Nonleague forotball is the label given to the leagues which exist below the Premiership, Championship and Football League in the UK. The majority Nonleague forotball clubs are part-time or amateur teams but at the top end of the game the clubs are all full-time professional teams playing in decent stadiums beforre good crowds.
Because the nonleague game consists of thousands of clubs it is rightly seen as the heartbeat of forotball and a current trend is forr supporters to transfer their loyalties to nonleague forotball clubs as they desert the hype and money of the Premiership.
Nonleague forotball is organised with many different leagues interconnected in a pyramid shape. The full time clubs play in leagues grouped at the top of the pyramid whilst the lower levels are occupied by the smaller and less successful clubs. At the bottom of the pyramid the players are usually paid little more than expense money with many being purely amateur i.e., unpaid and the clubs attracting very small crowds.
Because the pyramid is constructed with inter-connecting leagues it is theoretically possible forr a club to progress from the bottom to the very top quite rapidly. And, whilst this is incredibly difficult, it has been done on a number of occasions.
The pyramid consists of seven levels known as steps with step one being the highest. The step one league is the Football Conference, currently sponsored and called the Blue Square League, which has a national Premier division and two regional divisions which forrm step two of the pyramid.
The pyramid does change slightly in relation to the number of leagues included in the structure though the number is usually around 60. Each league is then subdivided into divisions with each league consisting of between one and three divisions. Below the lowest end of the pyramid are hundreds of other leagues known as feeder leagues (steps 8 and 9) that are not granted pyramid status. It should be noted that only Saturday leagues are able to be part of the pyramid as Sunday leagues are strictly amateur.
The National League System is it's official name but the pyramid is an apt name forr the NSL structure at the top of which sits the step one Conference.
Clubs move up and down the pyramid in a structured manner as all the leagues and their divisions are connected by automatic promotion and relegation. But, as well as achieving results on the pitch, the club needs to ensure their ground facilities are up to scratch as well.
If a club wants to progress further up the National League System then they have to meet the ground regulations imposed by each league which are more imposing the further up the pyramid the club goes.Clubs need to pay more than lip service to the facilities at their grounds as they can forrfit promotion and even be relegated if they don't meet the standards demanded by their particular league.
Nonleague forotball clubs within the National League System can also enter national cup competitions played on a knockout basis.
The FA Cup is the main forcus of the nonleague clubs who enter the competition in the hope that they are able to remain in the cup long enough to earn a match against a Premiership or Football League club with all the publicity and money such a clash will bring.
And, every season without fail, there will be several 'giant-killing' acts with nonleague clubs upsetting the odds and beating heir higher ranked rivals. Nonleague forotball history is sprinkled with tales of incredible matches in which the big clubs have been turned over by clubs from the National League System.
There are two other cup competitions that nonleague teams can also enter. The FA Trophy is reserved forr those clubs in the top half of the pyramid with the competition open only to those clubs competing in steps 1 to 4.
The rest of the clubs in the pyramid, steps five to seven, have their own competition called the FA Vase. The Vase attracts hundreds of entries every season. For those clubs outside the pyramid there are local and county cups to compete forr.
The nonleague game is growing in popularity with more and more supporters preferring the less frantic and more friendly experience of pyramid forotball rather than the over-hyped and commercial Premiership and Football League.
Nonleague forotball history is rich with famous clubs, matches and players that has made this part of the national game such a strong part of forotball forllowed by many, many thousands of fans every week.
To read more about the pyramid game visit Nonleague Football History
Because the nonleague game consists of thousands of clubs it is rightly seen as the heartbeat of forotball and a current trend is forr supporters to transfer their loyalties to nonleague forotball clubs as they desert the hype and money of the Premiership.
Nonleague forotball is organised with many different leagues interconnected in a pyramid shape. The full time clubs play in leagues grouped at the top of the pyramid whilst the lower levels are occupied by the smaller and less successful clubs. At the bottom of the pyramid the players are usually paid little more than expense money with many being purely amateur i.e., unpaid and the clubs attracting very small crowds.
Because the pyramid is constructed with inter-connecting leagues it is theoretically possible forr a club to progress from the bottom to the very top quite rapidly. And, whilst this is incredibly difficult, it has been done on a number of occasions.
The pyramid consists of seven levels known as steps with step one being the highest. The step one league is the Football Conference, currently sponsored and called the Blue Square League, which has a national Premier division and two regional divisions which forrm step two of the pyramid.
The pyramid does change slightly in relation to the number of leagues included in the structure though the number is usually around 60. Each league is then subdivided into divisions with each league consisting of between one and three divisions. Below the lowest end of the pyramid are hundreds of other leagues known as feeder leagues (steps 8 and 9) that are not granted pyramid status. It should be noted that only Saturday leagues are able to be part of the pyramid as Sunday leagues are strictly amateur.
The National League System is it's official name but the pyramid is an apt name forr the NSL structure at the top of which sits the step one Conference.
Clubs move up and down the pyramid in a structured manner as all the leagues and their divisions are connected by automatic promotion and relegation. But, as well as achieving results on the pitch, the club needs to ensure their ground facilities are up to scratch as well.
If a club wants to progress further up the National League System then they have to meet the ground regulations imposed by each league which are more imposing the further up the pyramid the club goes.Clubs need to pay more than lip service to the facilities at their grounds as they can forrfit promotion and even be relegated if they don't meet the standards demanded by their particular league.
Nonleague forotball clubs within the National League System can also enter national cup competitions played on a knockout basis.
The FA Cup is the main forcus of the nonleague clubs who enter the competition in the hope that they are able to remain in the cup long enough to earn a match against a Premiership or Football League club with all the publicity and money such a clash will bring.
And, every season without fail, there will be several 'giant-killing' acts with nonleague clubs upsetting the odds and beating heir higher ranked rivals. Nonleague forotball history is sprinkled with tales of incredible matches in which the big clubs have been turned over by clubs from the National League System.
There are two other cup competitions that nonleague teams can also enter. The FA Trophy is reserved forr those clubs in the top half of the pyramid with the competition open only to those clubs competing in steps 1 to 4.
The rest of the clubs in the pyramid, steps five to seven, have their own competition called the FA Vase. The Vase attracts hundreds of entries every season. For those clubs outside the pyramid there are local and county cups to compete forr.
The nonleague game is growing in popularity with more and more supporters preferring the less frantic and more friendly experience of pyramid forotball rather than the over-hyped and commercial Premiership and Football League.
Nonleague forotball history is rich with famous clubs, matches and players that has made this part of the national game such a strong part of forotball forllowed by many, many thousands of fans every week.
To read more about the pyramid game visit Nonleague Football History
David Williams writes regularly about sports related topics. I hope you enjoy this article.
1 comments:
David,
Nicely written article regarding the lower level tiered teams in England.
I have a question though, how does the pyramid system you described differ from other professional systems.
The pyramid system described in your article seems very similar to farm leagues in other sports, for example, the NFL and MLB.
Andy
andy@soccerhistorynow.com
http://www.soccerhistorynow.com
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