Israeli Premier League
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Countries | Israel |
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| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Relegation to | Liga Leumit |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Israeli Cup Toto Cup Al |
| International cup(s) | Champions League Europa League |
| Current champions | Maccabi Haifa (2008–09) |
| Website | http://football.org.il |
 Israeli Premier League 2009–10 |
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The Israeli Premier League (Hebrew: ליגת העל, 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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[edit] 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.
[edit] Competition
There are 16 clubs in the league. 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 Europa League, though if the State Cup champions finish in the top three, the State Cup's UEFA Europa League spot goes to the fourth placed team in the League.
[edit] Member clubs, 2009–10
[edit] Current Premier League clubs (2009–10)
- Beitar Jerusalem
- Bnei Yehuda
- Bnei Sakhnin
- F.C. Ashdod
- Hapoel Acre
- Hapoel Be'er Sheva
- Hapoel Haifa
- Hapoel Ramat Gan
- Hapoel Ra'anana
- Hapoel Petah Tikva
- Hapoel Tel Aviv
- Maccabi Ahi Nazareth
- Maccabi Haifa
- Maccabi Netanya
- Maccabi Petah Tikva
- Maccabi Tel Aviv
[edit] 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)
[edit] 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 Tamuz, do not count against the foreign player limit.
[edit] Television broadcasting
The matches are brodcasted live on Sport 1 and Sport 2 channels exept of the big match of the week which is reserved to be shown by Israel 10 network television on Monday nights. There is also a league review show on Saturday nights on Channel 11 and another one on Tuesday at Sport 5 channel which includes the match of the week which was played on Monday.
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.
[edit] 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
[edit] UEFA ranking
Current National League Ranking
- 20
Austrian Football Bundesliga - 21
Serbian Superliga - 22
Israeli Premier League - 23
Cypriot First Division - 24
Allsvenskan
(see UEFA coefficients full list for more information)
[edit] Champions
[edit] Pre-independence
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[edit] Post-independence
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[edit] Total championships
| Rank | Club | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 20 |
| 2 | Hapoel Tel Aviv | 13 |
| 3 | Maccabi Haifa | 11 |
| 4 | Beitar Jerusalem | 6 |
| Hapoel Petah Tikva | 6 | |
| 6 | Maccabi Netanya | 5 |
| 7 | Hapoel Be'er Sheva | 2 |
| Hakoah Ramat Gan | 2 | |
| 9 | Hapoel Haifa | 1 |
| Bnei Yehuda | 1 | |
| Hapoel Kfar Saba | 1 | |
| Hapoel Ramat Gan | 1 | |
| British Police | 1 | |
| Maccabi HaShmona'im Jerusalem | 1 |
[edit] Top goalscorers
Top goalscorers by season and all-time
[edit] Top goalscorers by season
[edit] All-time top goalscorers
All-time top scorers in the top division
| Rank | Player | Years Active | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alon Mizrahi |
1989 – 2005 | 207 |
| 2 | Oded Machnes |
1974 – 1990 | 196 |
| 3 | Avi Nimni |
1989 – 2008 | 194 |
| 4 | Moshe Romano |
1965 – 1982 | 193 |
| 5 | Shay Holtzman |
1990 – 2009 | 169 |
[edit] References
- ^ Despite opposition, IFA committee passes reforms Haaretz, 24 June 2008
[edit] External links
- Israel Football Association
- Ligat Al Soccerway
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