The Primera División (Spanish pronunciation: [pɾiˈmeɾa ðiβiˈsjon]; English: "First Division"), known officially as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Betano for sponsorship reasons, is a professional football league in Argentina,[9] organised by the Argentine Football Association (AFA).

Argentina held its first championship in 1891,[10] making it the first country outside the United Kingdom to establish a football league.

The Argentine championship was ranked as one of the top ten strongest leagues worldwide for the 2015 calendar year by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS).

Argentina placed 4th after La Liga (Spain), Serie A (Italy), and Bundesliga (Germany), but has since descended to 19th in the 2021 list.

The 4th edition of Copa de la Liga Profesional will be held in the second half of 2023, when the league tournament concludes.

Teams will be divided into two zones (A and B) and will play each other in a single round robin format, totalising 14 fixtures.

In 1891 the Association Argentine Football League was established, with Alex Lamont of St. Andrew's Scots School as one of its board members.

During this period, the traditional "Big Five" clubs, namely, River Plate, Boca Juniors, Independiente, Racing and San Lorenzo dominated Argentine football.

This change revolutionized Argentine football, allowing smaller clubs—such as Estudiantes de La Plata, Vélez Sarsfield, and Chacarita Juniors—to challenge the dominance of the five clubs that had previously won all championships.

In the first three years, the Metropolitano was a two-group championship, with the best two teams from each group competing the semi-finals of the knock-out stage.

That year, River Plate finished 18° out of 19 teams and would have been relegated under the old system, along with Racing de Córdoba.

These facts have led to speculation that the averaging system was instituted to minimize the chance of big teams being relegated.

[25] Following the advice of Argentina national football team's then coach Carlos Salvador Bilardo, the structure of play was modified in 1985.

Five years later, the single championship was split into two single-round tournaments, giving birth to the Apertura and Clausura arrangement.

This practice was very controversial, especially since one of the biggest teams, Boca Juniors, lost the finals against Newell's Old Boys, costing them their first official championship since 1981 despite an unbeaten run in the Clausura.

After 1992, the practice was quickly abandoned, so that two champions (on equal footing) were crowned every season and no deciding game is played.

Once the initial and final tournaments had finished, both winners had to play a match for the Copa Campeonato (familiarly known as Superfinal).

Starting August 2014, the "Torneo de Transición" was held, with 20 teams participating (17 from the 2013–14 season and 3 promoted from the 2013–14 Primera B Nacional).

[40] The Superliga was replaced by a similar body, named "Liga Profesional de Fútbol", directly linked to AFA and presided by Marcelo Tinelli.

The only player retired after that year in the top twenty list is Martín Palermo, who played for Estudiantes (LP) and Boca Juniors in Primera División.

[8][43] Until the agreement with Fox and Turner was signed, Argentine football matches were broadcast nationally by El Trece, Telefe, America TV, and Channel 7.

Games were free in Argentina from 2009 to 2016 thanks to the "Fútbol para Todos" (Football for Everyone) program, when the National Government and AFA decided rescind the agreement.

In the United States, in the 2004-05 season, ESPN Deportes (instead of Fox Sports networks), broadcast some matches from El Clásico del Domingo (Like other football competitions as Bundesliga, Ligue 1 or Copa Libertadores).