The London Football Association (LFA) is the regional Football Association for inner areas of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The London FA was established in 1882 and is affiliated to

The Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...

. The London FA administers all levels of men's, women's and junior football within its area, a circle 12 miles in radius with

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Since the early 19th century, Charing Cross has been the notional "centre of London" and became the point from which distances from London are measured. ...

at the centre.

History

The London Football Association (LFA) is unique for the reason that it is the only one founded by

. While others were founded to organise football locally around the country, Charles Alcock and Lord Kinnaird, then Secretary and Chairman of The FA, created the London FA to deal with local clubs and competitions while the main body focused on the Laws of the Game and international football matters. Corinthians 1896-7

According to the ''Memorandum on Areas and Overlapping of Associations'' the London FA covers the area 12 miles from Charing Cross. The association is ‘overlapped’ by a number of its colleague County FA ’s: Essex FA, Kent FA, Middlesex FA, Surrey FA and the Amateur Football Alliance. The first Secretary was N. L. 'Pa' Jackson who was also serving on the FA Council. He was famous for founding the Corinthians Football Club and is said to be the inventor of the international cap. The London FA's other claim to fame is that its representative team was the first ever English team to play in a European final, the

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, most commonly referred to as the Fairs Cup and sometimes as the European Fairs Cup or Fairs Cities' Cup, was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The Fairs Cup was the idea of FIFA vice-presid ...

final in 1958 where they lost over two legs to

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

. Friendly matches had also been played against foreign opposition after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, including annual matches in Belgium. It has had many headquarters since its foundation in 1882, including

Paternoster Row Paternoster Row is a street in the City of London that was a centre of the London publishing trade, with booksellers operating from the street. Paternoster Row was described as "almost synonymous" with the book trade. It was part of an area call ...

, St. Mark's College Chelsea, Finsbury Barracks,

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

, Manor Park, Barking, and

Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...

. It even stayed temporarily at Upton Park and

Highbury Highbury is an area of North London, England, in the London Borough of Islington. Highbury Manor Highbury was once owned by Ranulf, brother of Ilger, and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor hou ...

during the Second World War, having been bombed out of its previous homes. The current headquarters in

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

were moved into in August 2004. A centenary match for the association was played in 1981 between a London XI and an England XI at Highbury, however only 5,000 fans attended.History of London Football Association
London FA The London Football Association is one of the biggest in the country with over 2,000 clubs, about 1,000 referees and over 50 Leagues/Competitions. Sunday Football - geograph

The association has a history of long-serving, dedicated officials. For example, Tommy Kirkup served as Secretary for 44 years between 1903 and 1947. Basil Stallard is by far the longest serving Treasurer having been in that position since 1973. There have been only nine Presidents since 1882, Lionel Seymour being the current incumbent. In 1922 the London Minor Football Association was founded for youth football. It became the London Youth Football Association and continues to administer youth football in the capital to this day. It did, however, come under the London FA Limited when it incorporated in 2001. Both the Inner London County Schools Football Association and London Football Coaches Association work in collaboration with the London FA for the mutual benefit of its members. This provides participants in the capital with a complete range of opportunities in football. The LFA runs high quality coaching courses throughout the year with one of the countries senior coach education tutors as Head Coach in John Drabwell. As a result of the Football Association's National Game Strategy 2008–2012, the LFA has recruited a young and energetic development team under the leadership of Josie Clifford.

Affiliated leagues

Men's Saturday leagues

*Bromley and South London Football League (2017) *West End (London) AFA (1881) *Wimbledon and District League (1898) ''Footnote: No leagues belong to the

English football league system The English football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs in England, with five teams from Wales, one from Guernsey, one from Jersey and one from the ...

.''

Men's Sunday leagues

*Camden Sunday League (1948) *Central London Super Sunday League (2008) * Hackney and Leyton Sunday League (1947) *Inner London League (2001) *Metropolitan Sunday League (1934) *North London Sunday League (1985) *Southern Sunday League (1944) *Sportsman's Senior Sunday League (1949) *Wandsworth and District Sunday League (1949) *West Fulham Sunday League (1936) *Woolwich and Eltham Sunday Football Alliance (2006)

