2019 Categoría Primera B season


The 2019 Categoría Primera B season was the 30th season since its founding as Colombia's second division football league.

Format

For this season, the league returned to the format used in 2017. The season consisted of two tournaments with three stages each. In the first stage of both tournaments, the 16 clubs played each other once, for a total of 15 games. The top eight teams after the first stage advanced to the semifinal round where they were sorted into two groups of four and played a double round-robin tournament group stage, with the top team of each group qualifying to the finals. The winners of both tournaments would play a final series on a home-and-away basis, with the winner being crowned as the season champions and also earning promotion to the Categoría Primera A for the 2020 season. The season runners-up would then play the best team in the aggregate table in another double-legged series for the second promotion berth. In case the season runner-up also ended up as the best team in the aggregate table, it would also be promoted and the promotion play-off would not be played.

Teams

16 teams took part, fourteen of them returning from last season plus Boyacá Chicó and Leones, who were relegated from the 2018 Primera A after one year in the top flight. Both teams replaced Cúcuta Deportivo and Unión Magdalena who earned promotion at the end of the last season. Also, starting from this season, Real Santander moved its home games to San Andrés Island, becoming Real San Andrés.
On 12 March 2019, the General Assembly of DIMAYOR approved a proposal to relocate Universitario from Popayán to Cali starting from the second half of the season, with the aforementioned club being effectively rebranded as Boca Juniors de Cali. Universitario played its last match in the tournament under that name on 4 May 2019, losing to Deportivo Pereira in Palmira by a 4–1 score.
ClubHome cityStadiumCapacity
AtléticoCaliPascual Guerrero33,130
BarranquillaBarranquillaRomelio Martínez20,000
Boca JuniorsCaliPascual Guerrero33,130
BogotáBogotáMetropolitano de Techo8,000
Boyacá ChicóTunjaLa Independencia20,630
CortuluáTuluáDoce de Octubre16,000
Deportes QuindíoArmeniaCentenario20,716
Deportivo PereiraPereiraHernán Ramírez Villegas30,297
FortalezaCotaMunicipal de Cota4,000
LeonesItagüíMetropolitano Ciudad de Itagüí12,000
LlanerosVillavicencioManuel Calle Lombana15,000
OrsomarsoPalmiraFrancisco Rivera Escobar9,000
Real CartagenaCartagenaJaime Morón León16,068
Real San AndrésSan AndrésErwin O'Neill5,000
TigresBogotáMetropolitano de Techo8,000
UniversitarioPopayánCiro Lópeza5,000
ValleduparValleduparArmando Maestre Pavajeau11,000

a: Universitario played their home matches against Llaneros, Bogotá, Leones and Deportivo Pereira at Estadio Deportivo Cali in Palmira.

Torneo I

First stage

Standings

Results

Semifinals

The eight teams that advanced to the semifinals were drawn into two groups of four teams. The winners of each group advanced to the finals.

Group A

Group B

Finals

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Tied 3–3 on aggregate, Deportivo Pereira won on penalties.

Top goalscorers

Source:

Torneo II

First stage

Standings

Results

Semifinals

The eight teams that advanced to the semifinals were drawn into two groups of four teams. The winners of each group will advance to the finals.

Group A

Group B

Finals

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Deportivo Pereira won 3–2 on aggregate.

Top goalscorers

Source:

Grand Final

Since Deportivo Pereira won both tournaments of the season, the Grand Final was not played and they were declared as champions of the season. Deportivo Pereira also earned direct promotion to Categoría Primera A for the 2020 season.

Aggregate table

Promotion play-off

The promotion play-off was played by Boyacá Chicó and Cortuluá, who were the best two teams in the aggregate table excluding the champions, Deportivo Pereira. The winners of this double-legged series earned the second promotion berth.
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Boyacá Chicó won 1–0 on aggregate.