Promotion and Relegation Rules

Promotion and Relegation is widely used around the world, but many nations have different systems in place to determine who is Promoted/Relegated. Here, I've listed the differing systems in place for movement between the Top Flight and the Second Division of many nations around the world.


England
Premier League: The three bottom teams are relegated

Championship: The top two are automatically promoted. Teams placed 3 through 6 enter a four team playoff with the winner gaining promotion.

Spain
La Liga: The three bottom teams are relegated.

Segunda Division: The top three teams are automatically promoted

Italy
Serie A: The three bottom teams are relegated

Serie B: The top two teams gain automatic promotion. If the 3rd place team is 10 or more points ahead of the 4th place team, they are also automatically promoted. If not, the 3rd through 6th place teams compete in a playoff to determine the promotion.

Germany
Bundesliga: The two bottom teams are relegated. The third team from the bottom plays a two-legged playoff with the third-place team in 2.Bundesliga with the winner playing in the top division.*

*This system is also used in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Japan

2.Bundesliga: The top two teams are automatically promoted. The third place team plays the 3rd from bottom in the top division to determine who is promoted and who is relegated.

France
Ligue 1: The three bottom teams are relegated

Ligue 2: The top three teams are automatically promoted.

Netherlands
Eredivisie: The bottom team is automatically relegated. The next two lowest Eredivisie teams enter a playoff system with the 8 best teams from the second division. Here is how the "best" teams from the second division is determined.

* The club with the best record in the "first period" of the season (after 6 rounds).
* The club with the best record in the "second period" of the season (rounds 7-12).
* The club with the best record in the "third period" of the season (rounds 13-18).
* The club with the best record in the "fourth period" of the season (rounds 19-24).
* The club with the best record in the "fifth period" of the season (rounds 25-30).
* The club with the best record in the "sixth period" of the season (rounds 31-36).
* The two remaining spots are filled by the highest-placed clubs that have not already earned automatic promotion or qualified for the Playoff.

Generally it turns out to be the 2nd through 9th placed clubs in the Eerste Divisie (2nd division) and the 16th and 17th place club in the Eredivisie in the playoff to determine two places in the Eredevisie.

Eerste Divisie: The top team is automatically promoted. The next 8 "best" teams enter a playoff. (see above)

Scotland
Premier League: The bottom (12th placed) club is automatically relegated.

First Division: The top club, whose stadium must meet the SPL criteria of 6,000 capacity for entry, gains automatic promotion.

Turkey
Super League: The bottom three teams are relegated:

1. Lig: The top two teams are promoted, while teams 3 through 6 compete in a playoff for the third promotion spot.

Romania
Liga I: The bottom four teams are relegated

Liga II: The second division in Romania is divided into two divisions of 18 teams (east-west). The top two teams from each division gain automatic promotion.

Portugal
Liga: The bottom two teams are relegated

Liga de Honra: The top two teams are promoted

Denmark
Superligaen: The bottom two teams are relegated

1st Division: The top two teams are promoted


Brazil
Serie A: The bottom four teams are relegated

Serie B: The top four teams are promoted

Mexico
Primera Divison: At the end of the apertura and clausura (split-season) tournaments, one team is relegated to Primera Division A. The relegated club is determined by the points per game played ratio in the previous three seasons (six total tournaments). Only two or four tournaments are considered for teams that have been recently promoted.

Primera Divison A: The winner of a two-leg match between the apertura and clausura champions from the season is automatically promoted. If a team wins both the apertura and clausura, they gain automatic promotion.