Having only managed a seventh-place finish in the previous season, Al-Shorta's results improved significantly under the presidency of Ayad Bunyan and they were able to outperform favourites Erbil, Duhok, Al-Zawraa and Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya.
Al-Shorta needed a win against Al-Talaba to secure the league, whilst Erbil had to defeat Al-Najaf and hope that Al-Shorta failed to win their game if they wanted to retain their title.
All three teams ended up winning their respective matches, making Al-Shorta the champions.
[2] On 23 June 2013, after a match with Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, seven football players of Karbala and their manager were beaten by the anti-terror police.
Five of them were in critical condition, and on June 30, Mohammed Abbas Al-Jabouri, the club's manager, died in hospital.