A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Season | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Sporting Cristal 13th Primera División title |
| Relegated | Aurich–Cañaña Ciclista Lima Guardia Republicana San Agustín |
| Copa Libertadores | Sporting Cristal Alianza Lima |
| Copa CONMEBOL | Universitario |
| Top goalscorer | Waldir Sáenz (19) |
← 1995 1997 → | |
The 1996 Torneo Descentralizado was the 81st season of the top category of Peruvian football. A total of 16 teams competed in the tournament. Sporting Cristal won its 13th first division title, completing a string of 3 consecutive titles starting in 1994. The feat is known as a tricampeonato and was only accomplished before by Alianza Lima.
Changes from 1995
- The tournament would be played like in 1994, where the champion was crowned after the first stage of the tournament and the second berth to the Copa Libertadores was determined by an end-of-season Liguilla featuring 4 teams.
- Four teams were relegated instead of the customary two. Two teams from the Copa Perú and the Segunda División in their place.
Teams
| Team | City | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alianza Atlético | Sullana | Campeones del 36 | 8,000 |
| Alianza Lima | Lima | Alejandro Villanueva | 35,000 |
| Atlético Torino | Talara | Campeonísimo | 8,000 |
| Aurich–Cañaña | Chiclayo | Elías Aguirre | 24,500 |
| Ciclista Lima | Lima | Nacional | 45,750 |
| Cienciano | Cusco | Garcilaso | 42,056 |
| Deportivo Municipal | Lima | Nacional | 45,750 |
| Deportivo Pesquero | Chimbote | Manuel Gómez Arellano | 25,000 |
| Guardia Republicana | Lima | Nacional | 45,750 |
| La Loretana | Pucallpa | Aliardo Soria | 15,000 |
| Melgar | Arequipa | Mariano Melgar | 20,000 |
| San Agustín | Lima | Nacional | 45,750 |
| Sport Boys | Callao | Miguel Grau | 18,000 |
| Sporting Cristal | Lima | San Martín de Porres | 15,000 |
| Unión Minas | Cerro de Pasco | Daniel Alcides Carrión | 8,000 |
| Universitario | Lima | Nacional | 45,750 |
First stage
The first stage of the season was played as a double round-robin tournament. Sporting Cristal as champions qualified for the 1997 Copa Libertadores. Alianza Lima directly advanced to the end-of-season Liguilla and received a bonus point for placing second. The teams that placed 3 to 8 advanced to a preliminary round.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sporting Cristal (C) | 30 | 22 | 3 | 5 | 73 | 26 | +47 | 69 | 1997 Copa Libertadores |
| 2 | Alianza Lima | 30 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 68 | 23 | +45 | 60 | Liguilla Pre-Libertadores with 1 bonus point |
| 3 | Universitario | 30 | 16 | 10 | 4 | 39 | 20 | +19 | 58 | Pre-Liguilla |
| 4 | Sport Boys | 30 | 13 | 14 | 3 | 49 | 26 | +23 | 53 | |
| 5 | Atlético Torino | 30 | 14 | 7 | 9 | 33 | 33 | 0 | 49 | |
| 6 | Cienciano | 30 | 11 | 8 | 11 | 32 | 36 | −4 | 41 | |
| 7 | Deportivo Pesquero | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 27 | 33 | −6 | 37 | |
| 8 | Unión Minas | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 35 | 42 | −7 | 37 | |
| 9 | Deportivo Municipal | 30 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 44 | 57 | −13 | 37 | |
| 10 | La Loretana | 30 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 39 | 59 | −20 | 37 | |
| 11 | Melgar | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 36 | 35 | +1 | 36 | |
| 12 | Alianza Atlético | 30 | 10 | 6 | 14 | 40 | 51 | −11 | 36 | |
| 13 | Aurich–Cañaña | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 30 | 37 | −7 | 33 | 1997 Copa Perú |
| 14 | Ciclista Lima | 30 | 6 | 11 | 13 | 36 | 51 | −15 | 29 | 1997 Segunda División |
| 15 | Guardia Republicana | 30 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 30 | 45 | −15 | 29 | |
| 16 | San Agustín | 30 | 4 | 4 | 22 | 27 | 62 | −35 | 16 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions