Origins Up until 1973, leagues in Iraq were organised on a regional basis, reflecting the country's administrative and geographic divisions. The
Central FA League (for teams in Baghdad and its neighbouring cities), the
Basra League and the
Kirkuk League were all founded in 1948, while the Mosul League was founded in 1950. The first nationwide league was introduced in the 1973–74 season under the name of
Iraqi National First Division League, in which
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya were crowned champions. This competition represented the first attempt to establish a unified national league championship. However, it included both clubs and institute-representative teams (such as military or ministry sides).
Foundation and early years (1974–1983) On 18 August 1974, the
Iraq Football Association (IFA) decided to restructure the domestic football pyramid by introducing a new National Clubs First Division League which was restricted to club sides only, thereby marking the transition to a fully club-based national league structure. The league's first ever goal was scored by
Falah Hassan of
Al-Tayaran (now known as Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya) in a 1–1 draw with
Al-Sinaa. Al-Tayaran were crowned champions of the inaugural season, which featured the following teams:
Al-Zawraa established themselves as the league's first dominant force, winning the
1975–76 title and securing the first domestic double in Iraqi football history. The following season,
1976–77, was cut short due to scheduling difficulties, with the IFA declaring Al-Zawraa champions based on the standings at the halfway point. season. A key development came in
1977–78 when
Al-Minaa won the league unbeaten, becoming the first club from outside Baghdad to claim the national title, demonstrating the potential for clubs from other provinces to compete at the highest level. However, by the end of the 1970s and the beginning of the 1980s, "Baghdad's Big Four" clubs (
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya,
Al-Shorta,
Al-Talaba and
Al-Zawraa) had begun to establish dominance over the competition. The 1980s were heavily influenced by the
Iran–Iraq War, which disrupted sporting schedules. The
1980–81 season, for example, was reduced to a single round-robin format due to logistical constraints.
Politicisation of league football (1983–1990) The 1980s saw increased politicisation of football in Iraq, with state-backed institutions playing a greater role in club organisation. This coincided with the rise of
Al-Rasheed, a club founded in 1983 by
Uday Hussein, the son of the Iraqi president
Saddam Hussein, who would later become president of the
Iraq Football Association. Al-Rasheed quickly emerged as a dominant force in Iraqi football, with the club assembling many of the country's leading players, including several members of the
Iraq national football team and its coach
Ammo Baba. The
1984–85 season was cancelled due to conflicts with national team commitments, with Al-Rasheed leading the table at the time of cancellation. Between
1986–87 and
1988–89, Al-Rasheed won three consecutive league titles, becoming the first club in the league's history to achieve this feat. During this period, the club also secured two
Iraq FA Cup titles and enjoyed success in regional competitions, including three consecutive
Arab Club Champions Cup titles from 1985 to 1987. Al-Rasheed's dominance over the league temporarily disrupted the traditional rivalry among Baghdad's Big Four, however the club was dissolved in 1990, and its players were redistributed among other leading sides, contributing to the re-establishment of the competitive landscape and leading to a resurgence among the traditional top clubs.
"Baghdad's Big Four" dominance (1990–2003) The league entered a period of relative structural stability and stronger competition during the 1990s. "Baghdad's Big Four" clubs —
Al-Zawraa,
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya,
Al-Talaba and
Al-Shorta who together contest the
Baghdad derbies — dominated the competition almost entirely during this period. Between the
1989–90 and
2005–06 seasons, every league title was won by one of these four clubs.
Erbil became the dominant club of the late 2000s, winning three consecutive league titles from
2006–07 to
2008–09, while
Duhok secured the
2009–10 championship. These successes represented the first sustained challenge to the dominance of the top Baghdad sides since the league's formative years. The
2008–09 season was particularly notable as the only campaign in which none of Baghdad's Big Four finished in the top four positions. Instead, the leading places were occupied by
Erbil,
Al-Najaf,
Duhok and
Al-Amana, underlining the extent of the temporary shift in competitive balance.
Influx of foreign professionals (2012–2023) is one of the most high-profile foreign players to have played in Iraq, having previously spent nine seasons in
Serie A. The league returned to its traditional home and away round-robin format in the
2011–12 season and began to attract foreign players and coaches, particularly from Africa, South America and the Middle East. In 2012, Syrian coach
Nizar Mahrous became the first foreign manager to win the league title and Cameroonian striker
Jean Michel N'Lend became the first foreign player to score a
hat-trick. The
2012–13 season saw
Al-Shorta dethrone
Erbil at the top of the table, as the traditional Baghdad-based clubs began to reassert their dominance, driven by improved security conditions, greater financial stability, and the renewed concentration of elite players in the capital. Since the
2015–16 season, every league title has been won by one of Baghdad's Big Four —
Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya,
Al-Shorta,
Al-Talaba and
Al-Zawraa — marking a return to the league's long-standing competitive structure. The 2010s also saw a series of incremental administrative reforms aimed at modernising Iraqi domestic football, as efforts were made to improve league organisation, infrastructure, and governance standards. In the
2013–14 season, matches began being broadcast in
16:9 aspect ratio and
high-definition for the first time by
Waar TV, and Qatari network
Al-Kass Sports Channels purchased the rights to broadcast a select number of high-profile matches from the league to a wider audience in the region. Stadium licensing rules were gradually tightened, with modern stadiums such as
Basra International Stadium,
Karbala International Stadium,
Zakho International Stadium and
Al-Najaf International Stadium becoming regular venues for league matches. Prior to the start of the
2020–21 season, the
Iraq Football Association unveiled the league's first ever logo and announced a partnership with
Umbro to manufacture an official match ball for the first time in the league's history.
"Stars League" era (2023–present) A major structural transformation occurred in 2023 when the
Iraq Football Association (IFA) signed a three-year partnership agreement with Spain's
Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional (LaLiga) to professionalise the Iraqi top flight. As part of this reform, the competition was rebranded as the Iraq Stars League and designed to meet the club licensing requirements set by the
Asian Football Confederation (AFC). A new governing body, the
Iraqi Pro League Association, was established to operate the competition and oversee its associated youth systems. Chaired by Javier Jiménez Sacristán and Matteo Mantovani, the organisation was tasked with implementing professional standards in league management, commercial operations and infrastructure development. LaLiga also began training an Iraqi administrative team to assume full operational control of the league following the conclusion of the partnership. The inaugural Iraq Stars League season began on 26 October 2023, marking the first fully professional campaign in the history of Iraqi domestic football.
Al-Shorta won the first edition in
2023–24, securing their third consecutive league title and completing a domestic double. The club extended its dominance in
2024–25, becoming the first team in the competition's history to win four consecutive league championships. == Competition format ==