86-647: The English Football League XI was a representative side of the Football League . The team regularly played against the Scottish Football League XI and other national league select teams between 1891 and 1976. For a long period the annual fixture between the English and Scottish leagues was only second in importance to the matches between the two national teams . The fixture declined in importance, however, particularly after regular European club competition
172-576: A Bobby Zamora stoppage time winner for QPR to win promotion for the London club. For the 2016–17 season , the Football League was rebranded as the English Football League. The league had a cumulative attendance of more than 11 million – excluding play-off matches – with more than two million watching Newcastle United and Aston Villa home fixtures alone, both of whom had been relegated from
258-438: A 2–1 home victory over Coventry City on 3 January 2011. They also became the first club to play 3,000 games in second-level English league football following another 2–1 home victory, this time against Brighton & Hove Albion on 12 March 2013 The current champions of the league are Leicester City . Sunderland won the league in the first season since rebranding, with Wigan Athletic finishing second to win promotion to
344-489: A Creditor's Voluntary Agreement and pays in full any other footballing creditors. Failure to do either of these will result in a second, potentially unlimited (though in practice usually between fifteen and twenty) points deduction. The other main situation in which is a club may lose points is by fielding an improperly registered or otherwise ineligible player. If a club is found to have done this, then any points earned from any match that player participated in will be deducted;
430-408: A club plays each of the others in the same division twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents. This makes for a total of 46 games played each season. Clubs gain three points for a win, one for a draw, and none for a defeat. At the end of the season, clubs at the top of their division may win promotion to the next higher division, while those at the bottom may be relegated to
516-439: A large increase in goals, and numbers on shirts were introduced in 1939. Between 1923 and 1926, Huddersfield Town were the first team to win three consecutive league titles (and never won another one, though they finished as runners-up for the following two years). This was equalled by Arsenal between 1932 and 1935, during a period from 1930 to 1938 in which they won five titles out of eight. Manchester City (1936–37) became
602-427: A number of guaranteed fixtures for its member clubs each season. His idea might have been based upon a description of a proposal for an early American college football league, publicised in the English media in 1887 which stated: "measures would be taken to form a new football league ... [consisting of] a schedule containing two championship games between every two colleges composing the league". The first meeting
688-587: A playoff tournament, with the winner also gaining promotion to the Premier League . The three lowest-finishing teams in the Championship are relegated to League One . The Championship is the wealthiest non-top-flight football division in the world, the ninth-richest division in Europe , and the 12th best-attended division in world football (with the second highest per-match attendance of any secondary league – after
774-563: A result of the Heysel disaster , where crowd trouble involving Liverpool fans at the European Cup final in Belgium resulted in 39 spectator deaths during a crush in a Juventus fan section. The loss of life occurred when a surge in the crowd (moving away from clashes between rival supporters) caused a wall to collapse. Inadequate segregation, stewarding and policing as well the generally poor condition of
860-581: A result. On 28 May 2007, Derby County won the first Championship play-off final at the new Wembley Stadium , beating West Bromwich Albion 1–0. West Brom would go on to win the Championship in the following season. Burnley , who finished fifth in 2009, defeated Sheffield United to earn their first season in the newly branded Premier League , last being in the Football League First Division in 1976. On 30 September 2009, Coca-Cola announced they would end their sponsorship deal with
946-529: A significant decline in league attendances as a result of the recession and the ongoing problem of hooliganism . This did no favours for the financial position and league standing of numerous clubs, and several – including Wolverhampton Wanderers, Swansea City and Middlesbrough – were almost forced out of business as a result. The fortunes of the First Division clubs suffered a fresh blow in 1985 when all English clubs were banned from European competitions as
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#17328528266491032-534: A step to maximise their revenue the leading members of the Football League broke away to form their own competition, the FA Premier League , which was renamed the Premier League in 2007. The Football League therefore no longer includes the top twenty clubs who belong to this group, although promotion and relegation between the Football League and the Premier League continues. In total, 145 teams have played in
