How It Works 11 – A Beginners Guide to English Football Pyramid

Say you wanted to start a football team with the aim of eventually working your way to the highest level of football in England. How could you do it?

The answer is by working your way up the English Football Pyramid.

This is the foundation of football in England with its 11 levels defining how teams can move up and down the Pyramid each season.

Yet it is strange to consider that outside of the top four or five divisions, many football fans and punters are clueless as to how the Pyramid works.

If you are one of them, then this article is for you!

What Is The History Of The English Football Pyramid?

Although the names of the divisions and the number of teams competing in them has changed, the English Football Pyramid has remained as a structure for many years.

As the game expanded as a professional game, so did the number of amateur clubs who wanted to complete below professional level.

With the expansion of football across the UK, a system for promotion and relegation between linked leagues was defined and the first stages of the football pyramid were devised.

As the number of leagues and teams grew, so did the size of the pyramid, which now goes down to 11 levels of the game in England.

How Are The 92 Football League & Premier League Clubs Organised?

Here is how the top five levels of the Football Pyramid in the UK are organised.

Level	League	No of Clubs	Promotions	Relegations
1	Premier League	20	N/A	3
2	EFL Championship	24	3	3
3	EFL League One	24	3	4
4	EFL League Two	24	4	2
5	National League	24	2	4

We have divided the pyramid here. That is because from here on, promotion and relegation to divisions can be complicated. This being due to numerous regional leagues feeding into one league above.

From the Championship to the National League, one promotion place is reserved for the winner of the end of season playoff competition. The other promotion places are awarded to the other teams based on league performance.

How Does The Pyramid Structure Continue into Non-League Football?

At Level 6 in the Pyramid, things start to get more complicated. The number of leagues that feed into leagues above them, and relegate teams into leagues below them, increases. Thus making the Pyramid much more complex from level 6 onwards.

We have split the Pyramid into two sections. The first which feeds into the National League North. The Second which feeds into the National League South. Both of these divisions then feed into the National League at Level 5 in the Pyramid

Pyramid Feeding into National League North (Levels 6 to 11)

Level	Leagues	No of Clubs	Promotions	Relegations
6	National League North	24	2	4
7	Southern League Premier Division Central	22	2	4
	Northern Premier League	22	2	4
8	Northern Premier League Division One East	20	2	2
	Northern Premier League Division One West	20	2	2
	Northern Premier League Division One Central	20	2	2
	Southern League Division One Central	20	2	2
9	Northern League Division One	20	2	1
	Northern Counties East League Premier Division	20	2	1
	Northern Counties West League Premier Division	24	2	1
	Midland League Premier Division	18	2	1
	United Counties League Premier North	18	2	1
	United Counties League Premier South	20	2	1
	Hellenic League Premier	20	2	1
	Spartan South Midlands League Premier Division	20	2	1
10	Combined Counties League	22	2	0-3
	Eastern Counties League Division 1 North	21	2	0-3
	Eastern Counties League Division 1 South	22	2	0-3
	Hellenic League Division 1	20	2	0-3
	Midland League Division 1	20	2	0-3
	North West Counties League Division 1 North	19	2	0-3
	North West Counties League Division 1 South	18	2	0-3
	Northern Counties East League Division 1	24	2	0-3
	Northern League Division 2	22	2	0-3
11	Regional Feeder Leagues	790	TBC	TBC

Pyramid Feeding Into National League South (Levels 6 to 11)

Level	Leagues	No of Clubs	Promotions	Relegations
6	National League South	24	2	4
7	Southern League Premier Division South	22	2	4
	Isthmian League	22	2	4
8	Southern League Division 1 South	20	2	2
	Isthmian League Division 1 South Central	20	2	2
	Isthmian League Division 1 North	20	2	2
	Istmian League Division 1 South East	20	2	2
9	Wessex League Premier	20	2	1
	Western League Premier	19	2	1
	Combined Counties Premier North	24	2	1
	Combined Counties Premier South	18	2	1
	Eastern Counties Premier	18	2	1
	Essex Senior League	20	2	1
	Southern Combination League Premier	20	2	1
	Southern Counties East Premier	21	2	1
10	South West Peninsula League Premier East	17	2	0-3
	South West Peninsula League Premier West	17	2	0-3
	Southern Combination League Division 1	18	2	0-3
	Southern Counties East League Division 1	16	2	0-3
	Spartan South Midlands League Division 1	20	2	0-3
	United Counties League Division 1	22	2	0-3
	Wessex League Division 1	21	2	0-3
	Western League Division 1	22	2	0-3
11	Regional Feeder Leagues	790	TBC	TBC

What Are The Most Popular Bets fans make at different levels of the Football Pyramid?

