EFL League Two

The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football League (EFL) and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system.

This article is about the English football league. For the Scottish football league with the same name, see Scottish League Two. For the Thai league, see Thai League 2. For the American soccer league, see USL League Two. For the French league, see Ligue 2.

EFL League Two
Founded2004
1992–2004 (as Division Three)
1958–1992 (as Division Four)
CountryEngland (23 teams)
Other club(s) fromWales (1 team)
Number of teams24
Level on pyramid4
Promotion toEFL League One
Relegation toNational League
Domestic cup(s)FA Cup
League cup(s)EFL Cup
EFL Trophy
International cup(s)UEFA Europa League (via FA Cup)
UEFA Europa Conference League (via EFL Cup)
Current championsForest Green Rovers
(2021–22)
Most championshipsChesterfield
Swindon Town
(2 titles each)
TV partnersList of Broadcasters
WebsiteLeague Two
Current: 2022–23 EFL League Two

Football League Two was introduced for the 2004–05 season. It was previously known as the Football League Third Division.[1] Before the advent of the Premier League in 1992, the fourth-highest division was known as the Football League Fourth Division.

As of the 2022–23 season, Mansfield Town and Newport County hold the longest tenure in League Two, having promoted to the division in the 2012–13 season. There are currently two former Premier League clubs competing in League 2: Bradford City (1999-2001), and Swindon Town (1993-94).

Structure

There are 24 clubs in League Two. Each club plays each of the other clubs twice (once at home and once away) and is awarded three points for a win, one for a draw and no points for a loss. From these points a league table is constructed.

At the end of each season the top three teams, together with the winner of the play-offs between the teams which finished in the fourth to seventh positions, are promoted to EFL League One and are replaced by the four teams that finished at the bottom of that division.

Similarly, the two teams that finished at the bottom of League Two are relegated to the National League and are replaced by the team that finished first and the team that won the second through seventh place play-off in that division. Technically a team can be reprieved from relegation if the team replacing them does not have a ground suitable for League football, but in practice this is a non-factor because every team currently in the National League has a ground that meets the League criteria (and even if they did not, a ground-sharing arrangement with another team could be made until their stadium was upgraded). The other way that a team can be spared relegation is if another team either resigns or is expelled from the EFL.

Final league position is determined, in order, by points obtained, goal difference, goals scored, a mini-league of the results between two or more teams ranked using the previous three criteria, and finally a series of one or more play-off matches.

There is a mandatory wage cap in this division that limits spending on players' wages to 100% of club turnover.

Current members
Locations of the 2022–23 EFL League Two teams
Greater Manchester League Two football clubs
AFC Wimbledon
Sutton United
London League Two football clubs (Greater London clubs)

The following 24 clubs are competing in League Two during the 2022–23 season.[2]

Club Finishing position last season Location Stadium Capacity
AFC Wimbledon23rd in League One (relegated)London (Wimbledon)Plough Lane9,300
Barrow22ndBarrow-in-FurnessHolker Street5,045
Bradford City14thBradfordValley Parade25,136
Carlisle United20thCarlisleBrunton Park18,202
Colchester United15thColchesterColchester Community Stadium10,105
Crawley Town12thCrawleyBroadfield Stadium6,134
Crewe Alexandra24th in League One (relegated)CreweGresty Road10,180
Doncaster Rovers22nd in League One (relegated)DoncasterKeepmoat Stadium15,231
Gillingham21st in League One (relegated)GillinghamPriestfield Stadium11,582
Grimsby Town6th in National League (promoted via play-offs)CleethorpesBlundell Park9,052
Harrogate Town19thHarrogateWetherby Road5,000
Hartlepool United17thHartlepoolVictoria Park7,856
Leyton Orient13thLondon (Leyton)Brisbane Road9,271
Mansfield Town7thMansfieldField Mill10,000
Newport County11thNewportRodney Parade7,850
Northampton Town4thNorthamptonSixfields Stadium6,476
Rochdale18thRochdaleSpotland Stadium10,249
Salford City10thSalfordMoor Lane5,108
Stockport County1st in National League (promoted)StockportEdgeley Park10,852
Stevenage21stStevenageBroadhall Way6,722
Sutton United8thLondon (Sutton)Borough Sports Ground5,032
Swindon Town6thSwindonCounty Ground15,728
Tranmere Rovers9thBirkenheadPrenton Park16,789
Walsall16thWalsallBescot Stadium11,300

Teams promoted from League Two
Season Winner Points Runner-up Points Third place Points Promoted via play-off League position Points
2004–05 Yeovil Town 83 Scunthorpe United 80 Swansea City 80 Southend United 4th 78
2005–06 Carlisle United 86 Northampton Town 83 Leyton Orient 81 Cheltenham Town 5th 72
2006–07 Walsall 89 Hartlepool United 88 Swindon Town 85 Bristol Rovers 6th 72
2007–08 Milton Keynes Dons 97 Peterborough United 92 Hereford United 88 Stockport County 4th 82
2008–09 Brentford 85 Exeter City 79 Wycombe Wanderers 78 Gillingham 5th 75
2009–10 Notts County 93 Bournemouth 83 Rochdale 82 Dagenham & Redbridge 7th 72
2010–11 Chesterfield 86 Bury 81 Wycombe Wanderers 81 Stevenage 6th 69
2011–12 Swindon Town 93 Shrewsbury Town 88 Crawley Town 84 Crewe Alexandra 7th 72
2012–13 Gillingham 83 Rotherham United 79 Port Vale 78 Bradford City 7th 69
2013–14 Chesterfield 84 Scunthorpe United 81 Rochdale 81 Fleetwood Town 4th 76
2014–15 Burton Albion 94 Shrewsbury Town 89 Bury 85 Southend United 5th 84
2015–16 Northampton Town 99 Oxford United 86 Bristol Rovers 85 AFC Wimbledon 7th 75
2016–17 Portsmouth 87 Plymouth Argyle 87 Doncaster Rovers 85 Blackpool 7th 70
2017–18 Accrington Stanley 93 Luton Town 88 Wycombe Wanderers 84 Coventry City 6th 75
2018–19 Lincoln City 85 Bury 79 Milton Keynes Dons 79 Tranmere Rovers 6th 73
2019–20[3] Swindon Town 88.32 Crewe Alexandra 85.56 Plymouth Argyle 84.64 Northampton Town 7th 72.22
2020–21 Cheltenham Town 82 Cambridge United 80 Bolton Wanderers 79 Morecambe 4th 78
2021–22 Forest Green Rovers 84 Exeter City 84 Bristol Rovers 80 Port Vale 5th 78

Play-off results
Season Semi-final (1st leg) Semi-final (2nd leg) Final
2004–05 Lincoln City 1–0 Macclesfield Town