1118-459: A total attendance (including postseason) of 9.8 million, the fourth-highest total attendance for a European football division, behind the Premier League (12.88 million), Spain's La Liga (11.57 million) and Germany's Bundesliga (10.92 million). Additionally, Millwall , competing in the inaugural Championship season, qualified for the UEFA Cup , only to lose in the first qualifying round. In
1204-403: A win, one for a draw, and zero for a loss. The teams are ranked in the league table by points gained, then goal difference, then goals scored, and then their head-to-head record for that season (including away goals record). If two or more teams finish the season equal in all these respects, then teams are separated by alphabetical order, unless a promotion, relegation, or play-off place (see below)
1290-467: Is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League , it is the oldest football league in the world , and was the top-level football league in England from its foundation until 1992, when the top 22 clubs split from it to form the Premier League . The Football League was rebranded as the "English Football League" (EFL) from the 2016–17 season. The EFL
1376-471: Is at stake, when the teams are separated by a play-off game, though this improbable situation has never arisen in all the years the rule has existed. At the end of the season, the top two teams and the winner of the Championship play-offs are promoted to the Premier League and the bottom three teams are relegated to EFL League One . The Football League Championship play-offs is a knock-out competition for
1462-559: Is divided into the Championship , League One and League Two , with 24 clubs in each division, 72 in total, with promotion and relegation between them; the top Championship division clubs change places with the lowest-placed clubs in the Premier League, and the bottom clubs of League Two with the top clubs of the National League . Currently four of the EFL clubs are from Wales – Cardiff City , Swansea City , Wrexham and Newport County –
1548-595: Is the second most-watched second-tier domestic sports league in the World, behind the German 2. Bundesliga (29,081), with an average of 23,048 spectators per game in the 2023–24 season. The Championship is the fifth most watched league in Europe. The highest average league attendance was in 2023–24 season, when 12.7 million fans attended Championship matches, at an average of 23,048 per game. The lowest average league attendance came in
1634-479: The 2005–06 season , Reading broke the Football League points record for a season, finishing with 106 points, exceeding the record of 105 set by Sunderland in 1999. Sunderland won their second Championship title in the 2006–07 season , after being relegated from the top division the previous season. On 4 May 2007, Leeds United became the first side since the re-branding of the division to enter administration; they were deducted 10 points and were relegated as
1720-478: The 2011 League Cup final , Birmingham City became the first Championship club to compete in the group stage of the UEFA Cup/Europa League , finishing third in the group, only one point behind Portuguese club Braga . Birmingham City eventually finished fourth in the Championship that season, and would lose to fifth-place Blackpool in the play-off. Wigan Athletic became the second club to participate in
1806-485: The 2015–16 season, the first such during the Premier League era. Another important change was made at the start of the 1981-82 season when it was decided to award three points for a win instead of two, a further effort to increase attacking football. (This scoring rule was not added by FIFA to the World Cups until the 1994 cup after the perceived dominance of defensive play at Italia 90 ). The early 1980s also saw
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#17328528266491892-570: The 2022 FIFA World Cup held in Qatar . The league comprises 24 teams. Over the course of a season, which runs annually from August to the following May (in 2022, the year of a World Cup break in November and December, the league started in July), each team plays twice against the others in the league, once at 'home' and once 'away', resulting in each team competing in 46 games in total. Three points are awarded for
1978-820: The Glasgow Football Association in 1977 (a 2–1 loss, celebrating the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II ) and against a ' World XI ' at Wembley (a 3–0 victory, which was part of the League's centenary celebrations ), the Football League XI's most recent games have been against the Italian League, which was a regular fixture through the 1990s and was most recently played as an Under-21 fixture in 2006. P – Played; W – Won; D – Drawn; L – Lost English Football League The English Football League ( EFL )
2064-614: The Northern League ), plus Darwen. The bottom clubs of the lower division were subsequently required to apply for re-election to the League at the end of each season. In 1893 two clubs were relegated from the First Division and two promoted from the Second, but one of those relegated, Accrington, chose to resign from the Football League rather than play in the Second Division. Meanwhile Bootle
2150-567: The Premier League and the Championship play-off trophy. When Norwich City gained promotion to the Premier League they were the first team to be relegated to, relegated from, promoted to and promoted from the Championship. When Ipswich Town were promoted with 96 points they set a record for the most points for a second-placed team; beating a tie at 93 points between Burnley and Brighton & Hove Albion. For past winners at this level before 2004, see List of winners of English Football League Championship and predecessors The EFL Championship
