2008–09 in English football

The 2008–09 season was the 129th season of competitive football in England. The Premier League started on 16 August 2008, while the Championship, League One, and League Two matches started on 9 August 2008. The regular season of the Football League ended on 3 May 2009, while the Premier League ended on 24 May 2009.

Overview

• West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City and Hull City were all playing in the Premier League after winning promotion from the Championship last season. Stoke returned to the top flight after a 23-year absence, while Hull were making their debut. West Bromwich Albion's last appearance was in 2005–06.
• Leicester City were playing in League One, the third division, for the first time after being relegated from the Championship last season.
• Colchester United were playing in their new 10,000-seater stadium at Colchester Community Stadium.
• Aldershot Town and Exeter City both returned to The Football League after winning the Conference National championship and play-offs, respectively. Exeter returned after five years of Conference football, while Aldershot are an entirely new club which is the spiritual successor of the former town club, which folded in 1992.
• Luton Town began their League Two campaign on minus 30 points following a ruling from The Football Association. Bournemouth and Rotherham United both began on minus 17 points, with the latter playing their home games at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield.
• Darlington were docked 10 points on 25 February 2009 for going into administration.
• Stockport County were docked 10 points on 30 April 2009 for going into administration.

Managerial changes

See also: List of English Football League managers by date of appointment

In-season managerial changes

Name	Club	Date of departure	Replacement	Date of appointment
Kevin Bond	Bournemouth	1 September 2008	Jimmy Quinn	2 September 2008
Alan Curbishley	West Ham United	3 September 2008	Gianfranco Zola	11 September 2008
Kevin Keegan	Newcastle United	4 September 2008	Joe Kinnear1	26 September 2008
Keith Downing	Cheltenham Town	13 September 2008	Martin Allen	15 September 2008
Alan Buckley	Grimsby Town	15 September 2008	Mike Newell	6 October 2008
Geraint Williams	Colchester United	22 September 2008	Paul Lambert	9 October 2008
Lee Sinnott	Port Vale	22 September 2008	Dean Glover2	6 October 2008
Iain Dowie	Queens Park Rangers	24 October 2008	Paulo Sousa	19 November 2008
Juande Ramos	Tottenham Hotspur	25 October 2008	Harry Redknapp	26 October 2008
Harry Redknapp	Portsmouth	26 October 2008	Tony Adams3	28 October 2008
John Ward	Carlisle United	3 November 2008	Greg Abbott4	5 December 2008
Aidy Boothroyd	Watford	3 November 2008	Brendan Rodgers	24 November 2008
Stan Ternent	Huddersfield Town	4 November 2008	Lee Clark	11 December 2008
Simon Davies	Chester City	11 November 2008	Mark Wright	14 November 2008
Maurice Malpas	Swindon Town	14 November 2008	Danny Wilson	26 December 2008
Steve Holland	Crewe Alexandra	18 November 2008	Gudjon Thordarson	24 December 2008
Alan Pardew	Charlton Athletic	22 November 2008	Phil Parkinson5	31 December 2008
Roy Keane	Sunderland	4 December 2008	Ricky Sbragia6	27 December 2008
Danny Wilson	Hartlepool United	15 December 2008	Chris Turner	15 December 2008
Gary McAllister	Leeds United	21 December 2008	Simon Grayson	23 December 2008
Simon Grayson	Blackpool	23 December 2008	Ian Holloway	21 May 2009
Colin Calderwood	Nottingham Forest	26 December 2008	Billy Davies	1 January 2009
Paul Fairclough	Barnet	28 December 2008	Ian Hendon9	21 April 2009
Paul Jewell	Derby County	29 December 2008	Nigel Clough	6 January 2009
Jimmy Quinn	Bournemouth	31 December 2008	Eddie Howe7	19 January 2009
Jimmy Mullen	Walsall	10 January 2009	Chris Hutchings	20 January 2009
Glenn Roeder	Norwich City	14 January 2009	Bryan Gunn8	21 January 2009
Martin Ling	Leyton Orient	18 January 2009	Geraint Williams	5 February 2009
Jan Poortvliet	Southampton	23 January 2009	Mark Wotte	23 January 2009
Tony Adams	Portsmouth	9 February 2009	Paul Hart	3 March 2009
Luiz Felipe Scolari	Chelsea	9 February 2009	Guus Hiddink	11 February 2009
Russell Slade	Yeovil Town	16 February 2009	Terry Skiverton	18 February 2009
Micky Adams	Brighton & Hove Albion	21 February 2009	Russell Slade	6 March 2009
John Sheridan	Oldham Athletic	15 March 2009	Joe Royle	15 March 2009
Paulo Sousa	Queens Park Rangers	9 April 2009	Jim Magilton	3 June 2009
Jim Magilton	Ipswich Town	21 April 2009	Roy Keane	22 April 2009
Graham Turner	Hereford United	24 April 2009	John Trewick	24 April 2009
Joe Royle	Oldham Athletic	30 April 2009	Dave Penney	30 April 2009
Dave Penney	Darlington	30 April 2009	Colin Todd	20 May 2009

End-of-season managerial changes

Name	Club	Date of departure	Replacement	Date of appointment
Dean Glover	Port Vale	2 May 2009	Micky Adams	1 June 2009
Jim Gannon	Stockport County	6 May 2009	Gary Ablett	8 July 2009
Lee Richardson	Chesterfield	6 May 2009	John Sheridan	9 June 2009
Steve Coppell	Reading	12 May 2009	Brendan Rodgers	5 June 2009
Ricky Sbragia	Sunderland	24 May 2009	Steve Bruce	2 June 2009
Guus Hiddink	Chelsea	30 May 2009	Carlo Ancelotti	1 June 2009
Steve Bruce	Wigan Athletic	2 June 2009	Roberto Martínez	16 June 2009
Brendan Rodgers	Watford	5 June 2009	Malky Mackay	15 June 2009
Ronnie Moore	Tranmere Rovers	5 June 2009	John Barnes	15 June 2009
Roberto Martínez	Swansea City	16 June 2009	Paulo Sousa	29 June 2009
Tony Mowbray	West Bromwich Albion	17 June 2009	Roberto Di Matteo	1 July 2009
Mark Wright	Chester City	22 June 2009	Mick Wadsworth	29 June 2009
Roberto Di Matteo	Milton Keynes Dons	1 July 2009	Paul Ince	3 July 2009
Mark Wotte	Southampton	9 July 2009	Alan Pardew	17 July 2009

