Belgian First Division A

The Belgian First Division A, Belgian Pro League or 1A Pro League (officially Jupiler Pro League (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈʒypilɛr ˈproː ˈlik]) due to sponsorship reasons with AB InBev‘s brewer Jupiler) since the 2015–16 season, is the top league competition for association football clubs in Belgium. Contested by 18 clubs since 2020–21 season, reduced to 16 teams for 2023–24 season, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Belgian First Division B. Seasons run from early August to late April, with teams playing 34 matches each in the regular season, and then entering Play-offs I or Play-offs II according to their position in the regular season. Play-offs I (also known as the Championship Playoff, title playoffs or Champions' play-offs) are contested by the top-four clubs in the regular season, with each club playing each other twice. Play-offs II (also known as the Europa League playoff or Europe play-offs) are contested by teams ranked 5 to 8 in the regular season, divided in four groups of four teams playing each other once. The team finishing in 18th place is relegated directly. However, the 17th place will battle for promotion-relegation play-off against 2nd place of Challenger Pro League.

The competition was created in 1895 by the Royal Belgian Football Association and was first won by FC Liegeois. Of the 74 clubs to have competed in the first division since its creation, 16 have been crowned champions of Belgium. RSC Anderlecht is the most successful league club with 34 titles, followed by Club Brugge KV (18), Union Saint-Gilloise (11) and Standard Liege (10). It is currently ranked 8th in the UEFA rankings of leagues based on performances in European competitions over the last five-years. The competition was ranked 3rd when the UEFA first published their ranking in 1979 and also the next year in 1980, which is the best ranking the Belgian First Division has ever achieved.

This page also has a version in other languages :  Бельгийский первый дивизион A (russian)