Promotion Applicants confirmed by The FA

Wed 8th January 2025 | Announcements | By Martin Fallon

The FA have confirmed the list of clubs whom have applied for promotion from the County Feeder Leagues to Step Six of the National League System NLS.  Clubs who are interested in promotion at the end of 2024-25 were required to formally apply by 31st December 2024 and are all subject to a number of stringent qualifying criteria.

The next steps for applicants are: 

1. The Football Foundation will arrange Stadium Accreditation Inspections with the applying clubs where required, leagues may be contacted to attend these as well.
2. The Football Association are currently assessing the applications against the requirements within the NLS Regulations and will be contacting clubs where required.

We here at the NWCFL wish all applicants well. We would remind clubs and supporters that a maximum of one Club per League may be promoted to Step 6. If there are multiple applicants from one particular league, then, then the highest placed eligible applicant will be promoted. No team lower than 5^th in any League will be eligible for promotion. If a Club is eligible for promotion, passes the Stadium Accreditation and is the highest eligible Club in the top 5 for promotion, then they will be added to the promotion pool at Step 6.

Please note that allocations will not be released until mid-May. There is no communication from the FA until this point.

Looking in our region there are several club's that we would expect to fall within our geographical boundary, whilst there are several on the boundary that could come into the mix as geographical boundaries are fluid and can be impacted by qualifying clubs around the country. We will take a look at the some of the applications by league that we could see next season.

Cheshire League

Winstanley Warriors are the only applicants from the Cheshire League. They play in Winstanley which is just outside Wigan. They are currently though in 15th position out of 16 clubs in the league so the prospect of a top five finish for them seems unlikely.

Liverpool County Premier League

There are two applicants from this league, those being MSB Woolton and Halewood Apollo. MSB Woolton finished fourth last season and currently lead the Premier Division with nine wins from 13 games. Halewood Apollo are in ninth place at present with four wins, so a top five finish for them looks unlikely.

Manchester League

Unfortunately there are no applicants from this league

Salop Leisure Football League (Shropshire County League)

There are a number of clubs currently in the First Division South who have come through this league, so we could possibly see clubs allocated to us or the Midland League.

There are four applicants from this league. Shrewsbury Up & Comers are currently top of the table, four points clear of the rest with 12 wins from 14 games. Haughmond are fourth in the league table at present, four points off top place having played a game more. Both of these teams play at Shrewsbury Sports Village which is around nine miles west of Allscott Heath.

Dawley Town are in sixth place at present, six points behind Shrewsbury although they do have two games in hand. Dawley is just south of Telford, around right miles away from Allscott Heath, and they are geographically further north than Wolverhampton Sporting Community who were placed in the NWCFL last summer.   

Staffordshire County Premier League

There is just one applicant from this league which are former members Rocester. They were relegated from the NWCFL in 2022/23, and last season finished 12th. However they are rejuvenated this season and are currently in fourth place in the league table. They are ten points off the leaders with three games in hand. Perhaps more crucially they are four points clear of the sixth place team who have played two games more than them. 

West Cheshire League

Unfortunately there are no applicants from this league

West Lancashire League

Fulwood Amateur are the only applicants from the West Lancashire League, a league that have provided a good number of sides to us in the past. Fulwood currently sit in fourth place in the league, nine points off the leaders. They are three points clear of sixth place having played one game less.

West Midlands (Regional) League Div 1

Could we see teams step up from this league and be placed in the NWCFL? Who knows?

There are four applicants from the West Midlands League, including the current leaders Telford Town who are 15 points clear of the rest. Telford is certainly in our area being just eight miles from Allscott Heath, and they are just three miles away from one of the Salop applicants in Dawley Town.

Second placed FC Darlaston have also applied, although they are based in Walsall which is ten miles south of our current most southerly team in Wolverhampton Sporting Community. 

The other applicants from this league are Pelsall Villa Colts and Tipton Town, who currently lie 5th and 6th in the league. Pelsall is just four miles away from Wolverhampton Sporting Community, whilst Tipton is near to Wednesbury, around 13 miles south of Wolverhampton Sporting Community.

In total there are 107 applicant clubs from 42 County Feeder Leagues. The full list is as follows: