Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Tunisian Professional League 1

Organising body	LNFP
Founded	9 June 1907; 118 years ago (1907-06-09) 1994 (current format)
Country	Tunisia
Confederation	CAF (Africa)
Number of teams	14
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Ligue Professionnelle 2
Domestic cup(s)	Tunisian Cup Tunisian Super Cup
League cup(s)	Tunisian League Cup
International cup(s)	CAF Champions League CAF Confederation Cup African Football League
Current champions	Étoile du Sahel (11th title) (2022–23)
Most championships	Espérance de Tunis (32 titles)
TV partners	ERTT Al-Kass Sports
Website	Official Website: https://www.ftf.org.tn/fr/category/ligue-1/

The Tunisian Professional League 1 is the top football league in Tunisia. It used to be called the Tunisian National Championship before 1994. The Tunisian Football Federation organizes this exciting tournament.

The very first games were played way back in 1907. This was during the time when France had a protectorate over Tunisia. The first official match happened on June 9, 1907. Back then, many teams with French connections played in the league. Some of these teams included Racing Club de Tunis and Sporting Club de Tunis.

In 1921, the Tunisian Football Association League was created. This group was linked to the French Football Federation. It managed football in Tunisia until the country became independent in 1956. On March 29, 1957, the Tunisian Football Federation was officially formed. This new group took over organizing all football events in Tunisia. The Tunisian championship became a professional league in 1994. This happened after the Ligue Nationale du Football Professionnel was founded.

Espérance de Tunis is the most successful club in the league. They have won an amazing 32 titles! Their most recent win was in the 2021–22 season.

The top two teams in the league get to play in the CAF Champions League. This is a big competition for clubs in Africa. The third-place team, along with the winner of the Tunisian Cup, qualifies for the CAF Confederation Cup. The Tunisian Football Federation also picks teams for the Arab Club Champions Cup. The Tunisian Professional League 1 is ranked highly in Arab and African countries. In 2019, it was even ranked 15th in the world by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics.

History of Tunisian Football

Early Days of Football

Racing Club de Tunis was one of the first football teams in Tunisia, started in 1904.

Football first started in Tunisia around 1904. The Racing Club de Tunis was one of the first teams. At first, there weren't enough clubs for a proper competition. So, the government started to help by giving small grants. A special committee was set up to manage all sports in Tunisia. This committee was part of the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques.

In 1910, the first championship was organized. Teams like Racing Club, Sporting Club de Tunis, and others took part. Racing Club won the championship in 1910, 1911, 1914, 1920, and 1921. Sporting de Ferryville won in 1912 and 1913. It's interesting to note that in 1910, a newspaper listed a team called Khereddine Club. All its players were Tunisians! This was the first fully Tunisian team.

The League Becomes Official

A meeting of the Ligue de Tunisie de Football Association, which organized early competitions.

The championship became official in 1921. This was when the Tunisian Football Association League was created. This league was connected to the French Football Federation. Until 1939, the champion was decided by play-off games between regional winners.

From 1946 to 1947, a "national division" championship was started. This meant teams from all over the country competed. In some years, like 1944–1945, 1945–1946, and 1952–1953, the championship wasn't held. Instead, they had a "criterium," which was a group tournament. The famous Stade Tunisien club was founded in 1948 during this time.

How We Watch the Games

A football match between Espérance de Tunis and Club de Hammam-Lif in 2008–09.

In 2015, the Tunisian Football Federation sold the TV rights for the league. This meant a company called B4 Production got to broadcast the games for three seasons. They had exclusive rights for countries in the Gulf and Maghreb regions. However, channels like Al-Kass Sports Channel, El Watania 1, El Watania 2, and Hannibal TV still had rights in Tunisia. In 2023, Diwan FM started a new sports channel called Diwan Sport to show games.

On October 6, 2016, the federation and national television made a deal. This agreement was for three seasons and was worth 13 million dinars. This allowed national television to show four live matches each day of the championship. This made national television the only official broadcaster of Tunisian Professional League 1 matches.

Where to Watch Tunisian League Games

Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 Media Coverage
Country	Television Channel	Matches
Qatar	Al-Kass Sports Channel	Playoff Matches
Tunisia	El Watania 1	Main Matches
Tunisia	Diwan Sport	Main Matches

Teams and Stadiums

Teams Playing in 2023–24

Stadiums and Their Locations

League Champions

Champions by Club

List of Tunisian football champions

Champions by Region

List of Tunisian football champions

Top Players and Coaches

Players with the Most Titles

Espérance de Tunis is the most successful team in the competition.

