Firstly a little bit of history,( before the SPL was created) the SFL had two divisions of 18 and 20. The leagues in the final season of this structure can be seen below:
Scottish First Divison 1974-75 (Top 10 promoted to new Premier Division)
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Rangers | 34 | 25 | 6 | 3 | 86 | 33 | 53 | 56 |
2 | Hibernian | 34 | 20 | 9 | 5 | 69 | 37 | 32 | 49 |
3 | Celtic | 34 | 20 | 5 | 9 | 81 | 41 | 40 | 45 |
4 | Dundee United | 34 | 19 | 7 | 8 | 72 | 43 | 29 | 45 |
5 | Aberdeen | 34 | 16 | 9 | 9 | 66 | 43 | 23 | 41 |
6 | Dundee | 34 | 16 | 6 | 12 | 48 | 42 | 6 | 38 |
7 | Ayr United | 34 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 50 | 61 | -11 | 36 |
8 | Hearts | 34 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 47 | 52 | -5 | 35 |
9 | St Johnstone | 34 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 41 | 44 | -3 | 34 |
10 | Motherwell | 34 | 14 | 5 | 15 | 52 | 57 | -5 | 33 |
11 | Airdrieonians | 34 | 11 | 9 | 14 | 43 | 55 | -12 | 31 |
12 | Kilmarnock | 34 | 8 | 15 | 11 | 52 | 68 | -16 | 31 |
13 | Partick Thistle | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 48 | 62 | -14 | 30 |
14 | Dumbarton | 34 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 44 | 55 | -11 | 24 |
15 | Dunfermline Athletic | 34 | 7 | 9 | 18 | 46 | 66 | -20 | 23 |
16 | Clyde | 34 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 40 | 63 | -23 | 22 |
17 | Morton | 34 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 31 | 62 | -31 | 22 |
18 | Arbroath | 34 | 5 | 7 | 22 | 34 | 66 | -32 | 17 |
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Falkirk | 38 | 26 | 2 | 10 | 76 | 29 | 47 | 54 |
2 | Queen of the South | 38 | 23 | 7 | 8 | 77 | 33 | 44 | 53 |
3 | Montrose | 38 | 23 | 7 | 8 | 70 | 37 | 33 | 53 |
4 | Hamilton Academical | 38 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 69 | 30 | 39 | 49 |
5 | East Fife | 38 | 20 | 7 | 11 | 57 | 42 | 15 | 47 |
6 | St. Mirren | 38 | 19 | 8 | 11 | 74 | 52 | 22 | 46 |
7 | Clydebank | 38 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 50 | 40 | 10 | 44 |
8 | Stirling Albion | 38 | 17 | 9 | 12 | 67 | 55 | 12 | 43 |
9 | Berwick Rangers | 38 | 17 | 6 | 15 | 53 | 49 | 4 | 40 |
10 | East Stirlingshire | 38 | 16 | 8 | 14 | 56 | 52 | 4 | 40 |
11 | Stenhousemuir | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 52 | 42 | 10 | 39 |
12 | Albion Rovers | 38 | 16 | 7 | 15 | 72 | 64 | 8 | 39 |
13 | Raith Rovers | 38 | 14 | 9 | 15 | 48 | 44 | 4 | 37 |
14 | Stranraer | 38 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 47 | 65 | -18 | 35 |
15 | Alloa Athletic | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 49 | 56 | -7 | 33 |
16 | Queen’s Park | 38 | 10 | 10 | 18 | 41 | 54 | -13 | 30 |
17 | Brechin City | 38 | 9 | 7 | 22 | 44 | 85 | -41 | 25 |
18 | Meadowbank Thistle | 38 | 9 | 5 | 24 | 26 | 87 | -61 | 23 |
19 | Cowdenbeath | 38 | 5 | 11 | 22 | 39 | 76 | -37 | 21 |
20 | Forfar Athletic | 38 | 1 | 7 | 30 | 27 | 102 | -75 | 9 |
This 38 team structure stayed until 1992 as it was tweaked to become leagues of 12, 12 and 14. Two years later the league system changed again, to include a fourth-tier to make all leagues have 10 teams. Highland league outfit Ross County and new team Inverness Caley Thistle (a merger of Highland league teams Inverness Thistle and Inverness Caley) were placed into Division 3 (ring a bell), also three points were awarded for a win instead of two.
On 8 September 1997, the football clubs in the Premier Division decided to split from the Scottish Football League and form the Scottish Premier League, following the Premiership in England, which came into force during the 1992–93 season. This decision was fuelled by a desire by the top clubs in Scotland to retain more of the revenue generated by the game. Originally, league sponsorship money was divided proportionally between clubs in all four divisions. After the SPL was formed, its clubs retained all of its commercial revenues except for an annual payment to the SFL and a parachute payment to relegated clubs.
In 1999 there was a increase from 10 clubs to 12 was part of the deal offered to obtain approval from SFL member clubs. Since then, the SPL has operated a "split league format" to prevent the need for a 44-game schedule, which was once used in the Scottish Premier Division, but is now considered to be too high a number of games in a league season. The current system is below:
Reconstruction
There are many proposals for SPL reconstruction here are the two main ones.
Level | League/Division |
---|---|
1 | Scottish Premier League (Clydesdale Bank Premier League) 12 clubs |
2 | Scottish Football League First Division (Irn-Bru Scottish Football League First Division) 10 clubs |
3 | Scottish Football League Second Division (Irn-Bru Scottish Football League Second Division) 10 clubs |
4 | Scottish Football League Third Division (Irn-Bru Scottish Football League Third Division) 10 clubs |
Reconstruction
These are the facts that we know will change according to BBC Sport Scotland:
- The SPL and SFL will merge into one body at the start of season 2013-14 again as the SPFL.
- Play-offs between the top two divisions will be introduced in time for the coming season with one team from the top flight and three from the second tier competing for a place in the following season's SPL
- There will be an increase in the parachute payments made to clubs relegated from the SPL
- Changes will be made to the distribution model for clubs in the top two tiers with teams in the lower leagues earning a similar amount to the current set-up
- A new pyramid system will become effective from season 2014-15 that will allow a potential place in the new league format for a team from either the Highland league or newly-created 'Lowland League'
There are many proposals for SPL reconstruction here are the two main ones.Proposal A - 16 teams - backed by the SFL and I
This Proposal is a 16 team league would be a 37 game season with a home and away then a split it would include the current twelve SPL sides and the top 4 in SFL1 which is at the minute Partick, Dunfermiline, Morton and Livingstone. Neil Doncaster the SPL chief executive is against the 16 team league. SFL chief David Longmuir wants a system 16, 10 and 18 with Rangers and Celtic Reserves playing in the the lower leagues. It is unlikely that this will be successful as most SPL clubs are against this.