{{redirect|Irish Football League|the football league of the Republic of Ireland|League of Ireland}}

{{hatnote|This article treats the Irish Football League, Irish Premier League, IFA Premiership and the NIFL Premiership collectively as a single article about the national football league of Northern Ireland.}}

{{ infobox football league

| image = Danske-bank-premiership.jpg

| pixels = 300

| country = [[Northern Ireland]]

| founded = 2013<br>succeeding IFA Premiership (2008), <br>Irish Premier League (2003) and<br>Irish Football League (1890)

| divisions = 1

| teams = [[#NIFL Premiership members for 2013–14|12]]

| relegation = [[NIFL Championship|NIFL Championship 1]]

| levels = 1

| confed_cup = [[UEFA Champions League]] (1 place)<br>[[UEFA Europa League]] (2 places)

| champions = [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (5th title)

| season = [[2013–14 NIFL Premiership|2013–14]]

| most successful club = [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (51)

| tv = [[Sky Sports]] (6 live matches a season)<ref>[http://www.irishfa.com/the-ifa/news/3002/northern-ireland-football-lines-up-on-sky-sports/ Northern Ireland Football Lines Up On Sky Sports]</ref><br />[[BBC]] (Highlights)<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/northern_ireland/2234219.stm | work=BBC News | title=Irish League gets TV deal | date=2002-09-03}}</ref>

| website = [http://nifootballleague.com/ NI Football League official site]

| current = [[2013–14 NIFL Premiership|2013–14]]

The '''NIFL Premiership''' (known as the [[Danske Bank]] Premiership for sponsorship purposes)<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/northern-ireland/18995530|title=Danske Bank are new title sponsors of the Premiership|work=BBC Sport}}</ref> is a national [[association football]] league in [[Northern Ireland]] that operates as the highest division of the league system. It was formerly called the '''IFA Premiership''', '''Irish Premier League''', and before that the '''Irish Football League''', and is still known in popular parlance simply as the '''Irish League'''. Although the current league format was established in 2008, the league was originally formed in 1890. Historically the league for the entire [[Ireland|island of Ireland]], it became Northern Ireland's national league after the [[partition of Ireland]] in 1921. Clubs in the league are semi-professional, and are known locally as '''senior''' clubs. The league should not be confused with the [[League of Ireland]], which is the football league for the [[Republic of Ireland]].

The League is operated by the Northern Ireland Football League, who took over from the [[Irish Football Association]] for the start of the 2013–14 season. The NI Football League is a private company that has 42 member clubs from the Premiership and Championships 1 & 2, who are each shareholders.<ref name="nifl">{{cite news|url=http://www.ifapremiership.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=870&catid=3&Itemid=12|title=NORTHERN IRELAND FOOTBALL LEAGUE|work=NIFL Premiership}}</ref> At the end of the season, the champion club is presented with the Gibson Cup.

[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] are the current champions, after they retained the title in April 2014 for the first time in the club's history - their fifth league title overall.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27113832|title=Cliftonville retain Irish Premiership title for first time|date=22 April 2014|work=[[BBC Sport]]|publisher=[[BBC]]|accessdate=22 April 2014}}</ref>

==History==

The Irish League is the second-oldest national league in the world, being formed a week earlier than the [[Scottish Football League]]. Only the [[Football League]] in England is older.

The Irish Football League was originally formed as the football league for all of [[Ireland]] in 1890 (although initially all of its member clubs were in fact based in what would become Northern Ireland). It became the league for [[Northern Ireland]] in 1921 after [[Partition of Ireland|partition]], with a separate league and association (the Football Association of the Irish Free State – now called the [[Football Association of Ireland]]) – being formed for the [[Irish Free State]] (now the [[Republic of Ireland]]). The league's records from its days in operation as the league for all of Ireland stand as the records for Northern Ireland (as is the case for the [[Northern Ireland national football team]]).

In its first season, seven of the eight teams came from [[Belfast]], and the league – and Irish football – continued to be dominated by Belfast clubs for many years. In 1892, [[Derry Olympic F.C.|Derry Olympic]] became the second non-Belfast side, but only lasted for one season. In 1900, [[Derry Celtic F.C.|Derry Celtic]] joined the league and, in 1901, a second Derry team, St Columb's Court, was added. St Columb's Court lasted just one season, before being replaced by the league's first [[Dublin]] team, [[Bohemian F.C.|Bohemians]], in 1903. Another Dublin side, [[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]], was added in 1904. In 1911 [[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]], from the [[County Armagh]] town of [[Lurgan]] replaced Bohemians, who resigned from the league, but were re-admitted in 1912. During 1912 there were three Dublin sides, with the addition of Tritonville, but, like Derry Olympic and St Columb's Court before them, they lasted just one season. Derry Celtic also dropped out in 1913, so that when the Irish League split in 1921, Glenavon was the only non-Belfast team left.

During the 1920s, however, the league expanded and soon achieved a wide geographic spread across Northern Ireland. Nonetheless, it was not until 1952 that a team from outside Belfast ([[Glenavon]]) was crowned champions. [[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]], now of the [[League of Ireland]], played in the Irish League from 1929 until 1972 and won the title in 1965, but eventually resigned during the [[Troubles]] after the League voted narrowly to continue a ban on their home ground imposed by the security forces, even after the security forces had lifted it.

From 1995–96 until 2002–03, the League was split into two divisions: the Premier Division and First Division. Since 2003, there has been a single division, albeit with relegation to intermediate leagues below.

In 2003, the [[Irish Football Association]] took direct charge of Northern Ireland's top flight with the creation of the Irish Premier League (IPL). As in [[Premier League|England]] and [[Scottish Premier League|Scotland]], the old Irish Football League retained a separate existence, but controlling only two feeder leagues: the First Division and Second Division. In 2004, the IFA took over control of the remaining IFL divisions and renamed them as the '''IFA Intermediate League''' First Division and Second Division, effectively winding up the Irish Football League after 114 years.

The first ever Irish League match to be broadcast live on television took place on 24 September 2007 when [[Sky Sports]] showed [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] and [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] draw 2–2 at [[Solitude (football ground)|Solitude]]. In 2008, the Irish League was re-organised again (see '''2008 Reorganisation''' below) and renamed as the IFA Premiership. Teams were invited to apply for membership of the new league, which was reduced to 12 clubs, and places were awarded on the basis of a points system combined with a "domestic licence" scheme. The IFA's administration over the league lasted for five years until 2013, when the newly formed '''Northern Ireland Football League''' (NIFL) took control of the top flight and the two intermediate divisions below for the start of the 2013–14 season. The top division became the NIFL Premiership and the intermediate league became the [[NIFL Championship]].<ref name="nifl" />

[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] are the current champions, beating the previous holders, [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] on 13 April 2013 to secure the title for the fourth time overall, and the first time since the [[1997–98 Irish League|1997–98 season]].

==League format==

Each team plays every other team three times (either twice at home and once away, or once at home and twice away), making a total of 33 fixtures per team before the "split", when the top six teams play each other for a fourth time to settle the championship and European qualification issues, and the bottom six teams play each other to settle relegation issues. This makes a total of 38 fixtures. After the league splits into two halves, teams in the top six cannot finish lower than 6th place, and teams in the bottom six cannot finish higher than 7th place, regardless of the results in the final 5 games. The League campaign begins in August and continues until the first Saturday in May. Most fixtures are played on Saturday afternoons, with occasional fixtures on Friday evenings, and some mid-week games, usually on Tuesday or Wednesday evenings. Traditionally, there are [[Bank Holiday]] afternoon fixtures on [[Boxing Day]], [[New Year's Day]] and [[Easter Tuesday]].

Three points are awarded for a win, and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. The team with the most points at the end of the season wins the championship. If two teams finish level on points, four tiebreakers are used to separate them: highest [[goal difference]], most goals scored, most points gained head-to-head, and finally, highest goal difference head-to-head. In the highly unlikely event that teams are still level after these tiebreakers, a single play-off match will be played at a neutral venue to decide the league champions. Points can be deducted for breaches of rules: for example, fielding an ineligible player.

The League champions qualify to represent [[Northern Ireland]] in the following season's [[UEFA Champions League]], and the runners-up and third-placed teams qualify for the [[UEFA Europa League]]. If the Europa League place that is reserved for the [[Irish Cup]] winners (or runners-up, in the event that the Cup winners have also won the League championship) is taken by the team in second or third place, then the fourth-placed team is entered into the Europa League. In order to compete in any of these European competitions, however, clubs must possess a UEFA licence. In the event that a team qualifies without such a licence, lower-placed teams may take their place.

The two highest-placed teams in the Premiership also qualify automatically for the next season's all-Ireland [[Setanta Cup]]. The third and fourth-placed teams may also qualify if either or both of the winners (or runners-up, in the event that the Irish Cup winners have also finished first or second) of the Irish Cup and [[Northern Ireland Football League Cup|NI Football League Cup]] have qualified via the League. (The League Cup runners-up cannot qualify.)

At the end of the season, the bottom-placed club is relegated to [[NIFL Championship 1]] and the 11th-placed club must take part in an aggregate two-legged play-off against the runners-up of Championship 1, with the [[away goals rule]], extra time and penalties used to determine the winner in the second leg if necessary. The Premiership club gets home advantage in the second leg, and is relegated to Championship 1 if it loses the tie. In the event that the Championship 1 winners do not possess a championship licence or a domestic licence, there is no automatic relegation. Instead, the bottom-placed club takes part in the play-off against the Championship 1 runners-up, and the 11th-placed club is safe from relegation. In the event that neither the Championship 1 winners nor runners-up have either licence, there is no relegation.

Along with the thirty Championship 1 and 2 clubs, the twelve Premiership teams also compete for the [[Northern Ireland Football League Cup]]: the second-most important cup competition after the Irish Cup.

==UEFA coefficient and ranking==

{{main|Northern Irish football clubs in European competition}}

As of 26 June 2013, the NIFL Premiership's [[UEFA coefficient#Current_ranking|UEFA coefficient]] points total is 3.083. It is currently ranked by UEFA as the 47th best league in Europe out of 53.

* 45 {{flagicon|Liechtenstein}} [[Liechtenstein]]

* 46 {{flagicon|Luxembourg}} [[Luxembourg]]

* 47 {{flagicon|NIR}} '''Northern Ireland'''

* 48 {{flagicon|Wales}} [[Wales]]

* 49 {{flagicon|Estonia}} [[Estonia]]

:* [http://www.xs4all.nl/~kassiesa/bert/uefa/data/method4/crank2013.html ''Full list'']

==2008 reorganisation==

For the 2008–09 season, the League system for Northern Ireland was re-organised. The new league began as the '''IFA Premiership''', and was reduced in size to twelve teams, included on the basis not only of their performance in the 2007–08 season, but in the previous two seasons, and other off-the-field criteria as follows. Each applicant club was assessed by an independent panel and awarded points against the following criteria:

*''Sporting'' (maximum 450 points) – based on league placings, Irish Cup, League Cup and European performances in 2005–06, 2006–07 and 2007–08; with points also awarded for running youth teams, women's teams and community development programmes.

*''Finance'' (maximum 200 points) – based on solvency, debt management and cash-flow projection.

*''Infrastructure'' (maximum 150 points) – based on stadium capacity, changing provisions, sanitary facilities, field of play, floodlighting, existence and standard of control room, first aid room, drug testing room and media facilities.

*''Personnel'' (maximum 100 points) – based on qualification and experience of staff

[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] were relegated to the [[IFA Championship]] as a result of submitting their application for the IFA Premiership 29 minutes past the deadline for consideration.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/irish/7398872.stm | work=BBC News | title=Portadown out of Premier League | date=2008-05-13}}</ref>

==NIFL Premiership members for 2013–14==

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|-

!Club<br />

!Finishing position<br />in [[2012–13 IFA Premiership|2012–13]]

!First season in<br />top division

!First season of<br />current spell in<br />top division

!Total seasons <br />in top division

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]||{{sort|11|1st in [[2012–13 IFA Championship|IFA Championship 1]]}}||{{sort|1923|1923–24}}||{{sort|2013|2013–14}}||{{sort|077|77}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Ballinamallard United F.C.|Ballinamallard United]]||{{sort|05|5th}}||{{sort|2012|2012–13}}||{{sort|2012|2012–13}}||{{sort|002|2}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]||{{sort|08|8th}}||{{sort|1934|1934–35}}||{{sort|2003|2003–04}}||{{sort|069|69}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]||{{sort|01|'''1st'''}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|113|113}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]||{{sort|06|6th}}||{{sort|1927|1927–28}}||{{sort|1996|1996–97}}||{{sort|079|79}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]||{{sort|02|2nd}}||{{sort|1949|1949–50}}||2006–07||{{sort|064|64}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Dungannon Swifts F.C.|Dungannon Swifts]]||{{sort|10|10th}}||{{sort|2003|2003–04}}||2003–04||{{sort|011|11}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]||{{sort|09|9th}}||{{sort|1911|1911–12}}||2005–06||{{sort|091|91}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]||{{sort|04|4th}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|113|113}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]||{{sort|03|3rd}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|1890|1890–91}}||{{sort|113|113}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]||{{sort|07|7th}}||{{sort|1924|1924–25}}||{{sort|2009|2009–10}}||{{sort|082|82}}

|-

|style="text-align:left;"|[[Warrenpoint Town F.C.|Warrenpoint Town]]||{{sort|12|2nd in [[2012–13 IFA Championship|IFA Championship 1]]}}||{{sort|2013|2013–14}}||2013–14||{{sort|001|1}}

|}

==List of champions and runners-up==

===Irish Football League===

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Champions<br>(number of titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Leading goalscorer'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Goals'''

|-

|[[1890&ndash;91 Irish League|1890–91]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (1)

||[[Ulster F.C.|Ulster]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||Robert Hill (Linfield)

||20

|[[1891&ndash;92 Irish League|1891–92]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (2)

||[[Ulster F.C.|Ulster]]

||[[Lancashire Fusiliers]]

||Tim Morrison (Linfield)

||21

|[[1892&ndash;93 Irish League|1892–93]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (3)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||Robert Hill (Linfield)

