Isthmian League


The Isthmian League is a regional men's football league covering London, East and South East England featuring mostly semi-professional clubs.
It was founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area. It now consists of 82 teams in four divisions; the Premier Division above its three feeder divisions, the North, South Central and South East divisions. Together with the Southern League and the Northern Premier League, it forms the seventh and eighth levels of the English football league system. It has various regional feeder leagues and the league as a whole is a feeder league mainly to the National League South.

History

Before the Isthmian League was formed, there were no leagues in which amateur clubs could compete, only cups. Therefore, a meeting took place between representatives of Casuals, Civil Service, Clapton, Ealing Association, Ilford and London Caledonians to discuss the creation of a strong amateur league. All the clubs supported the idea and the Isthmian League was born on 8 March 1905. Membership to the league was through invitation only. The league was strongly dedicated to amateurism; the champions did not even receive a trophy or medals; the league motto was honor sufficit.
Teams less able to compete financially thus gravitated to it rather than the Southern League, while those with ambition and money would move in the opposite direction. Although the league established itself as one of the strongest amateur leagues in the country, routinely providing the winners of the FA Amateur Cup, it was still seen as being at a lower level than the Southern League which was the top regional semi-professional league. By 1922 the league had fourteen clubs and over the next five decades, only a few new members were admitted, mainly to fill vacancies left by clubs leaving the league. Most new Isthmian League members joined from the Athenian League, which was similarly dedicated to amateurism. The Isthmian League was most likely named after the ancient Isthmian Games, with the later Athenian League, Corinthian League and Delphian League all adding a Classical flavour to amateur football competition. In 1962 an 'all-star' team from the Isthmian League entered the 1962 Ugandan Independence Tournament, drawing both their games versus Kenya and Ghana.
The league began to admit professionalism in the 1970s – the FA abolished the distinction between amateur and professional status with effect from the 1974–75 season. A second division of sixteen clubs was formed in 1973 and a third division followed in 1977. The league refused to participate in the formation of the Alliance Premier League in 1979 and whilst two Isthmian clubs, Enfield and Dagenham, defected to the APL in 1981, it was not until 1985 that the Isthmian League champions were given a promotion place to the newly renamed Football Conference. The reward of promotion into the Conference means that, since 1985, no team has retained the title. The Athenian League disbanded in 1984 when the Isthmian League Second Division split into North and South Divisions. These were restructured again to Second and Third Divisions in 1991.
In 2002, the league was restructured again, with the First and Second Divisions merging to become Division One North and Division One South, and the Third Division being renamed as Division Two. In addition, the league's three feeder leagues—the Combined Counties League, Essex Senior League and Spartan South Midlands League—ran in parallel with Division Two, and were able to feed directly into the regional Division Ones.
In 2004, The Football Association pushed through a major restructuring of the non-league National League System, creating new regional divisions of the Football Conference. The Isthmian League was reduced back down to three divisions, and its boundaries were changed to remove the overlap with the Southern League.
In 2006, further reorganisation saw a reversion to two regional Division Ones and the disbandment of Division Two. This current plan calls for clubs based on the edges of the Isthmian League's territory to transfer to and from the Southern League as necessary to maintain numerical balance between the leagues. One team, Clapton, was ever present in the Isthmian League since its foundation, but they moved to the Essex Senior League for the 2006–07 season. Dulwich Hamlet, who joined the league in 1907, became its longest serving member until their promotion to the National League South for the 2018–19 season.
In May 2017, The FA chose the Isthmian League to add a third regional division at Step 4 as part of further restructuring in the National League System, reducing all divisions at Step 4 to 20 teams. The new division started play in the 2018–19 season.

Current members

Premier Division

For the 1973–74 season, Division Two was added.
SeasonDivision OneDivision Two
1973–74Wycombe WanderersDagenham
1974–75Wycombe WanderersStaines Town
1975–76EnfieldTilbury
1976–77EnfieldBoreham Wood

For the 1977–78 season, Division One was renamed the Premier Division, Division Two was renamed Division One and new Division Two was added.
SeasonPremier DivisionDivision OneDivision Two
1977–78EnfieldDulwich HamletEpsom & Ewell
1978–79BarkingHarrow BoroughFarnborough Town
1979–80EnfieldLeytonstone/IlfordBillericay Town
1980–81Slough TownBishop's StortfordFeltham
1981–82Leytonstone & IlfordWokingham TownWorthing
1982–83Wycombe WanderersWorthingClapton
1983–84Harrow BoroughWindsor & EtonBasildon United

For the 1984–85 season, Division Two was reorganised into North and South regions.
SeasonPremier DivisionDivision OneDivision Two NorthDivision Two South
1984–85Sutton UnitedFarnborough TownLeyton WingateGrays Athletic
1985–86Sutton UnitedSt Albans CityStevenage BoroughSouthwick
1986–87Wycombe WanderersLeytonstone/IlfordChesham UnitedWoking
1987–88Yeovil TownMarlowWivenhoe TownChalfont St Peter
1988–89Leytonstone/IlfordStaines TownHarlow TownDorking
1989–90Slough TownWivenhoe TownHeybridge SwiftsYeading
1990–91Redbridge ForestChesham UnitedStevenage BoroughAbingdon Town

For the 1991–92 season, regional divisions Two were merged and Division Three was added.
SeasonPremier DivisionDivision OneDivision TwoDivision Three
1991–92WokingStevenage BoroughPurfleetEdgware Town
1992–93Chesham UnitedHitchin TownWorthingAldershot Town
1993–94Stevenage BoroughBishop's StortfordNewbury TownBracknell Town
1994–95EnfieldBoreham WoodThame UnitedCollier Row
1995–96HayesOxford CityCanvey IslandHorsham
1996–97Yeovil TownChesham UnitedCollier Row & RomfordWealdstone
1997–98KingstonianAldershot TownCanvey IslandHemel Hempstead Town
1998–99Sutton UnitedCanvey IslandBedford TownFord United
1999–2000Dagenham & RedbridgeCroydonHemel Hempstead TownEast Thurrock United
2000–01Farnborough TownBoreham WoodTooting & Mitcham UnitedArlesey Town
2001–02Gravesend & NorthfleetFord UnitedLewesCroydon Athletic

At the end of the 1994–95 season, Enfield were denied promotion to the Conference. Their place was taken by Slough Town who finished as runners-up.
For the 2002–03 season, Division One was reorganised into North and South regions and Division Three was disbanded.
SeasonPremier DivisionDivision One NorthDivision One SouthDivision Two
2002–03Aldershot TownNorthwoodCarshalton AthleticCheshunt
2003–04Canvey IslandYeadingLewesLeighton Town

For the 2004–05 season Division Ones North and South were merged.
SeasonPremier DivisionDivision OneDivision Two
2004–05YeadingAFC WimbledonIlford
2005–06Braintree TownRamsgateWare

For the 2006–07 season, Division One was reorganised into North and South regions and Division Two was disbanded.
SeasonPremier DivisionNorth DivisionSouth Division
2006–07Hampton & Richmond BoroughAFC HornchurchMaidstone United
2007–08Chelmsford CityDartfordDover Athletic
2008–09Dover AthleticAveleyKingstonian
2009–10DartfordLowestoft TownCroydon Athletic
2010–11Sutton UnitedEast Thurrock UnitedMetropolitan Police
2011–12Billericay TownLeistonWhitehawk
2012–13WhitehawkGrays AthleticDulwich Hamlet
2013–14WealdstoneVCD AthleticPeacehaven & Telscombe
2014–15Maidstone UnitedNeedham MarketBurgess Hill Town
2015–16Hampton & Richmond BoroughAFC SudburyFolkestone Invicta
2016–17Havant & WaterloovilleBrightlingsea RegentTooting & Mitcham United
2017–18Billericay TownAFC HornchurchCarshalton Athletic

For the 2018–19 season, the South Division was reorganised into South Central and South East divisions.
SeasonPremier DivisionNorth DivisionSouth Central DivisionSouth East Division
2018–19Dorking WanderersBowers & PitseaHayes & Yeading UnitedCray Wanderers
2019–201WorthingMaldon & TiptreeWareHastings United

Sponsorship

The Isthmian League was the first league to have sponsorship, having been selected by Rothmans, who sponsored the league from 1973 to 1977. The company offered prize money for position in the league but money was deducted for bookings. Thus the money encouraged both more goals and fair play. The sponsors after Rothmans to the present day have been: Michael Lawrie, Berger, Servowarm, Vauxhall-Opel, Vauxhall, Diadora, ICIS, Ryman, Bostik and BetVictor.
Ryman also sponsored the Isthmian Youth League and Isthmian Development League upon their creations in 2007 and 2013 respectively. Ryman chairman Theo Paphitis added to his league sponsorship through his flagship companies. Robert Dyas became sponsors of the Isthmian League Cup, Isthmian Veterans Cup, Isthmian Disability Cup and Isthmian Youth Play-off Cup in 2014, and Boux Avenue sponsored the Isthmian Women's Cup from 2014 to 2017.
Becoming the longest running sports sponsorship in UK football, Ryman stepped down as sponsors at the end of the 2016–17 season after 20 years.

League Cup

The Alan Turvey Trophy, formerly the Isthmian League Cup, has run since 1975 and involves all Isthmian League teams.

Footnotes