How Many English Football Tiers Are There?
Football is the most played sport in England, and its most prestigious league, the Premier League, is often considered the best football league in the world. But how many English Football Leagues are there? The English Football League pyramid system is split into different tiers, and we’re going to outline all of them in this Elastico article.
Table of Contents
How Many English Football Tiers Are There?
There are 11 English football tiers that cover professional, semi-professional and amateur football in England:
- Premier League
- Championship
- League One
- League Two
- National League
- National League North and South
- Northern & Southern Premier Division, Southern Premier Central and Isthmian League
- Tier 8 (Amateur)
- Tier 9 (Amateur)
- Tier 10 (Amateur)
- Tier 11 (Amateur)
What is the English Football League Pyramid System?
The English Football League pyramid system was developed from the English Football League (EFL). It was the first football pyramid to be created and has inspired many different football leagues across the world.
What is Promotion and Relegation?
In football, promotion is when a team finishes in one of the highest positions in a league and moves up to a higher league the following season. Relegation is the opposite, meaning when a team finishes in one of the lowest positions in a league, it moves down to a lower league the following season.
English Football Tier List
Tier 1 – English Premier League (EPL)
The top tier in the English Football League is the English Premier League (EPL). In this league, 20 football teams compete every year, playing 38 league matches each. In this division you’ll find the most successful teams from around England including Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea and more.
Promotions – There are no promotions from the English Premier League, as it’s the highest league in the English Football League pyramid system.
Relegations – There are 3 teams relegated from the Premier League each year. These teams finish 18th, 19th and 20th in the division.
Champions League – The top 4 teams in the English Premier League qualify for the Champions League.
Most Titles – Manchester United have won this division 13 times.
Tier 2 – Championship
The second tier in the English football pyramid is the Championship. There are 24 teams in this league, with each team playing 46 games each season. The high number of games played each season means that fixtures are often played midweek as well as on the weekend.
This division was renamed the Football League Championship in the 2004-05 season. Previously, it was known as the Football League First Division (1992-2004) and the Football League Second Division (1892-1992).
Promotions – 2 teams are promoted automatically from the Championship, with 1 team being promoted through the play-offs. Teams who finish 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th compete in the play-offs.
Relegations – There are 3 teams relegated from the Championship each year. These teams finish 22nd, 23rd and 24th in the division.
Most Titles – Newcastle, Norwich, Sunderland, Reading and Wolves have won this league 2 times each.
Tier 3 – League One
The third level of our English football tier list is League One. 24 teams compete in this football league. The difference between this league and the Championship is that there are 4 teams relegated instead of 3.
Promotions – 2 teams are promoted automatically from League One, with 1 team being promoted through the play-offs. Teams who finish 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th compete in the play-offs.
Relegations – There are 4 teams relegated from League One each year. These teams finish 21st, 22nd, 23rd and 24th in the division.
Most Titles – Wigan have won this division 3 times.
Tier 4 – League Two
The trend continues with 24 teams competing in League Two each year. It is the fourth tier of English football and is the lowest league that’s considered professional in the English Football League pyramid system.
Promotions – 3 teams are promoted automatically from League Two, and 1 team is promoted through the play-offs. Teams who finish 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th compete in the play-offs.
Relegations – There are 2 teams relegated from League Two each year. These teams finish 23rd and 24th in the division.
Most Titles – Chesterfield and Swindon have won this division 2 times.
Tier 5 – National League
Tier 5 of the English football tiers is the National League. This is the highest semi-professional English football league. This is deemed a really hard league to get promoted from, as only 1 team is promoted automatically.
Promotions – Just 1 team is promoted automatically from the National League and 1 team is promoted through the play-offs. 6 teams compete in the play-offs, and they finish 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th in the league.
Relegations – There are 4 teams relegated from the National League, and they go into either the National League North or National League South.
Tier 6 – National League North and South
Tier 6 is the first tier of the English football pyramid that includes more than one league. Across the National League North and South, 44 teams compete (22 in each). The interesting thing about these leagues is that they have to work out which teams compete in which league based on their geographical location.
Depending on which teams get promoted and relegated into these leagues, each team is transferred into the right league location-wise the following season.
Promotions – In each of the National League North and South, 1 team is promoted automatically, and 1 team is promoted via the play-offs. This means that 4 teams are promoted across both leagues.
Similarly to the National League, 6 teams compete in the play-offs in these divisions.
Relegations – There are 4 teams relegated from each of the National League North and South, so 8 are relegated in total.
Tier 7 – Northern & Southern Premier Division, Southern Premier Central and Isthmian League
In tier 7 of the English football pyramid, there are the following four English football leagues – Northern Premier, Southern Premier, Southern Premier Central and Isthmian League. 22 teams compete in each of these divisions, 1 team is automatically promoted and 1 is promoted via the play-offs.
The bottom 4 teams are relegated across these four leagues. Here are the total promotions and relegations across the whole of tier 7:
- 8 promotions (4 automatically, 4 via the play-offs)
- 16 relegations
Similarly to the National League North and South, if the number of teams in each division is uneven following promotion and relegation, teams will be transferred based on geographical location. This helps smaller clubs with travelling to away games.
Tiers 8, 9, 10 and 11
The final tiers of the English Football League pyramid system are tiers 8, 9, 10 and 11. There are many different football leagues in these four tiers, and they are classed as amateur English football leagues.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an English Football League?
An English football league is any football league that includes football teams from around England. There are different levels of English football leagues that range from the English Premier League (EPL) to the National League and onwards.
What’s the Difference Between Football Leagues and Football Tiers?
The term ‘football league’ refers to just one league, whereas a ‘football tier’ can refer to more than one league. The first five tiers of the English football pyramid refer to one league each, and after that point they refer to two or more leagues.
Which English Football Leagues Are Considered Professional?
There are four football leagues in England that are classed as professional – The English Premier League (EPL), Championship, League One and League Two. Any footballers playing within these leagues are therefore classed as ‘professional footballers’.
