The 1972 Torneo Descentralizado, the top category of Peruvian football, was played by 16 teams. The season was divided into 3 stages. The first stage was contested in two groups: Metropolitan (teams from Lima and Callao) and Regional (teams from the rest of the country); each group winner qualified for the Championship Group. The second stage was the Descentralised (league tournament); the top 4 qualified for the Championship Group and the bottom 2 were relegated. Championship Group was contested by 6 teams in Lima; neither team carried their previous records. The national champion was Sporting Cristal.

Teams

Team changes

Stadia locations

Torneo Preliminar

Grupo Metropolitano

Grupo Regional

First place play-off

Torneo Descentralizado

Liguilla Final

Top scorers