Senyan League
 | |
| Countries |
 Senya |
|---|---|
| Confederation | AEFA |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Number of teams | 64 (in 4 divisions) |
| Levels on pyramid | 1–4 |
| Relegation to | Senyan Intermediate League |
| Domestic cup(s) | Kopa Sanya |
| League cup(s) | Senyan Football League Cup |
| International cup(s) |
AEFA Champions' League AEFA Cup |
| Current champions |
Jogasim Revolution (2023–24) |
| Most championships | Jogasim Revolution (7) |
 2023–24 Senyan League | |
The Senyan League is the top football league in Senya. Sanctioned by FADESS, the league is split into four divisions; the Top League, the Second League, the Third League and the Fourth League (itself split into East and West divisions), according to their position on the Senyan football league pyramid, respectively. Each division contains sixteen teams with promotion and relegation in operation between the leagues, with relegation possible to feeder leagues. The league is also open to clubs from Lamantia, with four Lamantian clubs (King's Lynn Town, AFC Colgrad, Nordkamp FC and Borussia Bergdorf) having played in the Senyan Legaue. These clubs are ineligible to qualify for Apollonian competition by virtue of the league, and instead must qualify through the FKFB-Pokal. The League however is not open to clubs from Ranentsi, Tiana or clubs from other nations.
Format
Originally, the League comprised only of 3 tiers (Top, Second and Third), with 8 teams, with the top teams going up and bottom going down, with 7th placed in the higher tier playing a play-off with the 2nd placed tier of the lower tier.
In 2015, a Fourth league was added, and the relegation system was amended, so that the bottom two clubs of the higher tier were relegated, with only the champions of the lower tier being promoted, with a play-off contested between 2nd and 3rd in the table.
In 2017, the each division was expanded to 12 teams, with the bottom three in each division being relegated (except for four teams in the Fourth League), with the top two promoted automatically and the teams in third and fourth playing a play-off for the final promotion spot.
In 2020, each of the divisions was expanded to 16 teams, with the Senyan FA finally formalising the pyramid system below the Senyan League, with the establishment of the Senyan Intermediate League and the Senyan Amateur League. The promotion and relegation spots remained the same however now teams finishing third through to sixth would contest the play-offs.
From 2022 onwards, the Fourth League will be split into East and West divisions, allowing clubs from the new northern territories to be integrated into the Senyan League. To compensate, the Third League will now relegate four teams, with only the Fourth League East and West winners gaining automatic promotion, with second through to fifth gaining a place in the play-offs in each division. However, each of the Fourth League divisions will only relegated three teams each.
History
Regulations
The Senyan League has certain stipulations that are required for a club to be able to compete in the league. The most important is that all clubs are 100% owned by supporters. To qualify, an individual supporter cannot own more than one share, and shares must be available at a reasonable price (no more than V500 per year for Top League, V350 per year for Second League and V200 per year for Third and Fourth League clubs) and available to purchase by any Senyan national aged 18 or over who has been to a minimum of 20 matches (including at least one away match) of said team. No person may own more than one share nor may they own a share in multiple teams.
Unlike many other leagues across Micras, Senyan clubs are prohibited from carrying sponsorships, with the exception of the kit manufacturer. Currently, AndWinSports provide kits for most teams, with sides required to wear shirts manufactured by a company registered in the Xäiville Convention. Furthermore, no clubs are permitted to make political or social statements without a supermajority vote of support (67%) from their members.
All clubs must own their own stadiums, which must have a minimum capacity of 5,000. Clubs must provide an away section of at least 1,000 or 10% of total capacity (whichever number is higher).
Supporter culture
The Senyan League (and Senyan football as a whole) has an outstanding reputation for fan involvement, and the fan ownership of clubs helps ensures that ticket prices remain low, which is aided by the League's government subsidy for promoting sport and a healthy lifestyle, though much of this subsidy is transferred into grassroots football. Fan ownership has also led to many Senyan League clubs having no, or at most, very minimal VIP/executive seating, in favour of providing more seats to genuine fans. The vast majority of clubs have an active ultras group, with pyrotechnics, tifos and noisy atmospheres being a staple of the league.
Senyan football culture in general has a very heavy emphasis on supporting one's local team, and some clubs retain rules prohibiting "non-fans" from buying tickets, or even providing preferential ticket prices for those whom they view as "genuine fans".
Broadcasting
The Senyan League organises and negotiates broadcast packages with broadcasters across Micras. Currently, games are shown domestically via Senya TV Sport, who broadcast all games free-to-air under government contract. The international rights deals is where the league makes most of its money, selling broadcast packages to foreign media firms on a largely free market.
In Senya, Senya TV Sport broadcasts all Top League games live, whilst games in the Second, Third and Fourth leagues are broadcasted occasionally (usually three a week, including two Second League games), with all play-off matches broadcasted live.
| ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
