THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE

THE ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE(EPL)

Full Name: FA Premier League - Barclays Premier League
Founded: 1992 (1888)
Level: 1
Teams: 20
Record Champions: Manchester United, 11
Record English First Level Champions: Liverpool and Manchester United, 18

Official Website: premierleague.com

Description:

The Football League was formed in 1888, the first organized league football competition anywhere in the world. After 104 years of existence the Football Association launched a breakaway FA Premier League which incorporated the clubs from the 1991-92 Football League First Division. Whatever the name it is the top tier of English football and is also the wealthiest and most popular league in the world.

The arrival of the Premier League coincided with the transition to all-seater stadiums and the first Sky TV contract. These two events began a massive infusion of wealth into the game and a nearly complete transformation of the culture of watching and attending matches. The launch of the Premier League has become almost a year zero in football for so many supporters. It is hard to against the success and popularity of the Premier League. English clubs are consistently successful in Europe, the league has a wider global audience than any other and billionaire sheikhs line up to inexplicably plop down enormous money on relatively minor provincial clubs.

Despite all the success there are quite a few who have turned their back on the Premier League or watch it in grudging frustration. Ticket prices have risen incredibly since its launch and many clubs' original working class fan bases have simply been priced out of the game. Combine this with the end of the terraces and the transition to heavily monitored all-ticket sections and the result has been a quieter and less atmospheric experience for many. The budget disparity between the Premier League and the second-tier Football League Championship is enormous and promoted clubs often come up with little more hope than a desperate fight against relegation. Not to mention the growing gap between the Champions League regular "Big Four" and the rest of the league.

HISTORY

The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier League is a corporation in which the 20 member clubs act as shareholders. Seasons run from August to May, with teams playing 38 games each totaling 380 games in the season. It is sponsored by Barclays Bank and therefore officially known as the Barclays Premier League.

The competition formed as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from The Football League, which was originally founded in 1888, and take advantage of a lucrative television rights deal. The Premier League has since become the world's most watched sporting league. It is the world's most lucrative football league, with combined club revenues of £1.93 billion ($3.15bn) in 2007–08. It is also ranked first in the UEFA coefficients of leagues based on performances in European competitions over the last five years, ahead of Spain's La Liga and Italy's Serie A

A total of 43 clubs have competed in the Premier League, but only four have won the title: Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, and Chelsea. The current champions are Manchester United, who won their eleventh Premier League title in the 2008–09 seasons, the most of any Premier League team and their eighteenth top division title, drawing level with Liverpool.

2009-10 English Premier League Map:

Map data ©2009 Tele Atlas - Terms of Use

Map

Satellite

Hybrid

Terrain

Earth

Format:

The 20 teams play each other twice (home and away) for a total of 38 matches. The season begins in August and ends in May with no winter break. The bottom three clubs are relegated to the second-tier Football League Championship. All Premier League clubs also enter the FA Cup (at the 3rd Round) and the Football League Cup (2nd Round, 3rd Round if the club is competing in Europe). The Premier League champions takes on the FA Cup winner in the Community Shield (formerly Charity Shield) staged at Wembley Stadium the week before the season starts.

International Tournament Qualification:

• UEFA Champions League - The top three finishers in the English Premier League qualify for the Champions League, entering at the group stage. The fourth place team enters at the fourth qualifying round.
• UEFA Europa League - The FA Cup winner, League Cup winner and next highest league finisher qualify for the Europa League. If the FA Cup winner qualifies for the Champions League, the FA Cup spot goes to the losing finalist. If both FA Cup finalists qualify for the Champions League then that spot goes to the next highest league finisher. If the League Cup winner qualifies for the Champions League then the spot simply goes to the next highest league finisher, not the losing finalist.

Football League Champions:

1889 Preston North End
1890 Preston North End
1891 Everton
1892 Sunderland

Football League First Division Champions:

1893 Sunderland
1894 Aston Villa
1895 Sunderland
1896 Aston Villa
1897 Aston Villa
1898 Sheffield United
1899 Aston Villa
1900 Aston Villa
1901 Liverpool
1902 Sunderland
1903 The Wednesday
1904 The Wednesday
1905 Newcastle United
1906 Liverpool
1907 Newcastle United
1908 Manchester United
1909 Newcastle United
1910 Aston Villa
1911 Manchester United
1912 Blackburn Rovers
1913 Sunderland
1914 Blackburn Rovers
1915 Everton

