Scottish Women's Football League

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Scottish Women's Football League
Organising bodyScottish Women's Football
Founded1972 (SWFA League)
1999 (SWFL)[1]
First season1999–2000 (SWFL)
CountryScotland Scotland
ConfederationUEFA
Divisions3
Number of teams35
Domestic cup(s)Scottish Women's Cup
League cup(s)Scottish Women's Football League Cup

The Scottish Women's Football League (SWFL) is a group of women's football divisions in Scotland. The league is owned and managed by Scottish Women's Football (SWF), an affiliated body of the Scottish Football Association (SFA). The league currently has 35 clubs in three regional divisions.

Following on from the national league of the Scottish Women's Football Association founded in 1972, the SWFL was formed by clubs and the SWFA in 1999 as the country's top four women's league tiers. The SWFL now comprises the fourth tier of the Scottish league system, following the breakaway of its Premier Division to create the Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL) in 2002, and the subsequent addition of SWPL 2 and the SWF Championship.

From 1999 until 2015, the SWFL First Division (SWFL 1) was the second tier of Scottish women's football.

History[edit]

See also: Scottish Women's Football League First Division
See also: Scottish Women's Football League Second Division

The modern Scottish women's leagues began in 1972–73, when Westthorn United won the national title.[2] League systems in the 1990s included a tiered divisional system,[3] or feeder leagues in the North, East and West of Scotland, as well as an Inter-Region Cup.[4][5] The top division was known from 1997 to 1999 as the Sports Connection Premier for sponsorship reasons,[5] in the Sports Connection Women's Scottish League.[6]

The Scottish Women's Football League was formed on 6 November 1999, with the top four national divisions: the Premier Division, First, Second and Third Division. The League had 46 clubs in 2000.[7]

The SWFL Premier Division constituted the top division in Scottish women's football from 1999–2000 until 2001–02. Three clubs became national champions in those seasons: Cumbernauld,[8] Ayr United,[9] and F.C. Kilmarnock.[10] The women's Ayrshire derby, Ayr–Kilmarnock, was a key match in the national title race in each season in the early 2000s.[11]

Ayr United were Scotland's first representative in the UEFA Women's Cup in 2001–02, as a group host at Somerset Park. Kilmarnock played in the 2002–03 tournament in Austria.

Below the Premier division, the First Division (SWFL 1) and Second Division (SWFL 2) existed from 1999 until 2019.

The Third Division was the national fourth-tier league founded by the SWFL in 1999.[12][13] The most prominent member of the Third Division in 1999–2000 was Third Lanark, a women's team formed 22 years after the disbandment of the Third Lanark A.C. men's team and playing its games at Cathkin Park.[14][15][16] Falkirk Ladies won promotion from the Third Division in 1999–2000;[17] later seasons' champions were Baillieston (2000–01),[18] and F.C. Kilmarnock Girls (2002–03).[19][20] The division was separated into two groups, the West and East, each with eight clubs in 2004–05,[21] and seven and eight respectively in 2006–07.[22][23] They became the Third Division North and South, each with nine clubs, in 2007–08.[24] This league tier was disbanded by 2010.[25]

In 2002, the SWFL's twelve-team top division broke away to form the SWPL, leaving the remaining thirty clubs in the SWFL.[26] In 2016, the SWPL expanded to two divisions, meaning the SWFL was now at the third and fourth tiers of the league structure.

In the reorganisation in 2016, the national SWFL First Division (SWFL 1) split into two regionalised leagues (North and South), above the Second Division (SWFL 2) with four regionalised leagues. The SWF Championship was created in 2020 as the new third tier of the 'Performance' category of the Scottish game. The Championship retained the existing North–South divisions but replaced the SWFL First Division, which was officially discontinued, as was the Second Division. The new fourth tier, named the SWFL, operated regional divisions in a separate 'Recreational' category, with no automatic promotion or relegation for its clubs.[27]

These divisions were reorganised in 2023 and a short season began from January to May 2023 before a winter season from August 2023. The leagues are also integrated into the "pyramid" and promotion and relegation with League 1 introduced.

Cup competitions[edit]

The League Cup, originating from the 1970s, was latterly known as the Scottish Women's Football League First Division Cup from 2012 when an additional Second Division Cup was introduced. Following the 2019 reorganisation, this reverted to a single SWFL League Cup competition, with a 'Plate' for clubs eliminated in the opening round.[28]

SWFL teams also compete in the primary national cup competition, the Scottish Women's Cup.

2023–24 clubs[edit]

The following teams are playing in the SWFL in the 2023–24 season. As well as first teams, the SWFL divisions also incorporate a number of development or youth teams of other Scottish League clubs.[29]

Seasons[edit]

Champions and runners-up of the SWFL Premier Division, 1999–2002:

Season Champions Runners-up Ref
1999–2000 Stenhousemuir (Cumbernauld United were administered by SFC between Oct 1999 and Feb 2001) Ayr United [8][34]
2000–01 Ayr United Glasgow City [9][34][35]
2001–02 F.C. Kilmarnock Glasgow City [10]

For seasons and champions in the other divisions from 1999 to 2019, see SWFL First Division (SWFL 1) and SWFL Second Division (SWFL 2).

