The Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) is the national men's

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

league in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. The league was formed in June 2013 following a merger between the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish Football League. As well as operating its league competition, which consists of the top four levels of the

Scottish football league system The Scottish football league system is a series of generally connected leagues for Scottish football clubs. The Scottish system is more complicated than many other national league systems, consisting of several completely separate systems or 'gr ...

, the SPFL also operates two domestic cup competitions, the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...

and the Scottish Challenge Cup. While the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Scottish Football Association.

Background

was first created in 1890, when the Scottish Football League (SFL) was formed. Traditionally the league had a two divisional structure (Divisions One and Two) between which clubs were promoted and relegated at the end of each season. By the mid-1970s, this organisation was perceived to be stagnant, and it was decided to split into a three divisional structure: Premier Division (formerly Division One), First Division (formerly Division Two) and a newly added

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. This system came into force for the 1975–76 season. This setup continued until the 1994–95 seasonRangers and Hearts owners, Hibs and Aberdeen involved, Celtic wavering - recalling failed Scottish Super League breakaway of 1992
Stephen Halliday, The Scotsman, 20 April 2021 when a four divisional structure was introduced, along with a new Third Division, with all four divisions consisting of ten clubs. On 8 September 1997, the Premier Division clubs decided to split from the Scottish Football League and form the Scottish Premier League (SPL), following the example of the

English Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

. This decision was fuelled by a desire by the top clubs in Scotland to control more of the revenue generated by the game and to negotiate its contracts with sponsors and broadcasters. SFL revenues had been divided proportionally between clubs in all four divisions. The SPL clubs retained all of its commercial revenues, except for an annual payment to the SFL and a

parachute payment The Premier League distributes a formulaically derived financial payment to each English Football League (EFL) club every season. There are two mechanisms with which funds are calculated and distributed; these are known as "Parachute Payments" and " ...

to any relegated clubs. Scottish football began to think about changing its structures again in the late 2000s, as Scottish clubs and national teams were struggling in international competition and revenues were being greatly outgrown by the neighbouring English Premier League. A review, led by former First Minister of Scotland Henry McLeish, was conducted by the Scottish Football Association and its report was published in December 2010. McLeish recommended that Scottish football should have a single league body and that the top flight should be reduced to 10 clubs. The proposal to change the top flight numbers did not proceed because of opposition from four SPL clubs, with only two needed to block any change of that nature. Talks continued about the proposed league merger. A proposal for a merged league body with a 12–12–18 structure was advanced in April 2013. This plan failed when two SPL clubs ( Ross County and St Mirren) voted against. The SPL clubs unanimously agreed a revised merger plan a few weeks later, which would retain the same league structure and redistribute more revenues to second tier clubs. The SFL submitted a counter-proposal allowing for more revenues to be given to third and fourth tier clubs, but this was rejected by the SPL, who stuck with the plan agreed by their clubs. An indicative vote of SFL clubs in May suggested that the SPL plan would be formally rejected. Some of the First Division (second tier) clubs threatened to break away from the SFL and form an "SPL2" (SPL second division). The SPL suggested it would welcome the First Division clubs if they decided to leave the SFL. A formal vote of SFL clubs was taken on 12 June. 23 clubs voted in favour, one more than was needed for the proposal to succeed. The merger was formally agreed on 28 June and football was first played under the new structure in the 2013–14 season.

League and corporate structure

On 24 July 2013 the names of the four SPFL divisions were announced –

Scottish Premiership The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottis ...

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish Champio ...

Scottish League One The Scottish League One, known as cinch League One for sponsorship reasons, is the third tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish League One was ...

and

Scottish League Two The Scottish League Two, known as cinch League Two for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish League Two was e ...

. The merger was criticised by Alex Anderson of ''

When Saturday Comes ''When Saturday Comes'' (''WSC'') is a monthly magazine about football, first published in London in 1986. "It aims to provide a voice for intelligent football supporters, offering both a serious and humorous view of the sport, covering all the ...

'' as bringing further uncertainty to Scottish football, holding the belief that the semi-professional clubs in the lower divisions will be put into a future regional structure. The SPFL is operated as a corporation and is owned by the 42 member clubs. Each club is a shareholder, with each having a vote on issues such as rule changes and contracts. The clubs elect a six-man board of directors to oversee the daily operations of the league. The board of directors in turn appoint a Chief Executive.

Neil Doncaster Neil Doncaster (born 1970) is an association football executive. He was appointed as chief executive of the Scottish Professional Football League in July 2013, having previously held the same position at the Scottish Premier League from 2009 t ...

became the SPFL's first Chief Executive in July 2013, after beating David Longmuir to the role. The board of directors is composed of eight members, who are elected at the company's annual general meeting.

Clubs

Listed below are the 42 member clubs of the SPFL for the 2022–23 season. ;

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...

* Heart of Midlothian * Hibernian * Kilmarnock *

Livingston Livingston may refer to: Businesses * Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010) * Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline * Livingston International, a North American custom ...

* Motherwell * Rangers * Ross County * St Johnstone * St Mirren ;

* Arbroath *

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is ...

* Cove Rangers * Dundee *

Greenock Morton Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the Scottish Championship. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Green ...

Hamilton Academical Hamilton Academical Football Club, often known as Hamilton Accies, or The Accies, is a Scottish football club from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire who currently compete in the Scottish Championship, having been relegated from the 2020–21 Scotti ...

Inverness Caledonian Thistle Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team currently competes in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional ...

