List of former Scottish Football League clubs

This is a list of former member clubs of the Scottish Football League, detailing all the clubs to have played in the league since its formation but which are no longer in membership. The Scottish Football League was established in 1890, initially as an amateur league as professionalism had not been legalised in Scottish football.cite book |last=Davies |first=Hunter |title=Boots, Balls and Haircuts: An Illustrated History of Football from Then to Now |isbn=1-8440-3261-2 |date=2003 |publisher=Cassell Illustrated |pages=p39] In 1893 a Second Division was formed, with the existing single division renamed the First Division. The Second Division was discontinued during the First World War but revived in 1921. [cite web|url=http://www.rsssf.com/tabless/scot2champ.html|title=Scotland – List of 2nd Level Champions|publisher=RSSSF|accessdate=2008-05-09|date=2008-05-08] A Third Division was added in 1923 but collapsed three years later as a number of its member clubs found themselves unable to complete their fixtures for financial reasons, with many folding altogether. After the Second World War the divisions were rebranded as Division A and Division B and a Division C was added. This included a mixture of new member clubs and the reserve teams of clubs from the higher divisions, but this division was dropped in 1955. [cite web|url=http://www.rsssf.com/tabless/scot3champ.html|title=Scotland – List of 3rd Level Champions|publisher=RSSSF|accessdate=2008-05-09|date=2008-04-18] A major re-organisation of the league in 1975 led to the existing two divisions being split into three smaller divisions, with a new Premier Division at the highest level. This structure remained in place until 1998, when the teams then in the Premier Division broke away to form the Scottish Premier League, which supplanted the Premier Division as the highest level of football in Scotland. [cite web|url=http://www.scotprem.premiumtv.co.uk/page/History/0,,10002,00.html|title=History|publisher=Scottish Premier League|accessdate=2008-03-05]

Unlike in England, where since 1987 clubs finishing at the foot of the Football League have been relegated out of the competition, [cite book|title=News of the World Football Annual 2007–2008|first=Stuart|last=Barnes|publisher=Invincible Press|date=2007|id=ISBN 0-0072-5555-9|pages=p58] there is no mechanism in place in Scotland for clubs at the bottom of the Scottish League to be relegated. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/football/7321457.stm|title=Ups and downs|publisher=BBC|accessdate=2008-05-19|date=2008-05-18] A number of clubs who resigned or were expelled from the Scottish League have gone on to play in non-league football, either in "senior" leagues such as the East of Scotland Football League or in leagues governed by the Scottish Junior Football Association (SJFA).

Clubs

The tables show the first and last seasons in which each club competed in the league. Some clubs' membership was intermittent between their first and last seasons. Clubs shown in bold were among the founder members of the league. As of 2008 the only founder member club still playing in the league is Dumbarton.

Current members of the Scottish Premier League

Other former member clubs

See also

*List of former Football League clubs
*Timeline of Scottish football

References