James Percy (Cliftonville)

||9

|[[1893&ndash;94 Irish League|1893–94]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (1)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||Michael McErlean (Linfield)

||9

|[[1894&ndash;95 Irish League|1894–95]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (4)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||George Gaukrodger (Linfield)

Joe McAllen (Linfield)

||4

|[[1895&ndash;96 Irish League|1895–96]]

||'''[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]''' (1)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|[[1896&ndash;97 Irish League|1896–97]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (2)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||Johnny Darling (Linfield)

Richard Peden (Linfield)

||6

|[[1897&ndash;98 Irish League|1897–98]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (5)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|[[1898&ndash;99 Irish League|1898–99]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (2)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||''unknown''

||

|[[1899–1900 Irish League|1899–1900]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (1)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1900&ndash;01 Irish League|1900–01]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (3)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1901&ndash;02 Irish League|1901–02]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (6)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1902&ndash;03 Irish League|1902–03]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (4)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1903&ndash;04 Irish League|1903–04]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (7)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1904&ndash;05 Irish League|1904–05]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (3)

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1905&ndash;06 Irish League|1905–06]]

|colspan="2"|[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (0.5)

[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (4.5) (title shared)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1906&ndash;07 Irish League|1906–07]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (8)

||[[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1907&ndash;08 Irish League|1907–08]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (9)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1908&ndash;09 Irish League|1908–09]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (10)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1909&ndash;10 Irish League|1909–10]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (1.5e)

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1910&ndash;11 Irish League|1910–11]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (11)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1911&ndash;12 Irish League|1911–12]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (4)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1912&ndash;13 Irish League|1912–13]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (5)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1913&ndash;14 Irish League|1913–14]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (12)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1914&ndash;15 Irish League|1914–15]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (2)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|1915–19

| colspan=5 |League suspended due to the [[World War I|First World War]]

|-

|[[1919&ndash;20 Irish League|1919–20]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (3)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1920&ndash;21 Irish League|1920–21]]

||'''[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]''' (6)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1921&ndash;22 Irish League|1921–22]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (13)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1922&ndash;23 Irish League|1922–23]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (14)

||[[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's Island]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1923&ndash;24 Irish League|1923–24]]

||'''[[Queen's Island F.C.|''Queen's Island'']]''' (1)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1924&ndash;25 Irish League|1924–25]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (7)

||[[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's Island]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1925&ndash;26 Irish League|1925–26]]

||'''[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|''Belfast Celtic'']]''' (4)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Larne F.C.|Larne]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1926&ndash;27 Irish League|1926–27]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (5)

||[[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's Island]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Joe Bambrick]] (Glentoran)

||28

|-

|[[1927&ndash;28 Irish League|1927–28]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (6)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Newry City F.C.|Newry Town]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1928&ndash;29 Irish League|1928–29]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (7)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Joe Bambrick]] (Linfield)

||43

|-

|[[1929&ndash;30 Irish League|1929–30]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (15)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Joe Bambrick]] (Linfield)

||50

|-

|[[1930&ndash;31 Irish League|1930–31]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (8)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||Fred Roberts (Glentoran)

||55

|-

|[[1931&ndash;32 Irish League|1931–32]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (16)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown||

|-

|[[1932&ndash;33 Irish League|1932–33]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (8)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Joe Bambrick]] (Linfield)

||40

|-

|[[1933&ndash;34 Irish League|1933–34]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (17)

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1934&ndash;35 Irish League|1934–35]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (18)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1935&ndash;36 Irish League|1935–36]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (9)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1936&ndash;37 Irish League|1936–37]]

||'''[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]''' (10)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1937&ndash;38 Irish League|1937–38]]

||'''[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]''' (11)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1938&ndash;39 Irish League|1938–39]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (12)

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|[[1939&ndash;40 Irish League|1939–40]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (13)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||''unknown''

||

|-

|1940–47

| colspan=5 | League suspended due to the Second World War

|-

|[[1947&ndash;48 Irish League|1947–48]]

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (14)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Belfast Celtic)

||28

|-

|[[1948&ndash;49 Irish League|1948–49]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (19)

||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Billy Simpson]] (Linfield)

||19

|-

|[[1949&ndash;50 Irish League|1949–50]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (20)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Sammy Hughes (footballer)|Sammy Hughes]] (Glentoran)

||23

|-

|[[1950&ndash;51 Irish League|1950–51]]

||'''[[Glentoran F.C.|''Glentoran'']]''' (9)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Sammy Hughes (footballer)|Sammy Hughes]] (Glentoran)

Walter Allen (Portadown)

||23

|-

|[[1951&ndash;52 Irish League|1951–52]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]] (1)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Glenavon)

||27

|-

|[[1952&ndash;53 Irish League|1952–53]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (10)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Sammy Hughes (footballer)|Sammy Hughes]] (Glentoran)

||28

|-

|[[1953&ndash;54 Irish League|1953–54]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (21)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Glenavon)

||32

|-

|[[1954&ndash;55 Irish League|1954–55]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (22)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Fay Coyle]] (Coleraine)

||20

|-

|[[1955&ndash;56 Irish League|1955–56]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (23)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Glenavon)

||26

|-

|[[1956&ndash;57 Irish League|1956–57]]

||'''[[Glenavon F.C.|''Glenavon'']]''' (2)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Glenavon)

||33

|-

|[[1957&ndash;58 Irish League|1957–58]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]] (1)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Jackie Milburn]] (Linfield)

||29

|-

|[[1958&ndash;59 Irish League|1958–59]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (24)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Jackie Milburn]] (Linfield)

||26

|-

|[[1959&ndash;60 Irish League|1959–60]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]] (3)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Jimmy Jones (Northern Ireland footballer)|Jimmy Jones]] (Glenavon)

||29

|-

|[[1960&ndash;61 Irish League|1960–61]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (25)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||[[Trevor Thompson (footballer born 1936)|Trevor Thompson]] (Glentoran)

||22

|-

|[[1961&ndash;62 Irish League|1961–62]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (26)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||Mick Lynch (Ards)

||20

|-

|[[1962&ndash;63 Irish League|1962–63]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (5.5)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||Joe Meldrum (Distillery)

||27

|-

|[[1963&ndash;64 Irish League|1963–64]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (11)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Trevor Thompson (footballer born 1936)|Trevor Thompson]] (Linfield)

||21

|-

|[[1964&ndash;65 Irish League|1964–65]]

