Ekstraklasa

Poland Ekstraklasa (ˌɛkstraˈklasa), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its sponsorship by PKO Bank Polski, is the top Polish professional league for men's association football teams. Contested by 18 clubs, operating a system of promotion and relegation with the I liga, seasons start in July, and end in May or June the following year. Teams play a total of 34 games each. Games are played on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. The winner of the Ekstraklasa qualifies for the Polish SuperCup. The league is now operated by the Ekstraklasa Spółka Akcyjna. The Ekstraklasa (former I liga) was officially formed as Liga Polska on 4–5 December 1926 in Warsaw, since 1 March 1927 as Liga Piłki Nożnej (ˈljiɡa ˈpiwki ˈnɔʐnɛj), but the Polish Football Association (Polish: Polski Związek Piłki Nożnej, PZPN) had been in existence since 20 December 1919, a year after the independence of Poland in 1918. The first games of the freshly created league took place on 3 April 1927, while first national non-league football championship took place in 1920. A total of 82 teams have played in the top division of Polish football since the founding of the league, of which 18 clubs have won the title. The current champions are Raków Częstochowa, who won their 1st title in 2022–23 season. 1927-1948: Liga 1949-2004: I liga 2004: Idea Ekstraklasa 2005-2009: Orange Ekstraklasa 2011-2015: T-Mobile Ekstraklasa 2016-2018: Lotto Ekstraklasa 2019-: PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa On 4–5 December 1926 in Warsaw, representatives from several Polish clubs met for the purpose of discussing the creation of a league. It is unknown where the idea of a Polish league originated from, however a national league was thought to be a much more practical solution than hitherto practiced two-stage system of regional matches followed by a national match. To dismay of clubs' officials, the PZPN was not receptive to the idea of a national league and therefore sought to thwart it.