2021–22 Lebanese Premier League
The 2021–22 Lebanese Premier League is the 60th season of the Lebanese Premier League, the top Lebanese professional league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1934. The league started on 11 September 2021. It is the second season to feature a "split" format, following its introduction in the 2020–21 season, where the season is divided into two phases. Ansar are the defending champions, having won their 14th title in 2020–21. Summary. Regulations. Each club has to involve one player under the age of 22 for at least 600 minutes, two players for at least  800 combined minutes, and three players for at least 1,200 combined minutes. Also, each club is allowed a maximum of eight players over the age of 30, with only five being able to be fielded in a game. In case a club is to not meet the required number of minutes at the end of the season, they will have three points deducted from their total in the league. Due to the economic situation in Lebanon, no foreign players were allowed to play in the league in the first half of the season. In the second half, teams were allowed  to contract one foreign player, for the first time since October 2019. Format. Following its introduction in the 2020–21 season, the 2021–22 season consists of two phases: in the first phase, each team plays against one another once. In the second phase, the 12 teams are divided into two groups based on their position in the first phase; the teams carry over their point tally from the first phase. After the first phase is completed, clubs can not move out of their own half in the league, even if they achieve more or fewer points than a higher or lower  ranked team, respectively. The top six teams play against each other twice, as opposed to the previous season where they played each other once; the champion automatically qualify to the 2023–24 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs—assuming they meet the criteria set by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The runners-up instead directly qualify to the 2023–24 AFC Cup group stage—as long as the champions meet the AFC criteria for the AFC Champions League. The bottom six teams also play against each other twice, with the bottom two teams being relegated to the Lebanese Second Division. Events. Following  Nejmeh's refusal to play Ahed on 9 January 2022, the Lebanese Football Association decided to assign a 3–0 walkover to Ahed, deducted 6 points from Nejmeh, and fined them LL10 million. Nejmeh's decision not to play came as a form of protest against the refereeing in their game against Tadamon Sour one week prior. Teams. Twelve teams compete in the league – the top ten teams from the 2020–21 Lebanese Premier League season and the two teams promoted from the Lebanese Second Division. Stadiums and locations. Prior to the start of each season, every team choose two stadiums as  their home venues. In case both stadiums are unavailable for a certain matchday, another venue was used. Foreign players. Lebanese clubs were allowed to contract a foreign player for the second half of the season. League table. <onlyinclude></onlyinclude> Player scored 4 goals