The Botswana Division One playoffs are a series of annual

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matches played to determine the teams which get promoted to the

Botswana First Division North The Botswana First Division North (currently known as the Debswana First Division North due to sponsorship reasons) is the second-tier professional football league in Botswana. Founded in 1966 after Botswana was granted independence, it is adminis ...

and

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

. It involves the seventeen regional champions. These teams meet in a series of

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

and block winners are promoted to either the First Division North or South depending on their geographical location. The playoffs were introduced in 1966 and have been played at the end of every season since. Eleven Angels, Palapye All-Stars, Blue Stars and Jwaneng Fighters are the current champions.

Format

The seventeen regional champions are divided geographically into four groups or blocks. The north, west and east blocks each comprise four teams, whereas the south block is made up of five. Every year one of the participating teams is asked to host the playoffs of their specific regional block. Matches are played in a single round robin format, with each team playing every other once. Three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss. At the end of the playoffs the team with the most points is promoted to the First Division. If there is a tie of points goal difference is used and if that is also equal then various tiebreaker methods such as goals scored, fair conduct and a sudden death round are used. Until 2015 the regional block champions progressed to final playoffs along with the runners-up, at the end of which only two teams were promoted to the first division as compared to four under the current format.

Past winners

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References

Football in Botswana