The1914–15 season was the 21st in the history of theSouthern League.Watford won Division One andStoke finished top of the Division Two.[1]Stoke were the only club to apply for election tothe Football League and were successful. However, theUnited Kingdom declared war onGermany on 4 August 1914, thus enteringWorld War I. The Football League and Southern League ceased operations until the war ended in November 1918. The next season would be1919–20.
| Season | 1914–15 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Watford (1st title) |
| Promoted | West Ham United |
| Relegated | Croydon Common (resigned) |
| Matches | 380 |
| Goals | 1,131 (2.98 per match) |
1919–20 → | |
A total of 20 teams contest the division, including 18 sides from previous season and two new teams.Teams promoted from1913–14 Division Two:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Watford | 38 | 22 | 8 | 8 | 68 | 46 | 1.478 | 52 | |
| 2 | Reading | 38 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 68 | 43 | 1.581 | 49 | |
| 3 | Cardiff City | 38 | 22 | 4 | 12 | 72 | 38 | 1.895 | 48 | |
| 4 | West Ham United | 38 | 18 | 9 | 11 | 58 | 47 | 1.234 | 45 | Elected to the1919–20 Football League Second Division after World War I |
| 5 | Northampton Town | 38 | 19 | 5 | 14 | 56 | 51 | 1.098 | 43 | |
| 6 | Southampton | 38 | 19 | 5 | 14 | 78 | 74 | 1.054 | 43 | |
| 7 | Portsmouth | 38 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 54 | 42 | 1.286 | 42 | |
| 8 | Millwall | 38 | 16 | 10 | 12 | 50 | 51 | 0.980 | 42 | |
| 9 | Swindon Town | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 77 | 59 | 1.305 | 41 | |
| 10 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 38 | 16 | 7 | 15 | 46 | 47 | 0.979 | 39 | |
| 11 | Exeter City | 38 | 15 | 8 | 15 | 50 | 41 | 1.220 | 38 | |
| 12 | Queens Park Rangers | 38 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 55 | 56 | 0.982 | 38 | |
| 13 | Norwich City | 38 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 53 | 56 | 0.946 | 36 | |
| 14 | Luton Town | 38 | 13 | 8 | 17 | 61 | 73 | 0.836 | 34 | |
| 15 | Crystal Palace | 38 | 13 | 8 | 17 | 47 | 61 | 0.770 | 34 | |
| 16 | Bristol Rovers | 38 | 14 | 3 | 21 | 53 | 75 | 0.707 | 31 | |
| 17 | Plymouth Argyle | 38 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 51 | 61 | 0.836 | 30 | |
| 18 | Southend United | 38 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 44 | 64 | 0.688 | 28 | |
| 19 | Croydon Common | 38 | 9 | 9 | 20 | 47 | 63 | 0.746 | 27 | Relegated toDivision Two, but did not rejoin league after World War I |
| 20 | Gillingham | 38 | 6 | 8 | 24 | 43 | 83 | 0.518 | 20 |
| Season | 1914–15 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Stoke |
| Promoted | Merthyr Town Swansea Town Brentford Newport County Stoke (toFootball League) Coventry City (toFootball League) |
| Relegated | Stalybridge Celtic (resigned) |
| Matches | 156 |
| Goals | 1,131 (7.25 per match) |
1919–20 → | |
A total of 13 teams contest the division, including 9 sides from previous season, two teams relegated from Division One and two new teams.
Teams relegated from1913–14 Division One:
Newly elected teams:
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GR | Pts | Promotion or qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stoke | 24 | 17 | 4 | 3 | 62 | 15 | 4.133 | 38 | Elected to the1919–20 Football League Second Division after World War I |
| 2 | Stalybridge Celtic | 24 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 47 | 22 | 2.136 | 37 | Promoted to1919–20 SFL Division One but left league after World War I to join theLancashire Combination |
| 3 | Merthyr Town | 24 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 46 | 20 | 2.300 | 35 | Elected to1919–20 SFL Division One after World War I |
| 4 | Swansea Town | 24 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 48 | 21 | 2.286 | 33 | |
| 5 | Coventry City | 24 | 13 | 2 | 9 | 56 | 33 | 1.697 | 28 | Elected to the1919–20 Football League Second Division after World War I |
| 6 | Ton Pentre | 24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 42 | 43 | 0.977 | 28 | |
| 7 | Brentford | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 35 | 45 | 0.778 | 23 | Elected to1919–20 SFL Division One after World War I |
| 8 | Llanelly | 24 | 10 | 1 | 13 | 39 | 32 | 1.219 | 21 | |
| 9 | Barry | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 30 | 35 | 0.857 | 17 | |
| 10 | Newport County | 24 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 27 | 42 | 0.643 | 17 | Elected to1919–20 SFL Division One after World War I |
| 11 | Pontypridd | 24 | 5 | 6 | 13 | 31 | 58 | 0.534 | 16 | |
| 12 | Mid Rhondda | 24 | 3 | 6 | 15 | 17 | 49 | 0.347 | 12 | |
| 13 | Ebbw Vale | 24 | 3 | 1 | 20 | 23 | 88 | 0.261 | 7 |
Stoke were the only Southern League club to apply for election to the Football League.[2] They were successful, and replacedGlossop North End, who received only one vote. However, the League ceased operations for the war after its AGM and did not resume until 1919.
| Club | League | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Leicester Fosse | Football League | 33 |
| Stoke | Southern League | 21 |
| South Shields | North Eastern League | 11 |
| Chesterfield | Midland League | 8 |
| Darlington | North Eastern League | 4 |
| Glossop North End | Football League | 1 |
Following World War I the Football League expanded from 40 to 44 clubs, creating four vacancies. Two Southern League clubs,Coventry City andWest Ham United applied and were successful in the elections.