Iraqi Premier League

Up until 1973, leagues in Iraq were played at a regional level. The Central FA League, the Basra League and the Kirkuk League were all founded in 1948,[1] while the Mosul League was founded in 1950.[2] The first nationwide league to be held in the country was in the 1973–74 season when the National League was formed, with Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya being crowned champions.[3] The IFA then decided to replace the competition with a new National League of Clubs which would only be open to clubs and not institute-representative teams.[4]

The league held its first season in 1974–75 and was originally composed of ten clubs. The first ever Iraqi Premier League goal was scored by Falah Hassan of Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (who had been renamed to Al-Tayaran) in a 1–1 draw with Al-Sinaa.[5] Al-Tayaran were crowned champions of the inaugural season which featured the following teams:[6]

Ever since the Iraqi Premier League began, it has been dominated by the four biggest clubs in Baghdad: Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, Al-Shorta, Al-Talaba and Al-Zawraa, who together contest the Baghdad derbies. Of the four teams, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya have earned more top-four finishes (35) than any other side, meanwhile Al-Zawraa have won the league title the most times (14). From the 1989–90 season until the 2005–06 season, the league was won by one of the four Baghdad teams every time.

After the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, players started to leave the Baghdad-based clubs and join clubs in the North such as Erbil and Duhok due to the poor security situation in the capital city. This led to a shift in the dominance of the "Big Four" as Erbil won three consecutive league titles from 2007 to 2009 with Duhok winning the league in 2010. In the 2008–09 season, none of Baghdad's Big Four clubs finished in the top four and this is the only time that this has happened in the history of the league; the top four spots were occupied by Erbil, Al-Najaf, Duhok and Al-Amana.[7] Baghdad's Big Four have returned to dominating the league in recent seasons though, winning six out of the last seven league titles.

There are currently 20 clubs in the Iraqi Premier League, although this will be reduced to 18 teams for the 2022–23 season and to 16 teams from the 2023–24 season. During the course of a season each club plays the others twice (a double round-robin system), once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 38 games (however, all matches between Baghdad's Big Four clubs are played at the neutral venue of Al-Shaab Stadium to accommodate more spectators). Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference, and then goals scored. If still equal, teams are deemed to occupy the same position. If there is a tie for the championship, for relegation, or for qualification to other competitions, a play-off match at a neutral venue decides rank. Each club is allowed a maximum of four foreign players in their squad. The winners of the league qualify for the Iraqi Super Cup, a match played against the winners of the Iraq FA Cup (if the league winners also win the Iraq FA Cup, they play the league runners-up instead).

On 15 December 2021, the IFA announced its plans to reduce the number of teams in the league to 16 teams within the next two seasons. In the 2021–22 season, four teams will be relegated to the Iraq Division One, while the top two teams in that division will be promoted. The same will occur for the following season (2022–23), however the 15th-placed team in the Premier League and the third-placed team in Division One will play a play-off game with the winner earning a Premier League place.

Twenty clubs compete in the 2021–22 Iraqi Premier League, including three promoted from the Division One:

^a: Founding member of the Iraqi Premier League
^b: Never been relegated from the Iraqi Premier League

Baghdad

Basra

Al-Qasim

Al-Najaf
Naft Al-Wasat

Al-Diwaniya

Erbil

Newroz

Naft Maysan

Samarra

Zakho

Baghdad teams
Al-Kahrabaa
Al-Karkh
Al-Naft
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya
Al-Shorta
Al-Sinaa
Al-Talaba
Al-Zawraa
Amanat Baghdad

Basra teams
Al-Minaa
Naft Al-Basra

Location of clubs in Iraq for the 2021–22 Premier League season

77 teams have taken part in at least a single round of the Iraqi Premier League since its first season in 1974–75 up until the 2021–22 season (not counting the qualifying rounds of the 2000–01 season). The teams in bold are competing in the Iraqi Premier League in the 2021–22 season. Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya and Al-Shorta are the only teams to have played in every single one of the 48 Iraqi Premier League seasons.