Some players have won the Tunisian Professional League 1 many times. Here are the ones with the most championship titles:

Player	Titles	Club	Winning Years
Khalil Chemmam	12	Espérance de Tunis	2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Chokri El Ouaer	10	Espérance de Tunis	1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02
Tarek Thabet		Espérance de Tunis	1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04
Moez Ben Cherifia		Espérance de Tunis	2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Sameh Derbali	8	Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
Nabil Maâloul		Espérance de Tunis, Club Africain	1975–76, 1980–81, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96
Khaled Badra		Espérance de Tunis	1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2008–09
Khaled Ben Yahia		Espérance de Tunis	1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94
Moïne Chaâbani	6	Espérance de Tunis	1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06
Ali Zitouni		Espérance de Tunis	1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04
Sirajeddine Chihi		Espérance de Tunis	1992–93, 1993–94, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01
Taoufik Hicheri		Espérance de Tunis	1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1997–98, 1998–99
Radhi Jaïdi		Espérance de Tunis	1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03
Tarak Dhiab		Espérance de Tunis	1974–75, 1975–76, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89
Walid Azaiez	5	Espérance de Tunis	1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03
Sadok Sassi		Club Africain	1963–64, 1966–67, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1978–79
Mejdi Traoui		Étoile du Sahel, Espérance de Tunis	2006–07, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14
Wassim Naouara		Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14
Mohamed Ben Mansour		Espérance de Tunis	2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2013–14

Managers with the Most Titles

Faouzi Benzarti is a very successful manager. He has won the tournament a record ten times! He won with Espérance de Tunis (5 times), Étoile du Sahel (4 times), and Club Africain (1 time). Youssef Zouaoui has also won the title five times. List of Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 winning managers

Clubs with Most Seasons Played

Club Sfaxien has participated in every season since Tunisia gained independence.

Since Tunisia became independent in 1956, many clubs have played in the league. As of 2020, 53 different clubs have participated.

• 65 seasons: Club Sfaxien, Club Africain
• 64 seasons: Espérance de Tunis, Stade Tunisien
• 63 seasons: Étoile du Sahel, CA Bizertin
• 57 seasons: Club de Hammam-Lif
• 53 seasons: Avenir de Marsa
• 45 seasons: Union Monastirienne
• 34 seasons: Jeunesse Kairouanaise, Sfax Railways Sports
• 29 seasons: Olympique Béja
• 22 seasons: Espérance de Zarzis
• 15 seasons: Stade Gabèsien
• 13 seasons: Océano Club de Kerkennah, Olympique du Kef
• 12 seasons: El Gawafel de Gafsa, Stade Soussien
• 10 seasons: US Tunis
• 09 seasons: El Makarem de Mahdia, Avenir de Gabès, CS Cheminots
• 07 seasons: Avenir de Kasserine, US Maghrébine, Stade Sfaxien
• 05 seasons: Étoile de Métlaoui, Union de Ben Guerdane, Espoir de Hammam Sousse
• 04 seasons: JS Metouia, Stade populaire, Olympique Médenine, Union de Tataouine, El Ahly Mateur
• 03 seasons: EO La Goulette et Kram, Jendouba Sport, Patrie Football Club bizertin, Association de Djerba
• 02 seasons: Olympique Sidi Bouzid, Avenir d'Oued Ellil, Association Mégrine, Grombalia Sports, Croissant Chebbien, Avenir de Soliman, Patriote de Sousse
• 01 season: Palme de Tozeur, CS Menzel Bouzelfa, STIA Sousse, Association d'Ariana, Club de Korba, FC Jerissa

Top Goal Scorers

After Tunisia became independent in 1956, newspapers started tracking the top goal scorers. Le Petit Matin was the first. Later, Al Amal and L'Action Tunisienne took over. They even gave out awards for the top scorer!

