2022–23 in English football

England  v  Spain

20 July 2022 QF	England	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Spain	Brighton and Hove, England
	Toone 84' Stanway 96'	Report	González 54'	Stadium: Falmer Stadium Attendance: 28,994 Referee: Stéphanie Frappart (France)

England  v  Sweden

26 July 2022 SF	England	4–0	Sweden	Sheffield, England
20:00	Mead 34' Bronze 48' Russo 68' Kirby 77'	Report		Stadium: Bramall Lane Attendance: 28,624 Referee: Esther Staubli (Switzerland)

Final

31 July 2022 (2022-07-31)

17:00

England	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Germany
Toone 62' Kelly 110'	Report	Magull 79'

Wembley Stadium, London

Attendance: 87,192[1]

Referee: Kateryna Monzul (Ukraine)

Having looking like falling short in the early stages of 2023, a fantastic recovery in the closing months of the season saw Manchester City secure their third league title in a row, the first trophy in what proved to be a memorable season for manager Pep Guardiola and the Blue side of Manchester as they also won the FA Cup and the Champions League, the latter of which included a run that included a stunning second-leg demolition of holders Real Madrid, to match their city rivals' Treble - with summer signing Erling Haaland breaking several goal-scoring records for the Premier League along the way. A fantastic start to their campaign saw Arsenal challenge for the title and remain in contention up until the closing months, when a succession of dropped points resulted in the Gunners falling away; however, their second place finish proved their highest for seven years and they secured a return to the Champions League after a six-year absence. Despite making a rough start to the campaign, Manchester United enjoyed a successful first season under Erik ten Hag, winning the League Cup and securing a return to the Champions League – with perhaps the only blemish being many heavy defeats on the road preventing them from potentially challenging for the title. Newcastle United took the final spot in the top four, the Magpies returning to the Champions League after twenty years as they completed a remarkable turnaround from being threatened with relegation twelve months previously; as with Manchester United, perhaps the only disappointment for the Toon side was their early form with too many draws in the season that also prevented an astonishing title challenge.

Having been in contention for an unprecedented quadruple the previous year, Liverpool's overall season proved to be a disappointment, a sluggish start to the league campaign extinguishing the Reds' hopes of challenging for the title following the departure of key player Sadio Mané and a failure to sign a midfielder in both transfer windows; whilst they still enjoyed some impressive results, including a 7–0 home win over Manchester United, a failure to build on these results - despite an equally strong end to the season - ultimately cost the Merseyside club a top-four finish for the first time since 2016. Brighton and Hove Albion enjoyed inarguably their greatest top-flight season, the Seagulls even shrugging off the loss of highly-regarded manager Graham Potter early in the campaign to finish with a record points total under Roberto De Zerbi and their highest goal record for years – successfully finishing in sixth place and qualifying for the Europa League and European football for the first time in their history. Aston Villa took seventh place, qualifying for the Europa Conference League; this achievement looked unlikely in late October, with the Midlands side looking likely to battle relegation once again following a poor start, but the decision to appoint former Sevilla and Arsenal manager Unai Emery proved an inspired choice as the Villans surged away from the drop zone and took advantage of the teams around them dropping points to ensure a return to European football for the first time in thirteen years. Having made a fairly strong start to their season, Tottenham Hotspur's campaign rapidly fell away from mid-October onwards; resulting in growing fan anger towards owner Daniel Levy boiling over, feelings not helped by the dismissal of manager Antonio Conte in March in the aftermath of a furious rant by the Italian over player performances during a post-match press conference following a 3-3 draw against Southampton and a lack of backing by Levy – with the London club then going over to appoint two different interim managers to cap a disappointing end to the season, and failing to qualify for any European competitions for the first time since 2009 and saw them concede more than Everton who almost got relegated, their only real positive being striker Harry Kane smashing the 30-goal mark.

