It was founded in 1922 as the Surrey Senior League and was renamed in 1978 to the Combined Counties League. Initially, the league was a single division, but it consists now of 62 teams in three divisions: Premier Division North, Premier Division South and Division One. The league also has a new Division Two of nine teams, many being reserve and development teams, six teams competing in an Under-23 Development Division, known as the John Bennett Development Division, and 20 Under-18 teams split across North and South divisions, known as the Tony Ford Under-18 Youth Divisions. These four leagues are outside the National League System.
The Premier Divisions North and South are two of sixteen recognised leagues to form the ninth level of the English football league system (known as Step 5 of the National League System), and Division One is one of seventeen recognised leagues at level 10 (known as Step 6 of the National League System). The Combined Counties Football League is a feeder to the Isthmian League and the Southern League.
History
The league was renamed on 18 June 1978 when the Surrey Senior League underwent a metamorphosis to try to attract clubs from outside the county. The expanded league was initially called the Home Counties League but there was an objection to the title from the Home Counties Conference, which forced the league to change its name.[1]
The league had a verbal agreement with the Surrey County Football Association to revert to a similar title to the former league – the Surrey Senior Football League. However, this name was later rejected as the Surrey County Football Association intended to reform the Surrey Senior League at a later date. It was first suggested by the FA that the league should be called the Corinthian Football League, but this was frowned upon by the Athenian Football League within which the old Corinthian Football League had been incorporated. The alternative suggestion, the Combined Counties Football League, was approved for the 1979–80 season.[1]
With increasing numbers for the 1981–82 season, the clubs were split into two equal divisions: the Eastern Division and the Western Division. The winners then met in a two-legged play-off final, with Ash United winning 3–0 in aggregate against Malden Town. The league reverted to a single division for the 1982–83 season.[1]
The league began with nine founder-member clubs and continued to steadily grow, resulting in the league becoming a feeder to the Isthmian League in 1984 with 16–18 teams usually competing in the Combined Counties Football League. Southwick became the first team promoted to the Isthmian League from a feeder club in 1985, and Chertsey Town followed a year later.[1]
In 1987, the league announced a four-year sponsorship agreement with Dan-Air worth a five figure sum. As part of the agreement, the league became known as the Dan-Air Football League and a representative team was introduced. The Dan-Air Class Elite Cup was also launched in 1989.[1]
The Dan-Air Youth League was formed for the 1991–92 season and opened to youth teams from all member clubs. However, the league attracted just seven clubs for the inaugural season and reluctantly abandoned the competition after one year. With the Dan-Air sponsorship coming to an end at the end of the season, the league agreed a sponsorship deal with Parasol Professional Portrait Photography and became known as the Parasol Combined Counties Football League. The League Challenge Cup became known as the Parasol Challenge Cup, and the Dan-Air Class Elite Cup was replaced by the Frazer Freight Vase with sponsorship from Frazer Freight International.[1]
Ahead of the 1997–98 season, the league received further sponsorship and subsequently became known as the Courage Combined Counties Football League. In 2002, the league reached a membership of 24 clubs – most notably with the addition of AFC Wimbledon. The introduction of AFC Wimbledon proved invaluable for the league's other clubs. With crowds of up to 4,000 spectators for their home clubs, many clubs would break their attendance records when AFC Wimbledon visited their ground which could generate substantial matchday revenue. The club's first matches in the league also required large numbers of police to control crowds, including mounted police and patrolling helicopters.[1]
In 2002, the league began a three-year sponsorship agreement to become the Seagrave Haulage Combined Counties Football League, although Seagrave pulled out of the deal after one season.[1]
Following the National League System Conference in July 2002, the Combined Counties Football League and the Surrey County Senior League entered into discussions. This resulted in the two leagues merging for the 2003–04 season, forming a league with 40 clubs that would operate across the fourth and fifth steps of non-league football with a Premier Division and Division One.[1]
Another new sponsorship for the 2005–06 season, this time with Cherry Red Records, saw the league become known as the Cherry Red Records Combined Counties Football League.[1]
In 2011, the league accepted the membership of newly-founded club Guernsey. The arrival of the team meant that clubs would fly or take a ferry over to the Channel Islands in order to fulfil their fixtures, with Guernsey covering the expenses as a requirement of their membership. Backed by former England international Matt Le Tissier, who made a one-off appearance in the Combined Counties Football League in 2013, they won the Combined Counties Football League Division One and Combined Counties Premier Challenge Cup in their first season.[1]
In May 2018, Westfield and premier division runners up, Bedfont Sports, were promoted to the Bostik (Isthmian) Football League due to The FA's decision to restructure steps 3 and 4 of the National League System. It was the first time that two teams had been promoted in one season.