Notes

• ¹ Joe Kinnear was named interim manager on 26 September, and signed as permanent manager on 28 November.
• ² Dean Glover had previously been caretaker manager at Port Vale since Sinnott's departure.
• ³ Tony Adams had previously been caretaker manager at Portsmouth since Redknapp's departure.
• ⁴ Greg Abbott had previously been caretaker manager at Carlisle United since Ward's departure.
• ⁵ Phil Parkinson had previously been caretaker manager at Charlton Athletic since Pardew's departure.
• ⁶ Ricky Sbragia had previously been caretaker manager at Sunderland since Keane's departure.
• ⁷ Eddie Howe had previously been caretaker manager at Bournemouth since Quinn's departure.
• ⁸ Bryan Gunn had previously been caretaker manager at Norwich City since Roeder's departure.
• ⁹ Ian Hendon had previously been caretaker manager at Barnet since Fairclough's departure.

Diary of the season

1 July 2008: Luiz Felipe Scolari, who managed Brazil to World Cup glory in 2002, is appointed manager of Chelsea.

22 July 2008: Luke McCormick, on bail after being charged with causing death by dangerous driving, has his contract terminated by Plymouth Argyle.

29 July 2008: Liverpool pay £20.3million for 28-year-old Tottenham Hotspur and Ireland striker Robbie Keane.

9 August 2008: The first Football League matches of the season are played.

10 August 2008: The FA Community Shield is won by Manchester United on penalties against Portsmouth after a goalless draw at Wembley Stadium.

16 August 2008: The first Premier League matches of the season are played.

31 August 2008: The first month of the Premier League season ends with Chelsea top of the league under their new manager Luiz Felipe Scolari and West Bromwich Albion being bottom of the table. The race to get into the Premier League is being headed by Wolverhampton Wanderers, Preston North End and Birmingham City who are level on 10 points at the top of the Football League Championship after four games.

1 September 2008: Manchester City are taken over by the Abu Dhabi group to become the richest club in England, and pay a national record £32.4million for Real Madrid and Brazil striker Robinho, while Manchester United pay a club record £30.75million for Tottenham Hotspur and Bulgaria striker Dimitar Berbatov. In League Two, Kevin Bond becomes the first manager to be removed of the season when his contract is terminated by Bournemouth after two years in charge.

3 September 2008: West Ham United manager Alan Curbishley resigns after 21 months in charge, the first Premier League managerial resignation of the season.

5 September 2008: Kevin Keegan resigns after eight months back in charge at Newcastle United, leading to disatistfaction from fans at Chairman Mike Ashley, who allegedly forced Keegan out of the club with a serious of disputes about team selection and transfers.

11 September 2008: Gianfranco Zola, former Chelsea and Italy striker, becomes West Ham United's first non-British manager.

26 September 2008: Joe Kinnear, 61, returns to football as interim manager of Newcastle United, four years after leaving Nottingham Forest due to health reasons.

27 September 2008: Hull City win 2–1 over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Their first win against Arsenal in English football.

30 September 2008: Chelsea and Liverpool finish September level on points at the top of the Premier League, with Aston Villa, Arsenal and West Ham United completing the top five. Blackburn Rovers, sixth in the league making Paul Ince the most successful Ethnic Minority manager to start a Premier League season. Hull City, playing top division football for the first time are seventh in the Premier League. Defending champions Manchester United are ninth in the league, with a game in hand over the teams above them, while Tottenham Hotspur are bottom of the table. Wolverhampton Wanderers and Birmingham City are first and second respectively in the Championship.

6 October 2008: Luke McCormick is found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving at Stoke Crown Court and sentenced to 7 years and 4 months in prison.

26 October 2008: Tottenham Hotspur, bottom of Premier League, terminate the contract of manager Juande Ramos and hire Portsmouth's Harry Redknapp to fill the vacancy.

28 October 2008: Portsmouth promote assistant manager Tony Adams to manager following Harry Redknapp joining Tottenham Hotspurs.

31 October 2008: Liverpool finish October as Premier League leaders, with Chelsea, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Hull City completing the top five. Manchester United are sixth with a game in hand over the top five clubs. Wolverhampton Wanderers and Birmingham City are first and second respectively in the Championship.

22 November 2008: Charlton Athletic, bottom of the Football League Championship 18 months after being relegated from the Premier League, sack manager Alan Pardew after nearly two years in charge.

30 November 2008: Chelsea and Liverpool are level on points at the top of the Premier League, with Manchester United in third place. Aston Villa and Arsenal complete the top five, with Hull City in sixth place in the league. Tottenham Hotspur are from bottom of the table with West Bromwich Albion Btoom of the league. Blackburn Rovers complete the bottom three relegation places. Wolverhampton Wanderers lead the championship by 6 points ahead of second placed Birmingham City and 13 points ahead of third placed Reading.

6 December 2008: Darren Anderton retires from playing after a career of nearly 20 years in his final game Anderton scores AFC Bournemouth's winning goal against Chester City in League Two.

16 December 2008:Blackburn Rovers terminate the contract of Paul Ince after six months as manager.

17 December 2008: Sam Allardyce is appointed manager of Blackburn Rovers.

22 December 2008: Leeds United terminate the contract of manager Gary McAllister after 11 months as manager.

23 December 2008: Simon Grayson resigns as Blackpool manager to take the managers job at Leeds United.

25 December 2008: Sheffield United striker Jordan Robertson, 20, suffers minor injuries in a car crash on the M1 motorway in Leicestershire in which a 38-year-old Coventry man is seriously injured.

26 December 2008: Nottingham Forest, 22nd in Football League Championship, terminate the contract of manager Colin Calderwood after two and a half years in charge. Omar Mohammed, the man injured in the car crash which also involved Jordan Robertson, dies in hospital.

29 December 2008: Paul Jewell resigns as Derby County manager after one year, with the East Midlands side 18th in the Football League Championship.

31 December 2008: Liverpool end 2008 as Premier League leaders, three points ahead of second placed Chelsea, while third placed Manchester United are 10 points off the top of the table but have three games in hand. Arsenal and Aston Villa complete the top five, while Everton and Wigan Athletic occupy sixth and seventh place respectively. West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City occupy the relegation places. Wolverhampton Wanderers remain top of the Championship, with Reading and Birmingham level on points in second and third respectively.

3 January 2009: Billy Davies returns to management by accepting an offer to take over as Nottingham Forest manager.

6 January 2009: Nigel Clough ends 10 years as manager of Conference National leaders Burton Albion to take the managers jobs at Derby County. Tottenham Hotspur pay a club record £15million for Portsmouth striker Jermain Defoe, a year after he left them for half that fee.

20 January 2009: Four Tottenham Hotspur fans are banned from all football grounds in England for four years after being found guilty of making indecent chants at the club's former defender Sol Campbell in reference to his transfer to Arsenal in 2001. The incidents took place at Fratton Park, where Tottenham were playing Campbell's current club Portsmouth, on 28 September last year.

31 January 2009: Manchester United are top of the Premier League while the rest of the top seven remains unchanged from the end of December. West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City and Middlesbrough are in the relegation places all on 21 points at the bottom of the Premier League. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Reading and Birmingham City continue occupy the top three positions in the Championship.

2 February 2009: Robbie Keane returns to Tottenham Hotspur after six months at Liverpool for a fee of £12million.

8 February 2009: Portsmouth terminate the contract of Tony Adams after 14 weeks as manager. Paul Hart is appointed caretaker manager.

9 February 2009: Chelsea terminate the contract of Luiz Felipe Scolari after eight months as manager.

11 February 2009: Dutchman Guus Hiddink, manager of the Russia national football team, accepts an offer to manage Chelsea until the end of the season.

28 February 2009: Manchester United end February as Premier League leaders ahead of Chelsea by seven points and with a game in hand. Liverpool, Arsenal, Everton and Wigan Athletic complete the top seven. West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City occupy the relegation places. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City and Reading continue in the top threeplaces respectively in the Championship.

1 March 2009: Manchester United win the 2008–09 Football League Cup defeating Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 on penalties, following a 0–0 draw after extra time.

14 March 2009: Liverpool beat Manchester United 4–1 at Old Trafford.

31 March 2009: Manchester United's lead at the top of the Premier League is one point over Liverpool, with a game in hand. The whole top seven remains unchanged again at the end of the month. West Bromwich Albion, Middlesbrough and Newcastle United occupy the relegation zone. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City and Reading continue in the top three places in the Championship.

5 April 2009: Luton Town win the 2008–09 Football League Trophy by defeating Scunthorpe United 3–2 in extra time.

13 April 2009: The first two relegations of the season take place, with Hereford United relegated from League One to League Two one season after promotion and Luton Town are relegated from League Two into the Conference National. Their third successive relegation resulting in the loss of league status.

18 April 2009: Wolverhampton Wanderers are promoted to the Premier League and Leicester City are promoted to the Football League Championship, while Charlton Athletic are relegated to League One.

21 April 2009: Ipswich Town sack manager Jim Magilton after failing to reach the Play-offs.

22 April 2009: Roy Keane appointed new manager of Ipswich Town on two-year contract.

25 April 2009: Peterborough United are promoted to the Football League Championship.

25 April 2009: Brentford are promoted to League One as well as winning the League Two title with a 3–1 win over Darlington.

25 April 2009: Cardiff City played their last ever game at Ninian Park.

30 April 2009: Manchester United end April with a three-point lead over Liverpool with a game in hand in the Premier League, with Chelsea the only other team still in contention for the title. Arsenal, Aston Villa, Everton and Fulham complete the top seven who will qualify for Europe club competitions for next this season. West Bromwich Albion, Newcastle United and Middlesbrough occupy the relegation zone. Birmingham City and Sheffield United the final two teams in contention for automatic promotion to the Premier League, while playoff qualification is being contested between Reading, Cardiff City, Burnley and Preston North End.

2 May 2009: Chester City are relegated to the Conference. resulting in the loss of league status for second time.

2 May 2009: Wycombe Wanderers and Exeter City won promotion to League One.

3 May 2009: Birmingham City are Promoted to The Premier League after a last day 2–1 Win over Reading. Norwich City are relegated to League One, and Crewe Alexandra and Northampton Town are relegated to League Two.

5 May 2009: Manchester United win 4–1 on aggregate over Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League semi-finals to reach the final.

6 May 2009: Chelsea lose on away goals in the Champions League semi-final with FC Barcelona, ending their hopes of a final against Manchester United.

16 May 2009: Manchester United earn a 0–0 draw with Arsenal at Old Trafford to win the Premier League.

17 May 2009: West Bromwich Albion are relegated from the Premier League to the Championship.

23 May 2009: Gillingham win promotion to League One after defeating Shrewsbury Town 1–0 in the League Two play-off final.

24 May 2009: On the final day of the Premiership season Newcastle United and Middlesbrough are relegated to the Championship after both lost away at Aston Villa and West Ham United respectively. This ends Newcastle United's 16-year spell in the Premier League. Also Scunthorpe United win promotion to the Championship with a 3–2 win over Millwall in the League One play-off final at Wembley.