For only the fourth time in the Premier League era, all three promoted teams avoided relegation; Fulham performed easily the best, the Whites falling outside of the top ten only twice across the season as they comfortably secured a second successive season in the top flight for the first time in a decade after five successive years of moving between the first and second tiers, even breaking their own club records for most wins and goals scored in a top-flight season, only missing out on European football in the closing weeks. Bournemouth endured a rough return to the top-flight, with manager Scott Parker getting sacked and replaced by former player Gary O'Neill just four games into the campaign with the club facing another relegation battle, days following a 9–0 loss to Liverpool – but having looked likely to endure the drop once again, the Cherries went on to scrap to safety in the closing weeks. Having looked set for an immediate return to the Championship, a successful run of form in the closing weeks helped Nottingham Forest defy the odds and haul themselves over the line in their first top-flight season since 1999; also proving to be key to the East Midlands club staying up were some big home results across the campaign - despite winning only one away game all season - and the continued support given to manager Steve Cooper by owner Evangelos Marinakis, even in the face of poor runs of form.

Chelsea endured their worst league season for 29 years; having made a reasonable start, the bizarre sacking of manager Thomas Tuchel against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League in favour of Graham Potter after only a few games saw the London club rapidly fall down the table, with Potter then getting the sack in early April – despite a strong run in the Champions League and some big money signings – and the appointment of former manager Frank Lampard seeing the Blues finish 12th, only mathematically securing their place early in May to cap an underwhelming first season under the ownership of Todd Boehly and missing out on European football for the first time in seven years. West Ham United endured a rough league campaign, only scraping to safety in the closing weeks after two successive seasons finishing in the top seven; however, it was in the Europa Conference League that the Hammers excelled, winning all but one of their games on their way to winning the tournament, securing their first European trophy since the Cup Winners’ Cup triumph in 1965, and in turn, ensuring a return to the Europa League for next season. Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers also looked down and out with the Eagles being the only side without a win in 2023 and the Black Country club being bottom of the table at Christmas with both clubs going on to change managers and comfortably secure safety in the closing weeks of the campaign.

At the bottom of the table, the relegation battle proved to be especially tight, with a number of teams in the mix up until the closing weeks – but after eleven years in the top-flight and a succession of lower finishes in recent seasons, Southampton's fortunes finally ran out and they endured relegation to the Championship, the Saints making it through three managers across the campaign and winning just two home games all season. Leeds United were also undone by disastrous form from late August onwards, getting through four managers, ultimately rendering the Marcelo Bielsa era a false dawn and leaving their future prospects looking almost as bleak as they had after their previous relegation from the top-flight in 2004 as they once again faced a player exodus and uncertainty over the club's ownership. Leicester City, who coincidentally had been relegated alongside Leeds United 19 years previously, filled the final relegation spot, the Foxes completing a shocking fall from grace only two years after winning the FA Cup and seven years after winning the Premier League, bringing an end to nine storied years in the top flight, the East Midlands side's relegation coming as a result of terrible form after the World Cup break whilst changing managers in April. Much like with their previous season, Everton were dragged into the relegation battle very early in the campaign, changed managers at the turn of the year, and only barely secured their Premier League position on the final day amid growing anger off-field from the fans over the running of the club.

In spite of seeing a number of key players depart in pre-season and making a sluggish start back to life in the Championship, the surprise decision to appoint Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany as their new manager proved an excellent one for Burnley as the Clarets comfortably secured an immediate return to the Premier League, earning promotion on Good Friday, winning the title with victory at local rivals Blackburn Rovers and finishing with over 100 points – with perhaps the only disappointment being their form after promotion to miss out on breaking the record points total for the second tier. Sheffield United took second place, making amends for their narrow play-off semi-final miss the previous season to earn their second promotion to the top flight in four years, the Blades' resurgence under manager Paul Heckingbottom continuing following their disastrous relegation in 2021. The play-off final ended up being between Luton Town and Coventry City, a remarkable achievement for the clubs considering both had played together in League Two in 2018 – with Luton overcoming the loss of manager Nathan Jones for the second time in four seasons to end their 31-year exile from the top-flight (ironically having been relegated in the season before the Premier League was established) and complete the Hatters' rise back up the football pyramid, having been in the fifth tier in 2014, and earn head coach Rob Edwards his second managerial promotion in two years.

