Full Name: Primera División B (sometimes also Primera División B Metropolitana) Level: 3 Number of Teams: 21
Description:
The Primera B (also known as the Primera División B or Primera División B Metropolitana or B Metropolitana) is one of two third-tier leagues in the Argentine system. It is limited to teams from the greater Buenos Aires area while the Torneo Argentino A is for teams from the rest of the country. Until the mid-1980s this was the second tier of football in the country. At that time a new "Primera B Nacional" was created and the Primera B was pushed down to the third tier, alongside the newly created interior championship, now known as the Torneo Argentino A. The apertura/clausura system common in Latin America had been used for several years before returning back to a more traditional system for 2007-08 season. It was thought that fewer high-drama end-of-season matches would lead to less violence in the stands, a problem for which Argentina has unfortunately developed a reputation.
The 21 teams play each other twice (home and away) for a total of 40 games. The season runs from July through May with a six-week break during December and January. The champions are automatically promoted to the Primera B Nacional. The clubs finishing 2nd-9th enter a playoff to determine one club which contest a promotion/relegation playoff with a club from the Primera B Nacional. Relegation is based on the average points obtained over the previous three seasons. The last club in the relegation table is automatically relegated to Primera C while the 2nd-worst team in the relegation table enters a promotion/relegation playoff with a team from the Primera C.
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