Tomás Yelmini
Peruvian soccer has produced players of great technical value, especially in the 1970s and 1980s. In recent years, with a national team that has represented the country very well and made it competitive, Peru’s soccer has shown that it can be up to the task and aspire to improve, as well as offer, high quality teams. Alianza Lima reached its 25th national title in 2022, and is the second club with more wins in Peruvian history.
Now, in 2023, with the Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana, the main Peruvian teams have the opportunity to position themselves at continental level, but without neglecting the local tournament that will start on January 21st, with the participation of 19 teams.
At JefeBet we offer you an overview of how the Peruvian Liga 1 will be played, as well as how the main candidates to win the title are preparing themselves, and when the derbies will be played.
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Find out When Does Peru’s Liga 1 Start for the 2023 Season
The Peru League 1 2023 was drawn on December 30, and it will start on January 21st. This competition will have 19 participating teams: Alianza Atlético, Alianza Lima, ADT, Atlético Grau, Cantolao, Carlos Mannucci, Cienciano, Cusco FC, Deportivo Garcilaso, Binacional, Melgar, Sport Boys, Sport Huancayo, Sporting Cristal, César Vallejo, Unión Comercio, Universitario and UTC de Cajamarca.
January 21st is a postponement of its initial starting date, a decision forced by a Government’s decree that stipulated a State of National Emergency for 30 days due to the protests that took place in Peru.
The competition system will be the same as in the past: League 1 will be made up of two tournaments, Apertura and Clausura, which will be played in a round-robin format with 19 dates each (as there is an odd number of teams, one of them will have a rest on each day).
The winner of each tournament, in addition to the top two in a accumulative table, will play a quadrangular in a semifinal and final format to determine the season’s champion.
But of course, there are also some exceptions: for example, if a team wins both tournaments, there is nothing to discuss and it will be proclaimed the champion. Likewise, if a team wins the Apertura or the Clausura and, at the same time, is among the top two in the accumulated table, it qualifies directly to the final.
Top favorites of La Liga 1 of Peru 2023
Alianza Lima
With the recent conquest of the Liga 1 2022, the team from the capital now has 25 titles, one behind the top winner, Universitario de Deportes. Aiming to repeat this season, Alianza Lima strengthened itself with Uruguayan midfielder Basilio Gabriel Lima, Peruvian goalkeeper Ítalo Espinoza, Colombian striker Pablo Sabbag, and Argentine defender Santiago García.
Their debut will be as visitors against Atlético Grau, while the derby with Universitario de Deportes will take place on matchday 5.
Universitario de Deportes
Their performance in 2022 was barely enough to make them qualify for the first round of the Copa Sudamericana. It is still Peru’s club with the most wins, but its good times seem to have bee left behind. The last title the team has is from 2013, too long ago for a club that used to be huge. On the opening day they will host Cienciano.
Sporting Cristal
Sporting Cristal was the team that obtained the most points last year in all the Peruvian competitions, even more than the champion, Alianza Lima. However, those points were only enough to make them qualify for the group stage of the next Copa Libertadores. Melgar knocked it out of the race in the playoff semifinals.
Irvin Ávila was their most important player, with 10 assists in 38 games. For this season, Brazilian center-back Ignácio Da Silva joined the team, he comes from EC Bahia. On the first day of the season, they will be playing at home against Academia Cantolao.
Melgar
Under the leadership of Argentine coach, Pablo Lavallén, Melgar reached the finals of the Liga 1 2023, but Alianza Lima deprived them from what would have been the third title in their history, after they won it in 1981 and 2015.
The Arequipa club has been a protagonist in Peruvian soccer in recent years, and has also earned a place in the next Copa Libertadores. With the firepower of Bernardo Cuesta and Luis Iberico (27 goals between them in 2023), Melgar kicks off the season against ADT. Quevedo, Pérez Guedes, Vidales, Luján and Sánchez left the team. D’Arrigo, Tomás Martínez, Oncoy, Cáceres, Rasmussen, Nicolás Figueroa and Pablo Magnín have joined Melgar.
Sport Huancayo
This team has never won a title in Peru, but it is looking great at present. It was the fourth team in the cumulative points table, and it had among its lineup the season’s top scorer, Luis Benites (19 goals), and the player with the most assists, Carlos Ross (12).
The team will make its debut in 2023 as a visitor of César Vallejo. For this year, the team led by Mifflin Bermúdez has been strengthened with Ray Gómez, Felipe Mesones, Alexis Rojas, Rodrigo Colombo, Donald Millán and Carlos Escobar.