The 2019–20 season was abandoned as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in England. The pandemic led to further disruptions in the 2020-21 season, with it starting in September, before being suspended in December and eventually curtailed in February 2021 by restrictions from COVID-19 lockdowns. The FA later announced on 12 April that the Combined Counties League would administer a new Step 5 division from 2021–22 after another scheduled NLS restructuring had a one-season postponement due to the pandemic.[2][3]
At the end of April 2023, the Combined Counties League announced the formation of the new Division Two, mostly for reserve teams and under-23 development sides of the league's member clubs, to which the FA granted sanction.[4] It has currently not been granted a step on the football pyramid.
Promotion rules and cups
Its rules allow up to three teams to be promoted and relegated between either Premier division and Division One; promotion is dependent on the clubs finishing in the top three of Division One each having the correct ground-grading. Division One is "fed" by the county leagues at level 11, the former Step 7 of the National League System, such as the Surrey Elite Intermediate League, the Middlesex County League and the Thames Valley Premier Football League.
The League organises three cups.
The Premier Challenge Cup is competed for by the teams in all three divisions.
The Division One Cup is competed for by teams exclusively in Division One.
The Grant McLellan Youth Cup is competed for by current and ex-member clubs who have teams playing in the under-18 age group in other leagues.
The area covered by the Combined Counties League is coloured in peach.
Sponsors
The league has had a succession of title sponsors. Cherry Red Records are the current League and Premier Challenge Cup sponsors and have been since 2005.
List of champions
For the 1978–79 season the league was known as the Home Counties League.
The Isthmian League is a regional football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs.
The Northern Premier League is an English football league that was founded in 1968. Together with the Isthmian League and the Southern League it forms levels seven and eight of the English football league system.
Croydon Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Croydon, London. Until 2006, they played in the Isthmian League, but lost their place in that league as part of the 2006 re-structuring of non-league football, and now play in the Southern Counties East League Division One. They play at Croydon Sports Arena in South Norwood. The club was founded in 1953 as Croydon Amateurs.
Godalming Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Godalming, Surrey, England. They are currently members of the Southern Combination Division One and play at the Bill Kyte Stadium.
Walton & Hersham Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. Founded in 1945 following the amalgamation of Walton FC and Hersham FC, they currently play in the Southern League South Division. The club is affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association.
Walton Casuals Football Club was a football club based in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. Founded in 1948, the club was affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association, and had been a part of the football pyramid since 1992.
Chertsey Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Chertsey, Surrey, England. The club currently competes in the Isthmian League South Central Division.
Sutton Common Rovers Football Club is a semi-professional football club currently competing in the Isthmian League South Central Division. Originally based in Carshalton, the club moved southwest to Leatherhead, Surrey, in 2007 upon joining the Combined Counties League. At the start of the 2009–10 season the club moved into a groundshare with Cobham at the Reg Madgwick Stadium, and further away from Carshalton. At the end of the 2014–15 season the club announced that it would be groundsharing with Sutton United for the 2015–16 season. For the 2022–23 season, the club announced a move to Church Road now privately owned by a company called IRama. The club are now equal tenants with newly reformed AFC Whyteleafe. In 2024 - 2025 season the club announced they would move back to London Borough of Sutton to Carshalton Athletic’s ground.
Farnham Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Farnham, Surrey, England. They are currently members of the Combined Counties League Premier Division South and play at the Memorial Ground.
Merstham Football Club is a football club based in Merstham, Surrey, England. Affiliated to the Surrey FA, they are currently members of the Isthmian League South East Division and play at Moatside.
Westfield Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in the Westfield area of Woking, England. The club is affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association. They are currently members of the Isthmian League South Central Division.
Raynes Park Vale Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Raynes Park in the London Borough of Merton, England. The club is affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association and is a FA Charter Standard Club. They play in the Isthmian League - South Central Division and play their home games at Prince George's Playing Fields, Grand Drive.
Badshot Lea Football Club is a football club based in Wrecclesham, Surrey, England. The club are currently members of the Isthmian League South Central Division and play at Westfield Lane.
For more information on the current structure of the NLS, see the main article.
Karle Carder-Andrews, sometimes known as Karle Carder or Karle Andrews, is an English semi-professional footballer who plays as a midfielder.
Spelthorne Sports F.C. is a football club based in the borough of Spelthorne. They play in the Combined Counties League Premier Division South.
The 2012–13 Combined Counties Football League season was the 35th in the history of the Combined Counties Football League, a football competition in England.
Luke John Muldowney is an English semi-professional footballer who is first team coach at Potters Bar Town. A midfielder, Muldowney began his career at Brentford, for whom he made one professional appearance before dropping into non-League football upon his release in 2005. He spent six years as a player, captain and latterly manager at non-League club Egham Town.
The 2015–16 Combined Counties Football League season was the 38th in the history of the Combined Counties Football League, a football competition in England.
The 2019–20 Combined Counties Football League season was the 42nd in the history of the Combined Counties Football League, a football competition in England. The season was abandoned on 26 March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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