(Redirected from
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.
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 clubs, 2004-05
Former Premier League Members
Notes:
Past Premier League winners
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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
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| Past winners of the Premier League
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Top scorers
By season
| Season
| Top scorer, club
| Goals
|
| 1992-93*
| Teddy Sheringham, Tottenham Hotspur
| 22
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| 1993-94*
| Andy Cole, Newcastle United
| 34
|
| 1994-95*
| Alan Shearer, Blackburn Rovers
| 34
|
| 1995-96
| Alan Shearer, Blackburn Rovers
| 31
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| 1996-97
| Alan Shearer, Newcastle United
| 25
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| 1997-98
| Chris Sutton, Blackburn Rovers
Dion Dublin, Coventry City
Michael Owen, Liverpool
| 18
|
| 1998-99
| Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Leeds United
Michael Owen, Liverpool
Dwight Yorke, Manchester United
| 18
|
| 1999-2000
| Kevin Phillips, Sunderland
| 30
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| 2000-01
| Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Chelsea
| 23
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| 2001-02
| Thierry Henry, Arsenal
| 24
|
| 2002-03
| Ruud van Nistelrooy, Manchester United
| 25
|
| 2003-04
| Thierry Henry, Arsenal
| 30
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* 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.
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All-time
As of April 2005
Executive officers
- Chief Executive: Richard Scudamore
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 David Beckham, Michael Owen 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.
External links
Last updated: 08-29-2005 08:20:15