Notes

From the 2021–22 season, the champions of the Premier League qualify for the subsequent season's AFC Champions League group stage, while the league runners-up qualify for the AFC Cup group stage alongside the winner of the Iraq FA Cup. If the same team wins the league and the cup, the third-placed team in the league qualifies for the AFC Cup group stage. The winners of the AFC Champions League and AFC Cup may earn an additional qualification for the subsequent season's AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs if they are not in the top two.

The number of places allocated to Iraqi clubs in AFC competitions is dependent upon the position the country holds in the AFC Club Competitions Ranking, which is calculated based upon the performance of teams in AFC competitions in the previous four years.

Ranking				Member Association	Club Points					100%	ACL 2023 (GS+PO)	AFC Cup 2023 (GS+PO)
2021	2020	Mvmt	Region		2018	2019	2020	2021	Total
1	3	+2	1 (W)	Saudi Arabia	10.000	26.350	0.000	18.450	54.800	100.000	3+1	0
2	6	+4	1 (E)	South Korea	18.350	13.600	0.000	21.875	53.825	98.221	3+1	0
3	2	–1	2 (E)	Japan	13.850	21.800	0.000	17.875	53.525	97.673	3+1	0
4	5	+1	2 (W)	Iran	18.850	11.500	0.000	14.225	44.575	81.341	3+1	0
5	4	–1	3 (W)	Qatar	19.850	15.900	0.000	7.300	43.050	78.558	2+2	0
6	10	+4	4 (W)	Uzbekistan	9.400	9.000	0.000	16.743	35.143	64.130	2+2	0
7	1	–6	3 (E)	China	16.200	17.350	0.000	0.800	34.350	62.682	2+2	0
8	8	—	5 (W)	United Arab Emirates	8.100	7.633	0.000	14.400	30.133	54.987	1+2	0
9	7	–2	4 (E)	Thailand	16.200	5.050	0.000	8.500	29.750	54.288	2+2	0
10	12	+2	6 (W)	Jordan	7.633	7.967	0.000	10.833	26.433	48.235	1+1	1+0
11	25	+14	5 (E)	Hong Kong	3.300	3.650	0.000	16.500	23.450	42.792	1+2	0
12	13	+1	7 (W)	Tajikistan	4.433	3.000	0.000	13.952	21.386	39.026	1+0	1+1
13	9	–4	8 (W)	Iraq	8.633	8.300	0.000	3.250	20.183	36.830	1+0	2+0

Collectively, Iraqi teams have reached nine finals of Asian club competitions. Before the foundation of the Premier League, Aliyat Al-Shorta were the first Iraqi team to participate in the Asian Club Championship in 1971 and they reached the final, but they refused to play Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv and took the runner-up spot. Al-Rasheed became the first Premier League club to reach the final of the Asian Club Championship in 1989 but they lost a two-legged final on away goals to Al-Saad of Qatar. Al-Talaba reached the final of the 1995 Asian Cup Winners' Cup but they lost it 2–1 to Bellmare Hiratsuka, and five years later, Al-Zawraa lost the final of the same competition 1–0 to Shimizu S-Pulse in 2000. Erbil reached the final of Asia's second-tier tournament, the AFC Cup, twice in 2012 and 2014 but lost both times to Al-Kuwait and Al-Qadsia respectively. Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya managed to win the AFC Cup when they beat Indian club Bengaluru FC 1–0 in the 2016 final, and they won the competition for the second consecutive season in 2017 by beating FC Istiklol by the same scoreline. They earned a record third AFC Cup title in a row with a 2–0 defeat of Altyn Asyr in 2018.

The Premier League champions also qualify for the Arab Club Champions Cup alongside the league runners-up, while the league's third-placed team is admitted into the Arab Club Champions Cup qualifying play-offs.

Al-Shorta won the inaugural Arab Club Champions Cup in 1982 by defeating Al-Nejmeh 4–2 on aggregate in the final. Meanwhile, Al-Rasheed won the Arab Club Champions Cup three times in a row in 1985, 1986 and 1987 and are the competition's joint-most successful side.