25 May 2009: Burnley win promotion to the Premier League, defeating Sheffield United 1–0 at Wembley in the Championship play-off final.

27 May 2009: Manchester United lose 2–0 to Barcelona in 2009 UEFA Champions League Final

30 May 2009: Chelsea win the FA Cup final beating Everton 2–1.

National team

The home team is on the left column; the away team is on the right column.

Friendly matches

England v Czech Republic

20 August 2008

England	2–2	Czech Republic
Brown  45' J. Cole  90'	(Report)	Baroš  22' Jankulovski  48'

Wembley Stadium, London Attendance: 69,738 Referee: Terje Hauge (Norway)

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Germany v England

19 November 2008

Germany	1–2	England
Helmes  63'	(Report)	Upson  23' Terry  84'

Olympic Stadium, Berlin Attendance: 74,224 Referee: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland)

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Spain v England

11 February 2009

Spain	2–0	England
Villa  36' Llorente  82'	(Report)

Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, Seville Attendance: 42,102 Referee: Stephane Lannoy (France)

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England v Slovakia

28 March 2009

England	4–0	Slovakia
Heskey  6' Rooney  70', 90' Lampard  82'	(Report)

Wembley Stadium, London Attendance: 85,512 Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg)

World Cup qualifiers

England is currently in Group 6 of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification process.

Andorra v England

6 September 2008

Andorra	0–2	England
	(Report)	J. Cole  49', 55'

Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Barcelona Attendance: 10,300 Referee: Cüneyt Çakır (Turkey)

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Croatia v England

10 September 2008

Croatia	1–4	England
Mandžukić  78'	(Report)	Walcott  26', 59', 82' Rooney  63'

Maksimir Stadium, Zagreb Attendance: 35,218 Referee: Ľuboš Micheľ (Slovakia)

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England v Kazakhstan

11 October 2008

England	5–1	Kazakhstan
Ferdinand  52' Kuchma  65' (o.g.) Rooney  77', 86' Defoe  90'	(Report)	Kukeev  68'

Wembley Stadium, London Attendance: 89,107 Referee: Paul Allaerts (Belgium)

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Belarus v England

15 October 2008

Belarus	1–3	England
Sitko  28'	(Report)	Gerrard  11' Rooney  50', 74'

Dinamo Stadium, Minsk Attendance: 32,000

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England v Ukraine

1 April 2009

England	2–1	Ukraine
Crouch  29' Terry  85'	(Report)	Shevchenko  74'

Wembley Stadium, London Attendance: 87,548 Referee: Claus Bo Larsen (Denmark)

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Kazakhstan v England

6 June 2009

Kazakhstan	0–4	England
	(Report)	Barry  39' Heskey  45' Rooney  73' Lampard  77' (pen.)

Almaty Central Stadium, Almaty Attendance: 23,281 Referee: Kristinn Jakobsson (Iceland)

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England v Andorra

10 June 2009

England	6–0	Andorra
Rooney  4', 39' Lampard  29' Defoe  73', 75' Crouch  80'	(Report)

Wembley Stadium, London Attendance: 57,897 Referee: Hendrikus Nijhuis (Netherlands)

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Honours

Competition	Winner	Details	Match Report
FA Cup	Chelsea	FA Cup 2008–09 Beat Everton 2–1	Report
League Cup	Manchester United	Football League Cup 2008–09 Beat Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 on penalties (0–0 final score)	Report
Premier League	Manchester United	Premier League 2008–09	Report
Football League Championship	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Football League Championship 2008–09	Report
Football League One	Leicester City	Football League One 2008–09	Report
Football League Two	Brentford	Football League Two 2008–09	Report
FA Community Shield	Manchester United	2008 FA Community Shield Beat Portsmouth 3–1 on penalties (0–0 final score)	Report
Football League Trophy	Luton Town	Football League Trophy 2008–09 Beat Scunthorpe United 3–2 a.e.t	Report
FA Trophy	Stevenage Borough	FA Trophy 2008–09 Beat York City 2–0	Report
Conference League Cup	A.F.C. Telford United	Conference League Cup 2008–09 Beat Forest Green Rovers 3–0 on penalties. (0–0 final score)	Report

League Tables

Premier League

Main article: 2008–09 Premier League

Manchester United won their 18th league title, drawing level with Liverpool for the record of most league titles. Liverpool pushed them all the way; they actually had a superior goal difference and completed the double over United, even winning 4-1 at Old Trafford in March, but also suffered 11 draws which enabled United to overtake and win the title. Chelsea broke records for all the wrong reasons as their 86-game unbeaten home record finally came to an end, with several surprise away losses effectively ending their title challenge (as well as resulting in manager Luiz Felipe Scolari being sacked), though they did win the FA Cup under caretaker manager Guus Hiddink. Arsenal finished fourth to claim the final Champions League spot, which meant that last season's top 4 all qualified for Europe's elite for the fifth time in six seasons

Aston Villa had looked like breaking into the Champions League spots for most of the season, but a late collapse that saw them win just twice in their last 13 league games saw them join FA Cup finalists Everton in qualifying for the newly formed UEFA Europa League (which replaced the UEFA Cup). Fulham were the other team to qualify for Europe, marking a remarkable turnaround since Roy Hodgson had taken over 18 months earlier when relegation from the Premier League looked a certainty. This was not only the first time they had qualified for Europe via their league position, but in finishing 7th in the first tier, this was also the highest ever league finish in the club's history

Stoke City had a memorable season; despite being pre-season relegation favourites for many, they defied their critics and ended up finishing comfortably in mid-table. The same couldn't be said for newly promoted West Bromwich Albion, who propped up the table for most of the season. Sunderland survived relegation, thanks to the efforts of caretaker manager Ricky Sbragia after Roy Keane's surprise resignation in December; whilst their final points tally wasn't spectacular, they had the satisfaction of being the top North-East team in football after both Middlesbrough and Newcastle United were relegated, ending 11 and 16 year spells in the top flight respectively, the latter going through four managers in Kevin Keegan, Joe Kinnear, Chris Hughton and even former striker Alan Shearer during the campaign. Despite a brilliant start to the season which saw them as high as third place in October, Hull City won just 1 of their final 22 league games and survived by a single point.

