A new efficient optimization method, called the League Championship Algorithm (LCA) is proposed in this paper for solving the optimal power flow problem. This method is inspired by the competition of sport teams in an artificial sport league for several weeks and over a number of seasons. The proposed method has been applied to the Algerian power system network for different objectives. Furthermore, in order to assess the effectiveness of the proposed LCA method the obtained results using this method have been compared to those obtained using other methods reported in the literature. The obtained results and the comparison with other techniques indicate that the league championship algorithm provides effective and high-quality solution when solving the optimal power flow problem. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.