The Apertura and Clausura tournaments are a relatively recent innovation for many Latin American football leagues in which the traditional European football season from August to May is divided in two sections per season, each with its own champion. Apertura and Clausura are the Spanish words for "opening" and "closing". In French-speaking Haiti, these are known as the Ouverture and the Fermeture.
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The Apertura is held in the first half of the calendar year in Chile, Colombia, Haiti and Paraguay while it is held in the second half of the calendar year in Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama and Uruguay and Venezuela.
In most leagues, each tournament constitutes a national championship in itself. On the other hand, in the leagues of Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, the winners of the Apertura and Clausura play each other in a playoff for the season title, or there is a final stage where teams qualify based on placements in the Apertura and Clausura. Thus, two championship titles are awarded per year in the first group of leagues, and only one in the second. In Mexico, for instance, the winners of each tournament play each other at the beginning of the following season for another title, but this is a rather minor season curtain-raiser, akin to national Super Cups in European leagues. Some Apertura and Clausura touraments also have second stages to decide the winner.
In leagues with 12 or less teams, each Apertura and Clausura has a double round-robin format, as a means to fill in the gaps caused by the lack of elimination cup competitions as in most European countries. In leagues with 16 or more teams, each tournament has a single round-robin format.
Relegations, if any, are done on an aggregate basis; usually the combined table for both tournaments determine relegation placements. In some leagues, the average points over the previous two or three seasons are used to determine relegation.
Peru has abolished its Apertura and Clausura format after the 2008 season and adopted new formats. Ecuador used it only in 2005. Argentine Football Association president Julio Grondona proposed in December 2008 the return to a single season format,[1] but there are no plans currently for such a format change in the near future.
The Brazilian national league is a notable tournament in Latin America not to split the season into two parts, using a single-season double round-robin format to decide the champions, similar to those in European leagues, though played between April and December. Brazilian clubs also participate in the state leagues from January to April. Brazil also has, unlike most Spanish-speaking nations, a national cup.
For most of its history (except in 1996, 2002, and 2003) the J. League in Japan had a similar system, although it was called 1st Stage and 2nd Stage. The seasons became unified permanently in 2005, partially to avoid conflicts with the Emperor's Cup. The K-League of South Korea also had the same system in 1984, 1986, 1995, 2004, 2005, and 2006. In 2007, it again became unified because of confusion among fans.
| Country | League | Champions | Calendar | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | Primera División | Both (Since 1991–92) | European (August – June) | 1990–91 – present |
| Bolivia | Liga de Fútbol Profesional | Both (Since 2003) | European (August – June) | 1991 – present |
| Chile | Primera División | Both | American (January – December) | 2002 – present |
| Colombia | Primera A | Both | American (February – December) | 2002 – present |
| Costa Rica | Primera División | Both | European | 2007–08 – present |
| Ecuador | Serie A | Both | American | 2005 |
| El Salvador | Primera División | Both | European (August – June) | 1998–99 – present |
| Guatemala | Liga Nacional de Fútbol | Both | European | 1999–00 – present |
| Haiti | Ligue Haïtienne | Both (since 2002, except in 2005–06) | American (April–November) | 2002, 2003, 2004–05, 2007–present[2] |
| Honduras | Liga Nacional de Fútbol | Both (Since 1997–98) | European (August – May) | 1997–98 – present |
| Mexico | Primera División | Both | European (July – May) | 1996–97 – present |
| Nicaragua | Primera División | One | European | ??? |
| Panama | Liga de Fútbol | Both (Since 2007) | European (July – May) | 2001 – present |
| Paraguay | Primera División | Both (Since 2007) | American (February – December) | 1996 - present |
| Peru | Primera División | One | American (February – November) | 1997–2008 |
| Uruguay | Primera División | One | European (August – June) | 1994 – present |
| Venezuela | Primera División | One | European (August – May) | 1996-97 - present |