The following clubs are the winners of the SWFL regional divisions since 2020:

Season North/East division West/South West division Central/South East division Ref
2020 Season curtailed due to COVID-19 pandemic [36][37]
2021 Bayside Bishopton Ladies Motherwell Development [38][39][40]
2022 East Fife Harmony Row Livingston Development [41]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Scottish Women's Football League". SWFA. Archived from the original on 29 November 2002.
  2. ^ "How Stewarton Thistle and Westthorn Utd started a new era for women's football in Scotland". Football Scotland. 9 Mar 2019. Archived from the original on 25 Feb 2020.
  3. ^ "SPORTS DIGEST: 11th December 1995". The Herald. Archived from the original on 22 Apr 2022.
  4. ^ "SPORTS DIGEST: 14th April 1997". The Herald. Archived from the original on 22 Apr 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Sports digest: 23rd March 1998". The Herald. Archived from the original on 22 Apr 2022.
  6. ^ "Sports Connection to sponsor Scottish Women's Football League". SFA. 11 Dec 1997. Archived from the original on 25 Apr 2012.
  7. ^ "SWFL - About us (2000)". SWFL. Archived from the original on 14 April 2001.
  8. ^ a b "Scotland (Women) - List of Champions". RSSSF.
  9. ^ a b "Tables: Leagues: Premier Division". SWFL. Archived from the original on 24 July 2001.
  10. ^ a b "FC Kilmarnock take next step (FC Kilmarnock - treble winners 2001-02)". Killie FC. Archived from the original on 15 Nov 2004.
  11. ^ "Kilmarnock Ladies v Ayr Ladies 12/11/01". Kilmarnock FC. Archived from the original on 17 Dec 2001.
  12. ^ "Scottish Women's Football League Division 3 clubs". SWFA. Archived from the original on 17 May 2003.
  13. ^ "Scottish Women's Football League Division 3 clubs". SWFA. Archived from the original on 26 March 2004.
  14. ^ "Ladies decide to do things by Thirds". The Herald. 22 Jul 1999. Archived from the original on 25 Apr 2022.
  15. ^ "Glory, glory woman-united". BBC Sport. 22 Jul 1999.
  16. ^ "Gender no bar to footballing fervour". The Herald. 7 Feb 2000. Archived from the original on 22 Apr 2022.
  17. ^ "Senior Ladies". Falkirk Girls FC. Archived from the original on 7 Apr 2001.
  18. ^ "Tables: Leagues: 3rd Division". SWFL. Archived from the original on 24 July 2001.
  19. ^ Johnstone, Naomi. "Killie Girls Division Three Champs!". Killie FC. Archived from the original on 10 Apr 2003.
  20. ^ Tables: Leagues: 3rd Division (2002-03, incomplete), SWFA; Fixtures/Results (Third Division 2002-03, incomplete), SWFA
  21. ^ "Scottish Women's Football League". SWFA. Archived from the original on 13 February 2005.
  22. ^ "SWFL Division 3 West 2006-2007 (incomplete)". SWFA. Archived from the original on 10 Mar 2007.
  23. ^ "SWFL Division 3 East 2006-2007 (incomplete)". SWFA. Archived from the original on 10 Mar 2007.
  24. ^ "League Tables: Scottish Women's Football". Football Central. Archived from the original on 11 Oct 2007.
  25. ^ "Scottish Women's Football: League Tables". SFA. Archived from the original on 25 May 2010.
  26. ^ "Scottish women's league kicks off". BBC Sport. 9 August 2002.
  27. ^ "New Senior Structure for 2020 and beyond". SWPL. 19 September 2019. Archived from the original on 21 February 2020.
  28. ^ 2021 SWFL fixtures announced & SWFL Cup 1st Round Draw, Scottish Women's Football, 20 May 2021
  29. ^ "Fixtures, Results & League Tables". SWF.
  30. ^ "SWFL North". Scottish Women's Football. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  31. ^ "SWFL East". Scottish Women's Football. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  32. ^ "SWFL South". Scottish Women's Football. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  33. ^ "SWFL West". Scottish Women's Football. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  34. ^ a b "Latest News: Ayr United stretched their lead". SWFL. 14 Jan 2001. Archived from the original on 18 April 2001.
  35. ^ "Fixtures/Results: Premier, 2000-01". SWFL. Archived from the original on 12 Jul 2001.
  36. ^ "2020 SWFL fixtures update". SWF. 24 September 2020. Archived from the original on 9 Oct 2020.
  37. ^ "Scottish Women's Football League 2020 season abandoned". She Kicks. 3 December 2020. Archived from the original on 3 Dec 2020.
  38. ^ "Bayside aim to retain SWF league title". Dunfermline Press. Archived from the original on 4 Jan 2022.
  39. ^ "Bishopton Ladies seal incredible league and cup double". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 15 Dec 2021.
  40. ^ "Scottish Women's Football - Official Channel". Youtube. 16 Dec 2021. Motherwell Development crowned 2021 league champions
  41. ^ "2022 SWFL Fixtures SWFL Cup Group Stage Draw announced". 20 December 2021.
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