			P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
C	1	Manchester United	38	28	6	4	68	24	+44	90
CL	2	Liverpool	38	25	11	2	77	27	+50	86
CL	3	Chelsea	38	25	8	5	68	24	+44	83
CL	4	Arsenal	38	20	12	6	68	37	+31	72
EL	5	Everton	38	17	12	9	55	37	+18	63
EL	6	Aston Villa	38	17	11	10	54	48	+6	62
EL	7	Fulham	38	14	11	13	39	34	+5	53
	8	Tottenham Hotspur	38	14	9	15	45	45	0	51
	9	West Ham United	38	14	9	15	42	45	−3	51
	10	Manchester City	38	15	5	18	58	50	+8	50
	11	Wigan Athletic	38	12	9	17	34	45	−11	45
	12	Stoke City	38	12	9	17	38	55	−17	45
	13	Bolton Wanderers	38	11	8	19	41	53	−12	41
	14	Portsmouth	38	10	11	17	38	57	−19	41
	15	Blackburn Rovers	38	10	11	17	40	60	−20	41
	16	Sunderland	38	9	9	20	34	54	−20	36
	17	Hull City	38	8	11	19	39	64	−25	35
R	18	Newcastle United	38	7	13	18	40	59	−19	34
R	19	Middlesbrough	38	7	11	20	28	57	−29	32
R	20	West Bromwich Albion	38	8	8	22	36	67	−31	32

Leading goalscorer: Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea) – 19

Football League Championship

Main article: 2008–09 Football League Championship

Five years after being relegated from the Premier League, Wolverhampton Wanderers returned to the top flight in style as champions, having been in the top 2 for virtually all the season since August. Birmingham City were runners-up, making this the fourth season in a row that they had swapped divisions. Burnley joined them by beating Sheffield United in the play-off final, earning their place in the top flight after a 33-year absence.

Doncaster Rovers who were favourites to go straight back down and in the second tier after half a century out, achieved a respectable mid-table finish ahead of former Premier League teams in Crystal Palace, Coventry, Derby and Nottingham Forest.

Charlton suffered their second relegation in three years, despite a run of just one loss out of eight games at the end of the season. Southampton also crashed out of the division amid financial worries, which also meant they would be starting the 2009–10 season in League One with a ten-point deduction for entering administration. Norwich were the third relegated club, meaning that all three relegated clubs had been in the Premier League as recently as 2005 and had long left the third tier (Charlton last competed in the third tier in 1981, Southampton and Norwich in 1960).

			P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
C	1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	46	27	9	10	80	52	+28	90
P	2	Birmingham City	46	23	14	9	54	37	+17	83
	3	Sheffield United	46	22	14	10	64	39	+25	80
	4	Reading	46	21	14	11	72	40	+32	77
P	5	Burnley	46	21	13	12	72	60	+12	76
	6	Preston North End	46	21	11	14	66	54	+12	74
	7	Cardiff City	46	19	17	10	65	53	+12	74
	8	Swansea City	46	16	20	10	63	50	+13	68
	9	Ipswich Town	46	17	15	14	62	53	+9	66
	10	Bristol City	46	15	16	15	54	54	0	61
	11	Queens Park Rangers	46	15	16	15	42	44	−2	61
	12	Sheffield Wednesday	46	16	13	17	51	58	−7	61
	13	Watford	46	16	10	20	68	72	−4	58
	14	Doncaster Rovers	46	17	7	22	43	54	−11	58
	15	Crystal Palace	46	15	12	19	52	55	−3	56*
	16	Blackpool	46	13	17	16	47	58	−11	56
	17	Coventry City	46	13	15	18	49	60	−11	54
	18	Derby County	46	14	12	20	55	67	−12	54
	19	Nottingham Forest	46	13	14	19	50	65	−15	53
	20	Barnsley	46	13	13	20	46	59	−13	52
	21	Plymouth Argyle	46	13	12	21	44	57	−13	51
R	22	Norwich City	46	12	10	24	57	70	−13	46
R	23	Southampton	46	10	15	21	46	69	−23	45
R	24	Charlton Athletic	46	8	15	23	52	74	−22	39

* Crystal Palace deducted 1 point for fielding an ineligible player

Leading goalscorer: Sylvan Ebanks-Blake (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – 25

Football League One

Main article: 2008–09 Football League One

Leicester comfortably won promotion in their first-ever season at this level, leading the table for virtually the entire season, going half the season (23 consecutive games) unbeaten and losing just 4 games in the process. Nigel Pearson brought stability to the club in becoming their first manager in five years to last an entire season as they looked to turn the corner after several years of struggle. Peterborough were runners-up, winning their second successive promotion and entering the second tier for only the second time in their history. Scunthorpe grabbed the final play-off place on the last day of the season in a winner takes all match v 7th place Tranmere Rovers and won promotion through them, making an immediate return to the Championship after being relegated the previous year.

Stockport went into administration before the final match of the season and so suffered a 10-point penalty; however, there was no real chance of them being relegated as a result of this penalty, barring an extremely unlikely set of results on the final day.

Hereford made an immediate return to League Two, finishing bottom in their first campaign at this level for thirty years. Cheltenham improved late in the season, but it proved too late to prevent relegation. Crewe suffered a late collapse and went down to League Two, having looked safe a few weeks previously, while Northampton were undone by other results going against them on the final day of the season.

