# 1889–90 in English football

The 1889–90 season was the 19th season of competitive football in England. Preston North End were Football League champions for the second successive season while The Wednesday finished top of the newly formed Football Alliance. Blackburn Rovers won the FA Cup.

## Football League

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Relegation |
| 1 | Preston North End | 22 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 71 | 30 | 2.367 | 33 | League Champions |
| 2 | Everton | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 65 | 40 | 1.625 | 31 | |
| 3 | Blackburn Rovers | 22 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 78 | 41 | 1.902 | 27 | FA Cup Winners |
| 4 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 51 | 38 | 1.342 | 25 | |
| 5 | West Bromwich Albion | 22 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 47 | 50 | 0.940 | 25 | |
| 6 | Accrington | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 53 | 56 | 0.946 | 24 | |
| 7 | Derby County | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 43 | 55 | 0.782 | 21 | |
| 8 | Aston Villa | 22 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 43 | 51 | 0.843 | 19 | |
| 9 | Bolton Wanderers | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 54 | 65 | 0.831 | 19 | |
| 10 | Notts County | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 43 | 51 | 0.843 | 17 | Re-elected |
| 11 | Burnley | 22 | 4 | 5 | 13 | 36 | 65 | 0.554 | 13 | Re-elected |
| 12 | Stoke | 22 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 27 | 69 | 0.391 | 10 | Not re-elected |

## Football Alliance

A new competition, the Football Alliance, started this season. It was formed by 12 clubs as a rival to The Football League, which had begun in the 1888–89 season, also with 12 member clubs. The Alliance covered a similar area to the League, stretching from the Midlands to the North West, but also further east in Sheffield, Grimsby and Sunderland.
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | The Wednesday | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 70 | 39 | 1.795 | 32 | Football Alliance Champions |
| 2 | Bootle | 22 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 66 | 39 | 1.692 | 28 | |
| 3 | Sunderland Albion | 21 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 64 | 39 | 1.641 | 28 | |
| 4 | Grimsby Town | 22 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 58 | 47 | 1.234 | 26 | |
| 5 | Crewe Alexandra | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 68 | 59 | 1.153 | 24 | |
| 6 | Darwen | 22 | 10 | 2 | 10 | 70 | 75 | 0.933 | 22 | |
| 7 | Birmingham St George's | 21 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 62 | 49 | 1.265 | 21 | |
| 8 | Newton Heath LYR | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 40 | 44 | 0.909 | 20 | |
| 9 | Walsall Town Swifts | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 44 | 59 | 0.746 | 19 | |
| 10 | Small Heath | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 44 | 67 | 0.657 | 17 | |
| 11 | Nottingham Forest | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 31 | 62 | 0.500 | 17 | |
| 12 | Long Eaton Rangers | 22 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 35 | 73 | 0.479 | 10 | Dropped out |
* 1 2 Sunderland Albion's point total includes two points awarded after Birmingham St George's refused to fulfil a fixture against them which had been ordered to be replayed by the management committee.
* ↑ Dropped out of the Football Alliance to join the Midland League.

## FA Cup

The FA Cup was won by Blackburn Rovers, who beat The Wednesday 6–1 in the 1890 FA Cup Final to lift the trophy for the fourth time.

## National team

In the 1889–90 British Home Championship, England played matches against Wales and Ireland on the same day, 15 March 1890, winning both comfortably. The team for the Wales match were mainly amateur players, whereas the team against Ireland were all professional players. The Irish goal was scored by Jack Reynolds, who later played for England.
In the deciding match against Scotland, the teams drew 1–1 and shared the trophy.
| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score* | Competition | England scorers | Goals and times |
| 15 March 1890 | Racecourse Ground, Wrexham (A) | Wales | 3–1 | BHC | Edmund Currey (Oxford University) Tinsley Lindley (Nottingham Forest) | |
| 15 March 1890 | Ballynafeigh Park, Belfast (A) | Ireland | 9–1 | BHC | Fred Geary (Everton) William Townley (Blackburn Rovers) Joe Lofthouse (Blackburn Rovers) Kenny Davenport (Bolton Wanderers) John Barton (Blackburn Rovers) | 15' 60' 80' 16' 84' 40' 46' 75' 88' |
| 5 April 1890 | (Second) Hampden Park, Glasgow (A) | Scotland | 1–1 | BHC | Harry Wood (Wolverhampton Wanderers) | 17' |
* England score given first
Key
* A = Away match
* BHC = British Home Championship