Italian football league system
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The Italian football league system, also known as the Italian football pyramid, refers to the hierarchically interconnected league system for association football in Italy. It consists of nine national and regional tournaments, the first three being professional, while the remaining six are amateur, set up by the Italian Football Federation. One team from San Marino also competes. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at different levels.
In theory, it is possible for a lowly local amateur club to rise to the pinnacle of the Italian game and win the Scudetto. While this may be unlikely in practice (at the very least, in the short run), there certainly is significant movement within the pyramid. The top two levels contain one division each. Below this, the levels have progressively more parallel divisions, which each cover progressively smaller geographic areas.
History
The
After the interruption of
The move to a single national league structure occurred in 1929 with initially eighteen teams in the top league. The first winners in 1930 were Internazionale. The national team also won the
After
The current league system dates back to 1978, when semi-professional sector was disbanded. In that year, the current
Structure
The system uses the principle of promotion and relegation. The first tier of Italian football is Serie A, which is governed by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti Serie A and is made up of 20 teams. The second tier is Serie B, which is organised by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti B. Both of these leagues cover the whole of Italy.
The third tier is Serie C. It is run by the Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico; it has three divisions of 20 clubs each, which are generally split on the basis of location.
At the fourth tier is Serie D, a league of nine parallel divisions (in which the clubs are divided by geographical location) that is organised by the Dipartimento Interregionale of the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. Beneath these are five further levels; three of them, Eccellenza, Promozione and Prima Categoria, are organised by regional committees of the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti; and the last two levels, Seconda Categoria and Terza Categoria, by provincial committees.
All 100 Serie A, Serie B and Serie C clubs are professional.
Level | Divisions | ||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Professional Leagues | |||||||||||||||||||
1 | Serie A (One national division, 20 clubs) | ||||||||||||||||||
2 | Serie B (One national division, 20 clubs) | ||||||||||||||||||
3 | Serie C (3 interregional divisions of 20 clubs each) | ||||||||||||||||||
Non-professional Leagues | |||||||||||||||||||
4 | Serie D (9 interregional divisions, 18–20 clubs per division) | ||||||||||||||||||
5 | Eccellenza (29 regional divisions, 16–18 clubs per division) | ||||||||||||||||||
6 | Promozione (53 regional divisions, 14–18 clubs per division) | ||||||||||||||||||
7 | Prima Categoria (105 regional divisions, 16 clubs per division) | ||||||||||||||||||
8 | Seconda Categoria (182 regional/provincial divisions, 16 clubs per division) | ||||||||||||||||||
9 | Terza Categoria (232 provincial divisions, 6–18 clubs per division) |
From 2005 to 2006 season, if two or more teams end the league with the same number of points, the final place is given from following criteria (that count for every division):
- Head-to-head records;
- Goal difference of head-to-head records;
- Goal difference of regular season;
- Most of goalsscored;
- Draw.
Women
The women's system is divided into five levels. From 2002 to 2013, the Serie A2 existed between the Serie A and B, but it has since been renamed to B.
Level | Divisions | ||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Non-professional Leagues | |||||||||||||||||||
1 | Serie A One national division, 12 clubs | ||||||||||||||||||
2 | Serie B One national division, 12 clubs from 2018 to 2019 season (3–4 interregional divisions from 1970 to 2018)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
3 | Serie C 4 interregional divisions, 12–14 clubs per division from his foundation in 2018 (Highest regional leagues until the 2017–18 season) | ||||||||||||||||||
4 | Eccellenza 18–19 regional divisions (Highest regional leagues from 2018 to 2019; from 1978 to 2018 as Serie C) | ||||||||||||||||||
5 | Promozione Regional divisions (Lowest regional leagues;[4] until the 2017–18 season as Serie D) |
See also
- Divisione Nazionale
- Serie C1
- Serie C2
- Campionato Primavera
- Campionato Berretti
- Torneo di Viareggio
- List of association football competitions
- List of football clubs in Italy
- Italian Football League (American football)
References
- ^ "Edoardo Bosio and Soccer in Turin". Life in Italy. 1 June 2012. Archived from the original on 27 June 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
- ^ "A FIRENZE SORTEGGIO PLAY OFF E ASSEMBLEA DEI CLUB - LEGA PRO".
- ^ The Serie A2 was introduced in the 2002–03 season, and remained until the 2012–13 season. During this period, the Serie B became the third national level. Between 2011 and 2013, the Serie B was suppressed; relegated clubs from the Serie A2 would play the following season in the Serie C. From the 2013–14 season, the Serie B replaced the Serie A2.
- ^ As the last level of the Italian women's football championship, clubs that finish in last place are not relegated.