1888–89 Football League
| Season | 1888–89 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
Preston North End (1st English title) |
| Failed re-election | None |
| Matches played | 132 |
| Goals scored | 586 (4.44 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | John Goodall (Preston North End), 21 |
| Biggest home win | Aston Villa – Notts County 9–1 (29 Sept 1888) |
| Biggest away win | Notts County – Preston 0–7 (3 Nov 1888) |
| Highest scoring | 10: Aston Villa – Notts County 9–1 (29 Sept 1888) Bolton – Notts County 7–3 (9 Mar 1889) Blackburn Rovers – Accrington 5–5 (15 Sept 1888) |
| Longest winning run | 6 – Preston North End (8 Sep – 13 Oct 1888) |
| Longest unbeaten run | 22 – Preston North End (8 Sep 1888 – 9 Feb 1889), the entire season |
| Longest losing run | 8 – Derby County (29 Sep – 8 Dec 1888) |
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1889–90 →
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The 1888–1889 Football League was the first edition of the Football League, which ran from the autumn of 1888 until the spring of 1889. It was also the first national football league anywhere in the world.
The twelve original members were Accrington, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley, Derby County, Everton, Notts County, Preston North End, Stoke, West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers who agreed to play a twenty-two game format whereby each team would host each of their eleven rivals once with two points awarded for a win and one point awarded for a drawn game. The team with most points at the completion of the season would be declared Champions of England while the team with the fewest points would be forced to seek re-election to the league for the following season.
Preston North End completed their twenty-two game programme without defeat and were declared the inaugural champions while Stoke finished with the fewest points, although their application for re-election proved successful.
Preston North End also won the FA Cup in 1889, becoming the first team in the world to complete a league and cup double.
At the beginning of the season it was decided that whichever team won the most games would be champions. A few weeks in this was deemed unfair as it made drawing no better than losing, so the League decided to award points: 2 for a win, 1 for a draw. In the end, this rule change made little difference; had it stayed in the "most wins" format, the only change would have been the move of Accrington to 10th and the elevation by one place of Everton, Burnley and Derby County.
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