For season 2021/22 the United Counties League will gain an extra division as a result of a recommendation from the FA’s Alliance and Leagues Committees. The League will consist of 2 Regional Premier Divisions at Step 5, one Division One at Step 6 and the Reserve Division. The Premier Divisions and Division One may have 20 teams in them.
The Committees are recommending to FA Council that the structural changes to the number of divisions in the NLS, which were postponed when the 2019/20 season was declared null and void, be completed in order to address the imbalance that currently exists and achieve the ‘pure pyramid’ at Steps 1-6. The planned and delayed restructure comprises of one additional division at Step 4, two additional divisions at Step 5 and a reduction of divisions, from 20 to 17, at Step 6. As part of the proposals, 110 clubs would be upwardly moved within the pyramid at Steps 4-6 in order to facilitate the new divisions. As part of this upward movement one club will be promoted from the UCL Premier Division to Step 4 and three clubs will be promoted from UCL Division One to Step 5.
Summary:
The Committees have proposed that:
- The following divisional changes will be implemented for the 2021-22 season:
- One new division will be created at Step 4, to be administered by the Northern Premier League;
- Two new divisions will be created at Step 5, to be administered by the Combined Counties League and the United Counties League; and
- The number of divisions at Step 6 will be reduced to 17.
- In order to implement these divisional changes, 110 clubs will be required to upwardly move within the pyramid at Steps 4 to 6:
- 20 clubs will move from Step 5 to Step 4;
- 60 clubs will move from Step 6 to Step 5 (20 to backfill those Clubs elevated to Step 4, and 40 to populate the two new divisions); and
- 30 clubs will move from Regional NLS Feeder Leagues to Step 6 (to bring Step 6 divisions to their full quota, taking into account the reduced number of divisions going forwards).
- The mechanism for selecting clubs required to move into the new divisions at Step 4 and Step 5 will be as follows:
- Each Club will be allocated an unweighted points per game figure on the basis of its completed fixtures in both the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons, i.e. the club’s total points across both seasons will be added together and divided by the number of games it has played across both seasons. A Club must have played in each of the two seasons (both at the same Step) in order to be eligible for upward movement via this process.
- Clubs will then be ranked within their respective leagues on the basis of those calculations.
- Clubs who are eligible for upward movement will be identified as follows:
- Step 5 – The top 3 ranked clubs from each of the North West Counties League, Northern Counties East League and Northern League, along with the top ranked Club from the remaining eleven Step 5 divisions, will be considered eligible for upward movement to Step 4 and will be invited to make an application to do so. Multiple clubs will be upwardly moved from these specific leagues, as per the previous ratification by FA Council, in order to address specific challenges with travelling distance and time which exist at Step 4.
- Step 6 – The top 2 ranked clubs in each of the South West Peninsula League divisions, along with the top 3 ranked clubs from the eighteen remaining Step 6 divisions, will be considered eligible for upward movement to Step 5 and will be invited to make an application for upward movement. Fewer clubs will be upwardly moved from the South West Peninsula League Divisions, as per the previous ratification by FA Council, on the basis of geographical reasons for the relevant divisions at Step 5.
It will not be mandatory for any club which is eligible for upward movement to make an application. If an eligible club decides not to do so, the next best ranked club will be invited (and so on) subject to any cut off point deemed appropriate by the Committees.
