List of Israeli football champions
Introduction Maccabi Tel Aviv are Israel's most successful club. The Maccabi squad of 1939 is pictured at Sydney Cricket Ground during a tour of Australia.|alt=A black-and-white photograph of an association football team. A row of eight men stands at the rear, six in dark-coloured soccer jerseys with a light stripe horizontal across the centre, and one on each end in dark-coloured suits. In front of them sit eight more players. In the background a tall floodlight and two grandstands can be seen.The association football champions of Israel are the winners of the highest league in Israeli football, which is currently the Israeli Premier League. The league is contested on a round robin basis and the championship awarded to the team that is top of the league at the end of the season. Having won the 2020–21 competition, Maccabi Haifa are the current champions.Following the creation of the Eretz Israel Football Association in August 1928, the first nationwide football championship in Mandatory Palestine, the Palestine League, began in November 1931.The Palestine League's last edition was played during the 1946–47 season, and since then the national championship has been played under four names: the Israeli League, from 1949 to 1950; Liga Alef, between 1951 and 1955; Liga Leumit, from 1955 to 1999; and finally, since 1999, the Israeli Premier League.In all, Maccabi Tel Aviv hold the record for most championships, with 23 titles; they are also the only Israeli club to have never been relegated from the top division. The next most successful teams are Maccabi Haifa, Hapoel Tel Aviv  and Beitar Jerusalem, with 15, 12 and six titles respectively. These four sides won every Israeli Premier League title from its inception in 1999 to 2012; due in part to this, they are sometimes described as Israel's "Big Four". While Maccabi and Hapoel Tel Aviv have always been major players in the league championship, the consistent success of Maccabi Haifa and Beitar Jerusalem has been a relatively recent phenomenon, both clubs having won their first title during the 1980s. The longest run of successive titles is five, won by Hapoel Petah Tikva between the 1958–59 and 1962–63 seasons.
Champions ;KeyChampions also won the Israel State Cup during the same season. (People's Cup before 1948)Champions also won the League Cup during the same season. (began play in 1984)§ Champions also won both cups during the same season. (titles)A running tally of the total number of championships won by each club is kept in brackets.===Palestine League (1931–1947)===Hapoel Tel Aviv ''(light shirts)'' took on the American Soccer League's all-star team at Ebbets Field, New York in 1947.|alt=A black-and-white photograph taken in the midst of a soccer match. A dark-haired player in a dark uniform marked "ASL" runs towards an old-fashioned leather ball in the foreground. Behind him two players in light-coloured kits can be seen.The inaugural Palestine League title was won by British Police, who finished the season unbeaten and also won the People's Cup to complete the country's first double. Except for Jerusalem-based British Police's initial victory, only clubs from Tel Aviv won the title during the Mandate period; Hapoel and Maccabi Tel Aviv won five and four championships respectively. Because of violent conflicts involving the Yishuv, the competition's scheduling was inconsistent and in some seasons no national championship was held. :''Full league standings and top scorer details not known at this time. ''SeasonWinner (titles)Notes 1931–32 British Police (1) — 1932–33  — 1933–34 Hapoel Tel Aviv (1) — 1934–35 Hapoel Tel Aviv (2)  1935–36 Maccabi Tel Aviv (1) — 1937 Maccabi Tel Aviv (2) — 1938 Hapoel Tel Aviv (3)  1938–39   1940 Hapoel Tel Aviv (4) — 1940–41  — 1941–42 Maccabi Tel Aviv (3) — 1942–43   1943–44 Hapoel Tel Aviv (5) — 1944–45 Hapoel Tel Aviv (6) and Beitar Tel Aviv (1)  1945–46  — 1946–47 Maccabi Tel Aviv (4) — 1947–48   1948  ===Israeli League (1949–1951)===Following Israel's creation in 1948, the association dropped "Eretz" from its name and the cup was renamed the Israel State Cup. The league championship was held as the "Israeli League" for one season, in 1949–50; Maccabi Tel Aviv won the title.SeasonWinner (titles)Runners-upThird placeTop ScorerGoalsNotes 1949–50 Maccabi Tel Aviv (5) Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 25 — 1950–51      —===Liga Alef (1951–1955)===A new top