As of 30 April 2022.[4]

Rank	Player	Goals	First app	Last app	Club(s) (goals)
1	Sahib Abbas	177	1988	2012	Salahaddin (42), Al-Zawraa (62), Al-Talaba (18), Karbalaa (50), Al-Sinaa (5)
2	Karim Saddam	170	1979	1996	Al-Sinaa (23), Al-Jaish (11), Al-Rasheed (4), Al-Zawraa (126), Al-Shorta (6)
3	Ali Hashim	169	1987	2004	Al-Najaf (148), Al-Karkh (21)
4	Hussein Abdullah	165	1991	2010	Al-Sinaa (32), Al-Naft (16), Diyala (40), Duhok (56), Erbil (14), Kirkuk (2), Peris (5)
	Amjad Radhi	165	2007	2022	Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (98), Erbil (61), Al-Najaf (6)
6	Hammadi Ahmed	158	2005	2022	Samarra (19), Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (139)
7	Younis Abid Ali	157	1983	2000	Al-Shorta (135), Al-Rasheed (15), Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (3), Al-Difaa Al-Jawi (4)
8	Ahmed Radhi	146	1981	1999	Al-Zawraa (103), Al-Rasheed (43)
9	Alaa Kadhim	143	1988	2007	Al-Sinaa (8), Al-Talaba (135)
	Alaa Abdul-Zahra	143	2004	2022	Al-Zawraa (54), Duhok (26), Al-Shorta (63)

Italics denotes players still playing professional football,
Bold denotes players still playing in the Iraqi Premier League.

The Iraqi Premier League shield for the 2012–13 season.

The current Iraqi Premier League trophy has been in use since the 2009–10 season and was designed by Iraq Football Association member Zuhair Nadhum, with the design being implemented by Qahtan Salim. The materials used to make the trophy were imported from China.

The trophy is a flat shield, predominantly golden in colour. In the centre of the shield is a football made from golden and mirrored pieces, with a map of Iraq in the centre of the ball. Inside the map reads the word Iraq in Arabic, with the words Premier League Shield underneath (also in Arabic) completed with the season. Surrounding the football are the words Iraq Football Association written in Arabic at the top and in English at the bottom in silver text. Surrounding that text is another ring, the top half of which contains the Flag of Iraq and the bottom half of which contains 18 golden stars, representing the 18 historical provinces of Iraq. Connecting the two halves of the outer ring on both sides is the IFA's logo.[8]

Titles

• Most titles: 14, Al-Zawraa
• Most consecutive title wins: 3 – joint record:
  • Al-Zawraa twice (1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96 and 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01)
  • Al-Rasheed (1986–87, 1987–88, 1988–89)
  • Erbil (2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09)

Wins

• Most consecutive wins: 11, Al-Shorta (13 March 1998 – 22 May 1998)

Losses

• Fewest losses in a season: 0 – joint record:
  • Al-Zawraa four times (1976–77, 11 rounds, 1978–79, 12 rounds, 2005–06, 19 rounds, 2015–16, 24 rounds)
  • Al-Talaba (1976–77, 11 rounds)
  • Al-Minaa (1977–78, 13 rounds)
  • Al-Shorta (1980–81, 11 rounds)
  • Salahaddin (1982–83, 22 rounds)
  • Al-Jaish (1983–84, 24 rounds)
• Longest unbeaten run: 39 games – joint record:
  • Al-Zawraa (25 November 1993 – 3 October 1994)
  • Al-Shorta (21 May 2018 – 23 May 2019)

Goals

• Most consecutive matches scored in: 37, Al-Shorta (13 October 1997 – 13 November 1998)
• Most consecutive matches without conceding a goal: 14, Erbil (16 July 2009 – 20 March 2010)

Scorelines

• Biggest win: joint record:
  • Al-Naqil 11–0 Al-Shorta (12 October 1974)
  • Al-Ramadi 11–0 Kirkuk (15 May 1995)

