The Swiss Football Association (ASF/SFV) had 28 members at this time.
The format in both divisions was that the teams played a double round-robin to decide their table positions.
In the NLA following this first qualification stage the division was divided in two, the top placed six teams then played a championship stage and the other teams in a relegation play-out.
In both groups each team took half of the points gained in the first stage, rounded up to complete units, as bonus with them.
From the play-out group the bottom two teams were relegated to the second-tier.