Oldest football leagues in the world

FOOTBALL or soccer is one of the oldest sports games in the world. Its origins can be traced as far back as the 2nd or 3rd century in China. It has come a long way since then and has become the most followed sport in the world.

This has made football very lucrative in modern times. In football, there are various tournaments, leagues, cups, trophies, and competitions.

The most prestigious football tournament is the FIFA World Cup. A league is an organisation of sports teams that play against one another for a championship.

English Football League (1888)

The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. It was founded on the 17th of April 1888 (134 years ago) as the Football League.

It is the oldest such competition in the world. The EFL 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. It is currently categorised into three divisions: Championship, League One, and League Two.

There are 24 clubs in each division, 72 in total — 69 from England and 3 from Wales. The defending champion is Fulham, who, as a result, secured automatic promotion to the Premier League.

Northern Football League (1889)

The Northern Football League is a men’s football league in northeast England. Having been founded in 1889, it is the second-oldest football league in the world, still in existence after the English Football League.

It contains two divisions; Division One and Division Two. Division One sits on the 9th tier of the English football league system, 5 divisions below the Football League.

These leagues cover the historic counties of Durham, Northumberland, Cumbria, and Yorkshire’s North Riding. The champion of Division One gets promoted to the lower division of the Northern Premier League. It is contested by 41 teams.