Persian Gulf Pro League facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This page is about the top division in men's Iranian football. For top division in women's Iranian football, see Kowsar Women Football League.

Quick facts for kids
Persian Gulf Pro League
لیگ برتر خلیج فارس

Organising body	Football League Organization
Founded	2 November 2001; 23 years ago
Country	Iran
Confederation	AFC
Number of teams	16
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Azadegan League
Domestic cup(s)	Hazfi Cup Iranian Super Cup
International cup(s)	AFC Champions League Elite AFC Champions League Two
Current champions	Persepolis (16th title) (2023–24)
Most championships	Persepolis (16 titles)
Most appearances	Jalal Hosseini (494)
Top goalscorer	Reza Enayati (149 goals)
TV partners	IRIB TV3 IRIB Varzesh Jame Jam TV IRIB Provincial Channels Iraqiya Sports
Website	IranLeague.ir

The Persian Gulf Pro League (Persian: لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs), formerly known as the Iran Premier League (Persian: لیگ برتر ایران, Lig-e bartar-e Irân), is the top men's professional football division of the Iranian football league system. It is controlled by the FFIRI and is contested by 16 teams over a 30-matchday period.

Each year, its top team becomes the Iranian football champion, and the two lowest finishers are relegated to Azadegan League.

Since 2013, the league comprises 16 teams. The winner of the Persian Gulf Pro League along with the Hazfi Cup champion automatically qualify for the AFC Champions League Elite group stages. The third of the Persian Gulf Pro League is qualified for the AFC Champions League Elite Play-off round. The bottom two teams in the league are relegated to Azadegan League. In the past, the format and number of teams were changed for various times.

History

To the turn of the millennium the Iranian Football Federation decided to create a new professional football league. In 2001, the Iran Pro League was founded as the new top-level football league in Iran. After the Iran Pro League was established as the professional football league of Iran, Azadegan League was declared as the second-highest league in the Iranian football league system. The Iran Pro League comprised 14 clubs until the 2003–04 season.

**Persian Gulf Pro League champions**
Season	Champions	Runners-up
2001–02	Persepolis	Esteghlal
2002–03	Sepahan	PAS Tehran
2003–04	PAS Tehran	Esteghlal
2004–05	Foolad	Zob Ahan
2005–06	Esteghlal	PAS Tehran
2006–07	Saipa	Esteghlal Ahvaz
2007–08	Persepolis	Sepahan
2008–09	Esteghlal	Zob Ahan
2009–10	Sepahan	Zob Ahan
2010–11		Esteghlal
2011–12		Tractor
2012–13	Esteghlal	Tractor
2013–14	Foolad	Persepolis
2014–15	Sepahan	Tractor
2015–16	Esteghlal Khuzestan	Persepolis
2016–17	Persepolis	Esteghlal
2017–18		Zob Ahan
2018–19		Sepahan
2019–20		Esteghlal
2020–21		Sepahan
2021–22	Esteghlal	Persepolis
2022–23	Persepolis	Sepahan
2023–24	Persepolis	Esteghlal

The first winner of the Iran Pro League was Persepolis, who beat Esteghlal by one point on the final match day. Esteghlal Rasht and East Azerbaijan's club Tractor had been relegated to the Azadegan League. Tractor took eight years to return to Iran's highest division

The runner-up of the 2002–03 season, PAS Tehran, became the Iranian football champion of the 2003–04 Iran Pro League. It was the last Iranian championship for PAS Tehran. PAS Tehran's professional football team was dissolved in 2007..

In 2004, the number of teams was increased from 14 to 16 teams. Foolad of Ahvaz became the first champion from Khuzestan Province. In the 2005–06 Iran Pro League Esteghlal celebrated their first championship since 2001. Shamoushak Noshahr and Shahid Ghandi (today known as Tarbiat Yazd) relegated to Azadegan League.

Persian Gulf Cup

On 12 August 2006, the Iranian Football Federation decided to give the league another name. Since then, the league had been primarily known in Iran as Persian Gulf Cup (PGC). The Football Federation decided this to promote the Persian naming. The name of the Persian Gulf has been disputed by some Arab countries since the 1960s due to political and ethnic differences between Iran and Arab countries. The football Federation decided also to change the logo of the league. The final logo was selected from over 130 designs and unveiled on 14 November 2006. Saipa won the 2006–07 Persian Gulf Cup. Until 2007 six different teams won the league title successively. A foreign player became the league's top goal scorer. Nigerian striker Daniel Olerum scored 17 goals in 27 matches for Aboomoslem. The winner of only two seasons before, Foolad, had to relegated to Azadegan League.

