunisien

Locations of the 2026–27 season teams.

By club

More information Rank, Club ...

Rank	Club	Winners	Seasons
1	Espérance de Tunis	34	1941–42, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1969–70, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2023–24, 2024–25
2	Club Africain	14	1946–47, 1947–48, 1963–64, 1966–67, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1995–96, 2007–08, 2014–15, 2025–26
3	Étoile du Sahel	11	1949–50, 1957–58, 1962–63, 1965–66, 1971–72, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1996–97, 2006–07, 2015–16, 2022–23
5	Racing Club de Tunis	9	1907, 1908–09, 1909–10, 1910–11, 1913–14, 1919–20, 1920–21, 1921–22, 1924–25
4	CS Sfaxien	8	1968–69, 1970–71, 1977–78, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1994–95, 2004–05, 2012–13
6	CS Hammam-Lif	4	1950–51, 1953–54, 1954–55, 1955–56
	Stade Tunisien	4	1956–57, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1964–65
	CA Bizertin	4	1944–45, 1945–46, 1948–49, 1983–84
	Italia de Tunis	4	1931–32, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37
10	Sfax RS	3	1933–34, 1952–53, 1967–68
	US Tunis	3	1929–30, 1930–31, 1932–33
	Stade Gaulois de Tunis	3	1922–23, 1923–24, 1926–27
13	Sporting de Ferryville	2	1911–12, 1912–13
	Sporting Club de Tunis	2	1925–26, 1927–28
15	JS Kairouan	1	1976–77
	Savoia de la Goulette	1	1937–38
	CS Gabésien	1	1938–39
	Avant Garde de Tunis	1	1928–29

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• Teams in Bold compete in 2026–27 Ligue 1.
• Teams in Italique are Defunct.

By region

• Teams in Italic are Defunct.

Most titled Managers

Faouzi Benzarti has won the tournament on a record eleven occasions with Espérance de Tunis (5), Étoile du Sahel (4) and Club Africain (2), while Youssef Zouaoui have won the title on five occasions with Espérance de Tunis (4) and CA Bizertin (1).

More information Name, Titles ...

Name	Titles	Club(s)	Winning years
Faouzi Benzarti	11	Espérance de Tunis, Étoile du Sahel, Club Africain	1986–87, 1989–90, 1993–94, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2022–23, 2025–26
Youssef Zouaoui	5	CA Bizertin, Espérance de Tunis	1983–84, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01
Habib Draoua	3	Stade Tunisien, Espérance de Tunis	1956–57, 1959–60, 1960–61
Ahmed Dhib		Espérance de Tunis, Étoile du Sahel	1974–75, 1975–76, 1981–82
Mouin Chaâbani		Espérance de Tunis	2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21
Nabil Maâloul		Espérance de Tunis	2010–11, 2011–12, 2021–22
Michel Decastel	2	Espérance de Tunis, CS Sfaxien	2001–02, 2004–05
Ruud Krol		CS Sfaxien, Espérance de Tunis	2012–13, 2013–14
Khaled Ben Yahia		Espérance de Tunis	2005–06, 2017–18

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Most titled players

More information Player, Titles ...

Player	Titles	Club	Winning Years
Khalil Chemmam	12	Espérance de Tunis	2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Moez Ben Cherifia	11	Espérance de Tunis	2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2023–24
Chokri El Ouaer	10	Espérance de Tunis	1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02
Tarek Thabet		Espérance de Tunis	1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04
Sameh Derbali	8	Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Nabil Maâloul		Espérance de Tunis, Club Africain	1975–76, 1980–81, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96
Khaled Badra		Espérance de Tunis	1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2008–09
Khaled Ben Yahia		Espérance de Tunis	1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94
Mouin Chaâbani	6	Espérance de Tunis	1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06
Ali Zitouni		Espérance de Tunis	1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04
Sirajeddine Chihi		Espérance de Tunis	1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01
Taoufik Hicheri		Espérance de Tunis	1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1997–98, 1998–99
Radhi Jaïdi		Espérance de Tunis	1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03
Tarak Dhiab		Espérance de Tunis	1974–75, 1975–76, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89
Walid Azaiez	5	Espérance de Tunis	1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03
Sadok Sassi		Club Africain	1963–64, 1966–67, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1978–79
Mejdi Traoui		Étoile du Sahel, Espérance de Tunis	2006–07, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14
Wassim Naouara		Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14
Mohamed Ben Mansour		Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14

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All-time top scorers

More information Rank, Players ...

Rank	Players	Goals	Clubs
1	Ezzedine Chakroun	116	Sfax RS
2	Hédi Bayari	110	Club Africain
3	Tarak Dhiab	107	Espérance de Tunis
4	Habib Mougou	99	Étoile du Sahel
5	Mohamed Salah Jedidi	98	Club Africain
6	Adel Sellimi	90	Club Africain
7	Abdelkader Ben Hassen	89	CO Transports (44), Espérance de Tunis (12), CA Bizertin (33)
8	Abdelmajid Tlemçani		Espérance de Tunis
9	Abdelhamid Hergal	85	Stade Tunisien
10	Nabil Bechaouch	82	Olympique Béja (71), Stade Tunisien (8), CS Sfaxien (3)
11	Moncef Khouini	81	Club Africain
	Sami Touati	81	Club Africain (80), Stade Tunisien (1)
12	Mongi Dalhoum	80	CS Sfaxien
13	Abderraouf Ben Aziza	79	Étoile du Sahel (70), CS Hammam-Lif (9)
14	Faouzi Rouissi	78	Club Africain
	Noureddine Diwa		Stade Tunisien (75), Espérance de Tunis (3)
	Abdesselem Chemam		AS Marsa
15	Mohamed Akid	77	CS Sfaxien
16	Hamadi Agrebi	75	CS Sfaxien
	Mohieddine Habita		CO Transports
17	Saâd Karmous	74	CS Hammam-Lif (72), US Tunis (2)
18	Moncef Chérif	71	Stade Tunisien
	Moncef Ouada		JS Kairouan
19	Jameleddine Limam	70	Stade Tunisien (49), Club Africain (21)

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Top scorers by season

This is the list of top scorers by season.^[34]

Best finish in African and international competitions by club

Tunisian teams are among the best African teams with a total of 24 titles. 12 Tunisian team in total played in African competitions. Étoile du Sahel is the Tunisian club that has won the most African Cups with 9 titles, followed by Espérance de Tunis with 8 titles.

Tunisian clubs also have a share in the FIFA Club World Cup with four participations, three for Espérance de Tunis in 2011, 2018 and 2019 thanks to the African Champions League title in 2011, 2018 and 2018–19 and the only participation of Etoile du Sahel in 2007, which was then ranked fourth as the best result for Tunisian teams in the FIFA Club World Cup.

In the CAF Champions League, Tunisian clubs occupy a huge position in the competition. Espérance de Tunis has the most Tunisian clubs participating in the competition with 25 times. It reached the final 8 times and was crowned four times in 1994, 2011, 2018 and 2018–19. As for the Étoile Sportive du Sahel, he participated 13 times and reached the final 3 times and was crowned once in 2007, and finally Club Africain participated 10 times and crowned it in its first final in 1991, and Club Sfaxien was satisfied with second place in 2006 with four participations.

In the CAF Confederation Cup, Tunisian clubs are the most crowned champions in the history of this competition with 5 championships. Club Sfaxien is the most crowned team with three titles in 2007, 2008 and 2013, followed by Étoile du Sahel with two titles crowned in 2006 and 2015.

But misfortune always follows the Tunisian teams in the CAF Super Cup, as they participated 13 times and were crowned only 3 times. Etoile du Sahel won it in 1998 and 2008 and was satisfied with the runner-up in 2004, 2007 and 2016. As for Espérance de Tunis, it participated 5 times and won it once in 1995, and was satisfied with the runner-up in 1999, 2012, 2019 and 2020. As for Club Sfaxien, it participated three times in 2007, 2008 and 2014, one of which was against Etoile du Sahel in 2008.

Best finish in Arab competitions by club

Tunisian clubs are the second most titled Arab clubs with 11 championships (after Saudi clubs who won 12 championships). Espérance de Tunis is the most titled Tunisian club in the Arab championships with 4 championships, followed by Club Sfaxien and Stade Tunisien with two championships each.

Tunisian teams won the most prestigious Arab championships, Arab Club Champions Cup 7 times, 3 of which were for the Tunisian Espérance de Tunis, which has the record for the number of trophies in 1993, 2008–09 and 2017, two championships for the Club Sfaxien in the 2000 and 2003–04 editions, and one championship for Étoile du Sahel in 2018–19 and the same for Club Africain in 1997. As for the runners-up, the Tunisian teams took second place five times, twice for Espérance de Tunis in 1986 and 1995, twice also for Club Africain in 1988 and 2002, and Club Sfaxien in 2004–05.

Tunisian clubs have won the Arab Cup Winners' Cup three times. Stade Tunisien is the most titled Tunisian club in the championship with 2 titles in 1989 and 2001, followed by Club Africain, which won the championship only once in 1995. As for Étoile du Sahel, it was satisfied with the runner-up position in 1995 in the match that brought it together with Club Africain.