* Partick Thistle * Queen's Park *

Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leagu ...

;

* Airdrieonians *

Alloa Athletic Alloa Athletic Football Club is a Scottish association football semi-professional club based in the town of Alloa, Clackmannanshire. Formed as Alloa in 1880, the football club shortly changed its name to Alloa Association, and then to Alloa Ath ...

Clyde Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...

Dunfermline Athletic Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...

FC Edinburgh Football Club of Edinburgh, formerly known as Edinburgh City F.C., is a semi-professional senior Scottish football club which plays in Scottish League One, the third tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. The club play at Meadowban ...

* Falkirk *

Kelty Hearts Kelty Hearts Football Club is a football club based in the village of Kelty in Fife, Scotland. Formed in 1975 and nicknamed ''the Hearts'', ''the Maroon Machine'' and ''the Jambos'', they play their home games at New Central Park. Their home ...

* Montrose *

Peterhead Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...

* Queen of the South ;

Albion Rovers Albion Rovers Football Club is a semi-professional football team from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of the Scotti ...

* Annan Athletic * Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic *

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

* East Fife *

Elgin City Elgin City Football Club (also known as City or The Black and Whites) is a professional senior football club based in Elgin, Moray. Elgin was founded in 1893 and originally played their football in the Highland Football League. The club was g ...

Forfar Athletic Forfar Athletic Football Club are a Scottish semi-professional football club from the town of Forfar, Angus. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League and currently play in Scottish League Two. They play their home games a ...

* Stenhousemuir *

Stirling Albion Stirling Albion Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Stirling. The club was founded in 1945 following the demise of King's Park after World War II. The club currently competes in Scottish League Two as a member of the ...

* Stranraer

Champions

Promotion/relegation play-off winners

The SPFL retained the promotion/relegation play-off format between Scottish Football League divisions introduced in 2005, whilst adding a play-off tournament to the Premiership, then later a play-off between League Two and the Highland Football League and

Lowland Football League The Scottish Lowland Football League (SLFL, commonly known as the Lowland League) is a senior football league based in central and southern Scotland. The league sits at level 5 on the Scottish football league system, acting as a feeder to the ...

in the 2014–15 season. Clubs in bold are those who were promoted from the lower to the higher tier. :^H Club promoted from the Highland Football League :^L Club promoted from the

League sponsorship and media rights

One of the reasons given for the merger was the belief that it would help to attract title sponsorship to Scottish league football; contracts between the SPL and

Clydesdale Bank Clydesdale Bank ( gd, Banca Dhail Chluaidh) is a trading name used by Clydesdale Bank plc for its retail banking operations in Scotland. In June 2018, it was announced that Clydesdale Bank's holding company CYBG would acquire Virgin Money for ...

and the SFL and

Irn-Bru Irn-Bru ( "iron brew", ) is a Scottish carbonated soft drink, often described as "Scotland's other national drink" (after whisky). Introduced in 1901, the drink is produced in Westfield, Cumbernauld, North Lanarkshire, by A.G. Barr of Glasgo ...

expired in 2013. In October 2013, the SPFL announced a partnership with Irn-Bru, making it the league's official soft drink. Neil Doncaster stated that the SPFL would continue to seek sponsorship for the league and the

. After two seasons without a main sponsor, a two-year agreement was reached with bookmaker

Ladbrokes Ladbrokes Coral is a British gambling company founded in 1886. Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. The business is split into two divisions, UK and International. UK operations are c ...

in May 2015. This was later extended until June 2020. After a year without a title sponsor, the SPFL reached a five-year deal with used car marketplace company Cinch. The SPFL inherited

media rights Broadcasting rights (often also called media rights) are rights which a broadcasting organization negotiates with a commercial concern - such as a sports governing body or film distributor - in order to show that company's products on television o ...

arrangements with

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

and

BT Sport BT Sport is a group of pay television sports channels in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Owned by Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe and BT Group, they first launched on 1 August 2013. The channels are based at the former International Bro ...

. It emerged in May 2014 that the SPFL had repaid part of the agreed contract due to the additional costs incurred by the broadcasters in covering Rangers matches at lower division grounds. In September 2015, the SPFL announced that it had extended its agreements with Sky and BT to the end of the 2019–20 season on "improved terms". In 2018, it was announced that Sky Sports would take over exclusive live rights for the Premiership from the

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...

season. On 2 November 2013 the SPFL agreed a £20 million deal with sports media rights firm

MP & Silva MP & Silva Limited was an international sports marketing and media rights firm based in London. Founded in 2004 by Italian businessmen Riccardo Silva and Andrea Radrizzani, the company was primarily involved in the acquisition and international ...

to show games internationally, but this agreement was rescinded in August 2018 when MP & Silva defaulted on its payments.

Women's football

In February 2022, a majority of clubs in the

Scottish Women's Premier League The Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL) is the highest level of league competition in women's football in Scotland. Its two divisions are SWPL 1 and SWPL 2. The league was formed when the Premier Division of the Scottish Women's Football Leag ...

(SWPL) voted to accept an offer from the SPFL to run their competitions. The SWPL had previously been operated by

Scottish Women's Football Scottish Women's Football (SWF), formerly known as the Scottish Women’s Football Association (SWFA) between 1972 and 2001, is the governing body for women's association football in Scotland. It is an affiliated national association of the Scott ...

Notes

References

External links

Official website
* (SPFL Official Twitter account) {{Football in the United Kingdom * 2013 establishments in Scotland 2 Sports leagues established in 2013 Professional sports leagues in Scotland