Lowland Football League
 | |
| Founded | 2013 |
|---|---|
| Country | Scotland |
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Level on pyramid | 5 |
| Promotion to | Scottish League Two |
| Relegation to |
East of Scotland Football League South of Scotland Football League |
| Domestic cup(s) |
Scottish Cup South Region Challenge Cup Scottish Challenge Cup (top 4) Scottish League Cup (champions) |
| League cup(s) | Lowland League Cup |
| Current champions |
Spartans (2nd title) (2017–18) |
| Most championships |
Edinburgh City Spartans (2 titles) |
| Website | slfl.co.uk |
 | |
The Scottish Lowland Football League (commonly known as the Lowland League) is a football league operating in southern and central Scotland. 16 teams currently compete in the league with teams drawn from the Lowlands area of Scotland. For the 2018-19 season the league is known as the GeoSonic Lowland League for sponsorship reasons.[1]
The Lowland League is the fifth tier of the Scottish football pyramid, on a par with the Highland League and above the Lowlands-based regional leagues.
Format
Promotion and relegation
Since 2014–15, promotion to the Scottish Professional Football League is via an annual play-off with the champions of the Highland Football League, the winners playing-off against the bottom club in League Two.[2]
Additionally, the bottom placed club will face relegation to the East of Scotland Football League or South of Scotland Football League depending on their geographical location. The second-bottom club may also face relegation to keep the league at 16 teams, depending on the results of the pyramid play-off. As a creation of the Scottish Football Association, the Lowland League is a full member of the same organisation.
History
Formation
The Lowland League was founded by a unanimous vote of members of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) on 11 June 2013,[2] who had for some time intended on instituting a football pyramid including promotion and relegation from Scottish football's senior divisions down to its junior and amateur levels.[3] The league would be composed of teams drawn from the South of Scotland, East of Scotland and junior leagues, who met on 17 June 2013 to elect between them the founder-members of the new league.[4]
While most clubs were invited to submit bids to join, Preston Athletic, Spartans and Threave Rovers were offered automatic entry as they were already fully licensed by the SFA.[4] While 27 clubs had registered their interest, the Lowland League received 17 applications to join.[5] After the meeting on 17 June, it was announced there would be 12 teams in the league, and that they would be Dalbeattie Star, East Kilbride, Edinburgh City, Gala Fairydean Rovers, Gretna 2008, Preston Athletic, Selkirk, Spartans, Stirling University, Threave Rovers, Vale of Leithen & Whitehill Welfare.[6]
Recent history
Subsequent seasons have seen the number of participating clubs increase. Two clubs, Edinburgh University and BSC Glasgow, were admitted to the league for the 2014–15 season.[7] They were joined the following season by Cumbernauld Colts.[8] Civil Service Strollers and Hawick Royal Albert joined the league in June 2016.
The end of the 2015–16 season was the first time that founding members would leave the league. Edinburgh City became the first club to be promoted to the Scottish League, while Threave Rovers declined the opportunity to re-apply to the league after finishing bottom and rejoined the South of Scotland Football League.[9] The same season also saw the first team relegated into the league from Scottish League Two – East Stirlingshire.
In 2017–18 the first promotion play-off took place between the champions of the East of Scotland and South of Scotland leagues, with former SJFA East Region club Kelty Hearts winning 10–0 on aggregate over Threave Rovers to gain promotion.
During 2018-19 Selkirk resigned their membership in the league owing to insurmountable difficulties. [10] It was agreed by the Lowland League board that all fixtures played by and to be played by Selkirk in 2018/19 would be expunged from the record along with any other data involving Selkirk for that season. The Lowland League will move forward with 15 clubs, however, the team which finishes bottom in the season’s competition will still be relegated from the Lowland League.
