Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional de Honduras, known as Liga Hondubet for sponsorship reasons (Honduran National Professional Football League) is the highest division of domestic football in Honduras. The league season is divided into Opening (autumn) and Closing (spring). One team is relegated to the Liga de Ascenso (the team with fewest points in Opening and Closing) and one team is promoted from Liga de Ascenso. The top four clubs participate in play-offs to decide the champion.LINA.hn – BASES DEL CAMPEONATO
History In the 1930s, football experienced a surge in popularity in the country. In 1948 with the birth of the Francisco Morazán Major Football League, the idea to organize football began to take shape.
Olimpia, Federal, Motagua, Argentina and Real España are the pioneers of the Liga Mayor.HondurasFutbol.com – Historia de la Liga Nacional In 1948 the first championship began in the recently inaugurated Estadio Tiburcio Carías AndinoHondurasFutbol.com – Inauguración del Estadio "Tiburcio Carías" as Victoria were made champions by beating Motagua; and three years later, in 1951, they repeated the trick. Due to the high support the League received at this time, the Confederacy Sports School Extra of Honduras (F.N.D.E.H.) was founded.
The cancellation of the court of the Francisco Morazán Stadium of San Pedro Sula was the catalyst that caused the sport's leaders of the northern and central parts of Honduras to join forces and caused the disappearance of the F.N.D.E.H.
On 8 March 1951, Juan Manuel Galvez gave life to the F.N.D.E.H. when he signed the presidential decree I number 97 and he vouched for the execution of the first Sports Congress that was carried out in the installations of the abandoned "National Gymnasium Rubén Callejas Valentine".
A decade after the creation of the F.N.D.E.H. and under the leadership of Hémerito F. Hernández, and also under Féderico Bunker Aguilar who had pioneered CONCACAF's creation at the same time, the idea to create the First National League of Football took shape between 1962 and 1963. Thanks in part to the aid of executives such as Alejandro Talbott that had studied in Mexico, the structure of that country's league was copied. On Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 April 1964, the 15th National Congress created the league. The 15th National Congress also started the National Non Amateur Football League of Honduras, LINAFUTH, that was founded 10 May, that year.
The president of the Sports Confederacy was Oscar Kafati and the secretary was journalist Andrés Torres Jr. Several teams sent delegates. These included Olimpia, Troya, España, Honduras de El Progreso, Vida, Marathón, Motagua, La Salle, and Atlético Español Glidden. Those delegates were chosen to be to the first Provisional board of directors that remained headed by: President Oscar Lara Mejía, Secretary: José T. Castañeda, Treasurer: Jesus J. Handal, Fiscal: Humberto Soriano Aguilar and vocal: Oscar Kirckonell, Alfredo Bueso, René Bendeck.
The first round of the first professional national championship was on 18 July 1965, with the following results: Olimpia 3–0 Marathón; España 1–0 Troya; Honduras 3–0 Atlético Español; Vida 4–1 Motagua; and Platense 6–2 La Salle. Jorge "Burro" Deras of Honduras Progreso was the first scorer of the league in the 5th minute against Atlético Español.La Liga cumplió 48 años – La Tribuna Platense was the first professional champion of Honduras winning the two rounds; and Atlético Español finished last, but there was no relegation. Enrique Fúnez was the first top-scorer with 14 goals.HondurasFutbol.com – Goleadores
2023–24 teams
A total of 10 teams contested the tournament, including nine teams that participated in the 2022–23 season. Honduras Progreso was relegated, and Génesis went up to the first division.
Team Location Stadium Capacity Génesis Comayagua Estadio Carlos Miranda 10,000 Marathón San Pedro Sula Estadio Yankel Rosenthal 15,000 Motagua Tegucigalpa Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino 35,000 Olimpia Tegucigalpa Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino 35,000 Olancho FC Juticalpa Estadio Juan Ramón Brevé Vargas 20,000 C.D. Victoria La Ceiba Estadio Nilmo Edwards 18,000 Real España San Pedro Sula Estadio Francisco Morazán 26,781 Real Sociedad Tocoa Estadio Francisco Martínez Durón 3,000 UPNFM Choluteca Estadio Emilio Williams Agasse 8,000 Juticalpa Olancho Estadio Juan Ramon Breve Vargas 18,000
Current format Two tournaments per year with identical format, each crowning one champion: Apertura (Opening): from July to December Clausura (Closing): from January to May
11 clubs participating. The league format consists of a round-robin tournament with each club playing each other twice (home and away), for a total of 20 matches per team per tournament.
The top six advance to the playoffs. Unlike previous seasons, the final phase no longer uses a repechaje (play-in round) and semifinals. Instead, the six qualified teams are divided into two triangular groups of three, known as Triangulares seminfinales:
The clubs ranked 1st and 2nd in the regular season are seeded into separate groups (Triangular A and Triangular B). The clubs ranked 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th are placed into a single draw to determine which triangular they join.
Each team in the triangular plays four matches (home and away against the other two teams in its group), for a total of four additional matches per team. The group winners qualify for the grand final. If teams are tied on points at the end of the triangular, the team that finished higher in the regular-season standings (1st or 2nd) advances to the final.
The winners of each triangular contest a two-legged grand final to crown the champion of each tournament.
Relegation and promotion
Relegation is decided by the addition of both Apertura and Clausura tournament tables. The last team of the aggregated table is relegated to Liga de Ascenso de Honduras. Promotion is decided in Liga de Ascenso de Honduras. Up to 2004 the champions were awarded automatic promotion. Since then, the season was divided into Apertura and Clausura, where champions face each other to decide promotion.
Records and statistics
Top scoring players
Bold players are still active
Player 1 Jerry Bengtson 199 2 Wilmer Velásquez 196 3 Denilson Costa 155 4 Román Castillo 122 5 Rony Martínez 117 6 Juan Cárcamo 101 7 Claudio Cardozo 100 8 Marcelo Ferreira 98 9 Yustin Arboleda 96 10 Francisco Ramírez 95 11 Ángel Tejeda 93 12 Carlos Pavón 90 13 Luciano Emílio 89 Luis Ramírez 89 Roger Rojas 89 16 Prudencio Norales 88 17 Danilo Tosello 86 18 Óscar Hernández 84 Ney Costa 84 20 Ángel Obando 83 Eduardo Bennett 83 22 Pompilio Cacho 81 23 Oswaldo Altamirano 80
Titles by year
Amateur era
Season Champion Runners-up 1947 Victoria Motagua 1948 Motagua Victoria 1949 Hibueras Olimpia 1950–51 Motagua Sula 1951–52 Sula Motagua 1952 Aduana Federal 1953 Federal Aduana 1954–55 Abacá Aduana 1955–56 Hibueras Olimpia 1957–58 Olimpia Hibueras 1958–59 Olimpia Independiente 1959 Olimpia Marathón 1960–61 Olimpia España 1961 Olimpia Independiente 1962 Vida Salamar 1963–64 Olimpia España 1964 Olimpia Platense
Professional era