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]] (1)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||Kenny Halliday (Coleraine)

Dennis Guy (Glenavon)

||19

|-

|[[1965&ndash;66 Irish League|1965–66]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (27)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||Sammy Pavis (Linfield)

||28

|-

|[[1966&ndash;67 Irish League|1966–67]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (12)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||Sammy Pavis (Linfield)

||25

|-

|[[1967&ndash;68 Irish League|1967–68]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (13)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||Sammy Pavis (Linfield)

||30

|-

|[[1968&ndash;69 Irish League|1968–69]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (28)

||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Danny Hale (footballer)|Danny Hale]] (Derry City)

||21

|-

|[[1969&ndash;70 Irish League|1969–70]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (14)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||Des Dickson (Coleraine)

||21

|-

|[[1970&ndash;71 Irish League|1970–71]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (29)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||[[Bryan Hamilton]] (Linfield)

||18

|-

|[[1971&ndash;72 Irish League|1971–72]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (15)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||Peter Watson (Distillery)

Des Dickson (Coleraine)

||15

|-

|[[1972&ndash;73 Irish League|1972–73]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] (1)

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||Des Dickson (Coleraine)

||23

|-

|[[1973&ndash;74 Irish League|1973–74]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]] (1)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||Des Dickson (Coleraine)

||24

|-

|[[1974&ndash;75 Irish League|1974–75]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (30)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||Martin Malone (Portadown)

||15

|-

|[[1975&ndash;76 Irish League|1975–76]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] (2)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||Des Dickson (Coleraine)

||23

|-

|[[1976&ndash;77 Irish League|1976–77]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (16)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||Ronnie McAteer (Crusaders)

||20

|-

|[[1977&ndash;78 Irish League|1977–78]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (31)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Warren Feeney, Sr.|Warren Feeney]] (Glentoran)

||17

|-

|[[1978&ndash;79 Irish League|1978–79]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (32)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||Tommy Armstrong (Ards)

||21

|-

|[[1979&ndash;80 Irish League|1979–80]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (33)

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||Jimmy Martin (Glentoran)

||17

|-

|[[1980&ndash;81 Irish League|1980–81]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (17)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||Des Dickson (Coleraine)

Paul Malone (Ballymena United)

||18

|-

|[[1981&ndash;82 Irish League|1981–82]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (34)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Gary Blackledge]] (Glentoran)

||18

|-

|[[1982&ndash;83 Irish League|1982–83]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (35)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||Jim Campbell (Ards)

||15

|-

|[[1983&ndash;84 Irish League|1983–84]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (36)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Martin McGaughey]] (Linfield)

[[Trevor Anderson]] (Linfield)

||15

|-

|[[1984&ndash;85 Irish League|1984–85]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (37)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Martin McGaughey]] (Linfield)

||34

|-

|[[1985&ndash;86 Irish League|1985–86]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (38)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||[[Trevor Anderson]] (Linfield)

||14

|-

|[[1986&ndash;87 Irish League|1986–87]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (39)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||Ray McCoy (Coleraine)

Gary Macartney (Glentoran)

||14

|-

|[[1987&ndash;88 Irish League|1987–88]]

||'''[[Glentoran F.C.|''Glentoran'']]''' (18)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Martin McGaughey]] (Linfield)

||18

|-

|[[1988&ndash;89 Irish League|1988–89]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (40)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Stephen Baxter (footballer)|Stephen Baxter]] (Linfield)

||17

|-

|[[1989&ndash;90 Irish League|1989–90]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] (1)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Martin McGaughey]] (Linfield)

||19

|-

|[[1990&ndash;91 Irish League|1990–91]]

||'''[[Portadown F.C.|''Portadown'']]''' (2)

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Stephen McBride]] (Glenavon)

||22

|-

|[[1991&ndash;92 Irish League|1991–92]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (19)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||Harry McCourt (Omagh Town)

[[Stephen McBride]] (Glenavon)

||18

|-

|[[1992&ndash;93 Irish League|1992–93]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (41)

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

||[[Steve Cowan]] (Portadown)

||23

|-

|[[1993&ndash;94 Irish League|1993–94]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (42)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||Darren Erskine (Ards)

[[Stephen McBride]] (Glenavon)

||22

|-

|[[1994&ndash;95 Irish League|1994–95]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] (3)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Glenn Ferguson]] (Glenavon)

||27

===Irish Football League Premier Division & First Division===

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Champions<br>(number of titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Leading goalscorer'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Goals'''

! style="background-color:#A9A9A9" |

! style="background:silver'" | '''Second-level champions<br>(number of second-level titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

|-

|[[1995&ndash;96 Irish League|1995–96]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] (3)

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Garry Haylock]] (Portadown)

||19

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]] (1)

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]

|-

|[[1996&ndash;97 Irish League|1996–97]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] (4)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Garry Haylock]] (Portadown)

||16

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]] (1)

||[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

|-

|[[1997&ndash;98 Irish League|1997–98]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (3)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Vinny Arkins]] (Portadown)

||22

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Newry City F.C.|Newry Town]] (1)

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

|-

|[[1998&ndash;99 Irish League|1998–99]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (20)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Vinny Arkins]] (Portadown)

||19

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (1)

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

|-

|[[1999–2000 Irish League|1999–2000]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (43)

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Vinny Arkins]] (Portadown)

||29

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]] (1)

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||[[Limavady United F.C.|Limavady United]]

|-

|[[2000&ndash;01 Irish League|2000–01]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (44)

||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Davy Larmour]] (Linfield)

||17

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]] (1)

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]

||[[Armagh City F.C.|Armagh City]]

|-

|[[2001&ndash;02 Irish League|2001–02]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] (4)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Vinny Arkins]] (Portadown)

||30

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]] (2)

||[[Institute F.C.|Institute]]

||[[Dungannon Swifts F.C.|Dungannon Swifts]]

|-

|[[2002&ndash;03 Irish League|2002–03]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (21)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||[[Vinny Arkins]] (Portadown)

||29

|style="background-color:#A9A9A9"|

||[[Dungannon Swifts F.C.|Dungannon Swifts]] (1)

||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]

||[[Limavady United F.C.|Limavady United]]

|}

===Irish Premier League===

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Champions<br>(number of titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Leading goalscorer'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Goals'''

|-

|[[2003&ndash;04 Irish Premier League|2003–04]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (45)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]

||[[Glenn Ferguson]] (Linfield)

||25

|-

|[[2004&ndash;05 Irish Premier League|2004–05]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (22)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||Chris Morgan (Glentoran)

||19

|-

|[[2005&ndash;06 Irish Premier League|2005–06]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (46)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Peter Thompson (Northern Ireland footballer)|Peter Thompson]] (Linfield)

||25

|-

|[[2006&ndash;07 Irish Premier League|2006–07]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (47)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Gary Hamilton (footballer born 1980)|Gary Hamilton]] (Glentoran)

||27

|-

|[[2007–08 Irish Premier League|2007–08]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|''Linfield'']]''' (48)

