No. The Premier League is not part of the EFL. They are separate bodies, and they meet through relegation, with the bottom three clubs going down to the EFL at the end of the season.
How the relationship is defined
In the league rules, the EFL means The Football League Limited and the league competitions it organises. That definition places the EFL outside the Premier League rather than inside it.
The clearest link between the two comes at relegation. At the end of the competition, the bottom three clubs in the table go down to the EFL.
There is also a wider use of the word club in some of the financial rules. For those rules, the definition can extend to a club that is entitled to be promoted from the EFL to the Premier League. That does not merge the two bodies; it only widens the meaning for that specific area of regulation.
What happens if membership changes
Here is the rule treatment for each membership situation.
| Situation | What the rules do |
|---|---|
| Relegation at the end of a season | The bottom three clubs go down to the EFL |
| A club leaves during a season | Its matches are expunged from the table and fewer clubs are relegated, to keep the league at 20 |
| A club leaves for another reason, before next season's dates are fixed | The board may invite the highest-placed relegated club to rejoin |
What changes in the table and in relegation
If a club stops being a member during the season, the record of the matches it played in that season is removed from the table. The table is therefore reset to exclude that club's season record, rather than leaving those results in place.
The number of clubs relegated at the end of that season is then reduced. The purpose is to make sure the league begins the next season with 20 clubs, or as near to 20 as it can.
When the board can bring a relegated club back
A separate rule covers a club that stops being a member for a reason other than relegation. If that happens before the dates of next season's matches have been fixed, the board has the power to act.
The club that can be invited back is the relegated club that finished highest in the table. The rule gives the board a discretion to invite; it does not make re-entry automatic.
FAQ
Is the Premier League run by the EFL?
No. The rules treat them as different bodies, not as one competition run inside the other. Their connection is structural, through relegation between competitions.
What happens to a club's results if it leaves during the season?
The record of the matches it played in that season is expunged from the table. It is that club's own record of matches that goes, not the rest of the table.
Does the league always begin the next season with exactly 20 clubs?
Not always. If a club stops being a member during a season, the number of clubs relegated at the end of it is reduced so that the league begins the next season with 20 clubs, or as near to 20 as it can.
Can a relegated club be invited back into the league?
It can, at the board's discretion. If a club stops being a member other than by relegation, and the dates of next season's matches have not yet been fixed, the board may invite the relegated club that finished highest in the table to rejoin.