The National League South, formerly Conference South, is one of the second divisions of the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
in England, immediately below the
top division National League. Along with
National League North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
, it is in the second level of 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 ...
, and is the sixth tier overall of 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 ...
.
The National League South was introduced in 2004 as part of a major restructuring of the National League System. Each year the champion of the league is automatically promoted to the National League. A second promotion place goes to the winner of a play-off involving the teams finishing in second to seventh place (expanded from four to six teams in the 2017–18 season). The three bottom clubs were relegated to Step 3 leagues.
For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Blue Square South (2007–2010), Blue Square Bet South (2010–2013), Skrill South (2013–2014), the Vanarama Conference South (2014–2015), the Vanarama National League South (2015–2019) and the Motorama National League South following a three-year sponsorship deal announced in January 2019. Since the start of the
2015–16 season, the league is known as the National League South. The 2018–19 champions were
Torquay United
Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...
.
The National League South was reduced to 21 clubs for 2020–21 and was expected to expand to 24 teams in 2021–22.
Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in England
The COVID-19 pandemic was first confirmed to have spread to England with two cases among Chinese nationals staying in a hotel in York on 31 January 2020. The two main public bodies responsible for health in England are NHS England and Public ...
, the 2020–21 National League South season was curtailed and voided after written resolutions were put to a vote. No teams were relegated.
Expansion would be implemented before the 2022–23 season, when the bottom club was relegated and four were promoted from Step 3.
There will be four relegations from the South starting in 2023.
Current member clubs, 2022–23
The current member clubs for the 2022-23 season are as follows:
Current league stadia 2022–23
The stadiums of all teams in the league for the
2022–23 season are listed below in capacity order:
League winners
League records
See also
*
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
*
National League North
The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Sy ...
References
External links
The National League official site
{{UEFA sixth level leagues
2
6
2004 establishments in England
Sports leagues established in 2004
Eng