#SOCCER SPIRITS TIER LIST FOURTH PROFESSIONAL#
#SOCCER SPIRITS TIER LIST FOURTH SERIES#

The Premier League members are still often referred to as 'League' clubs because, before the establishment of the Premier League in 1992, the Football League, as it was called then, included all 92 clubs, in four divisions.

#SOCCER SPIRITS TIER LIST FOURTH PROFESSIONAL#

The 20 clubs in the Premier League and 72 clubs in the English Football League are all full-time professional clubs. Below the Premier League is the English Football League (EFL) (formerly 'the Football League'), which is divided into three divisions of 24 clubs each: The Championship (level 2), League One (level 3), and League Two (level 4). There are also some Saturday leagues which are not officially part of the pyramid, although teams frequently leave these for pyramid leagues.Īt the top is the single division of the Premier League (level 1, which is often referred to as the 'top-flight'), containing 20 clubs. However, some Sunday league clubs have been known to join pyramid leagues if they desire to progress higher. These leagues are independent entities with no promotion or relegation involving the football pyramid. The English football league system does not include the amateur version of the game often called Sunday league football. They later reneged on the plan to include Premier League 'B' teams in the new division and shortly thereafter scrapped the idea altogether. In May 2014 The FA announced provisional plans for a new division between the English Football League and the National League which would include 'B' teams of higher-level clubs. The six levels immediately below the Premier League and three-level English Football League are known as the National League System and come under the jurisdiction of The Football Association. Clubs from these leagues may, if they feel they meet the appropriate standard of play and have suitable facilities, apply to join a league which does form part of the system. There are also leagues in various parts of the country which are not officially part of the system as they do not have formal agreements with other leagues, but are recognised at various levels by county football associations. At the lower levels the existence of leagues becomes intermittent, although in some of the more densely populated areas there are leagues more than twenty layers below the Premier League. Many leagues have more than one division. Below this, the levels have progressively more parallel leagues, with each covering progressively smaller geographic areas. The top five levels contain one division each and are nationwide in scope. While this may be unlikely in practice (at the very least, in the short run), there certainly is significant movement within the pyramid.

In theory, it is possible for a lowly local amateur club to achieve annual promotions and within a few years rise to the pinnacle of the English game and become champions of the Premier League. In addition to sporting performance, promotion is usually contingent on meeting criteria set by the higher league, especially concerning appropriate facilities and finances. A certain number of the most successful clubs in each league can rise to a higher league, whilst those that finish the season at the bottom of their league can find themselves sinking down a level. The system consists of a pyramid of leagues, bound together by the principle of promotion and relegation. Map showing the location of teams in levels 9–10 of the English football league system in 2011–12 The pyramid for women's football in England runs separately to nine tiers and some England-based men's clubs play outside the English football league system.

The exact number of clubs varies from year to year as clubs join and leave leagues, merge, or fold altogether, but an estimated average of 15 clubs per division implies that more than 7,000 teams of nearly 5,300 clubs are members of a league in the English men's football league system.Īs there are no official definitions of any level below 11, any references to the structure at level 12 and below should not be regarded as definitive. There are more than 140 individual leagues, containing more than 480 divisions. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at different levels, allowing even the smallest club the theoretical possibility of ultimately rising to the very top of the system.

#SOCCER SPIRITS TIER LIST FOURTH SERIES#

The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey, one from Jersey and one from the Isle of Man also competing.

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