All-Time Top Scorers

Here are the players who have scored the most goals in the history of the league:

Rank	Players	Goals	Clubs
1	Ezzedine Chakroun	116	Sfax Railways Sports
2	Hédi Bayari	110	Club Africain
3	Tarak Dhiab	107	Espérance de Tunis
4	Habib Mougou	99	Étoile du Sahel
5	Mohamed Salah Jedidi	98	Club Africain
6	Adel Sellimi	90	Club Africain
7	Abdelkader Ben Hassen	89	Olympique des Transports (44), Espérance de Tunis (12), Club Bizertin (33)
8	Abdelmajid Tlemçani	88	Espérance de Tunis
9	Abdelhamid Hergal	85	Stade Tunisien
10	Nabil Bechaouch	82	Olympique Béja (71), Stade Tunisien (8), Club Sfaxien (3)
11	Moncef Khouini	81	Club Africain
	Sami Touati	81	Club Africain (80), Stade Tunisien (1)
12	Mongi Dalhoum	80	Club Sfaxien
13	Abderraouf Ben Aziza	79	Étoile du Sahel (70), Club de Hammam-Lif (9)
14	Faouzi Rouissi	78	Club Africain
	Noureddine Diwa	78	Stade Tunisien (75), Espérance de Tunis (3)
	Abdesselem Chemam	78	Avenir de Marsa
15	Mohamed Akid	77	Club Sfaxien
16	Hamadi Agrebi	75	Club Sfaxien
	Mohieddine Habita	75	Olympique des Transports
17	Saâd Karmous	74	Club de Hammam-Lif (72), US Tunis (2)
18	Moncef Chérif	71	Stade Tunisien
	Moncef Ouada	71	Jeunesse Kairouanaise
19	Jameleddine Limam	70	Stade Tunisien (49), Club Africain (21)

Top Scorers Each Season

Ali Maâloul was the top scorer in the 2015–16 season with 16 goals for Club Sfaxien.

Haythem Jouini was the top scorer in the 2012–13 season with 8 goals for Espérance de Tunis.

Here is a list of the top goal scorers for each season:

Tunisian Clubs in African and Arab Competitions

Success in African Competitions

Tunisian teams are among the best in Africa! They have won a total of 24 African titles. 12 Tunisian teams have played in African competitions. Étoile du Sahel has won the most African Cups with 9 titles. Espérance de Tunis is close behind with 8 titles.

Tunisian clubs have also played in the FIFA Club World Cup four times. Espérance de Tunis participated three times (in 2011, 2018, and 2019). They qualified by winning the African Champions League. Etoile du Sahel played once in 2007. They finished fourth, which is the best result for a Tunisian team in the Club World Cup.

Espérance de Tunis celebrates winning the CAF Champions League in 2018.

In the CAF Champions League, Tunisian clubs are very strong. Espérance de Tunis has played in this competition 25 times. They reached the final 8 times and won it four times (in 1994, 2011, 2018, and 2018–19). Étoile Sportive du Sahel has played 13 times, reached the final 3 times, and won once in 2007. Club Africain played 10 times and won their first final in 1991. Club Sfaxien reached second place in 2006.

Tunisian clubs have won the CAF Confederation Cup more than any other country, with 5 championships. Club Sfaxien has won it three times (in 2007, 2008, and 2013). Étoile du Sahel has won it twice (in 2006 and 2015).

However, Tunisian teams have had less luck in the CAF Super Cup. They have played 13 times but only won 3 times. Etoile du Sahel won in 1998 and 2008. Espérance de Tunis won once in 1995.

Success in Arab Competitions

Tunisian clubs are the second most successful Arab clubs, with 11 championships. Only Saudi clubs have won more (12 championships). Espérance de Tunis has won the most Arab championships for Tunisia, with 4 titles. Club Sfaxien and Stade Tunisien each have two championships.

Tunisian teams have won the important Arab Club Champions Cup 7 times. Espérance de Tunis holds the record with 3 trophies (in 1993, 2008–09, and 2017). Club Sfaxien won it twice (in 2000 and 2003–04). Étoile du Sahel won in 2018–19, and Club Africain won in 1997. Tunisian teams have also been runners-up five times.

Tunisian clubs have won the Arab Cup Winners' Cup three times. Stade Tunisien has won this championship twice (in 1989 and 2001). Club Africain won it once in 1995. Interestingly, Étoile du Sahel was the runner-up in 1995, losing to Club Africain in the final.

See Also

In Spanish: Championnat de Ligue Profesionelle 1 para niños

• Ligue Nationale du Football Professionnel
• Tunisian Cup
• Tunisian Super Cup