2236-562: The Premier League , and is currently contested by 24 clubs. Introduced for the 2004–05 season as the Football League Championship , the division is a rebrand of the former Football League First Division , which itself is a rebrand of the now-defunct Football League Second Division prior to the 1992 launch of the Premier League . The winning club of this division each season receives the EFL Championship trophy, which
2322-549: The Southern League joined the League to form a new Third Division, which in 1921 was renamed the Third Division South upon the further addition of more clubs in a new Third Division North . One club from each of these divisions would gain promotion to the Second Division, with the two relegated clubs being assigned to the more appropriate Third Division. To accommodate potential difficulties in this arrangement, clubs in
2408-589: The UEFA Europa Conference League . The EFL Trophy, established in 1983, is for clubs belonging to EFL League One and EFL League Two. The organisation celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1988 with a Centenary Tournament at Wembley between sixteen of its member clubs. After four years of debate, the Football Association finally permitted professionalism on 20 July 1885. Before that date many clubs made payments to "professional" players to boost
2494-524: The 1970s: founder members of the League Derby County (1971–72 and 1974–75) and Nottingham Forest (1977–78), both clubs managed by Brian Clough and Peter Taylor . Nottingham Forest's title in 1977–78 turned out to be the last occasion that a first-time champion won the First Division title during The Football League era, before the First Division clubs formed the Premier League in 1992. The next first-time League champion club would be Leicester City in
2580-409: The 1991–92 season and planned to raise the number again to 94 clubs for 1992–93, but after Aldershot and Maidstone United both went out of business within a few months of each other in mid-1992, this plan was abandoned. The issues creating the uncertainty in the game all centered on money. The increasing influence of money in English football was evident with such events as the first £1m transfer in
2666-405: The 2013–14 season, when 9.1 million spectators watched at an average of 16,605 per game. The highest seasonal average for a club was 51,106 for Newcastle United in the 2016–17 season. Since the restructuring into the Championship in 2004, 57 teams have spent at least one season in the division, including 13 of the 20 teams in the 2024–25 Premier League . Cardiff City have spent the longest in
The Football League XI - Misplaced Pages Continue
2752-516: The Championship; the most of any team. There have been 13 different winners of the EFL Championship, with seven teams ( Burnley , Leicester City , Newcastle United , Norwich City, Reading , Sunderland and Wolverhampton Wanderers ) having won it twice. Burnley and Norwich City have been promoted out of the Championship on four occasions, with five teams ( Fulham , Hull City , Sheffield United, Watford , West Brom ) having been promoted on three occasions. Rotherham United have been relegated from
2838-473: The Europa League group stage after winning the 2013 FA Cup, only to accumulate one win and lose their last three group matches. On 18 July 2013, UK bookmaker Sky Bet announced that they had signed a five-year agreement to sponsor the league. On 24 May 2014, the Championship play-off final between Derby County and Queens Park Rangers saw the highest crowd for any Championship fixture – 87,348 witnessed
2924-564: The Football League up to 2024 (including those in the Premier League, since clubs must pass through the Football League before reaching the former). The EFL's 72 member clubs are grouped into three divisions: the EFL Championship , EFL League One , and EFL League Two (previously the Football League First Division , Football League Second Division and Football League Third Division respectively; they were renamed for sponsorship reasons). Each division has 24 clubs, and in any given season
3010-573: The Football League, which began in 2004, at the end of the 2009–10 season . On 16 March 2010, npower were announced as the new title sponsors of the Football League, and from the start of the 2010–11 Football League season until the end of the 2012–13 season, the Football League Championship was known as the Npower Championship . Crystal Palace became the second Championship club to enter administration in 2010. After winning
3096-437: The German 2.Bundesliga ). Its average match attendance for the 2022–23 season was 18,787. Cardiff City have spent more seasons in this division than any other team, and Bristol City , Preston North End and Queens Park Rangers currently hold the longest tenure in this division, having last been absent in the 2014–15 season . Barnsley became the first club to attain 1,000 wins in second-tier English league football with
3182-532: The League. There would be a further wait until 1931 before a southern club, Arsenal would win the League for the first time. Unlike in most other Leagues in Europe, no single English club managed to remain ever-present in the division during the 104 years of its existence as the top division in the country. Everton comes closest, missing just four seasons through relegation, and remains one of only three clubs in England to have played over 100 top-flight seasons, along with Aston Villa and Arsenal . Arsenal are also
