| Competition: | Primera División |
| Season: | 1985–86 |
| Winners: | River Plate (21st title) |
| Relegated: | Chacarita Juniors Huracán |
| Continentalcup1: | 1986 Copa Libertadores |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | River Plate Boca Juniors |
| League Topscorer: | Enzo Francescoli (25 goals) |
| Prevseason: | 1985 |
| Nextseason: | 1986–87 |
The 1985–86 Argentine Primera División was the 95th season of top-flight football in Argentina. The season began on July 6, 1985 and ended on April 20, 1986.[1]
This tournament saw a major reform in Argentine football, as the European calendar was adopted for the tournament format. River Plate won the league title for the 21st time.
Relegation was determined by averaging the number of points obtained over the three previous seasons
| Team | 1983 | 1984 | 1985–86 | Total points | Seasons | Points average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deportivo Español | N/A | N/A | 46 | 46 | 1 | 46.00 | |
| Ferro Carril Oeste | 46 | 50 | 40 | 136 | 3 | 45.33 | |
| Argentinos Juniors | 36 | 51 | 44 | 131 | 3 | 43.66 | |
| River Plate | 29 | 43 | 56 | 128 | 3 | 42.33 | |
| San Lorenzo | 47 | 37 | 40 | 124 | 3 | 41.33 | |
| Vélez Sársfield | 44 | 42 | 34 | 120 | 3 | 40.00 | |
| Newell's Old Boys | 35 | 38 | 46 | 119 | 3 | 39.67 | |
| Independiente | 48 | 31 | 36 | 115 | 3 | 38.33 | |
| Estudiantes (LP) | 38 | 48 | 27 | 113 | 3 | 37.67 | |
| Boca Juniors | 37 | 30 | 41 | 108 | 3 | 36.00 | |
| Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | N/A | N/A | 36 | 36 | 1 | 36.00 | |
| Talleres (C) | 33 | 34 | 37 | 104 | 3 | 34.67 | |
| Instituto | 35 | 33 | 35 | 103 | 3 | 34.33 | |
| Unión | 38 | 30 | 31 | 99 | 3 | 33.00 | |
| Racing (C) | 27 | 43 | 26 | 96 | 3 | 32.00 | |
| Platense | 34 | 33 | 27 | 94 | 3 | 31.33 | |
| Temperley | 33 | 31 | 29 | 93 | 3 | 31.00 | |
| Huracán | 32 | 27 | 32 | 91 | 3 | 30.33 | |
| Chacarita Juniors | N/A | 34 | 21 | 55 | 2 | 27.50 |
Qualifying round
| Home (1st leg) | Home (2nd leg) | 1st Leg | 2nd leg | Aggregate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alianza (CCo) | bgcolor=lightblue | Boca Juniors | 1-2 | 1-2 | 2-4 |
| Concepción | bgcolor=lightblue | Vélez Sársfield | 0-3 | 1-2 | 1-5 |
| bgcolor=lightblue | Ferro Carril Oeste | Güemes | 2-1 | 2-1 | 4-2 |
| bgcolor=lightblue | San Lorenzo | Guaraní Antonio Franco | 4-1 | 3-0 | 7-1 |
| Score | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| bgcolor=lightblue | Ferro Carril Oeste | Deportivo Español | 4-1 (aet) |
| bgcolor=lightblue | Newell's Old Boys | Belgrano | 2-1 |
| Olimpo | bgcolor=lightblue | Boca Juniors | 2-3 |
| bgcolor=lightblue | San Lorenzo | Vélez Sársfield | 0-0 (4-3 p.k.) |
| Home (1st leg) | Home (2nd leg) | 1st Leg | 2nd leg | Aggregate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bgcolor=lightblue | Newell's Old Boys | Ferro Carril Oeste | 1-0 | 1-1 | 2-1 |
| San Lorenzo | bgcolor=lightblue | Boca Juniors | 1-2 | 0-0 | 1-2 |