NRFL Championship
Football league
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Northern Regional Football League Championship, currently known as Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Championship for sponsorship reasons, is a semi-professional New Zealand association football league competition. Up until 2022, the competition was known as NRFL Division 1.[1][2][3]
| |
| Founded | 1965 |
|---|---|
| Country |  New Zealand |
| Confederation | OFC (Oceania) |
| Number of clubs | 12 |
| Level on pyramid | 3 |
| Promotion to | Northern League |
| Relegation to | NRFL Northern Conference NRFL Southern Conference |
| Domestic cup | Chatham Cup |
| Current champions | Manukau United (1st title) (2025) |
| Most championships | Birkenhead United Central United East Coast Bays Onehunga Sports (3 titles each) |
| Website | nrf.org.nz |
| Current: 2026 NRFL Championship | |
The league includes football clubs located in the northern part of the North Island, with clubs from the Northland, Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty provinces. The league sits at step 3 of the New Zealand football pyramid.
Current clubs
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Manurewa and West Coast Rangers joined the league following their relegation the season prior from the Northern League. Taupo were promoted as winners of NRFL Conference play-offs.
Manukau United won the 2025 season and were promoted to the Northern League alongside Melville United, while Ngaruawahia United were relegated to NRFL Southern Conference.
| Team | Location | Stadium | 2025 season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge | Cambridge | John Kerkhof Park | 4th |
| Ellerslie | Ellerslie, Auckland | Michaels Avenue | 9th |
| Hamilton Wanderers | Chartwell, Hamilton | Porritt Stadium | 5th |
| Hibiscus Coast | Whangaparaoa, Auckland | Stanmore Bay Park | 6th |
| Manurewa | Manurewa, Auckland | Memorial Park | 11th in Northern League (relegated) |
| Mount Albert-Ponsonby | Mount Albert, Auckland | Anderson Park | 11th |
| North Shore United | Devonport, Auckland | Allen Hill Stadium | 8th |
| Northern Rovers | Glenfield, Auckland | McFetridge Park | 3rd |
| Onehunga Mangere United | Māngere Bridge, Auckland | Māngere Domain | 7th |
| Takapuna | Takapuna, Auckland | Taharoto Park | 10th |
| Taupo | Tauhara, Taupō | Crown Park | 1st in Southern Conference (promoted via play-offs) |
| West Coast Rangers | Whenuapai, Auckland | Fred Taylor Park | 12th in Northern League (relegated) |
Past winners
Numbers in parentheses indicate wins up to that date.
- No promotion to the Northern League due to the resizing of the league in 1984.
- First title was won as Ponsonby.
- Division 1 split into two leagues after a grading round with Hamilton Wanderers winning Division 1A and Onehunga Sports winning Division 1B.
- Season cancelled with games in hand due to COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand.[32]