This is a list of seasons played by Sporting Cristal in Peruvian and South American football, from 1951 (the year of the club's first participated in the Peruvian Primera División) to the most recent completed season. Sporting Cristal was founded in December, 1951, in the Rímac district by engineer Ricardo Bentín Mujica and his wife Esther Grande de Bentín, owners of the Peruvian brewery Backus and Johnston.[1][2]
The club has won the Peruvian Primera División twenty times, has finished as Copa Libertadores runner-up once, and has never been relegated from Peru's top division.
This list details the club's achievements in all major competitions, and the top scorers for each season (where the information is available). Top scorers in bold were also the top scorers in the Peruvian Primera División that season.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Alianza Lima by 2–0 after both teams tied on points at the end of the regular season.
↑Since 1966, play-off games have been used as a tie breaker between teams tie on points for promotion or relegation or as a post-season stage to decide the national championship. Whenever they have occurred, the club's position on that stage is shown in this column.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Juan Aurich by 2–1 in the Championship play-off.
↑Received a 1 point bonus for finishing third in the First Stage.
↑The points system was W:3, Won penalty shoot-out:2, L:0. The results of the reserve teams league were added as bonus points.
↑Sporting Cristal lost to Universitario in the Championship play-offs.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Sport Boys 2–1 in the runner-up play-off.
↑Sporting Cristal lost the Apertura tournament play-off final against Alianza Lima.
↑Sporting Cristal won a play-off match against Estudiantes de Medicina to qualify to the Copa Libertadores.
↑Sporting Cristal automatically won the Championship play-offs after Universitario did not qualify due to finishing below 8th place in the Clausura tournament.
↑Sporting Cristal lost the championship play-off to Alianza Lima by 2–1.
↑A strike by the professional players cut the Clausura short. Most matches of Rounds 16 and 17 were played with under-20 and amateur players, but were later annulled.[3]
↑Sporting Cristal lost the championship play-off to Alianza Lima by 5–4 in penalties after drawing 0–0.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Cienciano by 0–1 in the Championship play-off.
↑Sporting Cristal finished 2nd on the tournament aggregate table but was champion of the Apertura or Clausura tournaments.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Real Garcilaso in the Championship play-offs.
↑Sporting Cristal finished third in the aggregate table.
↑Sporting Cristal defeated Alianza Lima in a play-off match for the Clausura championship after both finished tied on points.