			P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
C	1	Leicester City	46	27	15	4	84	39	+45	96
P	2	Peterborough United	46	26	11	9	78	54	+24	89
	3	Milton Keynes Dons	46	26	9	11	83	47	+36	87
	4	Leeds United	46	26	6	14	77	49	+28	84
	5	Millwall	46	25	7	14	63	53	+10	82
P	6	Scunthorpe United	46	22	10	14	82	63	+19	76
	7	Tranmere Rovers	46	21	11	14	62	49	+13	74
	8	Southend United	46	21	8	17	58	61	−3	71
	9	Huddersfield Town	46	18	14	14	62	65	−3	68
	10	Oldham Athletic	46	16	17	13	66	65	+1	65
	11	Bristol Rovers	46	17	12	17	79	61	+18	63
	12	Colchester United	46	18	9	19	58	58	0	63
	13	Walsall	46	17	10	19	61	66	−5	61
	14	Leyton Orient	46	15	11	20	45	57	−12	56
	15	Swindon Town	46	12	17	17	68	71	−3	53
	16	Brighton & Hove Albion	46	13	13	20	55	70	−15	52
	17	Yeovil Town	46	12	15	19	41	66	−25	51
	18	Stockport County	46	16	12	18	59	57	+2	50 A
	19	Hartlepool United	46	13	11	22	66	79	−13	50
	20	Carlisle United	46	12	14	20	56	69	−13	50
R	21	Northampton Town	46	12	13	21	61	65	−4	49
R	22	Crewe Alexandra	46	12	10	24	59	82	−23	46
R	23	Cheltenham Town	46	9	12	25	51	91	−40	39
R	24	Hereford United	46	9	7	30	42	79	−37	34

A – Stockport County deducted 10 points for administration entrance.

Leading goalscorer: Simon Cox (Swindon Town) – 29, and Rickie Lambert (Bristol Rovers) – 29

Football League Two

Main article: 2008–09 Football League Two

Brentford made a return to League One as champions, the second club to win the fourth tier three times since Doncaster Rovers. Exeter won their second successive promotion, and on the final day of the season managed to pip Wycombe Wanderers for the runners-up spot. Wycombe themselves managed the final automatic promotion spot by virtue of a single goal over Bury. The play-offs were won by Gillingham, who made an immediate return to League One after the previous season's relegation.

Several teams suffered heavy points deductions during the season. Rotherham were docked 17 points at the start of the season and Darlington 10 points later on. Without these penalties they would have both qualified for the play-offs, but instead managed only mid table. Bournemouth also suffered a 17-point deduction pre-season, and halfway through it looked to be enough to cost them their League status; however, a fightback under new manager Eddie Howe saw them climb to safety and secure survival with a game to spare.

Luton suffered the heaviest deduction however, and the loss of 30 points proved too much for them to survive. They suffered their third successive relegation and dropped out of the league, making them only the third English team to suffer three successive relegations, and the first to drop from the second tier to the Conference in successive years. The other relegated team was Chester City, who were statistically the worst team in the division and returned to the Conference after only five years. This would ultimately be the final season that the club completed, as they folded in March 2010, before the end of the following campaign. Grimsby would also have suffered relegation, if not for Luton's points deduction.

			P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
C	1	Brentford	46	23	16	7	65	36	+29	85
P	2	Exeter City	46	22	13	11	65	50	+15	79
P	3	Wycombe Wanderers	46	20	18	8	54	33	+21	78
	4	Bury	46	21	15	10	63	43	+20	78
P	5	Gillingham	46	21	12	13	58	55	+3	75
	6	Rochdale	46	19	13	14	70	59	+11	70
	7	Shrewsbury Town	46	17	18	11	61	44	+17	69
	8	Dagenham & Redbridge	46	19	11	16	77	53	+24	68
	9	Bradford City	46	18	13	15	66	55	+11	67
	10	Chesterfield	46	16	15	15	62	57	+5	63
	11	Morecambe	46	15	18	13	53	56	−3	63
	12	Darlington	46	20	12	14	61	44	+17	62 A
	13	Lincoln City	46	14	17	15	53	52	+1	59
	14	Rotherham United	46	21	12	13	60	46	+14	58 F
	15	Aldershot Town	46	14	12	20	59	80	−21	54
	16	Accrington Stanley	46	13	11	22	42	59	−17	50
	17	Barnet	46	11	15	20	56	74	−18	48
	18	Port Vale	46	13	9	24	44	66	−22	48
	19	Notts County	46	11	14	21	49	69	−20	47
	20	Macclesfield Town	46	13	8	25	45	77	−32	47
	21	Bournemouth	46	17	12	17	59	51	+8	46 F
	22	Grimsby Town	46	9	14	23	51	69	−18	41
R	23	Chester City	46	8	13	25	43	81	−38	37
R	24	Luton Town	46	13	17	16	58	65	−7	26 X

A – Darlington deducted 10 points for administration entrance.

F – Rotherham United and Bournemouth both deducted 17 points a piece for failing to comply with the rules insolvency.

X – Luton Town deducted 30 points; 20 for administration exit without a Company Voluntary Arrangement, and 10 for making illegal payments to agents.

Leading goalscorers: Simeon Jackson (Gillingham) – 20, Grant Holt (Shrewsbury Town) – 20, and Jack Lester (Chesterfield) - 20

Movements for the 2009–10 season

Competition	Promoted	Playoffs	Relegated
Premier League	N/A	N/A	Newcastle, Middlesbrough, West Bromwich Albion
Football League Championship	Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City	Burnley	Charlton Athletic, Southampton, Norwich City
Football League One	Leicester City, Peterborough United	Scunthorpe United	Northampton Town, Crewe Alexandra, Cheltenham Town, Hereford United
Football League Two	Brentford, Exeter City, Wycombe Wanderers	Gillingham	Chester City, Luton Town
Conference National	Burton Albion	Torquay United	Woking, Northwich Victoria, Weymouth, Lewes
Conference North	Tamworth	Gateshead	King's Lynn (demoted), Burscough, Hucknall Town
Conference South	AFC Wimbledon	Hayes & Yeading United	Team Bath (folded), Bognor Regis Town, Fisher Athletic

Clubs Removed

• Team Bath (Conference South)
• Gresley Rovers (Northern Premier League, Division One South)

Transfer deals

Main article: List of English football transfers 2008-09

Notable debutants

• 1 November 2008 – Jordan Henderson, 18-year-old midfielder, makes his debut as a substitute in Sunderland's 5–0 Premier League defeat at Chelsea.