division, Liga Alef started play with the 1951–52 season. It became the second tier of Israeli football in 1955–56, when it was superseded as the top flight by Liga Leumit. Maccabi Tel Aviv won the first two of the championships held under this name, whilst the 1954–55 ended with the championship leaving Tel Aviv for the first time since the first league season, 1931–32; Hapoel Petah Tikva finished the season top of the league while Maccabi and Hapoel Tel Aviv came in second and third place respectivelySeasonWinner (titles)Runners-upThird placeTop ScorerGoalsNotes 1951–52 Maccabi Tel Aviv (6) Maccabi Petah Tikva Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 24 — 1952–53      — 1953–54 Maccabi Tel Aviv (7) Maccabi Petah Tikva Hapoel Petah Tikva  (Maccabi Petah Tikva) 16 — 1954–55 Hapoel Petah Tikva (1) Maccabi Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv  (Beitar Tel Aviv) 30 —===Liga Leumit (1955–1999)=== Nahum Stelmach ''(left, striped shirt)'' takes a shot for Hapoel Petah Tikva during the 1950s. Stelmach was a key player as the club won five titles in a row between 1958 and 1963.|alt=A black-and-white image taken from behind the goal net during a football match. A dark-haired player in a vertically-striped jersey and dark shorts kicks the ball with his right foot while a mustachioed goalkeeper in black dives to stop the shot. Two more players in plain, dark jerseys and white shorts are visible in the background.The inaugural Liga Leumit season, 1955–56, ended with the championship won by Maccabi Tel Aviv, which have won two of the next three titles and Hapoel Tel Aviv one. Hapoel Petah Tikva then finished in second place three times in a row, before starting a record run of five successive championship victories. Hapoel Petah Tikva's run of five consecutive titles between the 1958–59 and 1962–63 seasons remains unmatched today. Two Ramat Gan clubs, Hapoel Ramat Gan and Hakoah Ramat Gan, then claimed a title each before Hapoel Tel Aviv took the title to Tel Aviv at the end of the 1965–66 season. In the 1966–68 season, often referred to as the "double season", the sixteen teams played each other twice at home and twice away during a season lasting two years.During the 1970s and 1980s, six teams won their first championships; Maccabi Netanya took four titles between 1970 and 1980 while Hapoel Be'er Sheva won two back-to-back in 1974–75 and 1975–76.Hapoel Kfar Saba, Maccabi Haifa, Beitar Jerusalem and Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv all won their first titles during the 1980s. After Bnei Yehuda's victory in 1989–90, Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Beitar Jerusalem dominated the remainder of the top-flight Liga Leumit era, winning every title except the last; the 1998–99 championship was won by first-time victors Hapoel Haifa.SeasonWinner (titles)Runners-upThird placeTop ScorerGoalsNotes 1955–56  Hapoel Petah Tikva Hapoel Tel Aviv  (Beitar Tel Aviv)Michael Michaelov (Beitar Tel Aviv) 16 — 1956–57  Hapoel Petah Tikva Maccabi Tel Aviv  (Hapoel Haifa) 16 — 1957–58  Hapoel Petah Tikva Maccabi Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 14 — 1958–59 Hapoel Petah Tikva (2) Hapoel Haifa Maccabi Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Haifa) 17 — 1959–60 Hapoel Petah Tikva (3) Maccabi Tel Aviv Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 19 — 1960–61 Hapoel Petah Tikva (4) Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Haifa  (Hapoel Haifa)Zharia Ratzabi (Hapoel Petah Tikva) 15 — 1961–62 Hapoel Petah Tikva (5) Maccabi Jaffa Hapoel Tiberias  (Maccabi Haifa)Itzhak Nizri (Hapoel Tiberias) 16 — 1962–63 Hapoel Petah Tikva (6) Hapoel Tel Aviv Maccabi Jaffa  (Hapoel Petah Tikva) 12 — 1963–64 Hapoel Ramat Gan (1) Maccabi Jaffa Hapoel Petah Tikva  (Maccabi Jaffa) 21 — 1964–65 Hakoah Ramat Gan (1) Hapoel Petah Tikva Hapoel Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Jaffa)Itzhak Mizrahi (Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv) 18 — 1965–66  Maccabi Tel Aviv Hapoel Petah Tikva  (Shimshon Tel Aviv)Mordechai Spiegler (Maccabi Netanya) 17 — 1966–68 Maccabi Tel Aviv (10) Hapoel Petah Tikva Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Netanya) 38   1968–69  Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Netanya  (Maccabi Netanya) 25 — 1969–70 Maccabi Tel Aviv (11) Hapoel Tel Aviv Maccabi Haifa  (Shimshon Tel Aviv) 15 — 1970–71 Maccabi Netanya (1) Shimshon Tel Aviv Hapoel Tel Aviv  (Hapoel Jerusalem) 20 — 1971–72 Maccabi Tel Aviv (12) Beitar Jerusalem Hakoah Ramat Gan  (Hakoah Ramat Gan) 21 — 1972–73 Hakoah Ramat Gan (2) Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Jerusalem  (Beitar Tel Aviv) 18 — 1973–74 Maccabi Netanya (2) Maccabi Tel Aviv Beitar Jerusalem  (Hapoel Haifa) 15 — 1974–75 Hapoel Be'er Sheva (1) Maccabi Netanya Hapoel Haifa  (Shimshon Tel Aviv) 17— 1975–76 Hapoel Be'er Sheva (2) Beitar Jerusalem Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Netanya) 21 — 1976–77 Maccabi Tel Aviv (13) Maccabi Jaffa Beitar Jerusalem  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 17 — 1977–78 Maccabi Netanya (3) Beitar Jerusalem Maccabi Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Netanya) 16 — 1978–79 Maccabi Tel Aviv (14) Beitar Jerusalem Maccabi Netanya  (Maccabi Netanya)Eli Miali (Beitar Jerusalem) 18— 1979–80 Maccabi Netanya (4) Hapoel Tel Aviv Shimshon Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Netanya) 18 — 1980–81  Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv Maccabi Jaffa  (Maccabi Petah Tikva) 22 — 1981–82 Hapoel Kfar Saba (1) Maccabi Netanya Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Netanya) 26 — 1982–83 Maccabi Netanya (5) Shimshon Tel Aviv Hapoel Be'er Sheva  (Maccabi Netanya) 22 — 1983–84 Maccabi Haifa (1) Beitar Jerusalem Hapoel Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Netanya) 16 — 1984–85 Maccabi Haifa (2) Beitar Jerusalem Shimshon Tel Aviv  (Maccabi Netanya) 18 — 1985–86 Hapoel Tel Aviv (11) Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Tel Aviv  (Beitar Jerusalem)Doron Rabinzon (Maccabi Petah Tikva) 14 — 1986–87 Beitar Jerusalem (1) Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv  (Hapoel Kfar Saba) 16 — 1987–88 Hapoel Tel Aviv (12) Maccabi Netanya Hapoel Be'er Sheva  (Maccabi Haifa) 25 — 1988–89 Maccabi Haifa (3) Hapoel Petah Tikva Maccabi Netanya  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 18 — 1989–90 Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv (1) Hapoel Petah Tikva Maccabi Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 16 — 1990–91 Maccabi Haifa (4) Hapoel Petah Tikva Beitar Tel Aviv  (Hapoel Petah Tikva) 20 — 1991–92 Maccabi Tel Aviv (15) Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv Maccabi Haifa  (Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv) 20 — 1992–93 Beitar Jerusalem (2) Maccabi Tel Aviv Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv  (Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv) 26 — 1993–94 Maccabi Haifa (5) Maccabi Tel Aviv Hapoel Be'er Sheva  (Maccabi Haifa) 28 — 1994–95 Maccabi Tel Aviv (16) Maccabi Haifa Hapoel Be'er Sheva  (Maccabi Haifa)Amir Turgeman (Maccabi Ironi Ashdod) 17 — 1995–96 Maccabi Tel Aviv (17) Maccabi Haifa Beitar Jerusalem  (Maccabi Haifa) 26 — 1996–97 Beitar Jerusalem (3) Hapoel Petah Tikva Hapoel Be'er Sheva  (Hapoel Petah Tikva) 21 — 1997–98 Beitar Jerusalem (4) Hapoel Tel Aviv Hapoel Haifa  (Maccabi Haifa) 18 — 1998–99 Hapoel Haifa (1) Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Haifa  (Maccabi Tel Aviv) 21 —===Israeli Premier League (1999–present)===Maccabi Tel Aviv celebrate winning the title at the end of the 2012–13 season|alt=A stand full of football supporters clad in yellow and blue, beside a pitch.When the Israeli Premier League became the top division of Israeli football in 1999–2000, Liga Leumit became the second division. Since then, only six clubs have won the title; Hapoel Tel Aviv, Ironi Kiryat Shmona, Hapoel Be'er Sheva, Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Beitar Jerusalem. Hapoel Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Beitar Jerusalem are sometimes referred to as the "Big Four" of Israeli football.Having won seven titles in the league's 20 seasons, the most successful club during this period is Maccabi Haifa; during the same period Maccabi Tel Aviv have added six to their total, Hapoel Be'er Sheva added three championships, while Beitar Jerusalem and Hapoel Tel Aviv have won two championships each. Although Hapoel Tel Aviv have only finished top of the league twice since 1999—in 1999–2000 and ten years later in 2009–10—they have won the double on both occasions.This achievement was matched by Beitar Jerusalem in 2007–08.Ironi Kiryat Shmona won their first championship during the 2011–12 season, thereby becoming the first northern title-winners. Both Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Be'er Sheva have won three titles in a row.
Performances ===Performance by club===A star above the crest is awarded for every five titles.ClubTitlesRunners-upWinning seasonsMaccabi Tel Aviv⭐⭐⭐⭐23121935–36, 1937, 1941–42, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1953–54, 1955–56, 1957–58, 1966–68, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1991–92, 1994–95, 1995–96, 2002–03, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2018–19, 2019–20Maccabi Haifa⭐⭐⭐1591983–84, 1984–85, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1993–94, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23Hapoel Tel Aviv⭐⭐13151933–34, 1934–35, 1938-39, 1940-41, 1943–44, 1956–57, 1965–66, 1968–69, 1980–81, 1985–86, 1987–88, 1999–2000, 2009–10Hapoel Petah Tikva⭐101954–55, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63Beitar Jerusalem⭐61986–87, 1992–93, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2006–07, 2007–08Maccabi Netanya⭐51970–71, 1973–74, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1982–83Hapoel Be'er Sheva⭐31974–75, 1975–76, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18Hakoah Ramat Gan—1964–65, 1972–73Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv31989–90Beitar Tel Aviv21944–45Hapoel Ramat Gan11963–64Hapoel Haifa11998–99Ironi Kiryat Shmona12011–12British Police—1931–32Hapoel Kfar Saba—1981–82Maccabi Petah Tikva3–Maccabi Jaffa3–Maccabi Rehovot2–Shimshon Tel Aviv2–Maccabi Jerusalem1–Hakoah Tel Aviv1–Maccabi Rishon LeZion1–===Doubles by club===Six teams have completed the double by winning the Israeli State Cup during the same season. There have been 15 doubles won in total (including one treble, Maccabi Tel Aviv winning the championship, the State Cup and the Toto Cup in 2014–15); the most successful club in this regard is Maccabi Tel Aviv, who have been both league champions and cup winners on seven occasions.ClubDoublesDouble Winning SeasonsMaccabi Tel Aviv7 1946–47, 1953–54, 1957–58, 1969–70, 1976–77, 1995–96, 2014–15Hapoel Tel Aviv41933–34, 1937–38, 1999–2000, 2009–10British Police1 1931–32Maccabi Netanya1 1977–78Maccabi Haifa1 1990–91Beitar Jerusalem1 2007–08===Performance by city===The 15 title-winning clubs have come from a total of nine cities. The most successful city is Tel Aviv.CityTitlesTitle Winning ClubsTel Aviv39 Maccabi Tel Aviv (23), Hapoel Tel Aviv (14), Beitar Tel Aviv (1), Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv (1)Haifa16 Maccabi Haifa (15), Hapoel Haifa (1)Jerusalem7 Beitar Jerusalem (6), British Police (1)Petah Tikva6 Hapoel Petah Tikva (6)Netanya5 Maccabi Netanya (5)Beersheba5 Hapoel Be'er Sheva (5)Ramat Gan3 Hakoah Ramat Gan (2), Hapoel Ramat Gan (1)Kfar Saba1 Hapoel Kfar Saba (1)Kiryat Shmona1 Kiryat Shmona (1)===Performance by district===The Israeli championship has been won by 15 clubs from six districts. The most successful district is Tel Aviv District.DistrictTitlesTitle Winning ClubsTel Aviv42 Maccabi Tel Aviv (23), Hapoel Tel Aviv (14), Hakoah Ramat Gan (2), Beitar Tel Aviv (1), Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv (1), Hapoel Ramat Gan (1)Haifa16 Maccabi Haifa (15), Hapoel Haifa (1)Center12 Hapoel Petah Tikva (6), Maccabi Netanya (5), Hapoel Kfar Saba (1)Jerusalem7 Beitar Jerusalem (6), British Police (1)South5 Hapoel Be'er Sheva (5)North1 Kiryat Shmona (1)
Footnotes
References ;General*''Champions sourced to:'' **''And:'' *''Second and third placed teams sourced to:'' *''Top goalscorers sourced to:'' ;Specific
External links * Israel Football Association