Persepolis players celebrating winning 2017–18 season

Before the start of the 2007–08 season the number of teams was increased from 16 to 18 teams. The professional football team of PAS Tehran was also dissolved before the start of the season. Instead of PAS Tehran a new club was founded in Hamadan and named PAS Hamedan. In 2008, Saba Battery was also moved from Tehran to Qom. Since then, the club is known as Saba Qom. The championship of the 2007–08 season was decided on the last matchday. Persepolis defeated Sepahan. Sanat Naft and Shirin Faraz (today known as Rahian Kermanshah) relegated to Azadegan League. The next season was dominated by Esteghlal and the two surprising teams Zob Ahan and Mes Kerman. Zob Ahan was the leading team after 75 minutes on matchday 34, before they lost their match against Foolad due to three conceded goals in the last 15 minutes with 1–4. Payam Mashhad had to relegated alongside Bargh Shiraz and Damash.

The 2009–10 Persian Gulf Cup was dominated by the two Isfahan based clubs Sepahan and Zob Ahan. Ultimately Sepahan won the league. Sepahan repeated their success by winning the 2010–11 and 2011–12 Persian Gulf Cup. Esteghlal won the 2012–13 Persian Gulf Cup and became for the eight time in their history the Iranian champion.

The League was scaled down from 18 to 16 teams before the beginning of the next season. Foolad won the 2013–14 Persian Gulf Cup. Foolad saved their championship after they defeated Gostaresh Foulad away .

Persian Gulf Pro League

Esteghlal Khuzestan celebrate their championship in 2016.

The league changed its name from Persian Gulf Cup to Persian Gulf Pro League in 2014. The Iranian Football Federation decided also to change the logos of the Persian Gulf Pro League and of the Azadegan League. The 2014–15 Persian Gulf Pro League was embossed by a championship battle between Sepahan, Tractor and Naft Tehran. Furthermore, there were strange events in the stadium, including a lot of misinformation and disturbed telecommunication. Although Sepahan secured their title with a 2–0 victory over Saipa, thousands of Tractor supporters celebrated on the pitch, believing that they won the league for the first time in club's history.

Also the 2015–16 Persian Gulf Pro League was not decided until the last matchday. Esteghlal Khuzestan won the league in front of Persepolis and Esteghlal. Persepolis missed their opportunity winning the league after eight years. However, Persepolis dominated the next season and won the 2016–17 Persian Gulf Pro League. Persepolis football team claimed the Iran Professional League (IPL) and repeated the title in 2017-18 Season. The Following Season Persepolis again were champion for three times in a row.

Format

In the past, the number of teams was changed at various times. Since 2013, the league comprises 16 teams. Over the course of a season, which runs annually from July to the following May, each team plays twice against the others in the league, once at home and once away, resulting in each team competing in 30 games in total. Three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and zero for a loss. The teams are ranked in the league table by points gained, then goal difference, then goals scored and then their head-to-head record for that season.

At the end of the season, the club with the most points becomes the Iranian champion. Currently, the Champions, the Runners Up and the Hazfi Cup champions qualify automatically for the group phase of the AFC Champions League, while the third-place team enters the AFC Champions League at the Play-off round. The bottom two teams are relegated to Azadegan League. Furthermore, all teams in the Persian Gulf Pro League can participate in the Hazfi Cup.

Number of teams	Period
14	2001–02 until 2003–04
16	2004–05 until 2006–07, since 2013–14
18	2007–08 until 2012–13

Logo

Logo since 2014–present

Ranking

Updated on 7 December 2021.(Source)

Ranking				Member Association	Club Points					100%
2021	2020	Mvmt	Region	Member Association	2018	2019	2020	2021	Total	100%
1	3	+2	1 (W)	Saudi Arabia	10.000	26.350	0.000	20.950	57.300	100.000
2	6	+4	1 (E)	South Korea	18.350	13.600		22.750	54.700	95.462
3	2	-1	2 (E)	Japan	13.850	21.800		17.875	53.525	93.412
4	5	+1	2 (W)	Iran	18.850	11.500		14.225	44.575	77.792
5	4	-1	3 (W)	Qatar	19.850	15.900		7.300	43.050	75.131
6	10	+4	4 (W)	Uzbekistan	9.400	9.000		18.671	37.071	64.696

Clubs (2023–24)

Team	Location	Stadium	Capacity
Aluminium	Arak	Imam Khomeini	15,000
Esteghlal	Tehran	Azadi	78,116
Esteghlal Khuzestan	Ahvaz	Ghadir	38,900
Foolad	Ahvaz	Foolad Arena	30,655
Gol Gohar Sirjan	Sirjan	Qassem Soleimani	8,000
Havadar	Tehran	Shahid Dastgerdi	8,250
Malavan	Bandar-e Anzali	Sirous Ghayeghran	8,000
Mes Rafsanjan	Rafsanjan	Shohadaye Mes	10,000
Nassaji Mazandaran	Ghaemshahr	Vatani	27,700
Paykan	Shahr-e Qods	Shahr-e Qods	18,000
Persepolis	Tehran	Azadi	78,116
Sanat Naft	Abadan	Takhti Abadan	8,000
Sepahan	Isfahan	Naghsh-e-Jahan	75,000
Shams Azar	Qazvin	Sardar Azadegan	15,000
Tractor	Tabriz	Yadegar-e Emam	66,833
Zob Ahan	Fooladshahr	Fooladshahr	20,000

Champions

Persian Gulf Pro League

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning seasons
Persepolis	9	3	2001–02, 2007–08, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2022–23, 2023–24
Sepahan	5	4	2002–03, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15
Esteghlal	4	6	2005–06, 2008–09, 2012–13, 2021–22
Foolad	2	0	2004–05, 2013–14
PAS Tehran	1	2	2003–04
Saipa		0	2006–07
Esteghlal Khuzestan		0	2015–16
Zob Ahan	0	4	–
Tractor		3
Esteghlal Ahvaz		1

Total

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning seasons
Persepolis	16	10	1971–72, 1973–74, 1975–76, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2007–08, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2022–23, 2023–24
Esteghlal	9	11	1970–71, 1974–75, 1989–90, 1997–98, 2000–01, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2012–13, 2021–22
PAS Tehran	5	5	1976–77, 1977–78, 1991–92, 1992–93, 2003–04
Sepahan	5	4	2002–03, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2014–15
Saipa	3	0	1993–94, 1994–95, 2006–07
Foolad	2	0	2004–05, 2013–14
Esteghlal Khuzestan	1	0	2015–16
Zob Ahan	0	4	–
Tractor		3
Bahman		2
Homa		1
Esteghlal Ahvaz		1

