Season 2016 Matches played 428 | Dates 29 Jan 2016 – 5 Jun 2016 Goals scored 1,031 | |
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Copa Sudamericana Deportes Tolima (cup best team not yet qualified)Deportivo CaliPatriotasRionegro Águilas Biggest away win Boyacá Chicó 0–4 Deportes Tolima (30 July 2016)Rionegro Águilas 0–4 Santa Fe (17 October 2016) Champion Independiente Santa Fe (9th title, Finalización) Similar 2015 Categoría Primera A, 2016 Copa Colombia, 2015 Categoría Primera A, 2017 Copa Libertadores, 2013 Copa Colombia | ||
The 2016 Categoría Primera A season (officially known as the 2016 Liga Águila season for sponsorship reasons) was the 69th season of Colombia's top-flight football league. Atlético Nacional came in as the defending champions having won the title in the 2015 season's Finalización tournament.
Contents
20 teams competed against one another, eighteen returning from last season plus Atlético Bucaramanga and Fortaleza, who were promoted from the 2015 Primera B and will be returning to the top tier after 7 years and 1 year, respectively, replacing Uniautónoma and Cúcuta Deportivo who were relegated at the end of the last season.
Independiente Medellín won its sixth title in the Torneo Apertura after beating Junior in the finals, while in the Torneo Finalización Santa Fe won its ninth title after beating Deportes Tolima in the finals.
Format
The league retained the format used in the most recent season. The Apertura and Finalización tournaments were divided into three stages: a First Stage which was contested on a single round-robin basis, with each team playing the other teams once and playing a regional rival once more for a total of 20 matches. The top eight teams after the twenty rounds advanced to a knockout round, where they were pitted into four ties to be played on a home-and-away basis, with the four winners advancing to the semifinals and the winner of each semifinal advancing to the final of the tournament, which was played on a home-and-away basis as well. The winner of the final in each tournament was declared the tournament champion and will participate in the 2017 Copa Libertadores.
Stadia and locations
a: Temporarily plays its home games at Estadio Álvaro Gómez Hurtado in Floridablanca due to remodeling works at Estadio Alfonso López.
b: Temporarily played its home games at Estadio Manuel Murillo Toro in Ibagué due to the temporary closure of Estadio Guillermo Plazas Alcid.
c: Plays Sunday evening home games at Estadio Pascual Guerrero in Cali.
d: Temporarily played its home games at Estadio Metropolitano de Techo due to remodeling works at Estadio El Campín.
e: Formerly known as Águilas Doradas.
First Stage
The First Stage began on 29 January and consisted of twenty rounds including a series of regional rivalries in the tenth round. It ended on 29 May with the top eight teams at the end of this stage advancing to the knockout stage.
Results
Updated to games played on 29 May 2016.
Source: DIMAYOR
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Top goalscorers
Source: DIMAYOR
First Stage
The First Stage began on 1 July and featured the same format used in the Torneo Apertura, with reversed fixtures. It ended on 20 November with the top eight teams at the end of this stage advancing to the knockout stage.
Results
Updated to games played on 20 November 2016.
Source: DIMAYOR
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
2 DIMAYOR awarded a 3–0 away win in favor of Atlético Bucaramanga for pitch invasion by fans of Millonarios. Original result was a 0–1 win for Atlético Bucaramanga.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Top goalscorers
Source: DIMAYOR
Relegation
A separate table is kept to determine the teams that get relegated to the Categoría Primera B for the next season. The table includes an average of all first stage games played for the current season and the previous two seasons. For purposes of elaborating the table, the promoted teams are given the same point and goal tallies as the team in the 18th position at the start of the season.
Source: DIMAYOR
Rules for classification: 1st average; 2nd goal difference; 3rd number of goals scored; 4th away goals scored.