3268-635: The Midland League, and New Brighton Tower from the Lancashire League to the Second Division. After a few years, other northern clubs began to catch up, with the likes of Newcastle United and Manchester United having success. From 1900, Aston Villa ( 1899–1900 , 1909–10 ), Liverpool (1900–01, 1905–06), Sunderland (1901–02, 1912–13), The Wednesday (1902–03, 1903–04), Newcastle United (1904–05, 1908–09), Manchester United (1907–08, 1910–11) and Blackburn Rovers (1911–12, 1913–14) all won two titles prior to
3354-488: The Midlands such as Mansfield Town or Walsall would sometimes be moved from one-Third Division to the other. Following this burst of post-war growth, the League entered a prolonged period of relative stability with few changes in the membership, although there were changes on the pitch. In 1925, a new offside law reduced the number of defending opponents between the attacking player and the goal from three to two, leading to
3440-451: The Premier League in the previous season. This was included in the highest crowds for the second to fourth tier in England since the 1958–59 season . Newcastle won the title in 2016–17, while Aston Villa finished 13th, eventually returning to the Premier League in 2019. On 13 March 2020, Championship play was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic , with a suspension lasting until 4 April. It
3526-733: The Royal Hotel is long gone, the site is marked with a commemorative red plaque on the Royal Buildings in Market Street . The first season of the Football League began a few months later on 8 September with twelve member clubs from the Midlands and north of England : Accrington , Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley , Derby County , Everton , Notts County , Preston North End, Stoke (renamed Stoke City in 1926), West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers . Each club played
The Football League XI - Misplaced Pages Continue
3612-408: The Second Division expanded to sixteen (net increase one) with the addition of Bury from the Lancashire League, Leicester Fosse (later Leicester City) and Burton Wanderers (who later joined with existing Second Division club Burton Swifts to form Burton United ) from the Midland League, while Northwich resigned and Middlesbrough Ironopolis disbanded. Both Liverpool and Bury won the division at
3698-425: The ageing stadium were attributed as contributory factors. In a similar vein, playoffs to determine promotion places were introduced for the 1986–87 season so that more clubs remained eligible for promotion closer to the end of the season, and at the same time to aid in the reduction over two years of the number of clubs in the First Division from 22 to 20. For the first two seasons, the playoffs were contested between
3784-453: The bottom two clubs of the First Division and the top two clubs of the Second Division was brought into disrepute when Stoke and Burnley colluded in the final match to ensure they were both in the First Division the next season. At this point both divisions of the League expanded to eighteen, with the addition of Barnsley from the Midland and Yorkshire Leagues, Burslem Port Vale, Glossop from
3870-443: The competition became firmly established in the footballing calendar. It was not until the dawn of the 1970s, though, that all 92 Football League clubs regularly participated in the competition season after season. Substitutes (one per team per match) were first allowed for injured players in 1965 and for any reason the following year. The first ever League game to be held on a Sunday took place on 20 January 1974 (11:30 kick-off) and
3956-460: The competitiveness of their teams, breaking FA rules and arousing the contempt of those clubs abiding by the laws of the amateur Football Association code. As more and more clubs became professional the ad-hoc fixture list of FA Cup, inter-county, and ordinary matches was seen by many as an unreliable stream of revenue, and ways were considered of ensuring a consistent income. A Scottish director of Birmingham-based Aston Villa , William McGregor,
4042-492: The first attempt. In 1895 Loughborough replaced Walsall Town Swifts . In 1896 Blackpool from the Lancashire League and Gainsborough Trinity from the Midland League replaced Burslem Port Vale and Crewe Alexandra . In 1897 Luton Town from the United League replaced Burton Wanderers. Automatic promotion and relegation for two clubs in each division were introduced in 1898. The previous system of test matches between
4128-470: The first club in the 20th century to win the League and FA Cup "double" in 1960–61, a season after Wolverhampton Wanderers had come within a whisker of achieving the feat themselves (Wolves won the 1959–60 FA Cup and were runners-up to Burnley in the League by a single point). Post-Second World War changes in league football included the use of white balls in 1951 and the first floodlight game (played between Portsmouth and Newcastle United) in 1956, opening up
4214-477: The game overall. The Founder Members Agreement, signed on 17 July 1991 by the game's top-flight clubs, established the basic principles for setting up the FA Premier League. The newly formed top division would have commercial independence from the Football Association and the Football League, giving the FA Premier League license to negotiate its own broadcast and sponsorship agreements. The argument given at