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Peter Thompson (Northern Ireland footballer)|Peter Thompson]] (Linfield)

||29

|}

===IFA Premiership===

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Champions<br>(number of titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Leading goalscorer'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Goals'''

|-

|[[2008–09 IFA Premiership|2008–09]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (23)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Curtis Allen]] (Lisburn Distillery)

||19

|-

|[[2009–10 IFA Premiership|2009–10]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (49)

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Rory Patterson]] (Coleraine)

||30

|-

|[[2010–11 IFA Premiership|2010–11]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (50)

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

||[[Peter Thompson (Northern Ireland footballer)|Peter Thompson]] (Linfield)

||23

|-

|[[2011–12 IFA Premiership|2011–12]]

||'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' (51)

||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

||[[Gary McCutcheon]] (Ballymena United)

||27

|-

|[[2012–13 IFA Premiership|2012–13]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (4)

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Liam Boyce]] (Cliftonville)

||29

|}

===NIFL Premiership===

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Champions<br>(number of titles)'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Runners-up'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Third'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Leading goalscorer'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Goals'''

|-

|[[2013–14 NIFL Premiership|2013–14]]

||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (5)

||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

||

||

|}

Bold indicates Double winners – i.e. League and Irish Cup winners

Italic indicates Treble Winners – i.e. League, Irish Cup and at least one other national trophy

===Performance by club===

Clubs in ''italics'' either no longer exist (Belfast Celtic, Queen's Island) or no longer compete for the title (Derry City).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! Club

! Winners

! Runners-up

! Winning years

|-

| [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

| 51

| 21

|style="text-align: left"| [[1890&ndash;91 Irish League|1890–91]], [[1891&ndash;92 Irish League|1891–92]], [[1892&ndash;93 Irish League|1892–93]], [[1894&ndash;95 Irish League|1894–95]], [[1897&ndash;98 Irish League|1897–98]], [[1901&ndash;02 Irish League|1901–02]], [[1903&ndash;04 Irish League|1903–04]], [[1906&ndash;07 Irish League|1906–07]], [[1907&ndash;08 Irish League|1907–08]], [[1908&ndash;09 Irish League|1908–09]], [[1910&ndash;11 Irish League|1910–11]], [[1913&ndash;14 Irish League|1913–14]], [[1921&ndash;22 Irish League|1921–22]], [[1922&ndash;23 Irish League|1922–23]], [[1929&ndash;30 Irish League|1929–30]], [[1931&ndash;32 Irish League|1931–32]], [[1933&ndash;34 Irish League|1933–34]], [[1934&ndash;35 Irish League|1934–35]], [[1948&ndash;49 Irish League|1948–49]], [[1949&ndash;50 Irish League|1949–50]], [[1953&ndash;54 Irish League|1953–54]], [[1954&ndash;55 Irish League|1954–55]], [[1955&ndash;56 Irish League|1955–56]], [[1958&ndash;59 Irish League|1958–59]], [[1960&ndash;61 Irish League|1960–61]], [[1961&ndash;62 Irish League|1961–62]], [[1965&ndash;66 Irish League|1965–66]], [[1968&ndash;69 Irish League|1968–69]], [[1970&ndash;71 Irish League|1970–71]], [[1974&ndash;75 Irish League|1974–75]], [[1977&ndash;78 Irish League|1977–78]], [[1978&ndash;79 Irish League|1978–79]], [[1979&ndash;80 Irish League|1979–80]], [[1981&ndash;82 Irish League|1981–82]], [[1982&ndash;83 Irish League|1982–83]], [[1983&ndash;84 Irish League|1983–84]], [[1984&ndash;85 Irish League|1984–85]], [[1985&ndash;86 Irish League|1985–86]], [[1986&ndash;87 Irish League|1986–87]], [[1988&ndash;89 Irish League|1988–89]], [[1992&ndash;93 Irish League|1992–93]], [[1993&ndash;94 Irish League|1993–94]], [[1999–2000 Irish League|1999–2000]], [[2000&ndash;01 Irish League|2000–01]], [[2003&ndash;04 Irish Premier League|2003–04]], [[2005&ndash;06 Irish Premier League|2005–06]], [[2006&ndash;07 Irish Premier League|2006–07]], [[2007–08 Irish Premier League|2007–08]], [[2009–10 IFA Premiership|2009–10]], [[2010–11 IFA Premiership|2010–11]], [[2011–12 IFA Premiership|2011–12]]

|-

|[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

| 23

| 23

|style="text-align: left"| [[1893&ndash;94 Irish League|1893–94]], [[1896&ndash;97 Irish League|1896–97]], [[1904&ndash;05 Irish League|1904–05]], [[1911&ndash;12 Irish League|1911–12]], [[1912&ndash;13 Irish League|1912–13]], [[1920&ndash;21 Irish League|1920–21]], [[1924&ndash;25 Irish League|1924–25]], [[1930&ndash;31 Irish League|1930–31]], [[1950&ndash;51 Irish League|1950–51]], [[1952&ndash;53 Irish League|1952–53]], [[1963&ndash;64 Irish League|1963–64]], [[1966&ndash;67 Irish League|1966–67]], [[1967&ndash;68 Irish League|1967–68]], [[1969&ndash;70 Irish League|1969–70]], [[1971&ndash;72 Irish League|1971–72]], [[1976&ndash;77 Irish League|1976–77]], [[1980&ndash;81 Irish League|1980–81]], [[1987&ndash;88 Irish League|1987–88]], [[1991&ndash;92 Irish League|1991–92]], [[1998&ndash;99 Irish League|1998–99]], [[2002&ndash;03 Irish League|2002–03]], [[2004&ndash;05 Irish Premier League|2004–05]], [[2008–09 IFA Premiership|2008–09]]

|-

|''[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]''

| 14

| 4

|style="text-align: left"| [[1899–1900 Irish League|1899–1900]], [[1914&ndash;15 Irish League|1914–15]], [[1919&ndash;20 Irish League|1919–20]], [[1925&ndash;26 Irish League|1925–26]], [[1926&ndash;27 Irish League|1926–27]], [[1927&ndash;28 Irish League|1927–28]], [[1928&ndash;29 Irish League|1928–29]], [[1932&ndash;33 Irish League|1932–33]], [[1935&ndash;36 Irish League|1935–36]], [[1936&ndash;37 Irish League|1936–37]], [[1937&ndash;38 Irish League|1937–38]], [[1938&ndash;39 Irish League|1938–39]], [[1939&ndash;40 Irish League|1939–40]], [[1947&ndash;48 Irish League|1947–48]]

