The Essex Alliance Football League is an

English football Association football is the most popular sport in England, where the first modern set of rules for the code were established in 1863, which were a major influence on the development of the modern Laws of the Game. With over 40,000 association f ...

league for clubs based in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

and north-eastern

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...

. The league has six divisions (Senior, Premier, Divisions One, Two, Three and Four), of which the Senior Division sits at 11th level in the

English football league system The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey, one from Jersey and one from the Isl ...

, formerly Step 7 in the

National League System The National League System comprises the six levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the English Football League. It comes under the jurisdiction of The Football Association. The National League System has a h ...

, following the Football Association's approval to become a Regional NLS Feeder League (Step 7) from season 2021–22 onwards. Teams that finish in the top five of the league can apply for promotion to the Division One South of the

Eastern Counties Football League The Eastern Counties Football League, currently known as the Thurlow Nunn League for sponsorship purposes, is an English football league at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league system. It currently contains clubs from Norfolk, Suffol ...

(Step 6), subject to their facilities meeting criteria and other conditions.

History

The league was founded in 2014 through the merging of the Ilford and District and the Essex Business House football leagues, which both shared a common aim to support and promote local grassroots football in Essex and

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

while bridging the gap with other neighbouring leagues in the region. The league permits member clubs to play on grounds in the boroughs of Havering, Barking & Dagenham, Redbridge, Newham, Waltham Forest, Harlow and Epping Forest. The league currently has a membership of 76 teams, many of whom were existing members of the aforementioned leagues and were joined by many new clubs as the league seeks to buck the trend of the local Saturday football scene which had been diminishing in numbers over the past few years. In 2022, history was made in the league as the first direct promotion to senior football was confirmed with DT FC, champions of the Senior Division, successfully promoted to Step 6 within the

Division One South. During the 2022/23 season, it was announced by the Football Association that four leagues in England would pilot the first ever referee body worn camera trial, the Essex Alliance League one of those chosen to take part for a period of 18-24 months, alongside leagues in Middlesbrough, Liverpool and Worcestershire.

Member clubs for 2022–23

Champions

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Football leagues in England Sports leagues established in 2014 2014 establishments in England Football competitions in London Football in Essex