4300-513: The game, that of Trevor Francis from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest in February 1979. The first £2million player transferred between English clubs was Tony Cottee , who moved from West Ham United to Everton in July 1988 – although several players had already been sold by English clubs to foreign clubs for even higher fees. Before the formation of the FA Premier League, the highest transfer fee paid
4386-399: The game. In the first ten seasons, the only other clubs to win (single) league titles were Everton and Sheffield United. A new Second Division was formed in 1892 with the absorption of the rival 12-club Football Alliance . Alliance clubs Nottingham Forest , The Wednesday (later renamed Sheffield Wednesday) and Newton Heath (later renamed Manchester United) joined thirteen League clubs in
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#17328528266494472-413: The league for the following year in a process called " re-election ". In 1890, Stoke were not re-elected to the league and was replaced for the 1890–91 season by Sunderland , who won it in their second, third, and fifth year. Stoke was re-elected for the 1891–92 season, along with Darwen , to take the league to fourteen clubs. Preston North End, Aston Villa, and Sunderland dominated the early years of
4558-403: The league with 19 seasons. The 15-season spell for Ipswich Town between 2004 and 2019 is the longest consecutive spell of any team in the division. The teams with the current longest tenure are Bristol City , Preston North End and Queens Park Rangers , who will each have their tenth consecutive season as a Championship team in the 2024–25 season . Norwich City has had six separate spells in
4644-462: The league would return to 22 for the 1991–92 season, which increased competitiveness in the 1990–91 season as four teams would be promoted from the Second and Third Divisions instead of the normal three (with the seventh-place being the minimum position for the playoffs), while in the Fourth Division an unprecedented five promotion places were up for grabs, with the eighth-place being high enough for
4730-506: The length of the season, one promotion place from each division is decided according to a playoff among four clubs, which takes place at the end of the season. It is possible for a team finishing sixth in the Championship or League One, or seventh in League Two, to be promoted rather than the clubs finishing immediately above them in the standings. Since the 2004–05 season, penalties have existed for clubs entering financial administration during
4816-576: The longest serving member of the top division, present since 1919. The League was suspended for four seasons during the First World War and resumed in 1919 with the First and Second Divisions expanded to 22 clubs. On resumption West Bromwich Albion (1919–20) and Burnley (1920–21), both original twelve clubs, won their first-ever titles (in Albion's case their only title to date). In 1920, leading clubs from
4902-471: The lowest placed team to avoid automatic relegation and three highest-placed teams to miss out on automatic promotion in the division below before it was altered from the 1988–89 season to include just the four clubs who had missed out on automatic promotion in the Second, Third and Fourth Divisions. 1986–87 was the first season of the decade where Football League attendances increased, helped by improved economic conditions and falling unemployment nationally. At
4988-414: The most dramatic nights in League history, when Arsenal beat Liverpool 2–0 at Anfield in the last game of the season to win the League on this tiebreaker – by a single Michael Thomas goal in the final minute of the final game of the season. Both teams would finish with the same amount of goal difference, but Arsenal had scored more goals during the season. Two clubs won their first League titles during
5074-479: The new First Division, giving it sixteen members. Darwen from the League was allocated to the new Second, and Alliance club Birmingham St George's disbanded at that point. The Second Division started with twelve clubs, eight remaining Alliance clubs with the addition of Northwich Victoria (from The Combination ), Burslem Port Vale (later renamed Port Vale, from the Midland League ), and Sheffield United (from
5160-615: The new Third Division, and those in the bottom half made up the Fourth Division. An earlier suggestion that the Third Division South should become the Third Division and the Third Division North become the Fourth Division on the basis of better attendances and that they tended to fare better when promoted was rejected. Four clubs were promoted and relegated between these two lower divisions, while two clubs exchanged places in
5246-600: The next lower one. At the top end of the competition, three Championship clubs win promotion from the Football League to the Premier League, with the bottom three Premier League clubs taking their places. At the lower end, two League Two clubs lose their Football League status with relegation to the National division of the National League , while two teams from that division join League Two of The Football League in their stead. Promotion and relegation are determined by final league positions, but to sustain interest for more clubs over
