NRW-Liga

NRW-Liga
Founded
2008
Disbanded
2012
Nation
Germany
State
North Rhine-Westphalia
Promotion To
Regionalliga West
Relegation To
Niederrheinliga
Mittelrheinliga
Westfalenliga 1
Westfalenliga 2
Number of Teams
18
Level on Pyramid
Level 5
Current Champions 2010–11
Rot-Weiss Essen

The NRW-Liga, or Nordrhein-Westfalen-Liga, is the highest football League in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is one of the eleven Oberliga groups in German football, the 5th tier of the German football league system.

With the reorganisation of the German league system in 2012, the NRW-Liga will be disbanded once more as the Regionalliga West above it will then only contain clubs from North Rhine-Westphalia. The league will be replaced by the three regional leagues, the Mittelrheinliga, Niederrheinliga and Oberliga Westfalen at this level.^[1]

Overview

The NRW-Liga was established in 2008 as a feeder league to the also new Regionalliga West. The new Oberliga is actually a merger of the Oberliga Nordrhein and the Oberliga Westfalen, giving the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen its first statewide league since the "old" Regionalliga West was disbanded in 1974. Due to the introduction of the 3. Liga in the same year, unlike the two old Oberliga groups who were set at tier four of the league system, the new league will be fifth tier.

The league will retain the four Verbandsliga groups of the two predecessor Oberliga groups as its feeder leagues, with the champion of each of those gaining direct promotion to the NRW-Liga. In turn, the top two teams of the NRW-Liga will gain promotion to the Regionalliga West.

The league was be made up from a set quota of teams from each of the two predecessor Oberliga groups and the four Verbandsliga groups. While the top four clubs from Nordrhein and Westfalen were be promoted to the Regionalliga, teams placed fifth to eleventh were headed go to the new NRW-Liga. The clubs placed twelve to eighteen were relegated to their Verbandsliga group^[2][3]. From the four Verbandsliga groups, the champions will each gain admittance, unless it would be a reserve team of a club already qualified for the Oberliga. In this case, the next eligible club would be admitted.

There was some dispute about the name of the league with the suggestion having been made to rather call it Oberliga West, a league of that name having already existed from 1947 to 1963, the "old" Oberliga West. The previous league of that name was a tier one league but covered the same region. It has however been decided to officially call it NRW-Liga, short for Nordrhein-Westfalen-Liga.^[4].

Additionally, the Verbandsliga groups were be renamed Niederrheinliga, Mittelrheinliga and 2 groups of Westfalenliga.^[5]

With the end of the 2011-12 season, after four seasons of existence, the NRW-Liga will be disbanded again. The place of the league as the fourth tier in North Rhine-Westphalia will then be taken by three regional leagues, the Mittelrheinliga and Niederrheinliga for the North Rhine region and the reformed Oberliga Westfalen for Westphalia. The top three clubs from the NRW-Liga will gain direct entry to the Regionalliga while the teams placed fourth to seventh will play-off with the four champions from the leagues below to determined four additional promoted teams.^[1]

Teams 2011-12

Remaining in the NRW-Liga: Alemannia Aachen II SV Bergisch Gladbach 09 MSV Duisburg II Schwarz-Weiß Essen Westfalia Herne VfB Homberg VfB Hüls Westfalia Rhynern SV Schermbeck Sportfreunde Siegen VfB Speldorf SSVg. Velbert

From the 3. Liga: Rot Weiss Ahlen From the Regionalliga West: Arminia Bielefeld II From the Verbandsliga Niederrhein: KFC Uerdingen 05 From the Verbandsliga Mittelrhein: Viktoria Köln From the Verbandsliga Westfalen 1: TuS Dornberg From the Verbandsliga Westfalen 2: TuS Erndtebrück

Champions and runners-up of the NRW-Liga

Season	Champions	Runners-up
2008–09	Bonner SC	Fortuna Düsseldorf II
2009–10	SC Wiedenbrück 2000	Arminia Bielefeld II
2010–11	Rot-Weiss Essen	Germania Windeck 1

• ¹ The TSV Germania Windeck declined its right to promotion and withdrew to the Mittelrheinliga, with Fortuna Köln promoted instead.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} NRW-Liga-Staffeltagung in Duisburg: Vereine begrüßen Auf- und Abstiegsreglement (German) WFLV website, published: 19 July 2011, accessed: 20 July 2011
2. ^ "Current table of the Oberliga Nordrhein". weltfussball.de. http://www.weltfussball.de/spielplan.php?Thema=341&Liga=27. Retrieved 8 February 2008. 
3. ^ "Current table of the Oberliga Westfalen". weltfussball.de. http://www.weltfussball.de/spielplan.php?Thema=360&Liga=28. Retrieved 28 February 2008. 
4. ^ "NRW-Liga Statut". WFLV Football Association. http://www.wflv.de/fileadmin/downloads/NRW-Liga/A-NRW-Liga-Statut__komplett_.pdf. Retrieved 27 August 2008. 
5. ^ "League reform". amateurkick.de. http://www.amateurkick.de/ligareform.php. Retrieved 8 February 2008. 
6. ^ NRW-Liga 2010-11 (German) kicker.de, accessed: 16 July 2011

Sources

• Deutschlands Fußball in Zahlen, (German) An annual publication with tables and results from the Bundesliga to Verbandsliga/Landesliga, publisher: DSFS
• Kicker Almanach, (German) The yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports Magazine

External links

• (German) Official league website
• (German) Das deutsche Fussball Archiv Historic German league tables
• (German) Weltfussball.de Round-by-round results and tables of the NRW-Liga
• (German) Niederrhein Football Association (FVN)
• (German) Mittelrhein Football Association (FVM)
• (German) Westfalen Football Association (FLVW)