Fußball-Landesliga Bayern-Nord

The Landesliga Bayern-Nord ( en, State league Bavaria-North) was the sixth tier of the German football league system in northern Bavaria. Until the introduction of the 3. Liga in 2008 it was the fifth tier of the league system, until the introduction of the Regionalligas in 1994 the fourth tier.

The winner of the Landesliga Nord was automatically qualified for the Bayernliga, the runners-up needed to compete with the runners-up of Landesliga Bayern-Süd and Landesliga Bayern-Mitte and the 15th placed team of the Bayernliga for another promotion spot.

The league was disbanded in 2012, when the Regionalliga Bayern was introduced as the new fourth tier of the German league system in Bavaria. Below this league, the Bayernliga was expanded to two divisions while the number of Landesligas grew from three to five divisions. However, none of the new leagues carried the name Landesliga Bayern-Nord, with the Landesliga Bayern-Nordwest coming closest in territorial coverage.Auf- und Abstiegsregelung der Bayernliga und der Landesligen für das Qualifikationsspieljahr 2011/2012
Bavarian FA website – Regulations for promotion and relegation in 2012, accessed: 16 July 2011

Overview

The Landesligen in Bayern were formed in 1963, in place of the '' 2nd Amateurligas'', which operated below the Bayernliga until then. In the region of the Landesliga Nord, the 2nd Amateurligen were split into three groups, ''Oberfranken'', ''Unterfranken-Ost'' and ''Unterfranken-West''. The league was formed from eighteen clubs, seven of them from the ''Amateurligas'' (III) and thirteen from the ''2nd Amateurligas'' (IV).''Die Bayernliga 1945–1997'' publisher: DSFS, published: 1998, page: 55 & 56, accessed: 29 June 2009

In the first eighteen seasons, up until 1980, only the league champions were promoted to the Bayernliga. This was altered in 1981, when the three Landesliga runners-up were given the opportunity to earn promotion, too, via a promotion round.''Die Bayernliga 1945–1997'' publisher: DSFS, published: 1998, page: 116, accessed: 29 June 2009 It took 14 attempts by a Landesliga Nord club however, to actually achieve promotion through this way, which VfL Frohnlach finally did in 1994. The Bavarian football association actually stipulates in its rules and regulations that every league champion has to be promoted, unless it declines to do so, and every runners-up has to have the opportunity to earn promotion, too.

Below the league, the Bezirksligas were set as the fifth tier of league football, until 1988, when the Bezirksoberligas were formed. In the first years, four teams were promoted from the Bezirksligas, two from each region. In the 1980s, this number was increased to five clubs for a time. The ''Landesliga Nord'' was now fed by the two '' Bezirksoberligen'' of ''Unterfranken'' and ''Oberfranken''. The winner of those were automatically promoted, the runners-up played-off for another promotion spot, the loser of this game then played a decider with the 15th placed team of ''Landesliga'' to determine the winner of the last available spot in the ''Landesliga''.

For the most part of its history, the league has operated on a strength of eighteen clubs, only occasionally diverting from this when the number of teams relegated from the ''Bayernliga'' to it was more than one. With the changes in the league system there were, on occasion, two automatical promotion places available to each of the Landesligs, like in the seasons 1993–94 and 2007–08.

Clubs based in the border region to Hesse traditionally play in the Hessen football league system rather than the Bavarian Football League System. Notable examples of this are Viktoria Aschaffenburg and FC Bayern Alzenau who both currently play in the Oberliga Hessen. The later only left Landesliga Nord to do so in 1992.

Disbanding

The Bavarian football federation carried out drastic changes to the league system at the end of the 2011–12 season. With the already decided introduction of the Regionalliga Bayern from 2012–13, it also placed two Bayernligas below the new league as the new fifth tier of the German league system. Below those, five Landesligas instead of the existing three were set, which would be geographically divided to limit travel and increase the number of local derbies.

The clubs from the Landesliga Bayern-Nord joined the following leagues:
* Champions and runners-up: Promotion round to the Regionalliga, winners to the Regionalliga, losers to the Bayernliga.
* Teams placed 3rd to 8th: Directly qualified to the Bayernliga.
* Teams placed 9th to 15th: Promotion round to the Bayernliga, winners to the Bayernliga, losers to the Landesliga.
* Teams placed 16th or worse: Directly qualified to the Landesliga.

Founding members

When the league was formed in 1963 as the new fourth tier of the Bavarian league system in Upper Franconia and Lower Franconia, in place of the ''2nd Amateurligas'', it consisted of the following eighteen clubs from the following leagues:

* From the Amateurliga Nordbayern
** FV Würzburg 04
** 1. FC Bayreuth
** 1. FC Michelau
** ATS Kulmbach
** TSV Gochsheim
** VfB Rehau