1920 West Bromwich Albion
1921 Burnley
1922 Liverpool
1923 Liverpool
1924 Huddersfield Town
1925 Huddersfield Town
1926 Huddersfield Town
1927 Newcastle United
1928 Everton
1929 The Wednesday
1930 Sheffield Wednesday
1931 Arsenal
1932 Everton
1933 Arsenal
1934 Arsenal
1935 Arsenal
1936 Sunderland
1937 Manchester City
1938 Arsenal
1939 Everton

1947 Liverpool
1948 Arsenal
1949 Portsmouth
1950 Portsmouth
1951 Tottenham Hostpur
1952 Manchester United
1953 Arsenal
1954 Wolverhampton Wanderers
1955 Chelsea
1956 Manchester United
1957 Manchester United
1958 Wolverhampton Wanderers
1959 Wolverhampton Wanderers
1960 Burnley
1961 Tottenham Hotspur
1962 Ipswich Town
1963 Everton
1964 Liverpool
1965 Manchester United
1966 Liverpool
1967 Manchester United
1968 Manchester City
1969 Leeds United
1970 Everton
1971 Arsenal
1972 Derby County
1973 Liverpool
1974 Leeds United
1975 Derby County
1976 Liverpool
1977 Liverpool
1978 Nottingham Forest
1979 Liverpool
1980 Liverpool
1981 Aston Villa
1982 Liverpool
1983 Liverpool
1984 Liverpool
1985 Everton
1986 Liverpool
1987 Everton
1988 Liverpool
1989 Arsenal
1990 Liverpool
1991 Arsenal
1992 Leeds United

English Premier League Champions

1993 Manchester United
1994 Manchester United
1995 Blackburn Rovers
1996 Manchester United
1997 Manchester United
1998 Arsenal
1999 Manchester United
2000 Manchester United
2001 Manchester United
2002 Arsenal
2003 Manchester United
2004 Arsenal
2005 Chelsea
2006 Chelsea
2007 Manchester United
2008 Manchester United
2009 Manchester United

Total English Premier League Titles:

11 Manchester United
3 Arsenal
2 Chelsea
1 Blackburn Rovers

Total First Level English League Titles:

18 Liverpool, Manchester United
13 Arsenal
9 Everton
7 Aston Villa
6 Sunderland
4 Newcastle United, Sheffield Wednesday
3 Huddersfield Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leeds United, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea
2 Preston North End, Portsmouth, Burnley, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City, Derby County
1 Sheffield United, West Bromwich Albion, Ipswich Town, Nottingham Forest

Total English Premier League Seasons (out of 18):

18 Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
17 Newcastle United
16 Blackburn Rovers
15 Middlesbrough, West Ham United
14 Southampton
13 Manchester City
12 Leeds United
11 Bolton Wanderers
9 Coventry City, Fulham, Sunderland
8 Charlton Athletic, Derby County, Leicester City, Sheffield Wednesday, Wimbledon
7 Portsmouth
6 Birmingham City
5 Ipswich Town, Nottingham Forest, Wigan
4 Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Queen's Park Rangers, West Bromwich Albion
3 Reading, Sheffield United
2 Bradford City, Oldham Athletic, Watford
1 Barnsley, Hull City, Swindon Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers

Total First Level English League Seasons (out of 110):

106 Everton
98 Aston Villa
94 Liverpool
92 Arsenal
84 Manchester United/Newton Heath
80 Manchester City
79 Newcastle United
78 Sunderland
73 Chelsea
72 Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion
70 Bolton Wanderers
69 Blackburn Rovers
66 Sheffield Wednesday
65 Derby County
60 Middlesbrough, Sheffield United, Wolverhampton Wanderers
56 Nottingham Forest
55 Birmingham City
52 Stoke City, West Ham United
51 Burnley
50 Leeds United
46 Leicester City, Preston North End
36 Southampton
33 Coventry City
32 Portsmouth
30 Huddersfield Town, Notts County
27 Blackpool
26 Charlton Athletic, Ipswich Town
22 Bury
21 Norwich City
20 Fulham, Queen's Park Rangers
16 Luton Town
15 Cardiff City
14 Wimbledon
13 Crystal Palace
12 Bradford City, Grimsby Town, Oldham Athletic
9 Bristol City
8 Watford
5 Accrington Stanley, Brentford
4 Brighton & Hove Albion, Wigan Athletic
3 Bradford Park Avenue, Oxford United
2 Darwen, Millwall, Reading, Swansea
1 Barnsley, Carlisle United, Glossop North End, Hull City, Leyton Orient, Northampton, Swindon Town

* First Level English leagues include the Football League (1888-1891), Football League First Division (1891-1992) and English Premier League (1992-2009) for a total of 110 seasons.