The League will return to 16 clubs for season 2019-20 as per the current rules. [11]
Member clubs
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity | Seats | Floodlit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BSC Glasgow | Alloa | Recreation Park | 3,100 | 919 | Yes |
| Civil Service Strollers | Edinburgh | Christie Gillies Park | 1,569 | 100 | No |
| Cumbernauld Colts | Cumbernauld | Broadwood Stadium | 7,936 | 7,936 | Yes |
| Dalbeattie Star | Dalbeattie | Islecroft Stadium | 4,000 | 250 | Yes |
| East Kilbride | East Kilbride | K Park | 660 | 400 | Yes |
| East Stirlingshire | Falkirk | Falkirk Stadium[12] | 7,937 | 7,937 | Yes |
| Edinburgh University | Edinburgh | New Peffermill Stadium | 1,100 | 100 | Yes |
| Edusport Academy | Annan | Galabank | 2,504 | 500 | Yes |
| Gala Fairydean Rovers | Galashiels | 3G Arena, Netherdale | 5,500 | 495 | Yes |
| Gretna 2008 | Gretna | Raydale Park | 3,000 | 1,318 | Yes |
| Kelty Hearts | Kelty | New Central Park | 3,000 | 350 | Yes |
| Spartans | Edinburgh | Ainslie Park | 3,000 | 504 | Yes |
| Stirling University | Stirling | Forthbank Stadium | 3,808 | 2,508 | Yes |
| Vale of Leithen | Innerleithen | Victoria Park | 1,500 | 0 | No |
| Whitehill Welfare | Rosewell | Ferguson Park | 4,000 | 150 | No |
Seasons
| Season | Champions | Runner-up | Relegated |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | Spartans | Stirling University | |
| 2014–15 | Edinburgh City | East Kilbride | |
| 2015–16 | Edinburgh City * (2) | Spartans | Threave Rovers |
| 2016–17 | East Kilbride | East Stirlingshire | Preston Athletic |
| 2017–18 | Spartans (2) | East Kilbride | Hawick Royal Albert |
| 2018–19 |
- * Team promoted to Scottish League Two
Lowland League Cup
This 16 team straight knock-out tournament takes place over four weekends at the end of the league season. The league champion has the right to withdraw from the competition to concentrate on the Scottish League Two play-offs.
| Season | Winner | Score | Runners–up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | Stirling University | 5–2[13] | Preston Athletic |
| 2014–15 | East Kilbride | 3–1[14] | Gretna 2008 |
| 2015–16 | East Kilbride | 0–0 AET 4–2 on penalties[15] |
Gretna 2008 |
| 2016–17 | Spartans | 3–0[16] | BSC Glasgow |
| 2017–18 | Cumbernauld Colts | 3–1[17] | Selkirk |
Sponsorship
On 24 September 2013, the Scottish Sun newspaper was revealed to be the first sponsor of the league.[18] The league was then sponsored by Ferrari Packaging on a two-year agreement, which was extended to cover the 2017–18 season.[19] In August 2018, GeoSonic, the Alloa-based sonic drilling contractor, concluded a one-year deal to become the new title sponsor of the Scottish Lowland Football League.[1]
Media coverage
The league has its own official weekly podcast known as The Lowland League Catchup. As well as weekly previews to games, and reviews known as the Roundup.[20]
On 19 September 2018, the SLFL also agreed a comprehensive media partnership with RockSport Radio.[21]
References
- 1 2 "Lowland League Announces New Title Sponsor - Scottish Lowland League". Scottish Lowland League. 2018-08-24. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- 1 2 "Scottish FA approves Lowland League for next season". BBC Sport. 11 June 2013.
- ↑ "George Peat's Scottish football pyramid plan quickly bogged down in political sands". The Telegraph. 11 December 2008. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
- 1 2 "Scottish clubs approve creation of Lowland League as part of pyramid". STV. 11 June 2013.
- ↑ "Dozen clubs to play in Scottish Lowland Football League announced". STV. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ↑ "Scottish Lowland Football League clubs selected". Scottish FA. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ↑ "Lowland League announces new members for next season". BBC Sport. BBC. 28 April 2014. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
- ↑ "Cumbernauld Colts admitted to Lowland League". Lowland Football League. Lowland League. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ↑ Gillespie, Stuart (5 June 2016). "Threave Rovers' South of Scotland League return confirmed after three years in the Lowland League". Daily Record. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
- ↑ "Selkirk FC Resign from Scottish Lowland League - Scottish Lowland League". Scottish Lowland League. 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- ↑ "Selkirk's Resignation: What Happens Next? - Scottish Lowland League". Scottish Lowland League. 2018-09-04. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- ↑ East Stirlingshire will ground-share with Falkirk at the Falkirk Stadium for the duration of the 2018–19 season.
- ↑ https://www.stir.ac.uk/footballclub/report/2013-14/270414lowlandleaguecupfinal/
- ↑ http://gretnafc2008.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/gretna-fc-2008-1-east-kilbride-3.html?spref=tw
- ↑ http://www.pieandbovril.com/forum/index.php?/topic/230937-lowland-league-cup-final/
- ↑ http://www.bscglasgow.co.uk/bscglasgownews/bsc-glasgow-0-spartans-3-22-05-17.html
- ↑ http://slfl.co.uk/tournament/ferrari-packaging-lowland-league-cup/
- ↑ "We're league leaders". Scottish Sun. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 21 October 2013.
- ↑ Thomson, Paul (30 July 2015). "East Kilbride packaging firm wrap up sponsorship deal with Lowland League". Daily Record. Glasgow. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
- ↑ "News - Scottish Lowland League". Scottish Lowland League. Retrieved 2018-09-29.
- ↑ "Lowland League & Rocksport Sign Media Partnership - Scottish Lowland League". Scottish Lowland League. 2018-09-19. Retrieved 2018-09-21.