Seasons last from August to May.
Clubs play two matches against each of the other teams in the league - one at home and one away - for a total of 34 matches per season.
Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with some games played on weekday evenings.
The game regularly pauses on the last weekend before Christmas for two weeks before resuming in the second week of January.
As of 2021, Ligue 1 is one of the top domestic leagues, ranking fifth in Europe behind the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A and German Bundesliga.
Ligue 1 was opened on September 11, 1932 under the name "National", and after a year of existence it moved to Division 1.
It continued to operate under this name until 2002, when it adopted its current name.
Paris Saint-Germain are the most successful clubs with eleven league titles, while Olympique Lyonnais is the club that has won the most consecutive titles.
Saint-Etienne became the first club to win ten titles.
With 71 seasons in Ligue 1, Olympique Marseille holds the record for most seasons among the elite, while Paris Saint-Germain holds the league record for longestevity with 47 consecutive seasons.
Nantes are the team with the longest consecutive unbeaten run and the fewest defeats in a single season, both in the 1994–95 season.
In addition, Nantes also holds the record for the longest period of time without defeat at home, having played 92 matches between May 1976 and April 1981.
The reigning champions are Paris Saint-Germain, who won a record 11th title in the 2022-23 season.
The league has been won several times by the foreign club AS Monaco, whose presence in the league makes the competition cross-border.
Ahead of the 2023–24 season, the number of teams in the league will be reduced to 18;