Azerbaijan Premier League
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| Country | Azerbaijan |
|---|---|
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 1992 |
| Number of teams | 8 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Azerbaijan First Division |
| Domestic cup(s) |
Azerbaijan Cup Azerbaijan Supercup |
| International cup(s) |
UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League |
| Current champions |
Qarabağ (4 titles) (2015–16) |
| Most championships | Neftchi Baku (8 titles) |
| TV partners |
CBC Azerbaijan CBC Sport |
| Website | http://www.pfl.az |
 2016–17 Azerbaijan Premier League
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The Azerbaijan Premier League (Azerbaijani: Azərbaycan Premyer Liqası), currently named Topaz Premyer Liqası after its main sponsor, is the top tier in Azerbaijani club football. The league is contested by 12 teams, in which the season runs from August to May. The winner gets a second round play off spot in the UEFA Champions League.
The Azerbaijan Premier League was first organized in 2007 and succeeded the Top Division (Azerbaijani: Yüksək Liqa), which existed from 1992 to 2007.
Since 1992, a total of 8 clubs have been crowned champions of the Azerbaijani football system. The current champions are Qarabağ, who won the title in the 2014-15 season for the third time.
The league were dominated by teams like Neftchi Baku, Kapaz, Turan Tovuz and Shamkir. However, financial struggles had bad impact on local clubs and most teams such as Khazri Buzovna, Shamkir, Vilash Masalli and Shafa Baku went bust due increasing debts. In 1997, Kapaz were known for their unbeaten run as club's final record for the 1997–98 league campaign stood at 22 wins, 4 draws and 0 losses, out of 26 games total, an unbeaten run not matched in any single season by any team in an Azerbaijani league division.
As league entered a new century, the Neftchi Baku found themselves facing new challengers. They were challenged by emerging Khazar Lankaran, Inter Baku and Baku in both competitions. The country's football received major blow in 2002, when UEFA imposed a two-year ban in response to a long-standing conflict between the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan and majority of the country's top flight clubs. The domestic championship was abandoned as a result of the conflict and the top clubs prevented their players from playing for the national team, with tax officials also probing allegations of fraud at the Azerbaijan federation. Under the management of Agaselim Mirjavadov, Khazar Lankaran finished as Azerbaijan Cup winners in 2006 and 2007, while becoming league champions in 2006–07 despite losing the title to Neftchi in 2004–05 during Championship play-off. Qarabağ was the first ever team from Azerbaijan to reach UEFA Europa League play off-round during the seasons 2009–10 and 2010–11. Few gave chances for qualification to the next round, although the Aghdam side caused quite a stir against favorites Rosenborg, Honka, Twente and Wisła Kraków.
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