League of Ireland Premier Division

The League of Ireland Men's Premier Division, commonly known as the League of Ireland Premier Division or simply the Premier Division, is a professional association football league in the Republic of Ireland, the top division of the League of Ireland, and the highest level of the Republic of Ireland football league system. It is organised and administrated by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI). Contested by ten clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the League of Ireland First Division. Seasons usually run from February to November, with each team playing 36 matches: four against each other team, two home and two away.

Formed in 1985 following a restructuring of the League of Ireland, the Premier Division replaced the old single-division format as the national top flight. Shamrock Rovers won the first two Premier Division titles and, as of the end of the 2025 season, hold a record 10 League of Ireland Premier Divisions and 22 Irish top-flight championships. The league has been won on two occasions by Northern Ireland-based club Derry City, the presence of which within the league makes it a cross-border competition. St Patrick's Athletic and Bohemians are the only current League of Ireland clubs never to have been relegated from the Premier Division.

For sponsorship reasons the league has carried the title SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division since 2010, continuing a series of naming-rights deals dating back to the early 1990s.

Rising attendances, increased television and streaming coverage, and improved performances in European competition in the early 2020s have led to the Premier Division being described as one of the fastest-growing domestic leagues in UEFA's middle tier, with a 20% increase in aggregate attendance between 2022 and 2023 and further growth into 2024 and 2025. The 2025 season became the first year that the league was entirely made up of full-time professional clubs and players.