Sunderland's first season back in the second tier proved to be a turbulent ride; despite the Black Cats losing manager Alex Neil not even a month into the season, suffering an extensive injury crisis for practically their entire campaign and enduring a number of poor runs of form, they managed to keep themselves in the promotion mix, squeezing into sixth place on the final day and then only narrowly losing in the play-off semi-finals. Having narrowly missed out on promotion the previous season, the unexpected departure of manager Carlos Corberán in pre-season destabilised Huddersfield Town's season and left them battling relegation - with only the appointment of veteran manager Neil Warnock in February providing the Terriers with enough spark to fight their way out of the drop zone and to safety in their penultimate game. After six successive years of moving between the second and third tiers, Rotherham United finally avoided relegation from the Championship and ensured a second successive season in the division, the Millers even overcoming the departure of influential manager Paul Warne early in the campaign and gaining wins at crucial points to secure their place. Queens Park Rangers spent the first half of the season looking to make a surprise promotion challenge, only for their form to completely implode following the departure of manager Michael Beale to Rangers, ultimately only staying up by virtue of two victories in their last three matches.

Despite a battling rally in the closing weeks of the season, Wigan Athletic endured their fourth relegation to League One in eight years, yet again making it through three different managers – whilst also enduring a points deduction for failing to pay players on time. Blackpool finished just above them, the Seasiders never really recovering from the loss of influential manager Neil Critchley in pre-season as they also made it through three different managers across the campaign, dropping back into the third tier after two seasons. After years of narrow escapes from the drop, Reading's luck finally ran out and they endured relegation to the third tier for the first time since 2002 – the Royals also enduring their own points deduction that coincided with a poor run of form, pushing them from a reasonable mid-table finish into the bottom three with weeks to go; had it not been for the points deduction, then Cardiff City would have been relegated.

Having looked all but decided in the early months of 2023, the battle for the League One title ended up going to the final two weeks of the season, with each of Ipswich Town, Plymouth Argyle and Sheffield Wednesday battling it out to finish in the top two – a battle that was ultimately won with Plymouth finishing as champions and Ipswich finishing second; one season after seeing influential manager Ryan Lowe depart and then narrowly missing out on a top-six finish, the Pilgrims continued their climb back up the Football League and returned to the Championship after a 13-year absence, even managing to break the 100-point mark in the process, whilst the Tractor Boys scored over 100 goals to finish with comfortably the highest goal-scoring record in the division (as well as breaking club records for wins and points in a season) to end a four-season exile from the second tier, achieve their first promotion since 2000 and earn manager Kieran McKenna, in his first full season as manager, his first promotion. Wednesday made amends in the playoffs and were promoted in the most dramatic of circumstances, overturning a 4–0 deficit in their semi final against Peterborough United to win on penalties and then winning the final in the last minute of extra time, denying Yorkshire rivals Barnsley in the process.

Forest Green Rovers' maiden campaign in League One proved an absolute disaster, finishing with the worst points total in the division for thirteen years and enduring their first relegation in 68 years in a torrid season that saw them finish with the fewest goals scored and the most conceded. Despite some spirited results across their season, five losses from their final seven games – coupled with some heavy earlier losses – ultimately consigned Accrington Stanley to their first relegation in 24 years, the Lancashire club falling back into League Two after five years. The battle to avoid the last two spots went down to the final day, with Cambridge United – in spite of a collapse in form from mid-January onwards – ultimately scraping across the line to condemn Morecambe and Milton Keynes Dons to the drop after two and four years in the division respectively; Morecambe had looked all but relegated earlier in the season, only for the Shrimpers to save some face and go down fighting with a late run of wins, whilst the Dons were made to pay for a run of six draws in their final eight games that saw them slip from apparently certain safety.

