The National League North is a professional association football league in England. National League North is the second division of the National Leagues and step 2 of the NLS and sixth-highest tier overall in the English football league system, after the Premier League, the EFL leagues and the National League and is contested by 24 clubs.
National League North consists of teams mostly located in Northern England, the English Midlands and East Anglia. In addition, it can include a small number of teams from the northern-most parts of the South West and South East, as well as currently containing a team from Wales. Since the start of the 2015–16 season, the league has been known as the National League North.
History The Conference North was introduced in 2004 as part of a major restructuring of English non-League football. The champions are automatically promoted to the National League. A second promotion place goes to the winners of play-offs involving the teams finishing in second to seventh place (expanded from four to six teams in the 2017–18 season). The three bottom clubs are relegated to Step 3 leagues. Teams from this division, as well as from the National League South, enter the FA Cup at the Second Qualifying Round.
The National League North was scheduled to expand to 24 teams in 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England, the 2020–21 National League North season was curtailed and voided after written resolutions were put to a vote. No teams were relegated. Expansion was implemented before the 2022–23 season, when the bottom club was relegated and four promoted from Step 3.
Member clubs for 2026–27 The member clubs for the 2026–27 season are as follows:
ClubFinishing position 2025–26AFC Telford United11thBedford Town18thBrackley Town21st (National League)Buxton5thChester7th Chorley15thDarlington9thHarborough Town1st (Southern League Central)Hebburn Town1st (Northern Premier League)Hednesford Town2nd (Northern Premier League) Hereford20thKing's Lynn Town19thMacclesfield4thMarine12thMerthyr Town8thMorecambe22nd (National League)Oxford City17thRadcliffe13thScarborough Athletic6thSouthport14thSouth Shields2ndSpalding United2nd (Southern League Central)Spennymoor Town10thWorksop Town16th
League champions
The winners of the league title and the winners of the play-off final since the league's formation in 2004 are as follows:
SeasonWinnerPlay-off winner 2004–05 Southport Altrincham 2005–06 Northwich Victoria Stafford Rangers 2006–07 Droylsden Farsley Celtic 2007–08 Kettering Town Barrow 2008–09 Tamworth Gateshead 2009–10 Southport (2) Fleetwood Town 2010–11 Alfreton Town AFC Telford United 2011–12 Hyde United Nuneaton Town 2012–13 Chester FC Halifax Town 2013–14 AFC Telford United Altrincham 2014–15 Barrow Guiseley 2015–16 Solihull Moors North Ferriby United 2016–17 AFC Fylde FC Halifax Town 2017–18 Salford City Harrogate Town 2018–19 Stockport County Chorley 2019–20 King's Lynn Town Altrincham 2020–21 None, season curtailed and voided 2021–22 Gateshead York City 2022–23 AFC Fylde (2) Kidderminster Harriers 2023–24 Tamworth (2) Boston United 2024–25 Brackley Town Scunthorpe United 2025–26 AFC Fylde (3) Kidderminster Harriers
League stadiums for 2026–27 The home stadiums for all of the teams in the league for the 2026–27 season are listed below:
Team Location Stadium CapacityAFC Telford UnitedTelfordNew Bucks Head 6,300Bedford Town Bedford The Eyrie 3,000Brackley TownBrackley St. James Park 3,500Buxton BuxtonThe Silverlands 5,200ChesterChesterDeva Stadium 5,400ChorleyChorleyVictory Park 4,100DarlingtonDarlingtonBlackwell Meadows 3,300Harborough Town Market Harborough Bowden Park 2,400Hebburn TownHebburnThe Green Energy Sports Ground 3,000Hednesford TownHednesfordKeys Park 6,039 HerefordHerefordMandM Edgar Street Stadium 5,250King's Lynn TownKing's LynnThe Walks 8,200Macclesfield Macclesfield Leasing.com Stadium 5,300Marine CrosbyRossett Park 3,000Merthyr TownMerthyr TydfilPenydarren Park 4,000MorecambeMorecambeHalo Aerospace Stadium 6,476Oxford CityOxford Marsh Lane 3,500RadcliffeRadcliffe Stainton Park 3,500Scarborough AthleticScarboroughScarborough Sports Village 3,251South ShieldsSouth ShieldsMariners Park 4,000SouthportSouthportHaig Avenue 6,008Spalding UnitedSpaldingSir Halley Stewart Field 2,700Spennymoor TownSpennymoorThe Brewery Field 4,300Worksop Town WorksopSandy Lane 3,400
League records
Record home win Chorley 9-0 Gloucester City, 4 September 2021 Record away win Redditch United 0–9 Boston United, 21 August 2010 Highest-scoring game AFC Fylde 9–2 Boston United, 19 November 2016 Most points in a season 107 points – Chester (2012–13) Most wins in a season 34 – Chester (2012–13) Fewest defeats in a season 3 – Chester (2012–13) Most goals scored in a season 112 – AFC Fylde (2025–26) Largest positive goal difference 71 – Chester (2012–13) Most league titles 3 – AFC Fylde (2016–17, 2022–23, 2025-26) Most consecutive wins 15 games (21 February 2006 to 22 April 2006) – Northwich Victoria Most consecutive clean sheets 10 games (30 August 2010 to 9 November 2010) – Boston United Most clean sheets in a season 28 (2021/22) - Brackley Town Longest unbeaten run 30 games (15 September 2012 to 6 April 2013) – Chester Largest attendance 9,086 (18 May 2025) – Scunthorpe United (vs Chester)
Sponsorship In June 2025, the league was renamed to the Enterprise National League North after the sponsorship deal with Vanarama ended upon completion of the 2024–25 season.
See also National League National League South
References
External links The National League official site