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#17328528266495332-477: The oldest professional football league competition in the world. It also organises two knockout cup competitions, the EFL Cup and EFL Trophy . The Football League was founded in 1888 by Aston Villa director William McGregor , originally with twelve member clubs. Steady growth and the addition of more divisions meant that by 1950 the League had 92 clubs. Financial considerations led to a major shake-up in 1992, when in
5418-510: The only other club to be added to the list of Football League winners prior to the outbreak of the Second World War , the fourteenth club to achieve the feat since 1888–89. In the 1938–39 season Everton won the title for the fifth time but suffered the same fate as in 1915 , being champions when football was suspended due to the World War. The League was suspended once more in 1939 with
5504-602: The opposing club(s) do not earn any points from this, however. The EFL organises two knock-out cup competitions: the EFL Cup (officially known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons) and the EFL Trophy (officially known as the Bristol Street Motors Trophy also for sponsorship reasons). The EFL Cup was established in 1960 and is open to all EFL and Premier League clubs, with the winner eligible to participate in
5590-501: The others twice, once at home and once away, and two points were awarded for a win and one for a draw. This points system was not agreed upon until after the season had started; the alternative proposal was one point for a win only. Preston won the first league title without losing a game and completed the first league–cup double by also taking the FA Cup . Teams finishing at the bottom of the table were required to reapply for their position in
5676-417: The outbreak of the First World War , while Everton added a second title to their much earlier success in the last season, 1914–15. It was not until the early years of the 20th century, and the expansion of both Leagues to 20 clubs (in 1905), that further southern clubs such as Chelsea and Clapton Orient (later Leyton Orient ) (1905), Fulham (1907) and Tottenham Hotspur (1908) established themselves in
5762-637: The outbreak of the Second World War, this time for seven seasons. The Third Divisions were expanded to 24 clubs each in 1950, bringing the total number of League clubs to 92, and in 1958 the decision was made to end the regionalisation of the Third Divisions and reorganise the clubs into a new nationwide Third Division and Fourth Division . To accomplish this, the clubs in the top half of both the Third Division North and South joined together to form
5848-453: The play-off to Fulham the previous year. On 29 May 2022, Nottingham Forest , having been in the Championship for 14 consecutive seasons, ended their 23-year absence from the top flight by beating Huddersfield Town in the play-off final, after being last in the league as late as round 8 of the 2021–22 season. The EFL Championship took a unique four-week break in November and December 2022 to allow for players to join their national teams at
5934-631: The playoffs. The end of the ban on English clubs in Europe also helped boost interest in English football. However, the economy was now in another recession and added to that the clubs in the top two English divisions were faced with the requirement of having all-seater stadiums by 1994–95 to comply with the Taylor Report that followed the death of 97 Liverpool fans as a result of the Hillsborough disaster in April 1989. The League also expanded to 93 clubs for
6020-477: The possibility of midweek evening matches. By far the biggest change for league clubs during this era was a new cup competition open to all the members of the League, the Football League Cup . The League Cup was held for the first time in 1960–61 to provide clubs with a new source of income with Aston Villa winning that inaugural year. Despite an initial lack of enthusiasm on the part of some other big clubs,
6106-569: The rest of the 72 are located in England. The Football League had a sponsor from the 1983–84 season, and thus was known by various names. The English Football League also organises two knock-out cup competitions, the EFL Cup and the EFL Trophy . The operations centre of the Football League is in Preston , while its commercial office is in London. The Football League consists of 68 professional association football clubs in England and 4 in Wales. It runs
6192-465: The same time, automatic promotion and relegation between the Fourth Division and the Football Conference were introduced for one club, replacing the annual application for re-election to the League of the bottom four clubs and linking the League to the developing National League System pyramid. Emblematic of the confusion that was beginning to envelop the game, the number of clubs at the top of
6278-435: The season. If a club enters administration before 31 March of any given season, they will immediately be deducted twelve points; entering administration from 1 April onward will see the points deduction either held over until the end of the season (if the club finishes outside the relegation places) or applied the following season (if the club was relegated anyway). Also, it is required that a club exiting administration agrees to
