East of Scotland Football League

The East of Scotland Football League (EoSFL) is a league of football teams from south-east Scotland, which was formed in 1923. The league sits at level 6 on the pyramid system, on par with the South of Scotland Football League and West of Scotland Football League. It is a feeder to the Lowland Football League.

East of Scotland Football League
Founded1923
Country Scotland (39 teams)
Other club(s) from England (1 team)
ConfederationUEFA
Divisions2
Number of teams49
Level on pyramid6–7
Promotion toLowland Football League
Domestic cup(s)Scottish Cup
South Region Challenge Cup
League cup(s)East of Scotland League Cup
King Cup (First Division only)
Current championsBo'ness United (1st title)
(2019–20)
Most championshipsWhitehill Welfare (16 titles)
Websiteeosfl.com
2020–21 East of Scotland Football League

Its clubs are largely located in the Edinburgh, Lothians and Scottish Borders areas, although in recent years clubs from Clackmannanshire, Falkirk, Fife, Stirling and Perth have joined the league. A total of 50 teams are competing in the 2020–21 season, drawn from the 63 members of the sister organisation, the East of Scotland Football Association (EoSFA).

Since 2014–15, and subject to both clubs meeting the licensing criteria for promotion, the winners of the East of Scotland Football League and the South of Scotland Football League have taken part in an end of season play-off for a place in the Lowland Football League.

History

Original EoSFL

An earlier East of Scotland League existed between 1896 and 1906, when the supplementary Edinburgh Football League changed its name, after accepting Dundee as a member. There is no connection between the two incarnations of the league.

Recent history

The EoSFL was traditionally one of Scotland's three "senior" non-leagues which sat outside the Scottish Football League (SFL), the other two being the Highland Football League and the South of Scotland Football League (SoSFL). It was generally viewed as being weaker than the Highland League (with fewer of their club sides defeating SFL sides in the Scottish Cup competition as opposed to the HFL), but was still regarded as being stronger than the South of Scotland League.

Some SoSFL clubs opted to join the EoSFL, including Annan Athletic before they were elected to the SFL in 2008. Dalbeattie Star and Threave Rovers also joined however both subsequently left to rejoin the SoSFL and then later the Lowland League.

A number of the sides in the EoSFL have applied to join the SFL in the past, with Annan Athletic applying in (2000, successfully in 2008), Edinburgh City (2002, 2008), Gala Fairydean (1994, 2000, 2002), Preston Athletic (2000, 2002, 2008) and Spartans (2008).

In 2004, Threave Rovers pulled out of the league to concentrate their efforts on the South of Scotland Football League. This left the league with an uneven number of clubs, and they were expected to fill the vacancy in the summer of 2005, with Gala Rovers widely touted as likely candidates. However, this did not happen. The only change that happened at that year's AGM of the league, was that Tollcross United announced that they would be competing as Tynecastle from the 2005-06 season.

In 2006, Peebles Rovers merged with several local amateur sides to become Peebles, who took Rovers' place in the league. At the 2007 AGM, agreement was reached to admit the reserve side of Berwick Rangers as the twelfth member of the First Division. They also entered the League Cup, but no other cups during the 2007–08 season. However, the reserves lasted only one season following Berwick Rangers' relegation to the fourth tier of Scottish football. They were replaced by Stirling University, but returned for the 2010–11 season.

Gretna 2008 entered the league in 2008, formed in the wake of the financial disaster that befell Gretna's former club, Gretna F.C.. They initially had to play home matches in the nearby town of Annan, the club that took their place in the SFL.

The admission of Duns prior to the 2011–12 season, and then Burntisland Shipyard in 2012–13 brought the number of sides in the EoSFL to 26, the highest it had ever been.

Lowland League and decline

In 2013 the Lowland Football League was formed to act as a direct feeder to the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), covering an area of Scotland south of the Tay Road Bridge. Nine EoSFL clubs gained entry to the Lowland League, reducing the EoSFL to 20 teams. Hibernian entered a reserve team into the league at the start of the 2013–14 season, but withdrew after one season due to their first team being relegated.[1] Further departures saw the league merged into a single division of 16 teams in 2015–16, which was then reduced to just 11 teams during 2016–17 as more clubs moved to the Lowland League, Juniors or resigned.

Influx of Junior clubs

Beginning in 2017 the league experienced a resurgence with SJFA East Superleague champions Kelty Hearts joining from the Juniors. In April 2018, thirteen clubs—most of them from the East Juniors—were accepted into the league for the 2018-19 season, doubling the league's membership. When the window for applications was extended to the league's AGM in June, even more clubs quit the Junior grade, bringing the total membership up to 39 clubs, split over three conferences.[2] The following season Glenrothes made the same switch. In 2020 a further ten clubs, including the return of Eyemouth United after a year out, boosted the league's membership to 50 clubs ahead of the 2020–21 season.[3]

East of Scotland Football Association

While the EoSFL oversees the leagues and League Cup competitions; the East of Scotland Football Association (EoSFA) is a technically independent body, which organises all of the other cups. Most of the officials sit on both bodies, and the Executive Committee is a joint organisation. The current President of the EoSFA is Andy McDonald (of Edinburgh City), while the President of the EoSFL is John Greenhorn (of Ormiston).

There are 63 members of the East of Scotland Football Association (EoSFA). Three members play in the SPFL:

The first teams of these three members have little involvement in EoSFA competitions. Youth teams of Hearts and Hibernian contest the East of Scotland Shield, while Edinburgh City participate in the East of Scotland (City) Cup final.

12 EoSFA members play in the Lowland League:

The first teams of the Lowland League members contest the East of Scotland Qualifying Cup. Hibernian,[4][1] Berwick Rangers, and Spartans have all fielded reserve teams in the EoSFL.[5]

The EoSFL and EoSFA are full members of the Scottish Football Association.

Member clubs
Location of teams in 2019–20 East of Scotland Football League
– Premier Division – First Division Conference A – First Division Conference B – 2020–21 First Division clubs
Main article: 2020–21 East of Scotland Football League

The EoSFL's two-tier format, which began in 1987–88, was abolished for the 2015–16 season due to dwindling numbers and replaced with a single division. To cope with the influx of new members in 2018-19, the league consisted of three conferences running in parallel. For 2019–20, the EoSFL was reorganised back into a two-tier setup, with a 16-team Premier Division and two First Division conferences each with 12 teams.

Listed below are the 49 clubs in the EoSFL for the 2020–21 season.

Premier Division
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