|-

|[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn&nbsp;Distillery]]

| 6^†

| 8

|style="text-align: left"| [[1895&ndash;96 Irish League|1895–96]], [[1898&ndash;99 Irish League|1898–99]], [[1900&ndash;01 Irish League|1900–01]], [[1902&ndash;03 Irish League|1902–03]], [[1905&ndash;06 Irish League|1905–06]], [[1962&ndash;63 Irish League|1962–63]]

|-

|[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

| 5^†

| 5

|style="text-align: left"| [[1905&ndash;06 Irish League|1905–06]], [[1909&ndash;10 Irish League|1909–10]], [[1997&ndash;98 Irish League|1997–98]], [[2012–13 IFA Premiership|2012–13]], [[2013–14 NIFL Premiership|2013–14]]

|-

|[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

| 4

| 10

|style="text-align: left"| [[1989&ndash;90 Irish League|1989–90]], [[1990&ndash;91 Irish League|1990–91]], [[1995&ndash;96 Irish League|1995–96]], [[2001&ndash;02 Irish League|2001–02]]

|-

|[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]

| 4

| 4

|style="text-align: left"| [[1972&ndash;73 Irish League|1972–73]], [[1975&ndash;76 Irish League|1975–76]], [[1994&ndash;95 Irish League|1994–95]], [[1996&ndash;97 Irish League|1996–97]]

|-

|[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

| 3

| 10

|style="text-align: left"| [[1951&ndash;52 Irish League|1951–52]], [[1956&ndash;57 Irish League|1956–57]], [[1959&ndash;60 Irish League|1959–60]]

|-

|[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

| 1

| 9

|style="text-align: left"| [[1973&ndash;74 Irish League|1973–74]]

|-

|''[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]''

| 1

| 7

|style="text-align: left"| [[1964&ndash;65 Irish League|1964–65]]

|-

|''[[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's&nbsp;Island]]''

| 1

| 3

|style="text-align: left"| [[1923&ndash;24 Irish League|1923–24]]

|-

|[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

| 1

| 1

|style="text-align: left"| [[1957&ndash;58 Irish League|1957–58]]

|}

^†<small>Including one shared title in 1905–06</small>

===Total titles won by town or city===

Twelve clubs have been champions, and the overwhelming majority have been from [[Belfast]].

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"

! Town or city

! Number of titles

! Clubs

| [[Belfast]]

| 103

| [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (51), [[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] (23), [[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] (14), [[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] (6)^†, [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] (5)^†, [[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]] (4), [[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's Island]] (1)

| [[Portadown]]

| 4

|style="text-align: left"| [[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] (4)

| [[Lurgan]]

| 3

|style="text-align: left"| [[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]] (3)

| [[Coleraine]]

| 1

|style="text-align: left"| [[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]] (1)

| [[Derry]]

| 1

|style="text-align: left"| [[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]] (1)

| [[Newtownards]]

| 1

|style="text-align: left"| [[Ards F.C.|Ards]] (1)

|}

^†<small>Including one shared title in 1905–06</small>

==Club membership history==

A total of 46 different clubs have been members of the league during its history - eleven of which have been members for only one season. The newest members are [[Warrenpoint Town F.C.|Warrenpoint Town]], who joined the league in 2013 for the first time. That was the second consecutive season that a new member club had made its first appearance in the league, following [[Ballinamallard United F.C.|Ballinamallard United]]'s debut a year earlier in 2012. Three clubs – [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]], [[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] and [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] – have retained membership of the League since its inception in 1890: 124 years and 113 seasons (due to eleven suspended seasons).

Listed below are all the League members from 1890 up to and including the 2013–14 season in the following competitions:

*Irish Football League (1890–2003)

*Irish Premier League (2003–2008)

*IFA Premiership (2008–2013)

*NIFL Premiership (2013–present)

{|class="wikitable"

! style="background:silver;" | '''Club'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''From'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''Seasons in League'''

! style="background:silver;" | Years

|-

|'''[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]''' ||[[Belfast]] ||113 || 1890–

|'''[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]''' ||[[Belfast]] ||113 || 1890–

|'''[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]''' ||[[Belfast]] ||113 || 1890–

|[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]<ref group="note" name="fn_1"/> ||[[Ballyskeagh]]<ref group="note" name="fn_2"/> ||112^† || 1890–2013

|'''[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]''' ||[[Lurgan]] ||91 || 1911–2004, 2005–

|'''[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]''' ||[[Portadown]] ||82 || 1924–2008, 2009–

|'''[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]''' ||[[Coleraine]] ||80^† || 1927–

|'''[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]''' ||[[Newtownards]]<ref group="note" name="fn_3"/> ||77^† || 1923–2006, 2013–

|'''[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]''' ||[[Ballymena]] ||73^† || 1934–

|[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]] ||[[Bangor, County Down|Bangor]] ||70^† || 1927–2003, 2008–2009

|-

|'''[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]''' ||[[Belfast]] ||64 || 1949–2005, 2006–

|-

|[[Larne F.C.|Larne]] ||[[Larne]] ||53^† || 1923–1940, 1972–2008

|-

|''[[Newry City F.C.|Newry City]]''<ref group="note" name="fn_5"/> ||[[Newry]] ||45^† || 1923–1940, 1983–2011

|-

|''[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]''<ref group="note" name="fn_6"/> ||[[Belfast]] ||38 || 1896–1920, 1924–1949

|-

|''[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]'' ||[[Derry]] ||36 || 1929–1972

|-

|[[Carrick Rangers F.C.|Carrick Rangers]] ||[[Carrickfergus]] ||21^† || 1983–2003, 2011–2012

|-

|'''[[Dungannon Swifts F.C.|Dungannon Swifts]]''' ||[[Dungannon]] ||17^† || 1997–

|-

|''[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]'' ||[[Omagh]] ||15^† || 1990–2005

|-

|[[Ballyclare Comrades F.C.|Ballyclare Comrades]] ||[[Ballyclare]] ||13^† || 1990–2003

|-

|''[[Bohemian F.C.|Bohemians]]'' ||[[Dublin]] ||13 || 1902–1911, 1912–1920

|-

|''[[Derry Celtic F.C.|Derry Celtic]]'' ||[[Derry]] ||13 || 1900–1913

|-

|''[[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]]'' ||[[Dublin]] ||12 || 1904–1920

