Liga de Elite
Liga de Elite, previously known as Campeonato da 1ª Divisão do Futebol, is the top division of the Macau Football Association. Created in 1973, it features both local amateur players and professional foreign talent.
Due to the limited land area in Macau, matches are played almost exclusively at the Estádio Campo Desportivo and the Lin Fong Sports Centre. Similar to Hong Kong, the league operates under a separate system from the Mainland Chinese football league system. The season typically runs from January to July.
History
Origins and early years
The league was founded in 1973. Historically, the competition was dominated by Lam Pak, who won a record 9 titles before withdrawing from the league. Other notable historical champions include Polícia and Hap Kuan.2014 restructuring and withdrawals
The league underwent significant turbulence leading into the 2014 season. Established powerhouses Lam Pak, Lam Ieng, and Kuan Tai all forfeited their places in the First Division before the start of the competition. Lam Pak and Lam Ieng withdrew due to a lack of sponsorship, while Kuan Tai cited budget issues and an inability to pay players.To address the sudden vacancies, the Macau Football Association invited the two clubs relegated in 2013, Kei Lun and MFA Development, to remain in the top flight.
Modern era
In recent years, the league has been defined by the rise of Benfica de Macau and Chao Pak Kei. Benfica de Macau achieved international recognition by becoming the first Macanese club to participate in the AFC Cup group stage in 2018, where they secured historic victories over Hang Yuen of Taiwan. Chao Pak Kei dominated the league post-2019, securing three consecutive titles often with unbeaten records.Competition format
The league follows a standard round-robin format where the 10 participating teams play each other twice, totaling 18 matches per team. However, due to the use of shared neutral venues, the "home" and "away" distinction is purely administrative.- Champions: The team with the most points at the end of the season is declared the champion and qualifies for the AFC Challenge League.
- Relegation: The bottom two teams are relegated to the 2ª Divisão de Macau.
Clubs
2024 season
Ten teams contested the 2024 Liga de Elite. Gala and University of Macau were promoted from the previous season's 2ª Divisão de Macau.| Club | Founded | Position | Top division titles |
| Benfica de Macau | 1951 | 2nd | 6 |
| Chao Pak Kei | 2008 | 1st | 4 |
| Cheng Fung | 1988 | 4th | 0 |
| Gala | – | Promoted | 0 |
| Hang Sai | – | 6th | 0 |
| Ka I | 1985 | 7th | 3 |
| Lun Lok | 1985 | 5th | 0 |
| Monte Carlo | 1984 | 3rd | 5 |
| Sporting de Macau | 1926 | 8th | 4 |
| University of Macau | – | Promoted | 0 |
Venues
Unlike major professional leagues, clubs do not have their own stadiums. Matches are allocated to one of three main government-owned venues.Champions
List of champions
Performance by club
Players
Best Player Award
Top Goalscorers
Records
;All-time goalscorers| Rank | Player | Years | Goals | Apps | Ratio |
| 1 |  |