FA Premier League

The FA Premier League (which, for sponsorship reasons, is often referred to as the Barclays Premiership in the UK and the Barclays English Premier League internationally) comprises the top 20 football clubs in the league system of English football. It was created in 1992, when the top division football clubs broke away from the Football League after securing a greatly improved TV rights deal with the then fledgling satellite television company Sky Television. The new name was merely a branding exercise as there was no innovation in competitive terms; an identical first tier league had existed the previous season.

The competition

There are 20 clubs in the Premier League. During the course of a season each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 38 games. At the end of each season the three lowest placed teams are relegated into the Football League Championship and the top two teams from the Championship, together with the winner of a play-off involving the 3rd to 6th placed clubs, are promoted in their place.

The top four teams in the Premiership qualify for the UEFA Champions League, with the top two teams directly entering the group phase. The third and fourth placed teams enter the competition at the third qualifying round and must win a two-legged knockout tie in order to enter the group phase.

Sponsorship

Since 1993, the FA Premier League has been sponsored. The sponsor has been able to determine the league's sponsorship name. So far, all the sponsors have referred to the competition as the 'Premiership'. The list below details who the sponsors have been and what they called the competition:

• 1993–2001: Carling (FA Carling Premiership)
• 2001–2004: Barclaycard (Barclaycard Premiership)
• 2004–2008: Barclays Bank (Barclays Premiership)

Premier League clubs, 2004–05

Former Premier League Members

Notes:

• Team movements for 2004–05 season:
  • Leeds United, Leicester City, and Wolverhampton Wanderers were relegated from the Premier League to The Championship of The Football League for 2004–05.
  • Norwich City and West Bromwich Albion won automatic promotion to the Premier League from the First Division of The Football League. Crystal Palace won the third promotion place by defeating West Ham United 1–0 in the playoff final held 29 May, 2004, in the Millennium Stadium.
• Team movements for 2005–06 season, as of 15 May 2005:
  • Crystal Palace, Norwich City and Southampton were relegated to The Championship. On a dramatic final day of the season, last-place West Bromwich Albion defeated Portsmouth, but had to see other results go their way. Norwich City, who started the day outside the drop zone, were destroyed 6–0 by Fulham. Southampton lost 2–1 to Man United. Palace were eight minutes from survival and leading Charlton 2–1, but Charlton equalized, consigning the Eagles to the drop.
  • Sunderland have won The Championship for 2004–05, assuring themselves of a return to the Premier League for 2005–06.
  • The second automatic promotion spot is taken by Wigan Athletic.
  • Ipswich Town, Derby County, Preston North End and West Ham will contest the play-offs for the third promotion spot.

Past Premier League winners

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 id:ManUnited   value:rgb(1,0,0)       legend:Manchester_United_(8)
 id:Arsenal     value:rgb(1,1,1)       legend:Arsenal_(3)
 id:Blackburn   value:rgb(0,1,1)       legend:Blackburn_Rovers_(1)
 id:Chelsea     value:rgb(0,0,1)       legend:Chelsea_(1)

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 shift:(20,2)
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 from:1992 till:1993 text:"1st Manchester United 1" color:ManUnited
 from:1993 till:1994 text:"2nd Manchester United 2" color:ManUnited
 from:1994 till:1995 text:"3rd Blackburn Rovers 1" color:Blackburn
 from:1995 till:1996 text:"4th Manchester United 3" color:ManUnited
 from:1996 till:1997 text:"5th Manchester United 4" color:ManUnited
 from:1997 till:1998 text:"6th Arsenal 1" color:Arsenal
 from:1998 till:1999 text:"7th Manchester United 5" color:ManUnited
 from:1999 till:2000 text:"8th Manchester United 6" color:ManUnited
 from:2000 till:2001 text:"9th Manchester United 7" color:ManUnited
 from:2001 till:2002 text:"10th Arsenal 2" color:Arsenal
 from:2002 till:2003 text:"11th Manchester United 8" color:ManUnited
 from:2003 till:2004 text:"12th Arsenal 3" color:Arsenal
 from:2004 till:2005 text:"13th Chelsea 1" color:Chelsea

* Premier League championships (total English football championships)
Up to 1992, the winners of the First Division of The Football League were the English football champions.
Liverpool hold the overall record with 18 championships.

Top scorers

By season

All-time

As of April 2005

Worldwide reach

The Premier League is one of the most cosmopolitan and widely watched national sporting leagues in the world. Over 260 foreign players compete in the league, and 101 stars from England's domestic leagues competed in the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan. It is widely watched overseas, with matches being shown in over 150 countries and reaching over 450 million people worldwide. Premier League teams such as Manchester United and star players such as Thierry Henry, Steven Gerrard or Ruud van Nistelrooy have become worldwide sporting icons. The Premier League is particularly popular in Scandinavia, with ferry operators offering "football ferries" to Norwegian football fans wishing to see their favourite teams in action. The Premier League and its clubs also enjoy popularity in Canada; games are aired every Saturday in most parts of the country.

The "Curse of Christmas"

Over the history of the Premier League, the so called "Curse of Christmas" became apparent – from the first season onwards, the team who was bottom of the league on Christmas Day was always relegated. This curse was only broken in season 2004–05, when West Bromwich Albion finished 17th on the final day.

External links

• FA Premier League official site
• The FA official site
• Original and Biggest English Premier League Site