When looking at the soccer betting available at Bet365 Sport you will see a main focus on top competitions. However, there are also plenty of other bets available down the English Football Pyramid.

Many of these are outright bets. Such as which team will win the league down to the National Leagues North and South. We now know these divisions are one step below the 5^th tier of English Football.

These outright bets, as well as bets on fixtures being played are the most popular bets for football fans.

It should be noted that the lower down the pyramid you go, there are fewer betting markets that tend to be available on fixtures.

As such, most football bets tend to be focused on teams in the Football League and above. Admittedly, with a huge concentration on the Premier League.

Which Teams have moved up the Football Pyramid the most?

Over the years there have been a number of teams that have made significant progress up the football pyramid.

Luton Town – In 1992, Luton Town were relegated from the top flight of English football the season before the Premier League started. By 2002, they were in what is now League Two, having suffered two further relegations.

Despite off the field issues, Luton gained promotion back to the Championship by 2005. But soon they fell back down the leagues again, dropping out of the Football League in 2008/9.

They returned to the Football League in 2015. They then followed that with successive promotions in 2018 and 2019 from League Two and League One.

And last season they completed their journey to the Premier League with a Playoff Final victory over Coventry.

Swansea City – In the 1980s, John Toshack’s Swansea came from what was then League Division Four, earning successive promotions to join League Division 1 (now the Premier League).

However after Toshack left for lucrative job offers in Spain, the Swans fortunes declined and they were relegated from the top flight and back down to League Two within the space of a few years.

Then the Swans did the same trick once again, coming up from the lower leagues to join the Premier League. They moved from League 2 in 2004/05 and were in the Premier League by the 2011/12 season.

They were relegated in the 2017/18 season and have remained in the Championship since.

Salford FC – Salford have come from the very lowest reaches of the Football Pyramid, minor local leagues, to the Football League.

After reaching the Northern Premier League, the club was taken over in 2014 by former Manchester United players Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and the Neville brothers, plus Peter Lim.

David Beckham also purchased 10% of the club a short time later from Lim. They have since climbed from the Northern Premier League through the National League North and National League to EFL Division 2, where they lost in the playoffs last season.

Which Teams have dropped down the Football Pyramid the furthest?

Scunthorpe United – Back in 2010, the Irons were celebrating promotion to the Championship for the second time in three years. 

Two years later, Scunthorpe had dropped into League One and another two years saw them drop into League 2.

They immediately got promoted to League One again, but after a five year stay were relegated back to League 2.

Then in 2021/22 they dropped into the National League. However, last season, they finished bottom of the National League to drop into the National League North.

Oldham Athletic – One of the founder teams of the Premier League, the Latics dropped out of the football league a couple of years ago for the first time.

They are now playing in the National League. A story of dropping down from the top level to the fifth level of the football pyramid in the space of 28 years.

Who are the most famous and successful teams outside the Football League?

There are numerous famous clubs who are now playing outside of the Football League in the lower levels of the Football Pyramid.

Vanarama National League – Level 5

• Aldershot Town
• Barnet
• Chesterfield
• Gateshead
• Halifax Town
• Hartlepool
• Oldham Athletic
• Rochdale
• Southend United
• York City

National League North – Level 6

• Chester City
• Darlington
• Hereford
• Scarborough
• Scunthorpe United
• Southport

National League South – Level 6

• Maidstone United
• Torquay United
• Yeovil Town

Other Teams

• Bury AFC (North West Counties League Premier)
• Macclesfield Town (Northern Premier League)
• Workington (Northern Premier League)