| Competition: | Primera División |
| Season: | 1988–89 |
| Dates: | 11 September 1988 – 28 May 1989 |
| Relegated: | Deportivo Armenio San Martín (T) |
| Continentalcup1: | 1989 Copa Libertadores |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | Racing Club Boca Juniors |
| Continentalcup2: | 1990 Copa Libertadores |
| Continentalcup2 Qualifiers: | Independiente River Plate |
| League Topscorer: |  Oscar Dertycia Néstor Gorosito(20 goals each) |
| Prevseason: | 1987–88 |
| Nextseason: | 1989–90 |
The 1988–89 Argentine Primera División was the 98th season of top-flight football in Argentina. The season ran from September 11, 1988, to May 28, 1989.[1]
This tournament introduced the use of penalty shootouts to resolve tie games. Due to lack of interest, it was discontinued for the following season.
This championships served as qualification for both Copa Libertadores editions, 1989 and 1990 (in the last case, through a "Liguilla", contested by clubs placed 2nd to 7th plus Chaco for Ever (Primera B Nacional champion) and Platense (winner of the 1987 Liguilla).
Independiente won the championship (14th league title) while San Martín (T) and Deportivo Armenio were relegated. River Plate won the Liguilla pre-Libertadores, qualifying to the 1990 edition.
| Position | Player | Team | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oscar Dertycia | Argentinos Juniors | 20 | |
| 1 | Néstor Raúl Gorosito | San Lorenzo | 20 | |
| 3 | Juan Comas | Racing | 19 | |
| 4 | Ariel Cozzoni | Instituto | 18 |
| Team | Average | Points | Played | 1986–87 | 1987–88 | 1988–89 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independiente | 1.219 | 139 | 114 | 47 | 37 | 55 | |
| Newell's Old Boys | 1.193 | 136 | 114 | 48 | 55 | 33 | |
| San Lorenzo | 1.184 | 135 | 114 | 44 | 49 | 42 | |
| Racing | 1.158 | 132 | 114 | 44 | 48 | 40 | |
| Boca Juniors | 1.140 | 130 | 114 | 46 | 35 | 49 | |
| River Plate | 1.140 | 130 | 114 | 39 | 46 | 45 | |
| Rosario Central | 1.079 | 123 | 114 | 49 | 40 | 34 | |
| Deportivo Español | 1.070 | 122 | 114 | 36 | 40 | 46 | |
| Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | 1.018 | 116 | 114 | 37 | 43 | 36 | |
| Vélez Sársfield | 1.009 | 115 | 114 | 41 | 41 | 33 | |
| Estudiantes (LP) | 0.974 | 111 | 114 | 37 | 32 | 42 | |
| Argentinos Juniors | 0.965 | 110 | 114 | 28 | 40 | 42 | |
| Talleres de Córdoba | 0.956 | 109 | 114 | 38 | 27 | 44 | |
| Ferro Carril Oeste | 0.939 | 107 | 114 | 44 | 33 | 30 | |
| Deportivo Mandiyú | 0.868 | 33 | 38 | N/A | N/A | 33 | |
| Platense | 0.860 | 98 | 114 | 27 | 38 | 33 | |
| Instituto | 0.851 | 97 | 114 | 41 | 33 | 23 | |
| Racing (C) | 0.851 | 97 | 114 | 33 | 31 | 33 | |
| San Martín (T) | 0.842 | 32 | 38 | N/A | N/A | 32 | |
| Deportivo Armenio | 0.776 | 59 | 76 | N/A | 34 | 25 |
Quarter finals
| Home (1st leg) | Home (2nd leg) | 1st Leg | 2nd leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chaco For Ever | Boca Juniors | 0-1 | 1-2 | 1-3 |
| Argentinos Juniors | River Plate | 2-0 | 0-1 | 2-1 |
| Platense | Deportivo Español | 0-0 | 3-1 | 3-1 |
| Talleres | San Lorenzo | 0-2 | 1-1 | 1-3 |
Semi finals
| Score | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentinos Juniors | San Lorenzo | 1-3 | |
| Platense | Boca Juniors | 1-1[2] |
Winners Final
First round
| Home (1st leg) | Home (2nd leg) | 1st Leg | 2nd leg | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentinos Juniors | River Plate | 0-1 | 0-4 | 0-5 |
| Deportivo Español | Newell's Old Boys | 1-0 | 0-0 | 1-0 |