The National League and its member clubs urge fans to sign a petition calling on EFL to make a change and grant a third promotion place.
It comes ahead of this weekend’s ‘Day of Action’, with all National League fixtures on Saturday the 15th of November kicking off at 3:03pm. So will all matches in the Northern Premier League, Isthmian League and Southern League, who also support the campaign.
The campaign has already been backed by all 72 National League clubs, FSA (Football Supporters Association) (93% fan support, 83% from EFL fans), MPs, media outlets.
The EFL however refuses formal debate despite private club support, with the National League Chair Jack saying there is no “competitive balance” risk; saying that no National League champion has gone on to be relegated the following season since 2003.
Now a petition has gone live, with the EFL told to “put 3UP on the agenda” for fairness and pyramid integrity after remaining silent. You can sign the petition HERE.
Put your name to the campaign 🗣️
93% of football supporters are behind #3UP – and you can play your part.
Tap the link and sign the petition ✍️
— Enterprise National League (@NL_Enterprise) November 11, 2025
THE PETITION READS:
Football is built on fairness, ambition, and the principle that success on the pitch should be rewarded. Yet, the current promotion and relegation system between the EFL and the National League denies clubs a fair opportunity to rise.
For too long, clubs finishing second in the National League – even with 100+ points – have had to settle for a playoff place, and in many instances see a season’s worth of excellence go unrewarded. On average, our runners-up earn 89.4 points over the course of a 46-game marathon… of those, just 30.4% runners-up go on to win the play-offs and earn promotion.
Meanwhile, in the EFL, relegation remains restricted to just two clubs, protecting struggling teams at the expense of those proving themselves below. The third-bottom club averages a slither over 46 points per season – barely one point per game. Yet they survive another season.
Between 1979 and 1986, our thriving clubs were rejected a place in the EFL while a 19th-century tradition of re-election kept the door closed on our ambitious clubs. It took seven years of pressure to get one automatic promotion spot.
In 2003, we were finally granted a second spot for play-off winners. Progress, but only half a solution. We’ve had teams finish with as many as 107 points and told that that’s still not enough.
It’s time to fix this.
We call on the EFL to immediately add put ‘3UP’ on the agenda so that member clubs can formally debate and vote on this crucial change.
By doing so, the EFL has the opportunity to lead with fairness and progress, ensuring a system that rewards merit, encourages competition, and strengthens the entire football pyramid.
This is not a radical ask. This is what fairness looks like. The EFL have at least three promotion spots up for grabs in all three of their divisions… and all we ask is for the same.
Don’t delay, don’t ignore it. Put 3UP on the agenda now.
📢 Sign this petition and make your voice heard!
In the build-up to this weekend’s games, the National League will mobilise football clubs across the UK, fan groups, players, managers, media personalities and politicians to highlight its widely popular campaign to attain three promotions into the English Football League (EFL).
This unprecedented step is a response to the EFL Board’s unchanged stance on 3UP and their continued refusal to formally consult its 72 member clubs on the matter.
Over the coming weeks, the National League will reveal exactly what supporters of the 3UP campaign will do to help make these unique kick-off times a significant and impactful moment.
The 3UP Day of Action has the backing of the 72 National League clubs who are all playing their part in this latest initiative.
Whilst the 48 National League North and South clubs do not have league fixtures on the day itself (it is Second Round Qualifying of the FA Trophy the same weekend) they will be fully involved as they were for the 3UP campaign launch.
Since launch, the 3UP campaign has now received widespread support from football organisations, sporting opinion formers, prominent broadcasters and dozens of MPs across all political parties – who are actively lobbying the EFL for change on behalf of the National League.
Some of these MPs will take part in the 3UP Day of Action and recognise the campaign’s ‘Put Football First’ mission will help the new Independent Football Regulator achieve its publicly stated goals of protecting the financial resilience of clubs and preserving the heritage of the game for fans.
Over 93% of football supporters from across all divisions of the professional football pyramid support 3UP, including a significant 83% of EFL fans.
These figures come from a substantive poll conducted by the Football Supporters Association (FSA) which has led to the well-respected body adopting 3UP as their official policy.
National League chair Jack Pearce MBE says: “Our 72 clubs – the majority of whom are over a century old and household names – simply won’t accept the current circumstances blocking them from parity and fairness with all the other professional teams in England.
“In response to the 3UP campaign launch, the EFL stated their understandable concerns over the ‘competitive balance’ across all leagues within the football pyramid and cited this as an underlying reason for delaying the matter of 3UP . But we don’t believe this should be the reason preventing progression on the matter.
“The ‘competitive balance’ issue simply doesn’t apply between the National League and EFL.
For example, since two promotions were introduced to the National League in 2003, no title-winning club has ever been relegated from the EFL the following season.
And almost half the clubs currently in the EFL’s three leagues have competed in the National League at one time or other.
“Since launching 3UP, we have been contacted by a remarkable number of EFL clubs who are privately supportive of the change but haven’t even been given the chance as a group of clubs to formerly discuss it.
“EFL chair Rick Parry stated two years’ ago that the EFL ‘needs to look downwards as well as upwards’ and that 3UP is a ‘perfectly logical argument’.
We remain grateful for this broad outlook, but unfortunately no meaningful action has been forthcoming from the league since then.
“We therefore don’t think it is too much to ask the EFL to take some unconditional and supportive action to help all National League clubs up and down the country attain another promotion place.
They have been waiting for 23 years for this moment.
The forthcoming 3UP Day of Action on Saturday 15 November will be a great chance for everyone who cares about the national game to get involved and show their support to our clubs and fans. Together we can put football first.”
