Primera B Nacional


Primera B Nacional is the second division of the Argentine football league system. The competition is made up of 32 teams, divided into two zones.
It is played by teams from all over the country. Clubs from Buenos Aires surroundings, as well as some from Santa Fe Province, are promoted from or relegated to the Primera B Metropolitana while for teams from the other provinces the Torneo Federal A is the next level down. In Argentine football, Nacional B is the second-highest league, and from it the three best teams are automatically promoted to Primera División.
Primera B Nacional games are often transmitted to Argentina and abroad on television by TyC Sports.

History

It was created in 1986 to integrate unaffiliated clubs into the Argentine football structure, which until then had only participated in Nacional championships of Argentina's First Division tournament. It brought together teams from the old Primera B and regional leagues from several Argentine provinces.
After the 1985–86 season, the Primera B Nacional became the second hierarchical league in Argentina's professional football, after the Primera División, and it is above the Torneo Federal A and the Primera B Metropolitana, the last one started to act as a third division for the teams directly affiliated to AFA.

Format

For the 2019–20 season, the number of teams has been increased from 25 to 32. Clubs will be divided into two zones of 16 teams each, playing each other in a double round-robin tournament. Teams will receive three points for a win, one point for a draw, and no points for a loss, being ranked by total points.
The upcoming season incorporates 5 teams promoted from Primera B Metropolitana and 2 from Torneo Federal A, plus 4 relegated from Primera División, which add to the 23 remaining from the previous season.
The champion will automatically promote to the highest division. Teams placed from 2nd to 9th qualify to play the "Torneo Reducido", a small tournament in a double knock-out stage. Winner of Reducido will be the second team to promote to Primera División. On the other hand, the two teams with the worst average will be relegated to lower divisions.

List of champions

Since the first season held in 1986-87, the following teams have crowned champions of the division:

Titles by club

Top scorers

SeasonPlayerTeamGoals
1986–87 José Raúl IglesiasHuracán36
1987–88 Daniel LeaniQuilmes24
1988–89 Daniel AquinoBanfield
24
1988–89 Sergio RecchiuttiAlmirante Brown
24
1989–90 Juan AlmadaDefensa y Justicia
20
1989–90 Abel BlasónQuilmes
20
1990–91 Roberto OsteDefensa y Justicia24
1991–92 Carlos CardozoAlmirante Brown26
1992–93 Miguel AmayaGimnasia y Tiro 21
1993–94 Dante FernándezQuilmes29
1994–95 Alejandro AbaurreGodoy Cruz29
1995–96 Adrián CzornomazLos Andes22
1996–97 Eduardo BennettArgentinos Juniors23
1997–98 Alejandro GlaríaBanfield30
1998–99 Adrián CzornomazAtlético Tucumán26
1999–00 Gastón CasasHuracán30
2000–01 Daniel JiménezInstituto23
2001–02 Diego CeballosGimnasia y Esgrima 26
2002–03 Daniel GiménezGodoy Cruz
13
2002–03 Diego TorresQuilmes
13
2003–04 Julio BevacquaCom. Activ. Infantiles13
2004–05 Rubén RamírezTiro Federal15
2005–06 Daniel Bazán VeraUnión 18
2006–07 Ismael BlancoOlimpo29
2007–08 Cristian MillaChacarita Juniors
20
2007–08 Leandro ZárateUnión
20
2008–09 Luis RodríguezAtlético Tucumán20
2009–10 Leandro ArmaniTiro Federal19
2010–11 César CarignanoAtlético de Rafaela21
2011–12 Gonzalo CastillejosRosario Central26
2012–13 Luis RodríguezAtlético Tucumán20
2013–14 Juan M. LuceroDefensa y Justicia24
2014 Ramón ÁbilaHuracán
9
2014 Nicolás MazzolaInstituto
9
2015 Fernando ZampedriJuventud Unida
25
2016 Germán LesmanAll Boys
17
2016–17 Rodrigo SalinasChacarita Juniors
30
2017–18 Jonathan HerreraDep. Riestra / Ferro C. Oeste13
2018–19 Patricio CucchiGimnasia y Esgrima 15