Crown League
| Founded | 27 April 1974 |
|---|---|
| Country | Vionna-Frankenlisch |
| Confederation | CIFA |
| Number of teams | 20 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | VFL National |
| Domestic cup(s) | National Cup King Richard's Shield |
| League cup(s) | VFL Grand Cup |
| International cup(s) | Imperial Cup |
| Current champions | Gestoria (1st title) (2019–20) |
 2020–21 Crown League | |
The Crown League is the top level of the Vionna-Frankenlischian football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Vionna-Frankenlischian League (VFL). Seasons run from August to May with each team playing 38 matches (playing all 19 other teams both home and away). Most games are played on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. The Crown League is one of the contributing football leagues to the Imperial Cup, a competition drawn from the associations of the Frankenlischian Commonwealth.
The competition was founded as the Worker's League in 1974 as part of the Marton Reforms, a series of reforms by socialist Culture Minister John Marton intended to promote working-class sports and cultural activities to overtake the customs of the old aristocracy. The main feature of the reforms was the overhaul of the Vionna-Frankenlischian football league system which had previously been much smaller and divided between the kingdoms of Vionna and Frankenlisch. The Marton Reforms merged the two systems into one and founded the VFL to manage the seven tiers of professional and semi-professional Vionna-Frankenlischian football. The reorganisation, combined with government subsidies, increased the national popularity of association football and ensured the sport's survival following the restoration of the Vionna-Frankenlischian monarchy.
The Crown League is the most-attended sports event in Vionna-Frankenlisch and the centre of the Vionna-Frankenlischian sport sector. Though originally state-funded and its clubs self-organised, it has become heavily commercialised and clubs are now privately-owned. All Crown League matches are broadcast on radio and filmed for distribution to shops and cinemas.
History
Format
Competition
There are 20 clubs in the Premier League. During the course of a season (from August to May) each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents', for 38 games. Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference, and then goals scored. If still equal, teams are deemed to occupy the same position. If there is a tie for the championship, for relegation, or for qualification to other competitions, a play-off match at a neutral venue decides rank.
Promotion and relegation
A system of promotion and relegation exists between the Crown League and the VFL National League. The three lowest placed teams in the Crown League are relegated to the National League, and the top two teams from the National League promoted to the Crown League, with an additional team promoted after a series of play-offs involving the third, fourth, fifth and sixth placed clubs.
Clubs
2021–22 season
Twenty clubs are competing in the Crown League’s 2021-22 season:
| Club Name | Position | 2020-21 Position |
First Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gestoria F.C. | 1st | 1st | 2000-2001 |
| Larkinge City | 2nd | 2nd | 1984-1985 |
| Larkinge County | 3rd | 3rd | 1982-1983 |
| Royal Barbican | 4th | 4th | 1981-1982 |
| Grythshead Imperial | 5th | 5th | 1974-1975 |
| Teutonberg United | 6th | 6th | 1974-1975 |
| Vladimirska F.C. | 7th | 7th | 1974-1975 |
| Cunaris F.C. | 8th | 8th | 2000-2001 |
| Brumley City | 9th | 9th | 2004-2005 |
| Castle Road F.C. | 10th | 10th | 1989-1990 |
| Royal Westonland | 11th | 11th | 2016-2017 |
| Oxbridge City | 12th | 12th | 2012-2013 |
| Trades Union F.C. | 13th | 13th | 1974-1975 |
| Saxondale Duchy | 14th | 14th | 1994-1995 |
| Weissberg F.C. | 15th | 15th | 2009-2010 |
| Marienberg City | 16th | 16th | 1999-2000 |
| Lawrenceburgh F.C. | 17th | 17th | 2000-2001 |
| King's Grove F.C. | 18th | 1st (NL) | 2020-2021 |
| Edrington F.C. | 19th | 2nd (NL) | 2020-2021 |
| Donaldia F.C. | 20th | 3rd (NL) | 2020-2021 |
International Competitions
Imperial Cup
Twelve teams (6 from the Kingdom of Vionna and 6 from the Kingdom of Frankenlisch) are eligable to compete in the Imperial Cup, a competition comprising teams from the Frankenlischian Empire and its Commonwealth allies. Teams are drawn from the two top divisions in Vionna-Frankenlischian football: the Crown League and the National League. In the sixteen seasons of the Imperial Cup, Vionna-Frankenlischian teams have proven themselves by winning on thirteen occasions and being runners-up in two. Grythshead Imperial holds the record for most Imperial Cup victories with five trophies lifted.