English football league system has part(s) English Football League
The system
Level one in the pyramid, the top division of English football, is run by the Premier League (which gives its name to the competition in that division), the winners of which are regarded as the champions of England. Levels two to four are run by the English Football League. Together, these four divisions make up what is known as "league football".
The leagues below level four are classed as "non-League football", meaning they are outside the EFL. The leagues at levels five to ten comprise the National League System (NLS), and come under the direct jurisdiction of the Football Association. The top level (level 5) of the NLS is known as "step 1", the next (level 6) as "step 2", and so on. Until 2020, level 11 divisions were designated as "step 7", but that year were re-designated as "Regional Feeder Leagues".
After the 2023–24 season, four runners-up will compete in the play-offs from where an additional club is guaranteed promotion from each step 5 division, with the number of relegations from each of the eight level 8 divisions to remain at two as each step 4 division will increase its divisional size to 22 teams. The resulting 16 vacancies at step 5 will be filled by relegating only one club per level 9 division, rather than two. Before 2024–25, two promotions out of each step 5 division into its step 4 counterpart will remain and the number of clubs automatically relegated out of each step 5 division will revert to two, reflecting a long-term FA aim to "create consistency" at each step of the NLS pyramid.
The system is only defined as far as level 11. What follows is a notional structure, based on which leagues promote and relegate to each other.
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