Small Sided leagues

*Hamlets 7-a-Side League (2007) *Lillie Road Five-a-Side League

Other leagues

*All Nations Football Festival Summer League (2001) *Association of Provincial Supporters Clubs in London (1983) *Ballerz League (2008) *Bangladesh Football Association Summer League (2007) *Brixton Summer League *Bromley and Croydon Christian League (1994) *Cypriot League (KOPA) (1974) *East London Christian League *Football for Christ Championship (1998) *Islington Midweek League (1973) *Lionheart Surveyors League (2001) *London Accountants League *London Communities League *London Underground League (1996) *Maccabi (Southern) League *Maccabi Masters League (1999) *MPAA Internal Leagues (2007) *Southern Veterans League *Street League *Thames League *Turkish Community Football Federation (1976)

Ladies and girls leagues

*London and South East Regional Women's League *Greater London Womens League *Capital Girls League *South London Girls League

Youth leagues

*Ballerz League (Youth) (2008) *Bangladesh Football Association (UK) (Youth) (2010) *Bexley and District Junior (and Mini-Soccer) League *Brixton Summer League (Youth) *Camden and Islington Youth League (1968) *East London and Essex Junior League (1998) *Hackney Youth League *London County Saturday Youth League *Maccabi GB Junior (Youth) (2007) *Maccabi Junior League *Positive Youth Community League (2007) *South East London and Kent Youth League (2002) *South London Special League (Youth) (2004) *Tandridge Youth League *Tandridge Youth Mini Soccer Tournament *Turkish Community Football Federation Youth League *Waltham Forest and District Youth League

Futsal leagues

*Futsal Super League *Newham Futsal League *Newham Futsal League (Youth)

Cup competitions

*Beckenham Hospital Charity Invitation Football Cup (Saturday) (1903) *East Ham Memorial Hospital Charity Cup Competition (1901) *Hays Property and Surveying Cup

Disbanded or amalgamated leagues

Leagues that were affiliated to the London FA (or FA) but have disbanded or amalgamated with other leagues include:

Major non-League leagues

Aetolian League The Aetolian (or Aitolian) League () was a confederation of tribal communities and cities in ancient Greece centered in Aetolia in Central Greece. It was probably established during the early Hellenistic era, in opposition to Macedon and the Ac ...

Athenian League The Athenian League was an England, English amateur association football, football league for clubs in and around London. The league was originally to be called the Corinthian League,Athenian Football League minutes 1912-1921 (National Football ...

* Corinthian League *

Delphian League The Delphian League was an English amateur football league covering Greater London and the surrounding area. The league was formed in 1951 with 14 clubs and was effectively a level below the Corinthian League.Greater London League (formed by a merger of the Aetolian and London Leagues) * London League *

Metropolitan League The Metropolitan League was a football league in the south-east of England between 1949 and 1971.Metropolitan–London League (formed by a merger of the Metropolitan and Greater London Leagues) *

Parthenon League The Parthenon League was a association football, football league covering Greater London and the surrounding area. History The league was formed in 1951 with 11 clubs, nine of which had come from the Middlesex Senior League.

Spartan League The Spartan League was a football league in England covering London and adjacent counties. Established in 1907, it merged with the South Midlands League in 1997 to form the Spartan South Midlands League. History The Spartan League was establi ...

(known as the London Spartan League for a few season following a merger with the Metropolitan–London League)

Other leagues

*Asian Premier League (founded 2009, dissolved 2012) *Beckenham League *Bermondsey League *Bromley and District Football League *Camberwell League *Clapham League *Delphis Sunday Football League (incorporated in London and Kent Border Football League)
East London Sunday League
(1930) *Enfield Football Alliance (founded 1941, dissolved 2012) *Finchley and District League
Ford Sunday League
*Herald League *Lewisham League
London and Kent Border Football LeagueLondon City Airport Sunday League
*London Shipping League *Northern Suburban Intermediate League *South East London Amateur League *South London Football Alliance *South London League * Southern Alliance *Southern Suburban League (also known as South Suburban League) *Tottenham & District Junior Alliance League *United Senior League *Walthamstow and District League *Wandsworth and District League *West London League *West London Alliance League *Woolwich and District League

Member and associated clubs

It is difficult to provide a comprehensive list of those notable clubs that are (or at one time were) affiliated to the London FA. However, by identifying those clubs that have competed in the

London Senior Cup The London Senior Cup is the County Senior Cup of the London FA. The London Senior Cup was first won by Upton Park in 1882. Although the leading professional sides in London no longer compete, the Cup has been won in the past by the likes of ...

along with those clubs that are (or were) located in the

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

area it is possible to establish the following list: * 2nd Grenadier Guards ''(now defunct)'' * 3rd Grenadier Guards ''(now defunct)'' * A.F.C. Hayes * A.F.C. Hornchurch *

Argonauts The Argonauts ( ; ) were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War (around 1300 BC) accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, ''Argo'', named after it ...

