York City’s Promotion Frustration: Demanding a Fair System

After a brilliant National League campaign, which saw York City finish second with 96 points–only six behind champions Barnet–their promotion hopes ended in disappointment.  They lost 3-0 to Oldham in the semi-final of the play-offs, missing out on a spot at Wembley and a chance of promotion back to the Football League.

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What makes missing out more agonising for the Minstermen is the fact that they finished 23 points clear of their fifth-placed rivals, but were denied automatic promotion due to the current structure, which sees only two teams promoted to League Two each year. 

The situation has sparked considerable debate among fans and club officials over the years, with many calling for a “three up, three down” system, which would introduce an extra relegation spot in League Two and an additional promotion spot in the National League. 

York City co-owner Julie-Anne Uggla has taken the matter further, releasing a strongly worded statement following the conclusion of the play-off final, to both the National League and EFL executive, Trevor Birch, criticising the so-called “unjust promotion rules.”

“I am writing to express my deep concern and disappointment at the current promotion system between the National League and League Two,” the letter reads. 

“Following a season where York City FC, despite finishing 28 points clear of 7th place and winning 12 more matches, were denied promotion.”

“Such a glaring imbalance not only undermines sporting merit but erodes the very foundations of fair competition. To dominate a league campaign so comprehensively (Barnet the only exception), only to be forced into a play-off lottery, is structurally unjust. It penalises excellence and rewards clubs with fewer points in a way no professional league system should condone.”

The National League is the only non-regionalised league offering just two promotion spots, while all the higher tiers—League Two, League One, and the Championship — offer either three or four.

Of course, it’s not feasible to introduce this throughout the whole Non-League pyramid. The further down the pyramid you go, the more regionalised it becomes, with multiple leagues operating at the same step, such as the National League North and South.

Increasing the number of promotion spots from those levels would result in too many promotions and subsequent relegations from the league above.

But that logic doesn’t apply to the National League, which stands alone at Step One–just like those above it–so there’s no structural reason why it shouldn’t have a third promotion spot. 

With there being more talk than ever on the topic, and York’s bold statement, it feels like there’s only a matter of time before the three up three down system is implemented between League Two and the National League, one that rewards consistency and merit throughout the season, not a one-off match in May.

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