All-time Pro League table

Pos.	Club	Seasons	Matches Played	Wins	Draws	Losses	GF	GA	Goal Difference	Points	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	T4	T7	Debut	Since/Last App.	Relegated	Best Pos.
1	Esteghlal¹	22	672	338	212	122	992	587	+405	1225	4	5	8	1	1	1	—	18	20	2001–02	2001–02	—	1st
2	Persepolis² ³ ⁴			332	208	132	957	599	+358	1191	8	3	2	3	2	—	1	16	19			—	1st
3	Sepahan⁵			311	216	145	970	619	+351	1146	5	4	2	2	3	1		13	18			—	1st
4	Zob Ahan⁶			248	230	194	788	680	+108	973	—	4	1	4	—	6		9	16			—	2nd
5	Foolad	21	638	241	223	174	719	626	+93	946	2	—	3	1	2	2	3	6	13		2008–09	1	1st
6	Saipa	20	612	186	217	209	660	701	−41	775	1	—	1	1	—	1	2	3	4		2020–21	1	1st
7	Tractor⁷	15	462	191	152	119	590	463	+127	724	—	3	1	3	2	1	2	7	12		2009–10	1	2nd
8	Paykan	18	548	158	173	217	544	660	−116	647	—	—	—	—	1	2	5	0	8		2016–17	4	5th
9	Saba Qom/Saba Battery	13	414	128	159	127	468	459	+9	543	—	—	1	2	—	2	1	3	6	2004–05	2016–17	1	3rd
10	Malavan⁸	15	466	126	157	183	424	542	−118	534	—	—	—	—	—	—	2	0	2	2001–02	2022–23	2	7th
11	Fajr Sepasi	13	398	103	146	149	357	434	−77	455	—	—	—	1	—	—	—	1	1		2013–14	2	4th
12	Rah Ahan	11	354	107	114	133	406	421	-15	435	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		2015–16	1	8th
13	Sanat Naft	12	372	102	114	156	371	478	−107	420	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—	1	2002–03	2016–17	3	7th
14	Mes Kerman	9	294	89	109	96	332	329	+3	376	—	—	1	—	—	1	1	1	3	2006–07	2022–23	1	3rd
15	Naft Tehran	8	252	91	88	73	286	258	+28	361	—	—	2	—	3	—	—	2	5	2010–11	2017–18		3rd
16	Aboomoslem	9	270	83	90	97	296	304	−8	339	—	—	—	1	2	1	—	1	4	2001–02	2009–10		4th
17	Esteghlal Ahvaz	9	274	80	78	116	327	402	−75	318	—	1	—	—	1	—	—		2	2002–03	2015–16	2	2nd
18	Shahr Khodro¹⁵	8	240	74	80	86	218	245	−27	294	—	—	—	1	—	1	—		2	2014–15	2021–22	1	4th
19	PAS Tehran⁹	6	168	72	59	37	263	181	+82	274	1	2	—	1	—	1	—	4	5	2001–02	2006–07	—	1st
20	Bargh	8	236	60	78	98	252	335	−83	258	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—	1		2008–09	1	7th
21	Damash/Pegah/Esteghlal Rasht¹⁰	8	248	56	81	111	227	344	−117	248	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—			2013–14	4	7th
22	Esteghlal Khuzestan¹⁶	6	180	45	68	67	174	220	−46	197	1	—	—	—	—	—	—	1		2013–14	2023–24	1	1st
23	Gostaresh Foolad	5	150	39	60	51	147	161	−14	177	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2013–14	2017–18	—	8th
24	Gol Gohar	4	120	45	39	36	137	130	+73	174	—	—	—	1	1	1	—	1	3	2019–20	2019–20	—	4th
25	Nassaji	5	150	35	61	54	136	174	−38	166	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2018–19	2018–19	—	9th
26	PAS Hamedan	4	136	38	48	50	143	165	−22	162	—	—	—	—	1	—	—	—	1	2007–08	2010–11	1	5th
27	Naft Masjed Soleyman	6	180	27	75	78	116	216	−100	156	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2014–15	2022–23	1	8th
28	Mes Rafsanjan	3	90	33	31	26	92	74	+18	130	—	—	—	—	1	1	—	—	2	2020–21	2020–21	—	5th
29	Shahin Bushehr	4	132	27	48	57	124	175	−51	129	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2009–10	2019–20	2	13th
30	Aluminium Arak	3	90	23	45	22	65	71	−6	114	—	—	—	—	—	—	1	—	1	2020–21	2020–21	—	8th
31	Pars Jonoubi Jam	3	90	22	38	30	82	87	−5	104	—	—	—	—	1	—	—	1	1	2017–18	2019–20	1	5th
32	Machine Sazi	4	120	17	39	64	84	163	−79	90	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2016–17	2020–21	2	11th
33	Steel Azin¹¹	2	68	19	23	26	85	112	−27	80	—	—	—	—	1	—	—	—	1	2009–10	2010–11	1	5th
34	Shamoushak	3	86	16	26	44	66	118	−52	74	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2003–04	2005–06		14th
35	Siah Jamegan	3	90	15	27	48	64	117	−53	72	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2015–16	2017–18		13th
36	Shahrdari Tabriz	2	68	14	29	25	79	98	−19	71	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2010–11	2011–12		12th
37	Havadar		60	15	22	23	42	25	−17	67	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2021–22	2021–22	—	11th
38	Sepidrood		60	11	17	32	48	92	−44	50	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2017–18	2018–19	1	13th
39	Aluminium Hormozgan	1	34	7	14	13	26	40	−14	35	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2012–13	2012–13		15th
40	Payam		34	9	8	17	33	52	−19	35	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2008–09	2008–09		16th
41	Mes Sarcheshmeh		34	5	9	20	23	54	−31	24	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2011–12	2011–12		18th
42	Shirin Faraz¹²		34	3	12	19	25	59	−34	21	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2007–08	2007–08		18th
43	Shahid Ghandi¹³		30	4	7	19	21	43	−22	19	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2005–06	2005–06		16th
44	Gahar Zagros¹⁴		34	3	10	21	24	59	−35	19	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2012–13	2012–13		18th
45	Shams Azar¹⁷	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	−3	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2023–24	2023–24	—	—

