West Riding County Football Association


The West Riding County Football Association is the governing body of football in the area covered by the historic West Riding of Yorkshire. Its headquarters are in the village of Woodlesford, six miles south east of Leeds. Affiliated members pay a fee commensurate with the level of competition they play in. Affiliated members benefit from access to support and guidance on such areas as health and safety and access to finance or grants. The County FA is directly responsible for the governance of County Cup competitions.

Membership

Clubs located within the geographical area of the old West Riding of Yorkshire boundaries are eligible for affiliation to the Association, including those participating at the higher levels of the Football League System in England. However, any parts of the West Riding within 20 miles of Sheffield Cathedral are instead part of the Sheffield & Hallamshire FA.. The latter covers virtually all of South Yorkshire and some southern areas of West Yorkshire such as Emley, Hemsworth and Nostell.
Clubs who enter teams into Saturday and Sunday competitions are required to have a separate affiliation for each. The Association is divided into thirteen District Associations covering the old West Riding of Yorkshire.
There is no County league competition, instead there are forty league competitions at all levels within the thirteen District Associations. The County FA has direct governance of the rules of the competitions run by the affiliated districts. Of the Open Age leagues, there are 13 for men, 1 for women and 12 men's played on Sundays. There are 12 Junior Boy's Leagues and 2 Junior Girl's Leagues. There are 4 divisions of men's pan-disability leagues as well as one for under 16's and one for women. Where appropriate, the relevant level in the English Football League System of the league in the lists below are shown in brackets.

Senior Leagues

Most of the Senior Men's Leagues are part of the Football League System, of which the West Yorkshire Association Premier Division is the highest represented of the County Association.
All the above leagues and District Associations run a variety of knockout competitions. In addition, the County Association also run the knockout competitions listed below for affiliated clubs. The West Riding County FA ran a Senior Cup competition from 1919 until 1999 that featured affiliated clubs that were in the highest levels of the football league system, such as Leeds United. In eight out of the last 12 years of its existence, there was no competition and was a contributing factor to its demise.