In the professional era, the English Premier League (EPL) has emerged as the most popular club football competition in the world, with the best players from around the globe all itching to be able to participate in this revered league.
How did the EPL League come to be such a powerhouse in the world of football? Check out below a short history of the English Premier League.
Background
The First Division was the top-tier league in English football from 1888 until 1992. However, in the early 1990s, First Division clubs believed that there needed to be a radical restructuring of football if the clubs and English football in general were to develop and flourish.
As such, on 17 July 1991, the clubs signed the Founder Members Agreement, which established the basic principles for the setting up of the Premier League. This league would have commercial independence from the Football League and The FA, which ultimately meant that it would be free to organise its own broadcast and sponsorship agreement.
As a result, all of the 22 First Division clubs resigned from the Football League on 20 February 1992, and three months later, on 27 May 1992, the Premier League was established as a limited company. In a radical move for the time, the first television deal was struck with pay-TV broadcaster BSkyB, and subsequently, Sky has played an ever-present and key role in developing the League into its current format.
On Saturday 15 August 1992, The inaugural Premier League campaign started with 22 clubs:
- Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, Coventry City, Crystal Palace
- Everton, Ipswich Town, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United
- Middlesbrough, Norwich City, Nottingham Forest, Oldham Athletic, Queens Park Rangers,
The number of clubs was reduced to 20 at the end of the 1994/95 season when four clubs were relegated and two other clubs were promoted.
Attracting the World’s Best Players
One of the major draws of the EPL has always been the presence of some of the world's best players and biggest personalities. Some of the most celebrated players of the last 30 years have graced the fields of England in the kits of famous English clubs, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Eric Cantona, Mo Salah, Thierry Henry, Didier Drogba, Peter Schmeichel, Ryan Giggs, Denis Bergkamp and Roy Keane.
The lure of the EPL has also ensured that England’s best football players have become household names in the EPL, including David Beckham, Alan Shearer, David Seaman, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, Bukayo Saka and Harry Kane.
A Tale of 2 Manchesters
Since the advent of the EPL, two clubs have dominated: Manchester United and Manchester City. Under the management of Alex Ferguson, United were totally dominant in the first 21 years of the EPL, winning the title a whopping 13 times while City only won it once during that period.
Since Feguson’s retirement, the tables have turned somewhat and City have become the dominant EPL team, having won the EPL 4 times in a row and 8 times overall. This dominance has been achieved under the management of Spaniard Pep Guardiola. Outside of Manchester, Chelsea has been the next most successful team with 5 EPL titles.
The Big 6
While several teams have been relegated and promoted duirng the course of the EPL, 6 clubs have been ever-present, with none of these clubs having ever been demoted: Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
As a result of these teams’ visibility in the EPL, these teams have globally become some of the most popular, recognised and supported the world over. Out of those 6 teams, United, Liverpool and Arsenal have obtained the largest global following with Manchester City’s unprecedented success in recent years resulting in a swell of support for that club.
The “Invincibles”
While Arsenal has only won 3 EPL titles, the Gunners proved their worth as one of the best EPL teams when the team went undefeated in the 2003/2004 season. Known as “the Invincibles”, the team managed by Arsene Wenger included EPL legends such as Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Davi Seaman and Patrick Vierra.
Still Going Strong
The EPL is stronger than it ever was with record growth, stadium attendance and global viewership numbers. While Manchester City has dominated the EPL over the last few years, the league is as strong as it ever was with Arsenal and Liverpool constantly challenging for top honours and any of the teams capable of beating each other on their day.
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