	2023–24 Persian Gulf Pro League
	2023–24 Azadegan League
	Lower leagues
	Defunct teams
	Founding members

Source: iplstats.com
Notes:
Only league matches; play-offs are not included in the all-time table.
¹ Esteghlal was deducted one point in the 2013–14 season.
² Persepolis was deducted six points in the 2005–06 season.
³ Persepolis was deducted six points in the 2007–08 season.
⁴ Persepolis was deducted one point in the 2013–14 season.
⁵ Sepahan was deducted three points in the 2007–08 season.
⁶ Zob Ahan was deducted one point in the 2005–06 season.
⁷ Tractor was deducted one point in the 2013–14 season.
⁸ Malavan was deducted one point in the 2013–14 season.
⁹ PAS Tehran was deducted one point in the 2006–07 season.
¹⁰ Damash was deducted one point in the 2013–14 season.
¹¹ Steel Azin was formerly known as Ekbatan.
¹² Rahian Kermanshah was formerly known as Shirin Faraz.
¹³ Tarbiat Yazd was formerly known as Shahid Ghandi.
¹⁴ Gahar Zagros was formerly known as Damash Lorestan.
¹⁵ Shahr Khodro was deducted six points in the 2017–18 season.
¹⁶ Esteghlal Khuzestan was deducted six points in the 2018–19 season.
¹⁷ Shams Azar was deducted six points in the 2023–24 season.

Attendances

Average league attendances

Season	Average	Highest attended club	Club average	Lowest attended club	Club average
2005–06	9,179	Esteghlal	33,467	Shamoushak Noshahr	3,542
2006–07	10,119	Esteghlal	35,000	Rah Ahan	4,073
2007–08	11,235	Persepolis	60,000	Rah Ahan	2,647
2008–09	8,954	Persepolis	40,688	PAS Hamedan	3,706
2009–10	12,298	Tractor	57,647	Paykan	2,313
2010–11	9,383		42,000	Paykan	1,941
2011–12	9,488		39,533	Mes Sarcheshmeh	1,706
2012–13	7,964	Esteghlal	34,250	Rah Ahan	1,942
2013–14	7,631	Persepolis	29,467	Rah Ahan	1,664
2014–15	6,921	Tractor	27,488	Saba Qom	1,365
2015–16	8,048	Persepolis	47,036	Naft Tehran	1,594
2016–17	8,086		48,567	Gostaresh Foulad	1,018
2017–18	9,060		39,786	Gostaresh Foulad	817
2018–19	12,212	Tractor	46,963	Esteghlal Khuzestan	1,507
2019–20	8,629	Persepolis	27,556	Machine Sazi	840
2020–21	No spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
2021–22	10,572	Esteghlal	37,400	Paykan	100
2022–23	9,515	Tractor	33,375	Havadar	157
2023-24	10,824	Esteghlal	34,150	Havadar	200

Notes:
Matches with spectator bans are not included in average attendances.
The official game reports can be found under the match schedule on iranleague.ir. The viewer numbers are noted in these. This results in average attendance.