Northampton Town 0–0 Southend United

 Macclesfield Town 1–1 Lincoln City

Southend United 1–0 Northampton Town

 Lincoln City 0–2 Southend United
2005–06 Lincoln City 0–1 Grimsby Town

Wycombe Wanderers 1–2 Cheltenham Town

 Grimsby Town 2–1 Lincoln City

Cheltenham Town 0–0 Wycombe Wanderers

 Grimsby Town 0–1 Cheltenham Town
2006–07 Bristol Rovers 2–1 Lincoln City

Shrewsbury Town 0–0 Milton Keynes Dons

 Lincoln City 3–5 Bristol Rovers

Milton Keynes Dons 1–2 Shrewsbury Town

 Bristol Rovers 3–1 Shrewsbury Town
2007–08 Darlington 2–1 Rochdale
Wycombe Wanderers 1–1 Stockport County		 Rochdale 2–1 Darlington
(Rochdale won 5–4 on penalties, a.e.t.)
Stockport County 1–0 Wycombe Wanderers		 Rochdale 2–3 Stockport County
2008–09 Shrewsbury Town 0–1 Bury
Rochdale 0–0 Gillingham		 Bury 0–1 Shrewsbury Town
(Shrewsbury won 4–3 on penalties, a.e.t.)
Gillingham 2–1 Rochdale		 Gillingham 1–0 Shrewsbury Town
2009–10 Dagenham & Redbridge 6–0 Morecambe
Aldershot Town 0–1 Rotherham United		 Morecambe 2–1 Dagenham & Redbridge
Rotherham United 2–0 Aldershot Town		 Dagenham & Redbridge 3–2 Rotherham United
2010–11 Torquay United 2–0 Shrewsbury Town
Stevenage 2–0 Accrington Stanley		 Shrewsbury Town 0–0 Torquay United
Accrington Stanley 0–1 Stevenage		 Stevenage 1–0 Torquay United
2011–12 Crewe Alexandra 1–0 Southend United
Cheltenham Town 2–0 Torquay United		 Southend United 2–2 Crewe Alexandra
Torquay United 1–2 Cheltenham Town		 Cheltenham Town 0–2 Crewe Alexandra
2012–13 Bradford City 2–3 Burton Albion
Northampton Town 1–0 Cheltenham Town		 Burton Albion 1–3 Bradford City
Cheltenham Town 0–1 Northampton Town		 Bradford City 3–0 Northampton Town
2013–14 Burton Albion 1–0 Southend United
York City 0–1 Fleetwood Town		 Southend United 2–2 Burton Albion
Fleetwood Town 0–0 York City		 Burton Albion 0–1 Fleetwood Town
2014–15 Stevenage 1–1 Southend United
Plymouth Argyle 2–3 Wycombe Wanderers		 Southend United 3–1 Stevenage
(a.e.t.)
Wycombe Wanderers 2–1 Plymouth Argyle		 Southend United 1–1 Wycombe Wanderers
(Southend won 7–6 on penalties, a.e.t.)
2015–16 Portsmouth 2–2 Plymouth Argyle
AFC Wimbledon 1–0 Accrington Stanley		 Plymouth Argyle 1–0 Portsmouth
Accrington Stanley 2–2 AFC Wimbledon
(a.e.t.)		 AFC Wimbledon 2–0 Plymouth Argyle
2016–17 Blackpool 3–2 Luton Town
Carlisle United 3–3 Exeter City		 Luton Town 3–3 Blackpool
Exeter City 3–2 Carlisle United		 Blackpool 2–1 Exeter City
2017–18 Lincoln City 0–0 Exeter City
Coventry City 1–1 Notts County		 Exeter City 3–1 Lincoln City
Notts County 1–4 Coventry City		 Coventry City 3–1 Exeter City
2018–19 Newport County 1–1 Mansfield Town
Tranmere Rovers 1–0 Forest Green Rovers		 Mansfield Town 0–0 Newport County
(Newport won 5–3 on penalties, a.e.t.)
Forest Green Rovers 1–1 Tranmere Rovers		 Newport County 0–1 Tranmere Rovers
(a.e.t.)
2019–20 Colchester United 1–0 Exeter City
Northampton Town 0–2 Cheltenham Town		 Exeter City 3–1 Colchester United
Cheltenham Town 0–3 Northampton Town		 Exeter City 0–4 Northampton Town
2020–21 Newport County 2–0 Forest Green Rovers

Tranmere Rovers 1–2 Morecambe

 Forest Green Rovers 4–3 Newport County (a.e.t.)

Morecambe 1–1 Tranmere Rovers

 Morecambe 1–0 Newport County
2021–22 Mansfield Town 2–1 Northampton Town

Swindon Town 2–1 Port Vale

 Northampton Town 0-1 Mansfield Town

Port Vale 1–1 Swindon Town
(Port Vale won 6–5 on penalties, a.e.t.)

 Mansfield Town 0–3 Port Vale

Relegated teams
Season Clubs
2004–05 Kidderminster Harriers, Cambridge United
2005–06 Oxford United, Rushden & Diamonds
2006–07 Boston United, Torquay United
2007–08 Mansfield Town, Wrexham
2008–09 Chester City, Luton Town[4]
2009–10 Darlington, Grimsby Town
2010–11 Lincoln City, Stockport County
2011–12 Macclesfield Town, Hereford United
2012–13 Aldershot Town, Barnet
2013–14 Bristol Rovers, Torquay United
2014–15 Cheltenham Town, Tranmere Rovers
2015–16 York City, Dagenham & Redbridge
2016–17 Hartlepool United, Leyton Orient
2017–18 Barnet, Chesterfield
2018–19 Notts County, Yeovil Town
2019–20 Macclesfield Town[lower-alpha 1]
2020–21 Southend United, Grimsby Town
2021–22 Oldham Athletic, Scunthorpe United
  1. As a result of Bury's expulsion from League One, only one team was relegated to maintain League Two at 24 teams.[5]

See also
  • Football League Fourth Division (1958–59 – 1991–92)
  • Football League Third Division (1992–93 – 2003–04)
  • List of professional sports teams in the United Kingdom

References and notes
  1. "The Football League - About Us - History - Timeline - TIMELINE". Archived from the original on 28 September 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. "Sky Bet League Two Clubs".
  3. The teams listed for this season were ranked using points per game following the curtailment of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.
  4. Luton were deducted 30 points for financial irregularities
  5. "Bury FC: Membership of the League withdrawn". EFL. 27 August 2019.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Football League Two.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.