The Football League

The Football League is a league competition featuring professional football clubs from England and Wales, and is the oldest such competition in world football. It was the top level football league in England from its foundation in the 19th century until 1992, when the top 20 clubs split away to form the FA Premier League. Since 1992 it has had 72 clubs evenly divided into three divisions, which are currently known as The Championship, League One, and League Two. Promotion and relegation between these divisions is a central feature of the League and is further extended to allow the top Championship clubs to exchange places with the lowest placed clubs in the Premier League, and the bottom clubs of League Two to switch with the top clubs of the Football Conference, thus integrating the League into the English football league system. Although primarily a competition for English clubs, three clubs from Wales also take part.
The Football League is also the name of the governing body of the league competition and this body also organises two knockout cup competitions, the Football League Cup and the Football League Trophy.
For sponsorship reasons, the Football League's league competition is currently known as the Coca-Cola Football League, the Football League Cup as the Carling Cup, and the Football League Trophy as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy.