English Football Clubs: All Teams & Complete Guide to Premier League, WSL & More (2025)

England is often regarded as the birthplace of modern football. The 19th century played a key role in the game taking its current avatar. It turned professional from amateur, and clubs started coming into effect. English football showed the way, and the world followed. It introduced the league system in 1888, and plenty of English football clubs were formed to take part.
International football in England garnered momentum as international events like the Olympics generated special interest. What started as a modest journey back then has become a way of life now. The Premier League, England’s top tier, is viewed as the holy grail of modern league football. English football teams like Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester City became part of the very fabric of the sport.
The sport in England is viewed in the same regard, irrespective of the division in the English football pyramid. Premier League clubs are just as important as the EFL Championship teams, Women’s Super League teams, League One teams, and other England football divisions. Recently, Premier League teams, England ladies football clubs, and international teams have been creating a sensation with their victories on the international stage. With everything said and done, let us take a deep look at how English football clubs shaped world football. 

English Football Teams: History and Evolution of Football Teams in England 

Football was gaining momentum in England as a sport in the early 19th century. It became a game of the working class as they formed clubs and associations to play the sport they love. The need to have a collective identity gave rise to football teams in England. Although a uniform rule book and English football divisions didn’t exist back then, enthusiastic people formed clubs for the love of the game.
Sheffield F.C., formed in 1857, are the oldest independent and active football club in the world in that regard. Similarly, multiple English football clubs were formed in the same era. But the game-changer in English football was the creation of the Football Association (FA), which changed the face of the game in 1863.
It made the sport professional first and defined the laws of the game. The FA was single-handedly responsible for unifying multiple English football clubs with different sets of rules and bringing them all under one umbrella. English football teams now share a collective identity and have contributed to the growth of the game.

English Football Pyramid

The steps to create the English football divisions began in 1888 when the Football League was formally created and formed in 1888. It is the oldest league in world football and acts as the top flight of football in England. 12 founding members started the league, and it grew in popularity. With more and more English football teams wanting to participate in the top flight, the EFL decided to introduce a second division in 1892. It led to the creation of automatic promotion and relegation between the two leagues in 1898. This led to the creation of the English football pyramid as more and more divisions were added. Football teams in England needed to swim through the divisions to reach the upper echelons of club football. The systems pretty much remained the same until a revolution took place in 1992.
A few clubs from the Football League First Division decided to break away from the Football League. They became the founders of the Premier League in 1992, becoming the top flight of England. This forced the Football League to restructure. It expanded to 72 clubs in 1995 before undergoing a major rebrand in 2004.
The rebrand led to the formation of the current English football divisions. The Football League rebranded itself to the English Football League in 2016. We are yet to see a major change in the last decade, as the sport is enjoying a fine equilibrium. 

English Football Divisions

After being formed as a breakaway league in 1992, the Premier League sat at the top of the English football pyramid. There were massive changes in the English football divisions as a result of the Premier League’s formation. The rebrand in 2004 is the most major one and is still being followed.
The EFL Championship acts as the second division below the Premier League. League One (Level 3) and League Two (Level 4) act as the tiers below the Championship. Together, the four levels form the English Football League (EFL) with the Premier League at the apex and League Two at the base. The top four English football divisions are known as “League Football”.
The divisions below are known as non-league football, and the top tier of non-league football is the National League. It is the last level of a single nationwide league, as the divisions below it are split into multiple regional leagues. Levels 6 and below of the pyramid have clubs that are amateur as well as semi-professional. Only 10 levels are recognised in the official league structure, and any level below 11 for men has no official definition.
Similarly, Women’s football also has separate ten tiers. The Women’s Super League started in 2011, took its place at the top of the pyramid, and displaced every other division by one level. The second tier is now called the Women’s Championship. The third and fourth tiers were rebranded as the FA Women’s Premier League with two divisions, Northern and Southern. It branches into multiple regional leagues in the divisions below. 

Most Successful Teams in English football

English football was dominated by various English football clubs in various eras. When the Football League first began, Midlands clubs that were professional had incredible success over teams that were amateur. With time, the domination changed hands. New English football teams like Manchester United and Liverpool started dominating in the mid-1950s. In the Premier League era, clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Arsenal dominated massively. Liverpool have just woken from their slumber and are reaching the summits of English football pyramids yet again. Here’s a look at the most successful teams in English football.

Premier League Clubs

Here’s a look at the Premier League clubs, in which we will also review the most successful teams in the history of the Premier League. Here are detailed stats.

EFL Championship Teams

Here’s a deep dive into the teams from England that have been successful in the EFL Championship.

English Football League One Teams

Below are listed the teams that participate in the English Football League One.

Women Super League Teams

Women Super League teams have also come to the limelight after the performance of several players in the Women’s Euro 2025. Here are details of the teams.