Israeli Premier League
| Countries | Israel |
|---|---|
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Relegation to | Liga Leumit |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Israeli Cup Toto Cup Al |
| International cup(s) | Champions League UEFA Europa League Intertoto Cup |
| Current champions | Beitar Jerusalem (2007–08) |
| Website | http://football.org.il |
 Israeli Premier League 2008–09 |
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The Israeli Premier League (Hebrew: ליגת העל, lit. Ligat HaAl, lit. Super League), currently known as Ligat Toto (Hebrew: ליגת טוטו) for sponsorship reasons, is the top division in the Israeli football league system.
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Background
The Israeli Premier League was created in 1999 to replace Liga Leumit (which became the second tier) when the Israel Football Association decided to reshuffle all the leagues in hopes of improving competition. In its first season there were 14 clubs; the top thirteen clubs from the 1998-99 season and the top place club from the Liga Artzit (then the second division). That season three clubs were relegated and one from Liga Leumit was promoted. Over the years the league has changed names though the new names were simply commercial rebranding, including Ligat Pelephone and Ligat Toto.
Competition
There are 12 clubs in the league. During the course of a season each club plays the others three times, with the third round matches scheduled according to positions after the first two rounds. At the end of each season the two lowest placed teams are relegated to Liga Leumit and the top two teams from Liga Leumit are promoted in their place. For the 2009-10 season the league will be expanded to 16 clubs as a result of reforms passed by the IFA on 24 June 2008.[1]
The top team in the league qualifies for the early qualification stages of the UEFA Champions League, this means they must win a two-legged knockout tie in order to enter the group phase. The second and third placed teams together with the State Cup winner qualify for the early qualification stages of the UEFA Cup, though if the State Cup champions finish in the top three, the State Cup's UEFA Cup spot goes to the fourth placed team in the League.
If the cup winner is not one of the top four clubs in the table, the forth club qualifies for the second stage of the UEFA Intertoto Cup that leads to qualify in the UEFA Cup. If the cup winner is one of the top four clubs in the table, the ticket to the Intertoto Cup moves to the fifth place in this league.
Member clubs, 2008–09
Hapoel Petah Tikva Bnei Sakhnin Hakoah Ramat Gan- Beitar Jerusalem
- Bnei Sakhnin
- Bnei Yehuda
- FC Ashdod
- Hakoah Amidar Ramat Gan
- Ironi Kiryat Shmona
- Hapoel Petah Tikva
- Hapoel Tel Aviv
- Maccabi Haifa
- Maccabi Netanya
- Maccabi Petah Tikva
- Maccabi Tel Aviv
Sponsorship
In recent years, the league has been sponsored. The sponsor has been able to determine the league's sponsorship name. The list below details who the sponsors have been and what they called the competition:
- 2002-2004: Pelephone - a mobile phone company (Ligat Pelephone)
- 2005-present: Toto Organization - the football pools company (Ligat Toto)
Number of foreigners
Teams are limited to five foreign players per team. Special circumstances such as Druze players from the Golan (no citizenship) or cases such as that of Toto Tammuz, do not count against the foreign player limit.
Television broadcasting rights
The rights to the league have been owned by Hot, Israel's cable provider who decided to broadcast the league for the first time on a Pay Per View basis. One big match a week is reserved to be shown by Israel 10 network television on Sunday nights. There is also a league review show on Saturday nights on Sport 5 channel.
Abroad, rights to broadcasting in Hebrew are owned by The Israeli Network which broadcasts the matches in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Panama, Costa Rica and Europe. Currently, no company has purchased the rights to broadcast matches abroad in any other language.
Revenue
Main sources of revenue for the clubs:
- Television
- Ticket sales
- Merchandise
- Toto - The Israel Sports Betting Board
- Sponsorship
Sport 5 Has purchased the rights for IFL over the internet.The games are broadcasted live at JumpTv.com since December 2006
UEFA ranking
Current National League Ranking
- 19
Austrian League - 20
Norwegian League - 21
Israeli Premier League - 22
Serbian League - 23
Sweden League
(see UEFA coefficients full list for more information)
Champions
Pre-independence
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Post-independence
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Total championships
| Club | Number of Championships |
|---|---|
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 19 |
| Hapoel Tel Aviv | 13 |
| Maccabi Haifa | 10 |
| Beitar Jerusalem | 6 |
| Hapoel Petah Tikva | 6 |
| Maccabi Netanya | 5 |
| Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 2 |
| Hakoah Ramat Gan | 2 |
| Hapoel Haifa | 1 |
| Bnei Yehuda | 1 |
| Hapoel Kfar Saba | 1 |
| Hapoel Ramat Gan | 1 |
| British Police | 1 |
Top goalscorers by season
| Season | Player | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-00 | Assi Tubi | 27 | Maccabi Petah Tikva |
| 2000-01 | Avi Nimni | 25 | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| 2001-02 | Kobi Refua | 18 | Maccabi Petah Tikva |
| 2002-03 | Yaniv Abarjil Shay Holtzman |
18 | Hapoel Kfar Saba FC Ashdod |
| 2003-04 | Ofir Haim Shay Holtzman |
16 | Hapoel Be'er Sheva FC Ashdod |
| 2004-05 | Roberto Colautti | 19 | Maccabi Haifa |
| 2005-06 | Shay Holtzman | 18 | FC Ashdod |
| 2006-07 | Yaniv Azran | 15 | FC Ashdod |
| 2007-08 | Samuel Yeboah | 15 | Hapoel Kfar Saba |
All-time top goalscorers
Alon Mizrahi is the country's all-time top scorer, with 207 goals in the top division (Liga Leumit and the Premier League).
| Name | Years | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Alon Mizrahi | 1989–2005 | 207 |
| Oded Machnes | 1974–1990 | 196 |
| Moshe Romano | 1965–1982 | 193 |
| Avi Nimni | 1989–2008 | 172 |
| Mordechai Spiegler | 1963–1977 | 168 |
References
- ↑ Despite opposition, IFA committee passes reforms Haaretz, 24 June 2008
External links
- Israel Football Association
- Ligat Al Soccerway
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Israeli Premier League 2008–09
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Top division football seasons in Israel
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Football in Israel
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