Attendances

• Highest attendance, single game: 68,000, Al-Shorta v. Al-Zawraa (at Al-Shaab Stadium, 13 December 1991)

Appearances

• Youngest player: Amjad Kalaf, 13 years and 101 days (for Al-Kut v. Al-Basra, 14 January 2005)

Titles

• Most Premier League titles: 7 – joint record:
  • Salam Hashim (three with Al-Rasheed in 1986–87, 1987–88 and 1988–89 and four with Al-Zawraa in 1990–91, 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96)
  • Mohamed Jassim Mahdi (seven with Al-Zawraa in 1990–91, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01)
• Most Premier League titles as captain: 3 – joint record:
  • Hazem Jassam (three with Al-Zawraa in 1975–76, 1976–77 and 1978–79)
  • Ahmed Radhi (one with Al-Rasheed in 1988–89 and two with Al-Zawraa in 1990–91 and 1998–99)
  • Rafid Badr Al-Deen (three with Erbil in 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2008–09)

Goals

• Most top scorer awards: 4, Karim Saddam (1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1992–93)
• Most consecutive top scorer awards: 3 – joint record:
  • Rahim Hameed (1985–86, 1986–87, 1987–88)
  • Karim Saddam (1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91)
• Most consecutive Premier League matches scored in: 15, Ahmed Radhi (for Al-Zawraa, 1992–93)
• Most goals in a season: 36, Younis Abid Ali (1993–94, 50 rounds)
• Most goals in a single game: 6 – joint record:
  • Shakir Mohammed Sabbar (for Al-Ramadi v. Kirkuk, 15 May 1995)
  • Sahib Abbas (for Al-Zawraa v. Al-Karkh, 18 October 1996)
  • Alaa Kadhim (for Al-Talaba v. Al-Mosul, 9 January 1998)
• Fastest goal: 7 seconds, Alaa Abdul-Sattar (for Al-Zawraa v. Al-Kadhimiya, 25 January 2002)

Titles

Manager	Club(s)	Wins	Winning years
Ayoub Odisho	Al-Talaba, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (2), Al-Zawraa	4	1992–93, 1996–97, 2017–18, 2020–21
Jamal Salih	Al-Talaba, Al-Rasheed (2)	3	1981–82, 1987–88, 1988–89
Thair Ahmed	Al-Talaba, Erbil (2)		2001–02, 2007–08, 2008–09
Basim Qasim	Duhok, Al-Zawraa, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya		2009–10, 2015–16, 2016–17
Saadi Salih	Al-Zawraa	2	1975–76, 1976–77
Ammo Baba	Al-Talaba, Al-Zawraa		1980–81, 1993–94
Amer Jameel	Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, Al-Zawraa		1989–90, 1998–99
Adnan Hamad	Al-Zawraa		1995–96, 1999–2000
Sabah Abdul-Jalil	Al-Zawraa, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya		2000–01, 2004–05
Abdelilah Mohammed Hassan	Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya	1	1974–75
Jamil Hanoon	Al-Minaa		1977–78
Anwar Jassam	Al-Zawraa		1978–79
Douglas Aziz	Al-Shorta		1979–80
Wathiq Naji	Salahaddin		1982–83
Munthir Al-Waadh	Al-Jaish		1983–84
Yahya Alwan	Al-Talaba		1985–86
Nasrat Nassir	Al-Rasheed		1986–87
Falah Hassan	Al-Zawraa		1990–91
Adil Yousef	Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya		1991–92
Hadi Mutanish	Al-Zawraa		1994–95
Abdelilah Abdul-Hameed	Al-Shorta		1997–98
Salih Radhi	Al-Zawraa		2005–06
Akram Salman	Erbil		2006–07
Radhi Shenaishil	Al-Zawraa		2010–11
Nizar Mahrous	Erbil		2011–12
Thair Jassam	Al-Shorta		2012–13
Abdul-Ghani Shahad	Naft Al-Wasat		2014–15
Nebojša Jovović	Al-Shorta		2018–19