Retirements

• 14 July 2008 – Neil Moss (Bournemouth)
• 20 August 2008 – Alan Stubbs (Derby County)
• 28 August 2008 – Andy Cooke (ex-Shrewsbury Town)
• 3 September 2008 – Rob Clare (Stockport County)
• 3 September 2008 – Antti Niemi (Fulham)
• 25 September 2008 – Christian Roberts (Swindon)
• 3 October 2008 – Damien Francis (Watford)
• 11 November 2008 – Andrew Cole (Nottingham Forest)
• 6 December 2008 – Darren Anderton (Bournemouth)
• 6 January 2009 – Paul Mitchell (Milton Keynes Dons)
• 21 January 2009 – Shane Tudor (Port Vale)
• 22 April 2009 – Andy Booth (Huddersfield Town)
• 25 April 2009 – Fabian Wilnis (ex-Ipswich Town and Grays Athletic)
• 15 May 2009 – Martin Laursen (Aston Villa)
• End of season – Richie Barker (Rotherham United)

Deaths

• 3 July 2008 – Ernie Cooksey, 28, Grays Athletic midfielder, who died from skin cancer. Earlier in his career, he played for Oldham Athletic, Rochdale, Crawley Town and Boston United.
• 26 July 2008 – Gerry Lightowler, 67, former Bradford Park Avenue and Bradford City full back.
• 8 August 2008 – Selwyn Whalley, 74, former Port Vale defender, played 196 games in a 15-year association with the club.
• 9 August 2008 – Ken Griffiths, 78, former striker who played for Port Vale, Mansfield Town, and a host of lower league clubs.
• 26 August 2008 – Bob Mountford, 56, former striker who played for a number of lower-league clubs in the 1970s, most notably Port Vale, Rochdale, Huddersfield Town and Halifax Town.
• 28 August 2008 – Ronnie Briggs, 65, former goalkeeper who began his career at Manchester United, and later played for Swansea Town and Bristol Rovers. Capped twice by Northern Ireland.
• 4 September 2008 – Tommy Johnston, 81, former striker who is Leyton Orient's all-time top scorer with 123 goals. Other clubs include Norwich City, Newport County and Blackburn Rovers
• 6 September 2008 – Bill Shorthouse, 86, former Wolverhampton Wanderers defender and vice-captain, who played 376 games for the club in their heyday of the 1940s and 1950s.
• 25 September 2008 – Jimmy Sirrel, 86, former Notts County manager who took the Magpies from the Fourth Division to the First (pre-Premier League) during two spells at the club. Also managed Brentford and Sheffield United.
• 27 September 2008 – Jimmy Murray, 72, former Wolverhampton Wanderers striker who scored more than 150 goals for the club, and won two league championships and one FA Cup title while at Wolves. Also played for Manchester City and Walsall.
• 27 September 2008 – Len Browning, 80, former Leeds United and Sheffield United striker whose career was cut short by tuberculosis.
• 29 September 2008 – Tommy Northcott, 76, former Torquay United striker who scored over 120 goals for the club. Also played for Cardiff City and Lincoln City.
• 2 October 2008 – John Sjoberg, 67, former Leicester City central defender who spent 15 seasons at Filbert Street. Also played briefly for Rotherham United.
• 9 October 2008 – Bert Loxley, 74, former Notts County wing-half and Lincoln City manager.
• 21 October 2008 – George Edwards, 87, former Welsh international winger who began his career as an amateur at Swansea Town, and later played professionally for Birmingham City and Cardiff City.
• 23 October 2008 – Brian Hillier, 65, former chairman of Swindon Town.
• 27 October 2008 – Colin Gale, 76, former Northampton Town centre half who made over 200 appearances for the club between 1956 and 1961. Also played for Cardiff City.
• 1 November 2008 – Dermot Curtis, 76, former Republic of Ireland international striker who played for Bristol City, Ipswich Town, Exeter City and Torquay United. To date, he is the only Exeter player to have played at senior international level.
• 8 November 2008 – Régis Genaux, 35, former Belgian international full-back who played half a season for Coventry City, in 1996–97. Also played for Standard Liège in his home country, and Italian side Udinese.
• 17 November 2008 – Peter Aldis, 81, former Aston Villa left-back, who spent 12 seasons at Villa Park, and was a member the Villa side that won the 1957 FA Cup.
• 24 December 2008 – Ray Deakin, 49, former Burnley defender and captain. Also played for Port Vale and Bolton Wanderers.
• 27 December 2008 – Bert "Sailor" Brown, 93, former inside-forward who played for Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Charlton Athletic. Served in the RAF during World War II, and was an England wartime international.
• 31 December 2008 – Harry Oscroft, 82, former winger who played for Mansfield Town, Port Vale, and most notably Stoke City, where he scored 106 goals in 349 games during a ten-year spell at the club.
• 2 January 2009 – Ian Greaves, 76, former Manchester United full-back and Busby Babe who became a successful manager, most notably at Huddersfield Town, Bolton Wanderers and Mansfield Town, all of whom he guided to promotion.
• 5 January 2009 – Jimmy Rayner, 73, former striker who played for Grimsby Town, Peterborough United, Notts County and several non-league clubs. Scored an incredible 71 goals for non-league Grantham Town during the 1963–64 season.
• 6 January 2009 – Charlie Thomson, 78, former goalkeeper who played for Chelsea and Nottingham Forest. Won the league with Chelsea in 1954–55, and the FA Cup with Forest in 1959.
• 10 January 2009 – Jack Wheeler, 89, former goalkeeper with Birmingham City and Huddersfield Town, who became a trainer at Notts County for 26 years during two spells.
• 13 January 2009 – Tommy Casey, 78, former wing-half who most notably played for Newcastle United, where he won the 1955 FA Cup. Also played for Leeds United, Bournemouth, Portsmouth and Bristol City. Represented Northern Ireland in the 1958 World Cup.