Highest attended season matches

Season	Home team	Score	Away team	Attendance	Date	Week	Stadium
2005–06	Esteghlal	4–1	Bargh Shiraz	100,000	21 April 2006 (2006-04-21)	30	Azadi
2006–07	Persepolis	2–1	Esteghlal	95,000	3 November 2006 (2006-11-03)	8
2007–08		2–1	Sepahan	110,000	17 May 2008 (2008-05-17)	34
2008–09		2–0	Damash	90,000	25 September 2008 (2008-09-25)	8
		1–1	Esteghlal		3 October 2008 (2008-10-03)	9
	Esteghlal	1–1	Persepolis		13 February 2009 (2009-02-13)	26
2009–10	Tractor	0–0	Moghavemat	95,000	22 January 2010 (2010-01-22)	24	Sahand
2010–11	Esteghlal	1–0	Persepolis	100,000	15 October 2010 (2010-10-15)	11	Azadi
2011–12	Persepolis	0–2	Esteghlal		16 September 2011 (2011-09-16)	7
2012–13	Esteghlal	0–0	Persepolis		25 January 2013 (2013-01-25)	23
2012–13		1–2	Damash		10 May 2013 (2013-05-10)	34
2013–14		0–0	Persepolis		6 September 2013 (2013-09-06)	8
2014–15	Tractor	3–3	Naft Tehran	80,000	15 May 2015 (2015-05-15)	30	Sahand
2015–16	Persepolis	4–2	Esteghlal	100,000	15 April 2016 (2016-04-15)	26	Azadi
2016–17	Persepolis	4–0	Shahr Khodro	80,000	19 April 2017 (2017-04-19)	28
2017–18	Esteghlal	1–0	Persepolis	100,000	1 March 2018 (2018-03-01)	25
2018–19	Persepolis	0–0	Sepahan	90,000	26 April 2019 (2019-04-26)	27
2019–20	Tractor	2–4	Esteghlal	80,000	1 November 2019 (2019-11-01)	9	Sahand
2020–21	No spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran
2021–22	Esteghlal	0–0	Naft MIS	85,000	30 May 2022 (2022-05-30)	30	Azadi
2022–23	Tractor	1–0	Sepahan	70,000	7 April 2023 (2023-04-07)	25	Sahand
2022–23	Sepahan	1–1	Malavan	70,000	24 April 2023 (2023-04-24)	27	Naghsh-e Jahan

Records

All-Time Persian Gulf League Top Scorers

No.	Player	Goals	Apps	GPGR	Years
1	Reza Enayati	147	358	0.41	2001- 2017
2	Mehdi Rajabzadeh	116	381	0.30	2001- 2018
3	Arash Borhani	115	339	0.33	2002- 2017
4	Luciano Chimba	115	325	0.35	2012-Present
5	Fereydoon Fazli	85	178	0.47	2001–2010
6	Édinho	82	183	0.44	2008- 2017
7	Jalal Rafkhaei	79	308	0.25	2005- 2016
8	Mohammad Reza Khalatbari	79	428	0.18	2003–2023
9	Karim Ansarifard	77	182	0.42	2007- 2014
10	Mohammad Ghazi	76	340	0.22	2004-Present

Players in bold are still active in the league.

*GPGR: Goals Per Game Ratio

All-time top appearances in Iran league

No	Player	Appearance	Years
1	Jalal Hosseini	492	2002–2022
2	Mehdi Rahmati	482	2001–2020
3	Ebrahim Sadeghi	438	2001–2017
4	Mohammadreza Khalatbari	428	2003–2023
5	Mehdi Rajabzadeh	381	2001–2018
6	Morteza Asadi	380	2005–2018
7	Amir Hossein Sadeghi	379	2003–2018
8	Mohsen Bengar	372	2003–2018
9	Khosro Heydari	370	2002–2019
10	Mohammad Nouri	369	2005–2021

Broadcasting and sponsorship

Broadcasting

The state-owned television channel IRIB has the broadcasting rights for the most matches of the Persian Gulf Pro League, Azadegan League and Hazfi Cup. Each match of Esteghlal and Persepolis is broadcasting by IRIB TV3, IRIB's channel.

After the 1979 revolution, the right to broadcast the Iranian leagues was exclusively given to IRIB. The organization broadcast matches throughout the decades in SD 240p and below, drawing criticism from the sports media. It was announced in 2024 that the image quality will be upgraded to HD in the coming years.

Sponsorship

The Persian Gulf Pro League has been sponsored since 2005. There have been four sponsors since the league's formation.

2001–2005: no sponsor
2005–2007: Zamzam
2007–2009: Padideh
2009–2014: Irancell
2014–2016: Sun Star
2016–present: Fanap

Ownership

Awards

Trophy

The league championship trophy is made up of two parts, the main part is shiny Chrome and the smaller part shiny golden in color. The sides of the trophy are taken from the armour of two Persian Achaemenid soldiers. This trophy also has references to the Persian Gulf. Every season, a new copy of this trophy, which takes about one and a half months to make, is made by artisans to be presented to the champions. Medals are also distributed. The medals and the championship trophy are made of brass metal, the medals and the championship trophy are both gold plated.