Belgian National Division 1
| Founded | 2016 |
|---|---|
| Country | Belgium |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Level on pyramid | 3 |
| Promotion to | Belgian First Division B |
| Relegation to | Belgian Second Amateur Division |
| Domestic cup(s) | Belgian Cup |
| Current champions | Beerschot Wilrijk (2016–17) |
| Current: 2017–18 Belgian First Amateur Division | |
The Belgian First Amateur Division is the third-highest division in the Belgian football league system, one level below the Belgian First Division B. It was created by the Royal Belgian Football Association in 2016, coming in at the third level and pushing all divisions one level down.
History
The Belgian First Amateur Division was created in 2016 following an overhaul of the Belgian football league system which saw the number of professional clubs reduced to 24. As a result, from the third level and below only amateur clubs remain.[1] The two remaining levels above the Belgian Provincial leagues were reformed into three amateur levels, namely the Belgian First Amateur Division, the Belgian Second Amateur Division and the Belgian Third Amateur Division. As a result, the Belgian Provincial Leagues dropped to the sixth level of the league system.
Competition format
The season is a regular round-robin tournament with 16 teams. The top four teams after the regular season play a promotion playoff in which they keep 50% of the obtained points during the regular season and the team with the most points after the playoff is promoted to the Belgian First Division B.[2]
Regarding relegation, the bottom three teams are automatically demoted, while the team finishing in 13th place play a relegation playoff together with three teams from the Belgian Second Amateur Division with the playoff winner obtaining a spot in the following season's Belgian First Amateur Division.
Past results overview
| Season | Regular season winner | Promotion play-off participants | Promoted | Relegated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 | Beerschot Wilrijk | Beerschot Wilrijk, Dessel Sport, Heist and Virton | Beerschot Wilrijk | Coxyde, Hasselt, Sprimont-Comblain and WS Bruxelles |
References
- ^ "La réforme du championnat approuvée: une grande lessive se prépare en D2 (INFOGRAPHIE)" (in French). dh.be. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ^ "Bondsreglement" (PDF) (in Dutch). Royal Belgian Football Association. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2016.