Despite a few stuttering moments in the second half of the season, Leyton Orient emerged victorious at the top of the table and secured their first promotion to League One for eight years, going up as champions in manager Richie Wellens' first full season in charge. The battle for the remaining automatic spots proved to be much tighter, with five teams in the mix at the start of April - but having spent the previous decade consistently struggling to avoid relegation to the National League (and only avoiding relegation in 2020 thanks to the demise of both Bury and Macclesfield Town), Stevenage enjoyed a major turnaround in Steve Evans' first full season in charge and were promoted as runners-up. Northampton Town made up for losing automatic promotion on the last day of the previous season by winning promotion on the last day, securing their third promotion from League Two in seven years. Taking the final spot through the play-offs were Carlisle United, who scraped past Stockport County on penalties to secure their first promotion since 2006 and cap a wonderful turnaround under manager Paul Simpson, having been battling the drop out of the Football League only the previous year.

In spite of narrowly falling short of a second successive promotion, Stockport County's first season back in the Football League proved an excellent one, the Hatters even keeping the automatic promotion race open until the very last day. A very poor first half of the season saw Gillingham's 73-year status in the Football League under serious threat, with only fourteen points secured and just seven league goals scored by the halfway point – but the signing of forward Tom Nichols in the January transfer window proved a turning point for the Gills' season, the Kent club rocketing away from the relegation battle and comfortably into mid-table, albeit still finishing with the lowest goal tally in the campaign. Despite once again being contenders for promotion and being in the promotion race early in the season, Doncaster Rovers ended up recording their lowest finish since returning to the Football League in 2003, a consequence of indifferent form across their campaign and the second-highest number of losses for the League Two season.

The battle to avoid the drop proved unpredictable up until the final weeks of the season, with several teams looking likely to drop out of the Football League then going on to find form – but in the end, Rochdale suffered their second relegation in three years and dropped into the National League, with even a late improvement in form not being enough to keep their 102-year membership of the Football League from coming to an end. Hartlepool United were relegated after two years, ultimately being made to pay the price for dismal early-season form that saw them win only twice in their first twenty games, the north-east club's struggles following the departure of promotion-winning manager Dave Challinor the previous season continuing. Crawley Town narrowly survived at Hartlepool's expense, with a 2–0 win for Crawley over Hartlepool in their third-to-last game ultimately proving to be decisive.

In one of the most competitive and remarkable title races in the fifth tier's history, with new goal and record points totals being set for both first and second place, Wrexham ended their second full season of ownership under Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in style, successfully holding off Notts County to end their fifteen-year exile from the Football League and go up as champions – dropping just two points at home all season and giving manager Phil Parkinson his fourth promotion (as well as the club's first promotion in twenty years). Notts County would ultimately make amends for missing out on automatic promotion by winning the play-off final against Chesterfield on penalties, capping their own remarkable season that saw the Magpies regain their status as the oldest league football club in the world (having lost it with relegation in 2019), earn manager Luke Williams his first promotion and saw summer signing Macaulay Langstaff break the goal-scoring record for the fifth tier.

Oldham Athletic's first season outside of the Football League saw the Latics initially face a second successive relegation, before the appointment of former Everton player David Unsworth as manager saw an upturn in results, enough to secure a top-half finish – with perhaps only their indifferent form earlier in the season preventing a potential play-off finish. In their first ever season at this level, Dorking Wanderers enjoyed a roller coaster ride of a campaign; despite conceding over 90 goals and spending a lot of the early months of 2023 hovering around the drop zone, the Surrey side rallied with ten games to go and went on a successful run of form to ensure their place in the fifth tier for another season, even managing to outscore over half the teams in the table.

At the bottom of the table, Maidstone United's return to the fifth tier proved to be a complete disaster, with just five wins all season and over 100 goals conceded, the club securing just four points after the January dismissal of manager Hakan Hayrettin; making even bigger headlines were Scunthorpe United, who suffered the embarrassment of a second successive relegation and fell into the National League North, just twelve years after having played in the Championship – the Iron becoming only the second team to endure back-to-back relegations from the Football League to the sixth tier. A decade after having won promotion to the Championship, Yeovil Town's fall down the football pyramid continued as they fell into the sixth tier for the first time since 1997, the Glovers being let down by the worst goal-scoring record in the division and a failure to turn any of their many draws into wins. A late winning run from Torquay United saw the battle to avoid the last relegation spot go down to the final day, but ultimately the Gulls could not better the results of their rivals and fell back into the National League South, just two years after narrowly missing out on promotion back to the fourth tier.