6364-407: The teams finishing the season in third to sixth place with the winner being promoted to the Premier League. In the play-offs, the third-placed team plays against the sixth-placed team and the fourth-placed team plays against the fifth-placed team in two-legged semi-finals (home and away). The winners of each semi-final then compete in a single match at Wembley Stadium with the prize being promotion to
6450-528: The time was that the extra income would allow English clubs to compete with teams across Europe. EFL Championship The English Football League Championship , known simply as the Championship in England and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship , is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the English football league system , after
6536-523: The top flight of English football for the first time in their history. They had only been elected to the Football League in 1978 playing in the fourth tier as recently as 1994 before their promotion. West Ham United won the first Championship play-off final that season, following a 1–0 victory over Preston North End at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. The 2004–05 season saw the division announce
6622-507: The upper divisions until 1974 when the number increased to three. Clubs to win their first League titles in the quarter-century following the Second World War were Portsmouth (1948–49 and 1949–50), Tottenham Hotspur (1950–51 and 1960–61), founder members of the League Wolverhampton Wanderers (1953–54, 1957–58 and 1958–59), Chelsea (1954–55), Ipswich Town (1961–62) and Leeds United (1968–69). Tottenham Hotspur became
6708-401: Was an effort to prevent unduly defensive play encouraged by the greater advantage in limiting goals allowed. In the event that clubs had equal points and equal goal differences, priority was given to the club that had scored the most goals. There has been only one season, 1988–89, when this level of differentiation was necessary to determine the League champion, and this was the occasion of one of
6794-622: Was dissolved because of financial problems. Yet the Second Division expanded to fifteen clubs for season 1893–94 (net increase three) by adding five new clubs: Liverpool from the Lancashire League , Middlesbrough Ironopolis and Newcastle United from the Northern League, Rotherham Town from the Midland League, and Woolwich Arsenal (later Arsenal), who became the first team from the South of England to compete. For its third season 1894–95,
6880-563: Was held at Anderton's Hotel in London on 23 March 1888 on the eve of the FA Cup Final. The Football League was formally created and named in Manchester at a further meeting on 17 April at the Royal Hotel. The name "Association Football Union" was proposed by McGregor but this was felt too close to " Rugby Football Union ". Instead, "The Football League" was proposed by Major William Sudell , representing Preston, and quickly agreed upon. Although
6966-745: Was instituted in the 1950s. Later matches were played irregularly and poorly attended, with the last match against the Scottish league being played in March 1976. Other than the Inter-league fixtures, a match was played against the England national team in 1963 as part of the Football Association 's centenary celebrations, ending in a 3–3 draw at the Arsenal Stadium . Aside from one-off exhibition matches against
7052-429: Was played between Second Division rivals Millwall and Fulham at The Den . Millwall won 1–0. The first ever Sunday top-flight game was between Chelsea and Stoke a week later. Beginning with the 1976–77 season, the clubs finishing level on points began to be separated according to goal difference (the difference between goals scored and goals conceded) rather than goal average (goals scored divided by goals conceded). This
7138-403: Was the first to set out to bring some order to a chaotic world where clubs arranged their own fixtures, along with various cup competitions. On 22 March 1888, he wrote to the committee of his own club, Aston Villa, as well as to those of Blackburn Rovers , Bolton Wanderers , Preston North End , Stoke and West Bromwich Albion ; suggesting the creation of a league competition that would provide
7224-429: Was the previous trophy awarded to the winners of the English top-flight prior to the launch of the Premier League. As with other divisions of professional English football, Welsh clubs can be part of this division, thus making it a cross-border league. Each season, the two top-finishing teams in the Championship are automatically promoted to the Premier League . The teams that finish the season in 3rd to 6th place enter
7310-422: Was then extended to the end of April, with the league eventually restarting on 20 June. Leeds United were confirmed as champions on 17 July 2020, being promoted to the Premier League for the first time in 16 years. Brentford , having been in League Two in 2009 and gaining promotion to the Championship five years later, were promoted following a play-off victory against Swansea City on 29 May 2021, after losing
7396-399: Was £2.9million for the transfer of Dean Saunders from Derby County to Liverpool during the 1991 close season. The first £3million player was Alan Shearer , who moved from Southampton to Blackburn Rovers in July 1992, the summer before the first Premier League season. At the close of the 1991 season, a proposal for the establishment of a new league was tabled that would bring more money into
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