Nigeria Professional Football League

Plateau United F.C. won the league on 9 September 2017, with a 2–0 victory over Enugu Rangers.[6]

In July 2018 the league was postponed indefinitely following crisis in the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF).[7][8] Lobi Stars was declared as the sole representative of the league in the 2019 CAF Champions League as the team was at the top of the standings.[9]

The league consisted of 24 teams. Four were promoted from the Nigeria National League. Twenty teams remained from the previous season which was not completed. They were divided into two groups of 12 teams. The top three teams in each group contested for the title in the NPFL Super six championship playoff in Lagos. The People's Elephant finished at the top of the log with 12 points from five games.

Enyimba vs Kano Pillars is considered the biggest match of the season because of their rivalry and they remain the 2 teams yet to finish outside the top eight for 12 seasons.

The NFF created the Nigeria Premier League, organized by the Nigeria Football League in 1990 as a step in attaining full professionalism as the sole regulatory for football in Nigeria. At the Onikan Stadium on 12 May 1990, the league was given a name as it was then known as the 'Professional League'.[11]

However, in November 2012 with the agreement and support of the National Sports Commission, Nigeria's sports regulatory authority, the NFF constituted an Interim Management Committee (IMC) for the League as part of measures to avert a total collapse of the top tier professional League following the downfall of the Nigeria Football League (NFL) which arose from difficult legal and administrative impediments.[12] The IMC supervised the formation and incorporation of the LMC to run a transparent and commercially viable professional league.

The first step the LMC took was to rebrand the League name, from the Nigerian Premier League to the Nigerian Professional Football League, (NPFL) or simply the Professional 'Football' League)[13][14] Also, the LMC signed a $34m TV rights deal to broadcast league matches which lasted until 2017[15][16]

In 2015, the League Management Company solicited financial support from the Government in order to upgrade existing grounds, provision of required broadcast and medical equipment and facilities in the stadiums.[17]

The League Management Company has its framework and rules governing the 20 clubs in the Nigeria Professional Football League each season.[18] On 5 July 2016, the NPFL adopted the TMS Domestic Transfer Matching System (DTMS), becoming the first league in Africa to do so.[19]

The League Management Company is currently headed by Shehu Dikko.[20]

Association ranking for 2020–21 CAF Champions League and 2020–21 CAF Confederation Cup will be based on results from each CAF tournament (Champions League and Confederation Cup) from 2016 to 2019–20.

Legend

• CL: CAF Champions League
• CC: CAF Confederation Cup
•   Associations ranked 1–12 and eligible to enter two teams in each CAF tournament (Champions League and Confederation Cup)

Rank			Association	2016 (× 1)		2017 (× 2)		2018 (× 3)		2018–19 (× 4)		2019–20 (× 5)		Total
2020	2019	Mvt		CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC	CL	CC
1	2	+1	Morocco	4	4	6	3	5	7	5	7	8	8	190
2	3	+1	Egypt	7	0	7	0.5	5	3	4	5	11	6	167
3	1	–2	Tunisia	0	3	7	5	9	0	8	6	6	0	140
4	5	+1	DR Congo	0	5	1	5	3	4	5	0	4	1	83
5	4	–1	Algeria	0	4	4	2	5	2	5	1	3	1	81
6	6	—	South Africa	6	0	3	4.5	2	0	6	0	3	0.5	68.5
7	7	—	Zambia	4	0	2	2	2	0	0	2.5	1	2	43
8	9	+1	Nigeria	2	0	0	0.5	0	3	2	1	0	3	39
9	10	+1	Guinea	0	0	0	1	3	0	3	0	0	3	38
10	11	+1	Angola	0	0	0	1	4	0	0	0.5	4	0	36