Israeli football league system
The Israeli football league system is a series of interconnected leagues for club football in Israel. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at different levels, and allows even the smallest club to dream of rising to the very top of the system. There are five levels, containing a total of 14 divisions. It is run by the Israel Football Association (IFA).
Structure
The top division of Israeli football is the Premier League. Liga Leumit is the second tier, These two divisions all operate at the national level.
Below Liga Leumit the divisions are split into regionalised leagues. Liga Alef is the third tier, and is split into north and south divisions. Liga Bet, the fourth tier, is divided into four regionalised leagues. Liga Gimel, the bottom division of Israeli football, is split into six regionalised leagues, three in the north and three in the south.
League restructuring
On June 23, 2008 the IFA decided to reform the league structure. At the start of the 2009–10 season, the Premier League and Liga Leumit were expanded to 16 clubs and Liga Artzit was abolished.
In the Premier League, playoff games were added. The teams will now play each other once, with the points gained in the regular league being cut in half.
About the Leagues
Premier League
The Israeli Premier League (Hebrew: ליגת העל, Ligat HaAl, lit. Super League), is the highest league in Israeli football and has 16 member clubs. Winning the Premier League is the top prize in Israeli football and guarantees a berth in the UEFA Champions League.
The league was created in 1999 as the IFA aimed to realign the leagues to improve competition. The league have sixteen clubs, at the end of each season the two or three relegated teams will be replaced by two or three Liga Leumit teams.
Current Premier League clubs (2010–11)
Liga Leumit
Liga Leumit (Hebrew: ליגה לאומית, lit. National League) is the second tier of Israeli football, a position it has held since 1999, having originally been the top division prior to the Premier League's creation. It has 16 member clubs, the top two or three teams are promoted to the Premier League, The bottom two or three teams are relegated to Liga Alef at the end of each season.
Current Liga Leumit clubs (2010–11)
Liga Alef
Liga Alef (Hebrew: ליגה א', lit. A League) is the third tier of Israeli football, a position it has held since 2009. Between 1999 and 2009 it was the fourth tier after Liga Artzit, Between 1974 and 1999 it was the third tier after Liga Artzit, and between 1949 and 1974 it was the second division. Liga Alef consists of two divisions and has 32 member clubs. The divisions are based on the clubs' geographical position in the country and are split into a north and south category. The top club from each division is promoted at the end of the season to Liga Leumit, the bottom two clubs (from each division) are relegated at the end of the season to Liga Bet.
Liga Bet
Liga Bet (Hebrew: ליגה ב', lit. B League) is the fourth tier of Israeli football, a position it has held since 2009. Between 1999 and 2009 it was the fifth tier after Liga Alef, Between 1974 and 1999 it was the fourth tier after the creation of Liga Artzit, and between 1949 and 1974 it was the third division. Liga Bet consists of four divisions and has 64 member clubs. The divisions are based on the clubs geographical position in the country and are split into two north categories and two south categories. The top club from each division is promoted at the end of the season to the Liga Alef and the bottom two clubs (from each division) are relegated at the end of the season to Liga Gimel (if there are enough clubs coming up to replace them).
Liga Gimel
Liga Gimel (Hebrew: ליגה ג', lit. C League) is the fifth and bottom tier of Israeli football, a position it has held since 2009. Between 1999 and 2009 it was the sixth tier after Liga Bet, Between 1974 and 1999 it was the fifth tier after the creation of Liga Artzit, and between 1949 and 1974 it was the fourth division. Liga Gimel consists of six divisions of varying size, three in the north and three in the south. At the start of the 2010–11 season there are a total of 89 member clubs. If they meet criteria laid down by the IFA, the top club from each division is promoted at the end of the season to the Liga Bet. As it is the lowest division, no clubs are relegated.
Football clubs in Israel
For a full list of clubs see List of football clubs in Israel.
References
Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_football_league_system
