Questions about the English Premier League (EPL) - the top level of the English association football league system.
The English Premier League is the top club division of association football in the FIFA member state of England, which falls under the confederate-level jurisdiction of the United European Football Association (and, for FIFA and UEFA purposes, is largely separate from the other FIFA member states of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which make up the UK).
The EPL is home to several storied franchises in European football, including Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool. International superstar David Beckham is well-known for his days playing and winning championships with Manchester United (as well as his marriage to Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice of the Spice Girls). Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United each have at least one European Cup win in their record (since 1993 known as the UEFA Champions League), with Liverpool being the most decorated English team in European Championship play, and third overall behind Italian favorite Milan and Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid.
Football in England has four "divisions" of "league" football, including the Premier League and three divisions of "The Football League", similar to the various classes of minor league hockey or baseball in the United States. However, unlike these other sports leagues, English football teams move between these tiers in a process called "promotion and relegation", where by winning or ranking highly in the lower division, a team can be "promoted" the the next higher league, replacing a poorly-performing team who is "relegated" to the lower division. This ensures that each tier of club teams will be relatively well-matched, and that the Premier League truly represents the best teams in English football.
The EPL, while traditionally made up of teams from England proper, also includes two teams located in Wales; Cardiff City and Swansea City. Wales, as an independent FIFA member, has its own club league system, with a Premier League in operation since 1992. However, Swansea City joined the Football League system in 1912, decades before the formation of the Welsh Premier League, and has stayed in that system ever since, being promoted from the second-division Champion's League in 2011. Similarly, Cardiff City, founded in 1899, has also always been in the Football League system, and won the second-division Champions League in 2012 which earned them automatic promotion into the Premier League.
Usage guidance:
Mark the question with this tag if it's about the English Premier League, its history, statistics, regulations or generally about the events taking place in and around the Premier League. This tag can also be used for lower tier English leagues.
Don't use this tag just because a match mentioned in the question was played under this competition or just because an incident from the Premier League is mentioned in the body of the question, e.g:
Questions using this tag should also use the football tag.
