The Peruvian football champions are the winners of the highest league in Peruvian football, which is currently named as Liga 1 and organized by Peruvian Football Federation. The Liga Peruana de Football was established in 1912. It was an amateur league that lasted until 1921 due to scheduling and organizing conflicts. In this league only teams from Lima participated. In 1926, the Peruvian Football Federation took control of organizing the tournament and continued the Peruvian Primera División with the introduction of teams from Callao. In 1951, the Primera División turned professional and in 1966, the Torneo Descentralizado was founded in which the first non-capital teams were invited to play the first national championship.[1] Between 1996 and 2008, the Apertura and Clausura format was adopted.
In its early stages the first division was dominated by Universitario and Alianza Lima. Other notable teams were Atlético Chalaco, Sport Boys and Deportivo Municipal. The professional era saw Sporting Cristal rise to challenge the dominance of Universitario and Alianza Lima. These three teams account for nearly a third of the titles won. Melgar, Juan Aurich and Binacional are the only teams outside the Lima Region to have won national titles.[2] As of 2022, the league title has been won by over 21 clubs but Universitario, Alianza Lima, and Sporting Cristal share a total of 71 titles of the 106 titles contested. Universitario and Alianza Lima alone account for 51 of the titles contested.