''(now defunct)'' * Barking *

Barkingside Barkingside is an area in Ilford, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It includes the major road junction of Fullwell Cross, which also gives its name to the locality near that roundabout. The area is situated 10.6 miles (17km) north east of Ch ...

* Beckenham Town *

Bedfont Bedfont is a suburb in the London Borough of Hounslow, approximately west of Centre of London, Charing Cross. Originally a distinct village, Bedfont has a large central conservation area around Bedfont Green. The majority of the housing was bui ...

* Bedfont Town * Bethnal Green United * Bexley United ''(now defunct)'' *

Bishop's Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is in the London metropolitan area, London commuter belt, near the border with Essex, just west of the ...

* Boreham Wood * Briggs Sports ''(now defunct)'' * Brimsdown Rovers *

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is southeast of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 88,000 as of 2023. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, charte ...

* Carshalton Athletic * Casuals ''(became Corinthian-Casuals)'' * Clapham Rovers * Clapton *

Cockfosters Cockfosters is a suburb of north London to the east of Chipping Barnet, lying partly in the London Borough of Enfield and partly in the London Borough of Barnet. It is 10 miles (16 km) north of Charing Cross. Before 1965, it was in the count ...

* Colliers Wood United * Corinthian ''(became Corinthian-Casuals)'' * Corinthian-Casuals * Cray Wanderers *

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

* Croydon Athletic * Croydon Common ''(now defunct)'' *

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...

''(became Dagenham & Redbridge)'' *

Dulwich Hamlet Dulwich Hamlet Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in East Dulwich in south-east London, England. They are currently members of and play at Champion Hill. History The club was formed in 1893, by Lorraine 'Pa' Wilson. The ...

* Enfield *

Enfield Town Enfield is a large town in north London, England, north of Charing Cross. It had a population of 333,587 in 2021. It includes the areas of Botany Bay, Brimsdown, Bulls Cross, Bullsmoor, Bush Hill Park, Clay Hill, Crews Hill, Enfield Hig ...

* Erith & Belvedere * Erith Town * Farnborough Town *

Finchley Finchley () is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet. north of Charing Cross, nearby districts include: Golders Green, Muswell Hill, Friern Barnet, Whetstone, London, Whetstone, Mill Hill and Hendon. It is ...

* Fisher * Fisher Athletic ''(now defunct)'' * Greenwich Borough * Hampton & Richmond Borough * Hanwell Town * Haringey & Waltham Development * Haringey Borough * Harrow Borough * Hayes ''(became Hayes & Yeading United)'' * Hayes & Yeading United *

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...

* Hillingdon Borough * Hitchin Town *

Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...

* Kingsbury London Tigers * Kingstonian *

Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...

Leyton Leyton ( ) is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the Ri ...

''(now defunct)'' *

''(became Dagenham & Redbridge)'' * London All Peoples Sports Association * London Caledonians ''(now defunct)'' *

London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...

Metropolitan Police F.C. Metropolitan Police Football Club is a association football, football club based in East Molesey, Surrey, England. Originally made up of players from the Metropolitan Police, the rule requiring players to be employees of the service was removed ...

* North Greenford United * Northwood *

Old Castle Swifts Old Castle Swifts Football Club, the first professional football (soccer), football club in Essex, was formed by Scotland, Scottish shipowner Donald Currie in September 1892 as Castle Swifts Football Club. The club's first home ground, located ...

''(became

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

)'' * Redbridge * Redbridge Forest ''(became Dagenham & Redbridge)'' * Royal Ordnance Factories ''(now defunct)'' * St. Albans City * Seven Acre & Sidcup *

Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush is a suburb of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Although primarily residential in character, its ...

''(now defunct)'' *

Southall Southall () is a large suburban town in West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns. It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...

* South Kilburn * Sporting Bengal United * Staines Town *

Surbiton Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...

''(now defunct)'' * Sutton United *

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

''(now defunct)'' * Thames Ironworks ''(became

)'' * Thamesmead Town * Tooting & Mitcham United * Upton Park ''(now defunct)'' *

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon, northwest of Charing Cross. Uxbridge formed part of the parish of Hillingdon in the county of Middlesex. As part ...

Waltham Abbey Waltham Abbey is a suburban town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, within the London metropolitan area, metropolitan and urban area of London, England, East London, north-east of Charing Cross. It lies on the Greenwich ...

Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an outer London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Leyton, Walthamstow and Chingford. The borough's administrative headquarters are at Waltham Forest Town Hall, wh ...

* Walthamstow Avenue ''(became Dagenham & Redbridge)'' * Walton & Hersham *

Wealdstone Wealdstone () is a district located in the centre of the London Borough of Harrow, England. It is located just north of Harrow, London, Harrow town centre and is south of Harrow Weald, west of Belmont, Harrow, Belmont and Kenton, London, Kenton, ...

* Welling United * Wingate & Finchley * Wanderers *

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

Yeading Yeading ( ) is a settlement in west London, forming part of the London Borough of Hillingdon, having been developed after the Second World War. Etymology Yeading is very early Saxon and was originally ''Geddingas'' or ''Geddinges'', meaning " ...

''(became Hayes & Yeading United))'' Clubs in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

and

The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

that have competed in the London FA's

London Charity Cup The London Charity Cup was one of the London Football Association's cup competitions. History The London FA previously ran three senior cup competitions, the London Challenge Cup, the London Senior Cup (known also as the London Senior Amateur C ...

or are located in the Greater London area include: *

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional association football club based in Wimbledon, London, Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton, London. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in ...

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

* Barnet *

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

* Chelsea * Crystal Palace * Dagenham & Redbridge *

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

''(now defunct)''

County Cup competitions

Today the London Football Association runs 9 different County Cup competitions: * The London Senior Cup; * The London Senior Trophy * The London Intermediate Cup – ''commenced in 1914–15''; * The London Junior Cup; * The London FA Women's Cup – ''first contested in 1994–95''.; * The London Women's Junior Cup * The London Veterans Cup; * The London Sunday Intermediate Cup; * The London Sunday Junior Cup; and * The London Sunday Challenge Cup. * Turnham Green Trophy * Jack Morgan Cup * Marcus Lipton Cup * Presidents Charity Cup The LFA also formerly ran the following competitions: *

– ''discontinued in 1975'' *

London Challenge Cup The London Challenge Cup was a association football, football tournament formerly organised by the London Football Association, London FA. It was first contested in 1908, and other than during the World Wars, was contested every season until 1974 ...

– ''discontinued in 2000'' The London FA also jointly administers the Capital Women's Cups alongside the Surrey FA, the

Amateur Football Alliance The Amateur FA (Football Alliance) is a county football association in England. It is unusual among county FAs in not serving a particular geographical area. It was founded in 1906 as the Amateur Football Defence Council, was briefly known as t ...

and the Middlesex FA.

List of recent London Cup winners

Source

List of recent London Sunday and Veterans Cup winners

Source

Members of council

President

*Lionel Seymour

Vice presidents

*Basil Stallard (1973) *Stan Nathan (1966) *David Richbell (1969) *David Wolff (1970) *Clive Coleman (1974) *Michael McElligott (1974) *Norman Moss (1976) *Maurice Hales B.E.M (1977) *Bob Henderson (1977) *Darryl Ryan (1981)

Chairman

*Tony Sharples (1981)

Vice chairman

*George Dorling (1983)

Honorary treasurer

*Basil Stallard (1973)

Honorary life members

*Lawrie Aldridge (1960) *Ron Halfacre (1964) *Harry Hall (1973) *Cyril Rebak (1973)

Directors and officials

Board of directors

*L.J. Seymour (President) *David Fowkes ( Chief Executive and Company Secretary) *RA Blackman *G Dorling *BJ Miller *B Stallard *AJ Sharples *GC Taylor *CD Wheeler

Key officials

*Paul Bickerton ( Chief Executive) *Josie Clifford (County Development Manager)

References

External links

*
Presidents Charity CupLondon FA TournamentsLondon FA Cups
{{Authority control County football associations 1882 establishments in England Football Association, London Sports organizations established in 1882 1882 in London 1882 in sport in London

History

Affiliated leagues

Men's Saturday leagues

Men's Sunday leagues

Small Sided leagues

Other leagues

Ladies and girls leagues

Youth leagues

Futsal leagues

Cup competitions

Disbanded or amalgamated leagues

Major non-League leagues

Other leagues

Member and associated clubs

County Cup competitions

List of recent London Cup winners

List of recent London Sunday and Veterans Cup winners

Members of council

President

Vice presidents

Chairman

Vice chairman

Honorary treasurer

Honorary life members

Directors and officials

Board of directors

Key officials

See also

References

External links