1948–49 Iraq FA Baghdad First Division

The 1948–49 Iraq FA Baghdad First Division was the first season of the Iraq Central FA Premier League (the top division of football in Baghdad and its neighbouring cities from 1948 to 1973). The competition started on 5 November 1948,[1][2] after the fixture list had been drawn up at a meeting between club representatives held at the Al-Malaki club.[3]

Iraq Central FA Premier League
Season1948–49
ChampionsAl-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya
(1st title)
RelegatedAl-Malaki
Al-Shorta Select XI
Kuliyat Al-Huqooq

The Iraq Central Football Association (IFA) intended to hold the league in a double round-robin format, but this was changed to a single round-robin after several games had to be postponed due to rainy weather.[4] The IFA also set a rule that players who had already played for one club in a league game could not play for another team without prior permission from the League Committee, however Al-Shorta Select XI and Wizarat Al-Maarif were found to have broken this rule.[5]

The title-deciding match between Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya and Al-Haras Al-Malaki was played on 16 April 1949 at Al-Kashafa Stadium.[6] Al-Haras Al-Malaki needed to win outright in order to overtake their opponents and win the title, but the game ended 3–3 and therefore Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya were crowned inaugural league champions.[7]

League table from known results

The following is not the final league table, but is the most recent league table published by The Iraq Times newspaper as at 11 December 1948, with the added inclusion of the four known results that took place after this date.[8]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya 6 5 1 0 27 4 6.750 11 League Champions
2 Al-Haras Al-Malaki 5 4 1 0 21 5 4.200 9
3 Al-Ahli 4 3 1 0 15 3 5.000 7
4 Ittihad Muntada Al-Karkh 6 3 0 3 13 13 1.000 6
5 Al-Malaki 4 2 1 1 6 4 1.500 5 Relegated to Iraq FA Baghdad Second Division
6 Al-Shorta Select XI 5 1 0 4 7 23 0.304 2
7 Wizarat Al-Maarif 2 0 0 2 1 4 0.250 0
8 Casuals 6 0 0 6 6 28 0.214 0
9 Kuliyat Al-Huqooq[lower-alpha 1] 2 0 0 2 0 12 0.000 0 Relegated to Iraq FA Baghdad Second Division
Source: The Iraq Times[lower-alpha 2]

Notes:

  1. Kuliyat Al-Huqooq were expelled from the league after failing to show up for two consecutive matches against Casuals and Al-Shorta Select XI respectively.[9]
  2. Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya Al-Malakiya decided not to field a team for the season,[10] after failing to get together a team for the opening weekend of the season due to unforeseen circumstances.[2]

Known results
Home \ Away AHL HAR KUL MLK CAS ITT KHQ SHR WIZ
Al-Ahli 1–1 3–1 7–0
Al-Haras Al-Malaki –[lower-alpha 1] 5–0 5–0
Al-Kuliya Al-Askariya Al-Malakiya 3–3 1–0 7–0 5–1
Al-Malaki 3–1 2–1
Casuals 1–4 2–5 1–5 1–4
Ittihad Muntada Al-Karkh 0–3 0–4
Kuliyat Al-Huqooq 0–7 –[lower-alpha 2]
Al-Shorta Select XI 2–5 –[lower-alpha 2] –[lower-alpha 3]
Wizarat Al-Maarif 0–2
Source: The Iraq Times
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Notes:
  1. The Al-Haras Al-Malaki–Al-Malaki match was ordered to be replayed after Al-Malaki players left the field in the 79th minute while losing 2–1 in protest at a refereeing decision.[8]
  2. Kuliyat Al-Huqooq were expelled from the league after failing to show up for two consecutive matches against Casuals and Al-Shorta Select XI respectively.[9]
  3. The Al-Shorta Select XI–Wizarat Al-Maarif match was rescheduled after Wizarat Al-Maarif failed to show up on the original date.[5]

References
  1. "Football leagues set up in Iraq's main centres". The Iraq Times. 16 October 1948.
  2. "Baghdad Football League is off to enthusiastic start". The Iraq Times. 11 November 1948.
  3. "Baghdad Football League games start on Friday". The Iraq Times. 2 November 1948.
  4. "Baghdad Football League". The Iraq Times. 31 December 1948.
  5. "Baghdad Football League is going "on the air"". The Iraq Times. 2 December 1948.
  6. "League deciding match on Saturday". The Iraq Times. 14 April 1949.
  7. "Military College win Iraq Times Cup". The Iraq Times. 21 April 1949.
  8. ""Incidents" prompt League Committee inquiry". The Iraq Times. 11 December 1948.
  9. "Basrah, Mosul and Kirkuk asked for Cup entries". The Iraq Times. 16 December 1948.
  10. Mubarak, Hassanin (2020). Birth of the Lions of Mesopotamia: The early years of football in Iraq. ISBN 979-8670555623.
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