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STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
2025 No. 1216
SPORTS GROUNDS AND SPORTING
EVENTS, ENGLAND AND WALES
The Football Governance Act 2025
(Specified Competitions) Regulations 2025
Made - - - - 20th November 2025
Coming into force - - 24th November 2025
The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2(3)
of the Football Governance Act 2025(1).
The Secretary of State is content that for each competition specified in these Regulations, the
teams entered into that competition, or that are members of it or participate in it, are exclusively or
predominantly English teams(2).
In accordance with section 91(3)(a)(i) of that Act, a draft of this instrument was laid before
Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.
Citation, commencement and extent
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Football Governance Act 2025 (Specified
Competitions) Regulations 2025.
(2) These Regulations come into force on 24th November 2025.
(3) These Regulations extend to England and Wales.
Specified competitions
2. For the purposes of the Football Governance Act 2025 a “specified competition” means the
following association football competitions—
(a) the Premier League competition, organised and administered by the Football Association
Premier League Limited;
(b) the Championship, League One and League Two competitions, organised and
administered by the Football League Limited; and
(1) 2025 c. 21.
(2) Section 2(4) of that Act provides that a team is an “English team” if the ground at which the team customarily plays its home
matches is in England.Document Generated: 2025-11-24
Status: This is the original version (as it was originally made). This
item of legislation is currently only available in its original format.
(c) the Premier Division of the National League competition, organised and administered by
the Football Conference Limited,
in each case comprising clubs which are for the time being, full or associate members of that body.
Stephanie Peacock
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
20th November 2025 Department for Culture, Media and Sport
2Document Generated: 2025-11-24
Status: This is the original version (as it was originally made). This
item of legislation is currently only available in its original format.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations prescribe the top five tiers of the men’s English football pyramid as “specified
competitions” for the purposes of the Football Governance Act 2025 (“the Act”).
For clarity, Tier 1 is the Premier League, organised by the Football Association Premier League
Limited. Tiers 2-4 are the English Football League, comprising the Championship (Tier 2), League
One (Tier 3), and League Two (Tier 4) which are organised by the Football League Limited. Tier 5
is the Premier Division of the National League, organised by the Football Conference Limited.
A full impact assessment was prepared in relation to the Act. No further impact assessment has been
produced as the effect of the Regulations is limited to applying the provisions of the Act, the impact
of which has already been assessed. Copies of the Impact Assessment for the Act are available
from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 100 Parliament Street, London SW1A 2BQ
and at www.legislation.gov.uk, where it may be read alongside this instrument and its Explanatory
Memorandum. Hard copies of these documents are available from the same postal address.
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