Marianas Soccer League 1

Marianas Soccer League 1
Founded2005; 20 years ago (2005)[1]
CountryNorthern Mariana Islands
ConfederationAFC
Number of clubs5
Level on pyramid1
International cup(s)AFC Challenge League
Marianas Club Championship
Current championsSpring:
Kanoa (1st title)
Fall:
Matansa (1st title)
(2024)
Most championshipsTan Holdings (6 titles)[2]
TV partnersFIFA+
YouTube (live streaming)
Websitewww.nmifa.com
Current: 2024 Marianas Soccer League 1

The Marianas Soccer League 1 is the men's top level professional football competition of the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association. It is above the Marianas Soccer League 2, but there is no regular promotion/relegation between the two competitions.

History

The league began as an invitational event in the Northern Mariana Islands. The league has been operating since 2005[1] and grew to include eight teams in the 2008 season.[3][4]

On 2 August 2012 the competition was re-branded as the M-League, following the suit of many other AFC national competitions. In September 2012, the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association (NMIFA) officially launched a two tier completion, usually without promotion and relegation. In the inaugural season there were 5 teams in Division 1 and 4 teams in generally amateur Division 2.

After the 2020 season was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league was relaunched in Spring 2021 as the Marianas Soccer League.

Marianas Club Championship

Since 2023, the winners of the Marianas Soccer League 1 and the Guam Soccer League compete against each other in the Marianas Club Championship.[5]

Previous winners

Winners so far are:[2]

Northern Mariana Invitational Championship

M-League Division 1

Marianas Soccer League

Top goalscorers

  • Note: 2007–10 top goalscorers for Northern Mariana Invitational Championship.
Year Top scorer Team Goals
2007 Japan Masatoshi Otsuka[6] Fiesta Inter Saipan
2009 Northern Mariana Islands Joe Wang Miller MP United 23[8]
2010 Northern Mariana Islands Joe Wang Miller MP United 15[4]
2016 Czech Republic Martin Jambor Tan Holdings 14
2018 Northern Mariana Islands Sunjoon Tenorio MP United 15

Hat-tricks multiple

Rank Country Player Hat-tricks
1 Northern Mariana Islands Sunjoon Tenorio 1

References

  1. ^ a b "about the NMIFA". NMIFA. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Northern Marianas — List of Champions". RSSSF. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  3. ^ Schöggl.H (2010) Northern Marianas 2010, Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation, 2010-08-11. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  4. ^ a b 'MP United rules men's league' Archived 2012-03-23 at the Wayback Machine, Saipan Tribune, 2010-07-27. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  5. ^ "Wings FC ready for first-ever Marianas Club Championship". Pacific Daily News. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  6. ^ a b 'Fiesta Inter takes football crown' Archived 2012-03-23 at the Wayback Machine, Saipan Tribune, 2007-09-10. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  7. ^ 'Inter Godfather's Bags Men's League Title', Marianas Variety, 2011-12-19. Retrieved 2015-03-25.
  8. ^ Schöggl.H (2010) Northern Marianas 2009, Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation, 2010-03-25. Retrieved 2011-05-14.