The FA Premier League (often referred to as the Barclays English Premier League for sponsorship reasons) comprises the top 20 football clubs in the league system of English football. It was created in 1992.
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.
Currently, the top four teams in the Premiership qualify for the Champions League. The top two teams directly enter the group phase. The third and fourth placed teams enter the competition at the third qualifying round, and must survive a two-legged knockout tie in order to enter the group phase.
Sponsorship
Since 1993, the 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:
* 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.
* For the first 3 seasons of the Premier League (1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95) there were 22 clubs and therefore 42 games played by each club. For all seasons since there have been 20 clubs and therefore 38 games played.
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 David Beckham and Michael Owen 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.
External links
FA Premier League official site (http://www.premierleague.com/)
The FA official site (http://www.thefa.com/)
Original and Biggest English Premier League Site (http://www.4thegame.com/)
Englishfootball has certainly gone a long way from its roots in 1888, when the team to beat was Preston North End, bagging the first two leagues and even the FA Cup of 1988 without losing a game.
Premiership clubs are being supported by a rush of takeovers and investment which does not appear to be slowing down any time soon.
The competition at the top of the Premiership is competitive to be sure, but it has not reach the cut throat level that the Italian and Spanish top divisions face.
The football clubs, the soccer teams, the English Premier League, the goals, matches, scores, transfers and managers sackings that the FAPremiership season is destined to bring.
Whether your heart is at Highbury or you owe it all to Old Trafford, Premiership Bizarrio brings you the lot.
Premiership Bizarrio will also turn its attention to the Champions League and the European and World Football scenes examining players like Francesco Totti, Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Allessandro Del Piero and Nakata.
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