| Season | 2021–22 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 11 September 2021 – 4 June 2022 |
| Champions | Ahed 8th title |
| Relegated | Shabab Bourj Sporting |
| AFC Cup | Ahed Nejmeh |
| Matches | 114 |
| Goals | 273 (2.39 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Mahmoud Siblini Fadel Antar (10 goals each) |
| Best goalkeeper | Mostafa Matar (11 clean sheets) |
| Biggest win | Shabab Bourj 6–0Sagesse (9 January 2022) Shabab Sahel 0–6Ansar (10 March 2022) |
| Highest scoring | Shabab Bourj 6–0Sagesse (9 January 2022) Shabab Sahel 0–6Ansar (10 March 2022) |
| Longest winning run | 8 matches Bourj |
| Longest unbeaten run | 19 matches Ahed |
| Longest winless run | 8 matches Sporting |
| Longest losing run | 7 matches Sporting |
2022–23 → | |
The2021–22 Lebanese Premier League was the 60th season of theLebanese Premier League, the top Lebanese league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1934. The league started on 11 September 2021 and ended on 4 June 2022.
It was the second season to feature a "split" format, following its introduction in the2020–21 season, in which the season was divided into two phases. Ahed won their eighth league title undefeated. Defending championsAnsar, who won their 14th title in 2020–21, finished second.Sporting, who were newly promoted, andShabab Bourj, who withdrew from the league, were relegated to theLebanese Second Division.
Each club had 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.[1] Also, each club was allowed a maximum of eight players over the age of 30, with only five being able to be fielded in a game.[1] In case a club was to not meet the required number of minutes at the end of the season, they would have three points deducted from their total in the league.[1]
Due to theeconomic situation in Lebanon, no foreign players were allowed to play in the league in the first half of the season.[2] In the second half, teams were allowed to contract one foreign player, for the first time since October 2019.[3]
Following its introduction in the2020–21 season, the 2021–22 season consisted of two phases: in the first phase, each team played against one another once.[2] In the second phase, the 12 teams were divided into two groups based on their position in the first phase; the teams carried over their point tally from the first phase.[4] After the first phase was completed, clubs could not move out of their own half in the league, even if they achieved more or fewer points than a higher or lower ranked team, respectively.[4]
The top six teams played against each other twice, as opposed to the previous season where they played each other once;[2] the champion automatically qualified to the2023–24 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs—assuming they met the criteria set by theAsian Football Confederation (AFC).[5] The runners-up instead directly qualified to the2023–24 AFC Cup group stage—as long as the champions met the AFC criteria for the AFC Champions League.[2] The bottom six teams also played against each other twice, with the bottom two teams being relegated to theLebanese Second Division.[2]
FollowingNejmeh's refusal to playAhed on 9 January 2022, theLebanese Football Association (LFA) decided to assign a 3–0walkover win to Ahed, deducted 6 points from Nejmeh, and fined them£L10 million.[6] Nejmeh's decision not to play came as a form of protest against the refereeing in their game againstTadamon Sour one week prior.[6]
FollowingShabab Bourj's failure to comply toFIFA's request for them to compensate former playerLorougnon Christ Remi, and rumours of a merger withSafa, the club withdrew from the league.[7] On 30 May 2022, the LFA announced that Shabab Bourj were fined £L12.5 million, were relegated to the Second Division, and that all of their matches in the championship round were voided.[8]
Twelve teams competed in the league – the top ten teams from the2020–21 Lebanese Premier League season and the two teams promoted from theLebanese Second Division.
Lebanese clubs were allowed to contract a foreign player for the second half of the season.[3]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ahed(C) | 19 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 37 | 6 | +31 | 47 | Qualification forAFC Cup group stage[b] |
| 2 | Ansar | 19 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 34 | 13 | +21 | 35 | |
| 3 | Bourj | 19 | 9 | 7 | 3 | 22 | 16 | +6 | 34 | |
| 4 | Shabab Sahel | 19 | 8 | 3 | 8 | 28 | 32 | −4 | 27 | |
| 5 | Shabab Bourj[c](R) | 11 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 15 | 17 | −2 | 14[d] | Relegation toLebanese Second Division |
| 6 | Tadamon Sour | 19 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 15 | 28 | −13 | 14[d] | |
| 7 | Nejmeh[e] | 21 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 29 | 16 | +13 | 30 | Qualification forAFC Cup group stage[b] |
| 8 | Tripoli | 21 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 23 | 24 | −1 | 29 | |
| 9 | Sagesse | 21 | 8 | 3 | 10 | 17 | 32 | −15 | 27 | |
| 10 | Akhaa Ahli Aley | 21 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 24 | −6 | 25 | |
| 11 | Safa[c] | 21 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 19 | 29 | −10 | 22 | |
| 12 | Sporting(R) | 21 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 16 | 36 | −20 | 11 | Relegation toLebanese Second Division |
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[9] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mahmoud Siblini | Nejmeh | 10 |
| Fadel Antar | Shabab Sahel | ||
| 3 |  Boucounta Sarr | Sagesse | 6 |
| Hussein Jawad Khalife | Shabab Sahel | ||
| Ahmad Hijazi | Ansar | ||
| Karim Darwich | Ansar | ||
| 7 | Said Awada | Akhaa Ahli Aley | 6 |
| Mohamad Kdouh | Ahed |
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fadel Antar | Shabab Sahel | Safa | 5–0[10] | 18 September 2021 |
| Fadel Antar4 | Shabab Sahel | Tripoli | 4–1[11] | 25 September 2021 |
| Mahmoud Siblini | Nejmeh | Akhaa Ahli Aley | 3–0[12] | 11 March 2022 |
| Hussein Jawad Khalife | Shabab Sahel | Tadamon Sour | 4–1[13] | 20 May 2022 |
4 Player scored 4 goals
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets[9] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mostafa Matar | Ahed | 11 |
| 2 | Nazih Assaad | Ansar | 10 |
| 3 | Ali Sabeh | Nejmeh | 8 |
| Shaker Wehbe | Akhaa Ahli Aley | ||
| 5 | Ahmad Korhani | Tripoli | 7 |
| 6 | Hassan Moghnieh | Bourj | 6 |
