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Overview of Barclays Premier League
The Premier League (officially known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons, colloquially known as The Premiership), is an English professional league for football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. The Premier League is currently contested by 20 clubs, operating a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. Seasons run from August to May, with teams playing 38 games each.
| Premier League | |
 | |
| Country |  England |
|---|---|
| Confederation | UEFA |
| Founded | 20 February 1992 |
| Divisions | 1 |
| Number of teams | 20 |
| Relegation to | The Championship |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | FA Cup League Cup |
| UEFA cup(s) | Champions League UEFA Cup Intertoto Cup |
| Current champions | Manchester United (2006–07) |
| Website | Premier League home page |
The competition formed as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 and the first games were played on 15 August that year, following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from The Football League to take advantage of a lucrative television rights deal; The Football League had served as England and Wales's primary football competition since 1888. Since then, the Premier League has become the world's most watched sporting league and the most lucrative football league, with combined club revenues of around £1.4 billion in 2005–06, which is expected to rise to around £1.8 billion for 2007–08, primarily due to rising media revenues. The league is a corporation with the 20 clubs acting as shareholders.
A total of 40 clubs have competed in the Premier League, but only four have won the title: Manchester United, Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal, and Chelsea. The current Premier League champions are Manchester United, who won their ninth title in the 2006–07 season, the most of any Premier League team.
The teams
The 22 inaugural members of the Premiership formed on 27-May-1992 were 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, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, and Wimbledon.
Premier League members for 2007–08
The following 20 clubs are competing in the Premier League during the 2007–08 season.
| Club | Position in 2006–07 | First season in top division | First season of current spell in top division | Last title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenala,b | 4th | 1904–05 | 1919–20 | 2003–04 |
| Aston Villaa,b | 11th | 1888–89 | 1988–89 | 1980–81 |
| Birmingham City | 2nd, Championship | 1893–94 | 2007–08 | n/a |
| Blackburn Roversa | 10th | 1888–89 | 2001–02 | 1994–95 |
| Bolton Wanderers | 7th | 1888–89 | 2001–02 | n/a |
| Chelseaa,b | 2nd | 1907–08 | 1989–90 | 2005–06 |
| Derby County | 3rd, Championship | 1888–89 | 2007–08 | 1974–75 |
| Evertona,b | 6th | 1888–89 | 1954–55 | 1986–87 |
| Fulham | 16th | 1949–50 | 2001–02 | n/a |
| Liverpoola,b | 3rd | 1894–95 | 1962–63 | 1989–90 |
| Manchester Citya | 14th | 1899–1900 | 2002–03 | 1967–68 |
| Manchester Uniteda,b | 1st | 1892–93 | 1975–76 | 2006–07 |
| Middlesbrougha | 12th | 1902–03 | 1998–99 | n/a |
| Newcastle United | 13th | 1898–99 | 1993–94 | 1926–27 |
| Portsmouth | 9th | 1927–28 | 2003–04 | 1949–50 |
| Reading | 8th | 2006–07 | 2006–07 | n/a |
| Sunderland | 1st, Championship | 1890–91 | 2007–08 | 1935–36 |
| Tottenham Hotspura,b | 5th | 1909–10 | 1978–79 | 1960–61 |
| West Ham United | 15th | 1923–24 | 2005–06 | n/a |
| Wigan Athletic | 17th | 2005–06 | 2005–06 | n/a |
a = Founding member of the Premier League b = Played in every Premier League season | ||||
The competition
There are 20 clubs in the Premier League. During the course of a season, which lasts from August to May, each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 38 games. Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference, and then goals scored. At the end of each season, the club with the most points is crowned champion. If points are equal, the goal difference and then goals scored determine the winner. If still equal, teams are deemed to occupy the same position. If there is a tie for the championship, for relegation, or for qualification to other competitions, a play-off match at a neutral venue decides rank. The three lowest placed teams are relegated into the Football League Championship and the top two teams from the Championship, together with the winner of play-offs involving the third to sixth placed Championship clubs, are promoted in their place.
Top Scorers
Players in the Premier League can compete for the informal competitions of Goal of the MonthGoal of the Season. Other titles players compete for include the top-scorer for a season. Former Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer holds the record for most Premiership goals with 260. Shearer finished among the top ten goal scorers in 10 out of his 14 seasons in the Premier League and won the top scorer title three times. During the 1995–96 season he became the first player to score 100 Premier League goals.| Rank | Player | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Shearer | 260 |
| 2 | Andy Cole | 187 |
| 3 |  Thierry Henry | 174 |
| 4 | Robbie Fowler | 163 |
| 5 | Les Ferdinand | 149 |
| 6 | Teddy Sheringham | 146 |
| 7 | Michael Owen[63] | 131 |
| 8 |  Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | 127 |
| 9 |  Dwight Yorke[63] | 123 |
| 10 | Ian Wright | 113 |
Since the first Premier League season in 1992–93, 11 different players have won or shared the top scorers title. Thierry Henry won his third consecutive and fourth overall scoring title by scoring 27 goals in the 2005–06 season. This surpassed Shearer's mark of three titles which he won consecutively from 1994–95 through 1996–97. Other multiple winners include Michael Owen and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink who have won two titles each. Andrew Cole and Alan Shearer hold the record for most goals in a season (34) — for Newcastle United and Blackburn Rovers respectively. Cole's record came in the 1993–94 season, while Shearer's came in 1994–95, both of which were 42-game seasons. Shearer's mark of 31 goals in 1995–96 remains the highest total in a 38-game season.
Manchester United became the first team to have scored 1,000 goals in this league after Cristiano Ronaldo scored, in a 4–1 defeat by Middlesbrough, in the 2005–06 season, having been the first team to have conceded a Premiership goal following the League's inception. Arsenal are the only other team to have reached the 1,000 goal mark. The highest-scoring match to date in the Premiership occurred on 29 September 2007 when Portsmouth defeated Reading 7–4.
Only two players have scored in each of the 16 Premiership seasons, Sheffield United player Gary Speed and Manchester United veteran Ryan Giggs, both former captains of the Wales national football team.
External links:
Official site:www.premierleague.com
livescores:foxsports
football news:premiershipglory
The sponcers:
barclays
espnstar
premiershipglory
4thegame
rediff
Top Ten Premier Leauge Goals
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