FA Premier League
The FA Premier League is the top football league division for English Football League teams. It is governed by The Football Association.It was created in 1992 when the teams of the old First Division withdrew from The Football League for increased financial autonomy but remains effectively just a renamed First Division. Both the league, and its championship, are often called the Premiership.
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2 Top Scorers 3 External Links |
Teams
There are 20 teams in the FA Premier League. At the end of each season, the three lowest placed teams are relegated into Division One and the top two teams from Division One, together with the winner of a play-off series involving the 3rd-6th placed teams, are promoted into the FA Premier League. Below are the teams for the 2003/04 season, each followed in parentheses by the year since which it has continuously been in the highest level of English league football, followed by the year it originally reached that level.
- Arsenal * (1919;1904)
- Aston Villa * (1988;1888)
- Birmingham City (2002;1894)
- Blackburn Rovers (2001;1888)
- Bolton Wanderers (2001:1888)
- Charlton Athletic (2000;1936)
- Chelsea * (1989;1907)
- Everton * (1954;1888)
- Fulham (2001;1949)
- Leeds United * (1990;1924)
- Leicester City (2003:1908)
- Liverpool * (1962;1894)
- Manchester City (2002;1899)
- Manchester United * (1975;1892)
- Middlesbrough (1998;1902)
- Newcastle United (1993;1898)
- Portsmouth (2003;1927)
- Southampton * (1978;1966)
- Tottenham Hotspur * (1978;1909)
- Wolverhampton Wanderers (2003;1888)
| Previous League Champions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Winner | Total wins | Remarks |
| 2002/03 | Manchester United F.C | 8 (15) | Nil |
| 2001/02 | Arsenal F.C | 2 (12) | Double (FA Cup) |
| 2000/01 | Manchester United F.C | 7 (14) | Nil |
| 1999/00 | Manchester United F.C | 6 (13) | Nil |
| 1998/99 | Manchester United F.C | 5 (12) | Treble (FA Cup, UEFA Champions League) |
| 1997/98 | Arsenal F.C | 1 (11) | Double (FA Cup) |
| 1996/97 | Manchester United F.C | 4 (11) | Nil |
| 1995/96 | Manchester United F.C | 3 (10) | Double (FA Cup) |
| 1994/95 | Blackburn Rovers F.C | 1 (3) | Nil |
| 1993/94 | Manchester United F.C | 2 (9) | Double (FA Cup) |
| 1992/93 | Manchester United F.C | 1 (8) | Nil |
The figure in brackets is the number of English league championships won, including pre-1992 Division One titles. Liverpool F.C hold the record with a total of 18 league titles.
Top Scorers
All-time top Premier League scorers (up to January 2004):
| Alan Shearer | 237 |
| Andy Cole | 159 |
| Les Ferdinand | 144 |
| Robbie Fowler | 140 |
| Teddy Sheringham | 137 |
| Dwight Yorke | 120 |
| Ian Wright | 113 |
| Dion Dublin | 110 |
| Michael Owen | 110 |
| Matthew Le Tissier | 101 |
| Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | 98 |
| Thierry Henry | 97 |
| Ole Gunnar SolskjÃÂær | 84 |
| Chris Sutton | 81 |
| Ryan Giggs | 79 |
External Links
2001/02 | 2002/03 | 2003/04