|-

|[[Limavady United F.C.|Limavady United]] ||[[Limavady]] ||11^† || 1997–2008

|-

|[[Institute F.C.|Institute]] ||[[Drumahoe]] ||10^† || 1999–2006, 2007–2010

|-

|''[[Queen's Island F.C.|Queen's Island]]'' ||[[Belfast]] ||8 || 1921–1929

|-

|[[Armagh City F.C.|Armagh City]] ||[[Armagh]] ||7^† || 1999-2003, 2005–2008

|-

|''[[Ballymena F.C.|Ballymena]]'' ||[[Ballymena]] ||6 || 1928–1934

|-

|''[[Ulster F.C.|Ulster]]'' ||[[Belfast]] ||6 || 1890–1894, 1901–1903

|-

|''Barn'' ||[[Carrickfergus]] ||5 || 1923–1928

|-

|[[Donegal Celtic F.C.|Donegal Celtic]] ||[[Belfast]] ||5 || 2006–2008, 2010–2013

|-

|[[Loughgall F.C.|Loughgall]] ||[[Loughgall]] ||3 || 2004–2007

|-

|''[[North Staffordshire Regiment]]'' ||[[British Army|Army]] team||3 || 1896–1899

|-

|'''[[Ballinamallard United F.C.|Ballinamallard United]]''' ||[[Ballinamallard]] ||2 || 2012–

|-

|''Ligoneil'' ||[[Belfast]] ||2 || 1891–1892, 1893–1894

|-

|''[[Oldpark F.C.|Oldpark]]'' ||[[Belfast]] ||2 || 1890–1892

|-

|''Belfast YMCA'' ||[[Belfast]] ||1 || 1891–1892

|-

|''[[Clarence F.C.|Clarence]]'' ||[[Belfast]] ||1 || 1890–1891

|-

|''[[Derry Olympic F.C.|Derry Olympic]]'' ||[[Derry]] ||1 || 1892–1893

|-

|''[[King's Own Scottish Borderers]]'' ||[[British Army|Army]] team||1 || 1903–1904

|-

|''[[Lancashire Fusiliers F.C.|Lancashire Fusiliers]]'' ||[[British Army|Army]] team||1 || 1891–1892

|-

|''[[Milford F.C.|Milford]]'' ||[[Milford, County Armagh|Milford]]||1 || 1890–1891

|-

|''Milltown'' ||[[Belfast]]||1 || 1891–1892

|-

|''[[Royal Scots]]'' ||[[British Army|Army]] team||1 || 1899–1900

|-

|''St Columb's Court'' ||[[Derry]]||1 || 1901–1902

|-

|''[[Tritonville F.C.|Tritonville]]'' ||[[Dublin]]||1 || 1912–1913

|-

|'''[[Warrenpoint Town F.C.|Warrenpoint Town]]''' ||[[Warrenpoint]]||1 || 2013–

<small>'''Bold''' – a current member<br />

''Italics'' – a club no longer in existence, or no longer competing in Northern Irish football<br />

^† Includes membership of the now defunct senior second tier – the Irish Football League First Division (1995–2003)</small>

==History and trivia==

The first Irish League champions were [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]], and the first runners-up were [[Ulster F.C.|Ulster]]. After the first season, the league expanded to ten clubs, but shrank after only one season to six clubs for the 1892–93 season. Only four clubs competed in 1892–93 and 1893–94, then six clubs for the following season, until a membership of eight was achieved for the 1901–02 season. With the exception of one season (1912–13) in which there were ten clubs, membership stayed at eight until the southern clubs resigned in 1920, anticipating the formation of the separate [[League of Ireland]] in what would become the [[Irish Free State]]. (The League was suspended from 1915 to 1919 because of the First World War.)

From 1890 to 1921, when the Irish League was an all-Ireland competition, no southern clubs (from what would become the [[Irish Free State]] and later the [[Republic of Ireland]]) ever won the championship. During this period, three southern clubs participated in the League: [[Bohemian F.C.|Bohemians]], [[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]] and [[Tritonville F.C.|Tritonville]]. The highest place achieved by any of these clubs was second, by [[Shelbourne F.C.|Shelbourne]] in 1906–07. In the early years, [[British Army|Army]] regiments stationed in Ireland participated in the League: the [[Lancashire Fusiliers]] in 1891–92; the [[North Staffordshire Regiment]] for three seasons from 1896–99; the [[Royal Scots]] in 1899–00 and the [[King's Own Scottish Borderers]] in 1903–04.

Only five and six clubs competed in 1920–21 and from 1921–23 respectively, but expansion began with the admission of four new clubs in 1923, another two in 1924 and a further two in 1927, giving a membership of fourteen from 1927 until the League was suspended in 1940 because of the Second World War. When the League resumed in 1947 it was reduced to twelve clubs, and stayed at this number until 1983 when membership was increased to fourteen. No club from outside [[Belfast]] won the League championship until [[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]] took it to [[Co. Armagh]] in 1951–52. In 1957–58, [[Ards F.C.|Ards]] became the first team from [[Co. Down]] to win the League, and in 1964–65, [[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]] were the first [[Co. Londonderry]] club to do so.

In 1961–62, Linfield famously achieved the feat of winning seven trophies: the Irish League; [[Irish Cup]]; [[City Cup (Northern Ireland)|City Cup]], [[Gold Cup (Northern Ireland)|Gold Cup]]; [[Ulster Cup]]; [[County Antrim Shield]]; and [[North-South Cup]]. This was a repeat of a similar feat in 1921–22, when Linfield won the Irish League; [[Irish Cup]]; [[City Cup (Northern Ireland)|City Cup]], [[Gold Cup (Northern Ireland)|Gold Cup]]; [[County Antrim Shield]]; Belfast Charities Cup and Alhambra Cup.

Historically, with relatively few league fixtures each season, the Irish League organised a number of other competitions for its members. While some of these enjoyed considerable prestige over the years, they have been phased out over the years due to fixture congestion caused by the expansion of the league, and reduced spectator interest. These competitions were: the [[City Cup (Northern Ireland)|City Cup]]; the [[Gold Cup (Northern Ireland)|Gold Cup]]; the [[Ulster Cup]] and the [[Irish League Floodlit Cup]]. In addition, clubs still compete in their respective regional cup competitions: the [[County Antrim Shield]] (for clubs within the jurisdiction of the North-East Ulster F.A., also known as the County Antrim & District F.A.); the [[Mid-Ulster Cup]] (for clubs within the jurisdiction of the Mid-Ulster F.A.); and the [[North West Senior Cup]] (for clubs within the jurisdiction of the North-Western F.A.).

In 1990, a further two clubs brought the membership to sixteen, and the League was divided into two divisions (the Premier and First Divisions) of eight in 1995, with promotion and relegation between the two. In 1996 the results from the Premier Division and the First Division started to be featured on the Press Association [[vidiprinter]]. In 1997, membership increased again to eighteen, with ten in the Premier Division and eight in the First Division. Between 1999 and 2003, the League had a record twenty clubs in membership. From 1999 to 2002, ten clubs each competed in the Premier and First Divisions and in 2002–03 there were twelve in the Premier Division and eight in the First Division. In 2003, with the creation of the Irish Premier League, the senior league was reduced to a single division of sixteen clubs, although for the first time with relegation to, and promotion from, a league below (a rump Irish Football League in 2003–04 and subsequently the [[IFA Intermediate League]]). In 2008, with the creation of the IFA Premiership, the league was reduced to twelve.

Of the 112 completed championships, the title has only been taken out of [[Belfast]] on ten occasions. The last club to do so was [[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]] in [[2001–02 Irish League|2001–02]]. They are also the most successful provincial club, with four championships overall.

The record for consecutive titles is six, held jointly by [[Belfast Celtic]] (1935–40 and 1947–48) and [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] (1981–87), while the longest gap between Irish League championships is 88 years or 77 seasons (excluding the 11 suspended seasons) between [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]'s wins in 1909–10 and 1997–98. A total of 12 different clubs have won the championship, Linfield holding the record for the most wins (51).

===Tiebreakers===

On one occasion (1905–06), the championship title was shared after [[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] and [[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] could not be separated after two play-off matches. In the [[1992–93 Irish League|1992–93]] season, [[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] became the first club to win the championship on goal difference, when they finished level on 66 points with [[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]], but eight goals better with a +34 goal difference to Crusaders' +26.

Before [[goal difference]] was introduced, if the top two teams finished the season with the same number of points, the championship title was decided by a play-off. Nine such championship play-offs took place over the years as follow:

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! style="background:silver'" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Winners'''

! style="background:silver'" | '''Score'''

! style="background:silver'" | Runners-up

|-

|[[1895–96 Irish League|1895–96]] ||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] || 2–1 ||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]]

|[[1898–99 Irish League|1898–99]] ||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]] || 2–0 ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]]

|[[1904–05 Irish League|1904–05]] ||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] || 3–1 ||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]]

|[[1905–06 Irish League|1905–06]] ||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] || 0–0 ||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

|Replay ||[[Cliftonville F.C.|Cliftonville]] || 3–3 ||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

|[[1910–11 Irish League|1910–11]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 3–2 ||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

|[[1937–38 Irish League|1937–38]] ||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] || 2–2 ||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

|-

|Replay ||[[Belfast Celtic F.C.|Belfast Celtic]] || 3–1 ||[[Derry City F.C.|Derry City]]

|-

|[[1949–50 Irish League|1949–50]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 2–0 ||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]]

|-

|[[1960–61 Irish League|1960–61]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 2–0 ||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

|-

|[[1961–62 Irish League|1961–62]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 3–1 ||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

===Unbeaten seasons===

On seven occasions, a team has completed a league campaign unbeaten. Linfield have done so four times, but with fewer fixtures relative to Belfast Celtic's unbeaten seasons in 1926–27 and 1928–29. Glentoran were the last club to achieve an unbeaten league season, when they won the [[1980–81 Irish League]] title by two points after completing 22 league games without defeat. They again came close in the [[1991–92 Irish League]] season, losing only once in 30 league games. Linfield also came close in the [[2003–04 Irish Premier League]] season, when they too lost just one league game all season. Between 2005–06 and 2006–07, Linfield lost just two league games in two seasons - one in each season.

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! style="background:silver;" | '''Season'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''Club'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''Matches played'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''Wins'''

! style="background:silver;" | '''Draws'''

|-

|[[1892–93 Irish League|1892–93]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 10 || 8 || 2

|-

|[[1894–95 Irish League|1894–95]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 6 || 4 || 2

|-

|[[1903–04 Irish League|1903–04]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 14 || 12 || 2

|-

|[[1921–22 Irish League|1921–22]] ||[[Linfield F.C.|Linfield]] || 10 || 7 || 3

|-

|[[1926–27 Irish League|1926–27]] ||[[Belfast Celtic]] || 22 || 15 || 7

|-

|[[1928–29 Irish League|1928–29]] ||[[Belfast Celtic]] || 26 || 22 || 4

|-

|[[1980–81 Irish League|1980–81]] ||[[Glentoran F.C.|Glentoran]] || 22 || 15 || 7

|}

==Relegation and promotion history==

Between 1995–96 and 2002–03, the league was split into two divisions, with promotion and relegation between the two as follows.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"

|Season||Relegated to First Division||Promoted to Premier Division

||1995–96||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]||[[Coleraine F.C.|Coleraine]]

||1996–97||-||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]<br>[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]

||1997–98||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]||[[Newry Town F.C.|Newry Town]]

||1998–99||[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Distillery]]

||1999–2000||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]||[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]

||2000–01||[[Ballymena United F.C.|Ballymena United]]||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]

||2001–02||-||[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]<br>[[Institute F.C.|Institute]]

|}

At the end of the 2002–03 season, the league was reformed as the single-division Irish Premier League. Four clubs were relegated to intermediate football, and thereafter there has been relegation and promotion between the senior Irish League and the top intermediate league below (now [[NIFL Championship 1]]).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"

|Season||Relegated||Promoted

|-

||2002–03||[[Armagh City F.C.|Armagh City]]<br>[[Ballyclare Comrades F.C.|Ballyclare Comrades]]<br>[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]<br>[[Carrick Rangers F.C.|Carrick Rangers]]||-

|-

||2003–04||[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]||[[Loughgall F.C.|Loughgall]]

|-

||2004–05||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]<br>[[Omagh Town F.C.|Omagh Town]]||[[Armagh City F.C.|Armagh City]]<br>[[Glenavon F.C.|Glenavon]]

|-

||2005–06||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]<br>[[Institute F.C.|Institute]]||[[Crusaders F.C.|Crusaders]]<br>[[Donegal Celtic F.C.|Donegal Celtic]]

||2006–07||[[Loughgall F.C.|Loughgall]]||[[Institute F.C.|Institute]]

||2007–08||[[Armagh City F.C.|Armagh City]]<br>[[Donegal Celtic F.C.|Donegal Celtic]]<br>[[Larne F.C.|Larne]]<br>[[Limavady United F.C.|Limavady United]]<br>[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]

||2008–09||[[Bangor F.C.|Bangor]]||[[Portadown F.C.|Portadown]]

||2009–10||[[Institute F.C.|Institute]]||[[Donegal Celtic F.C.|Donegal Celtic]]

||2010–11||[[Newry City F.C.|Newry City]]||[[Carrick Rangers F.C.|Carrick Rangers]]

||2011–12||[[Carrick Rangers F.C.|Carrick Rangers]]||[[Ballinamallard United F.C.|Ballinamallard United]]

||2012–13||[[Donegal Celtic F.C.|Donegal Celtic]]<br />[[Lisburn Distillery F.C.|Lisburn Distillery]]||[[Ards F.C.|Ards]]<br />[[Warrenpoint Town F.C.|Warrenpoint Town]]