Following on from the national league of the Scottish Women's Football Association founded in 1972, the SWFL was formed by clubs and the SWFA in 1999 as the country's top four women's league tiers.
From 1999 until 2015, the SWFL First Division (SWFL 1) was the second tier of Scottish women's football; its Premier Division broke off to create the Scottish Women's Premier League (SWPL) in 2002. The subsequent additions of SWPL 2 (2016), the SWF Championship (2021) and SWF League One (2023) means that The SWFL now comprises the fifth tier of the Scottish league system, and currently has 40 clubs in four regional divisions.
The modern Scottish women's leagues began in 1972–73, when Westthorn United won the national title.[2] League systems in the 1990s included a tiered divisional system,[3] or feeder leagues in the North, East and West of Scotland, as well as an Inter-Region Cup.[4][5] The top division was known from 1997 to 1999 as the Sports Connection Premier for sponsorship reasons,[5] in the Sports Connection Women's Scottish League.[6]
The Scottish Women's Football League was formed on 6 November 1999, with the top four national divisions: the Premier Division, First, Second and Third Division. The League had 46 clubs in 2000.[7]
The SWFL Premier Division constituted the top division in Scottish women's football from 1999–2000 until 2001–02. Three clubs became national champions in those seasons: Cumbernauld,[8] Ayr United,[9] and F.C. Kilmarnock.[10] The women's Ayrshire derby, Ayr–Kilmarnock, was a key match in the national title race in each season in the early 2000s.[11]
The Third Division was the national fourth-tier league founded by the SWFL in 1999.[12][13] The most prominent member of the Third Division in 1999–2000 was Third Lanark, a women's team formed 22 years after the disbandment of the Third Lanark A.C. men's team and playing its games at Cathkin Park.[14][15][16] Falkirk Ladies won promotion from the Third Division in 1999–2000;[17] later seasons' champions were Baillieston (2000–01),[18] and F.C. Kilmarnock Girls (2002–03).[19][20] The division was separated into two groups, the West and East, each with eight clubs in 2004–05,[21] and seven and eight respectively in 2006–07.[22][23] They became the Third Division North and South, each with nine clubs, in 2007–08.[24] This league tier was disbanded by 2010.[25]
In 2002, the SWFL's twelve-team top division broke away to form the SWPL, leaving the remaining thirty clubs in the SWFL.[26] In 2016, the SWPL expanded to two divisions, meaning the SWFL was now at the third and fourth tiers of the league structure.
In the reorganisation in 2016, the national SWFL First Division (SWFL 1) split into two regionalised leagues (North and South), above the Second Division (SWFL 2) with four regionalised leagues. The SWF Championship was created in 2020 as the new third tier of the 'Performance' category of the Scottish game. The Championship retained the existing North–South divisions but replaced the SWFL First Division, which was officially discontinued, as was the Second Division. The new fourth tier, named the SWFL, operated regional divisions in a separate 'Recreational' category, with no automatic promotion or relegation for its clubs.[27]
These divisions were reorganised in 2023 and a short season began from January to May 2023 before a winter season from August 2023. The leagues are also integrated into the "pyramid" and promotion and relegation with League 1 introduced.
Cup competitions
The League Cup, originating from the 1970s, was latterly known as the Scottish Women's Football League First Division Cup from 2012 when an additional Second Division Cup was introduced. Following the 2019 reorganisation, this reverted to a single SWFL League Cup competition, with a 'Plate' for clubs eliminated in the opening round.[28]
SWFL teams also compete in the primary national cup competition, the Scottish Women's Cup.
2023–24 clubs
The following teams are playing in the SWFL in the 2023–24 season. As well as first teams, the SWFL divisions also incorporate a number of development or youth teams of other Scottish League clubs.[29]