• 20 January 2009 – Johnny Dixon, 85, former Aston Villa striker, who captained the side in the 1957 FA Cup Final, when they defeated Manchester United 2–1.
• 21 January 2009 – Vic Crowe, 76, former Aston Villa and Welsh international wing-half who spent 13 seasons at Villa Park as a player, and four years as manager. Also played for Peterborough United, and was an unused reserve in Wales' 1958 World Cup squad.
• 27 January 2009 – Aubrey Powell, 90, former Welsh international inside-forward who spent the majority of his club career at Leeds United, and also had spells at Everton and Birmingham City.
• 29 January 2009 – Roy Saunders, 78, former Liverpool and Swansea Town wing-half, who was later on Swansea's coaching staff. Never capped at senior level, but did play once for Great Britain XI against a "Rest of the World" team. Father of Dean Saunders.
• 2 February 2009 – Paul Birch, 46, former right-sided midfielder best known from his days at Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers. He also played for Doncaster Rovers, Exeter City and non-league Halesowen Town, and later worked as a coach at Forest Green Rovers and Birmingham City. Died from bone cancer.
• 7 February 2009 – Joe Haverty, 72, former Irish international winger who most notably played seven seasons for Arsenal, and also had spells at Blackburn Rovers, Millwall and several other clubs both in Britain and abroad. Capped 32 times by the Republic of Ireland.
• 9 February 2009 – Marc Burrows, 30, non-league striker and former Portsmouth trainee who is notable for scoring the fastest goal in football history in a reserve team match between Cowes Sports and Eastleigh in 2004.
• 9 February 2009 – Reg Davies, 79, former inside-forward who played for Southend United, Newcastle United, Swansea Town and Carlisle United, and was capped six times by Wales.
• 9 February 2009 – Neville Hamilton, 48, former Leicester City, Mansfield Town and Rochdale midfielder who had to retire at age 24 following a heart attack, and later spent many years as youth team coach at Leicester City.
• 15 February 2009 – Don Leeson, 73, former Barnsley goalkeeper, who later became a policeman.
• 2 March 2009 – Andy Bowman, 74, former Chelsea and Newport County wing-half, who also played for Hearts in his native Scotland.
• 4 March 2009 – Harry Parkes, 89, former full-back who spent his entire 18-year career at Aston Villa, where he played almost 350 games. Called up by England in 1946, but never capped.
• 7 March 2009 – Jimmy Hernon, 84, former winger who played for Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers, Grimsby Town and Watford.
• 9 March 2009 – Eddie Lowe, 83, former Aston Villa and Fulham wing-half, who played three times for England in 1947. Played 511 games for Fulham, and retired as the club's all-time appearance record holder (later broken by Johnny Haynes).
• 16 March 2009 – Alan Suddick, 64, former midfielder who most notably played for Newcastle United and Blackpool, and was capped by England at under-23 level. Known as a free-kick specialist.
• 29 March 2009 – Hugh Kelly, 85, former wing-half who spent his entire career at Blackpool, playing 428 league games for the Seasiders. Missed the famous "Matthews Final" in 1953 because of injury. Capped once by Scotland.
• 11 April 2009 – Jimmy Neighbour, 58, former Tottenham Hotspur, Norwich City and West Ham United winger. Was a member of the Tottenham side that won the 1971 League Cup.
• 12 April 2009 – Mike Keen, 69, former Queens Park Rangers, Luton Town and Watford midfielder who played nearly 700 league games in a 16-year career. Was player-manager at Watford, and also managed Northampton Town and Wycombe Wanderers.
• 19 April 2009 – Dicky Robinson, 82, former defender who played more than 400 games for Middlesbrough in the early post-war years, and played five times for the Football League representative side. Also played for Barrow.
• 3 May 2009 – John Elsworthy, 77, former Ipswich Town wing-half, who spent 16 years at the club, and was part of Ipswich's 1961–62 league championship winning side. Was a reserve in Wales' 1958 World Cup squad, but was in fact never capped at any level.
• 3 May 2009 – Tommy Fowler, 84, former Northampton Town winger who played a club-record 521 league games for the club between 1946 and 1961. Also played for Aldershot.
• 4 May 2009 – Bobby Campbell, 86, former Scottish international who played as a winger for Falkirk, Chelsea and Reading, before going on to manage Dumbarton and Bristol Rovers.
• 14 May 2009 – Ken Hollyman, 86, former defender who played for Cardiff City and Newport County, making over 400 league appearances.
• 16 May 2009 – Peter Sampson, 81, former wing-half who made 340 league appearances for Bristol Rovers, his only professional club, between 1948 and 1961.
• 20 May 2009 – Alan Kelly, 72, former Preston North End goalkeeper who played a club-record 447 league games for the Lilywhites, and was capped 47 times by the Republic of Ireland. His sons Gary and Alan Jr also became professional goalkeepers.
• 25 May 2009 – Billy Baxter, 70, former Ipswich Town defender who spent eleven seasons at Portman Road, and was a member of the side that won the league title in 1961–62. Also played for Hull City, Watford and Northampton Town.
• 23 June 2009 – Jackie Swindells, 72, former striker who is Altrincham's all-time top goalscorer with 195 goals in the Northern Premier League. Began his career at Manchester City, and also played for Blackburn Rovers, Accrington Stanley and Workington.