# British League Division Two

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British League Division Two Sport Speedway Founded 1968 Folded 1994 Competitors Varied Country United Kingdom

Second division British speedway racing league

The **British League Division Two** was created in 1968 and was the second tier of [speedway](/source/Motorcycle_speedway) racing in the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom) until the restructuring of British speedway in 1995. It was renamed the **New National League** in 1975 and the **National League** between 1976 and 1990.[1][2]

## History

After the formation of the [British League](/source/Speedway_British_League) in 1965, riders wanting to break into teams found it more difficult to do so. The idea of forming a second division was suggested and in 1968 the idea became a reality when ten teams formed the league. The ten teams were: [Belle Vue Colts](/source/Belle_Vue_Colts), [Berwick Bandits](/source/Berwick_Bandits), [Canterbury Crusaders](/source/Canterbury_Crusaders_(speedway)), [Crayford Highwaymen](/source/Crayford_Kestrels), [Middlesbrough Teessiders](/source/Middlesbrough_Bears), [Nelson Admirals](/source/Nelson_Admirals), [Plymouth Devils](/source/Plymouth_Devils), [Rayleigh Rockets](/source/Rayleigh_Rockets), [Reading Racers](/source/Reading_Racers) and the [Weymouth Eagles](/source/Weymouth_Wildcats).[3]

The league was renamed the New National League (to avoid confusion with the original [National League](/source/National_League_(1932%E2%80%931964))) in 1975 after promoters of the Division Two tracks decided to form their own league after they became dissatisfied with the way the league was being run by the [British Speedway Promoters' Association](/source/British_Speedway_Promoters'_Association) and the name was shortened to the National League in 1976. It was again named the British League Division Two in 1991 and a system of promotion and relegation was introduced between the British League and the British League Division Two. The league existed until 1994 when the top two league divisions of speedway in the UK were amalgamated for the 1995 and 1996 seasons. In 1997 the [Premier League](/source/Premier_League_(speedway)) became the second tier when the [Elite League](/source/Elite_League_(speedway)) was formed.[4]

## Champions

Season Champions Second 1968 Belle Vue Colts Nelson Admirals 1969 Belle Vue Colts Reading Racers 1970 Canterbury Crusaders Eastbourne Eagles 1971 Eastbourne Eagles Bradford Northern 1972 Crewe Kings Boston Barracudas 1973 Boston Barracudas Workington Comets 1974 Birmingham Brummies Eastbourne Eagles in 1975, it was renamed the New National League 1975 Birmingham Brummies Newcastle Diamonds from 1976-1990, it was named the National League 1976 Newcastle Diamonds Ellesmere Port Gunners 1977 Eastbourne Eagles Rye House Rockets 1978 Canterbury Crusaders Newcastle Diamonds 1979 Mildenhall Fen Tigers Rye House Rockets 1980 Rye House Rockets Newcastle Diamonds 1981 Middlesbrough Tigers Weymouth Wildcats 1982 Newcastle Diamonds Mildenhall Fen Tigers 1983 Newcastle Diamonds Mildenhall Fen Tigers 1984 Long Eaton Invaders Mildenhall Fen Tigers 1985 Ellesmere Port Gunners Poole Wildcats 1986 Eastbourne Eagles Poole Wildcats 1987 Eastbourne Eagles Mildenhall Fen Tigers 1988 Hackney Kestrels Poole Pirates 1989 Poole Pirates Wimbledon Dons 1990 Poole Pirates Middlesbrough Bears in 1991, the name reverted to British League Division Two 1991 Arena Essex Hammers Glasgow Tigers 1992 Peterborough Panthers Berwick Bandits 1993 Glasgow Tigers Long Eaton Invaders 1994 Glasgow Tigers Long Eaton Invaders

## See also

- [List of United Kingdom Speedway League Champions](/source/List_of_United_Kingdom_Speedway_League_Champions)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Year by Year"](https://www.speedwayresearcher.org.uk/yearbyyear.html). *Speedway Researcher*. Retrieved 23 August 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Rogers, Martin (1978). *The Illustrated History of Speedway*. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-904584-45-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-904584-45-3).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)"](https://www.speedwaygb.co.uk/history/leaguetables1946-1964). *Official British Speedway website*. Retrieved 23 August 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Competitions"](http://edinburghspeedway.blogspot.com/p/compet.html). *Speedway Archive*. Retrieved 23 August 2021.

v t e British League Division Two/National League seasons 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 Speedway British League Division Two

v t e Speedway in the United Kingdom Current leagues SGB Premiership SGB Championship National Development League List of champions Former leagues Elite League Premier League National League (1932–1964) Provincial League (1960–1964) British League British League Division Two/National League Conference League National League Division Two National League Division Three English Dirt Track League/Northern League Southern League (1929–1931) Southern League (1952–1953) Provincial League (1936–1937) Southern Area League Current team competitions Knockout Cup League Pairs champions League Fours champions Former team competitions London Cup Midland Cup Craven and Young Shields Premiership Shield Current individual competitions British Speedway Championship League Riders' champions British U-21 British U-19 Scottish Open Former individual competitions London Riders' Midland Riders' Northern Riders' Southern Riders' Olympique Internationale See also Speedway British Speedway Promoters' Association Speedway Control Bureau

v t e United Kingdom Speedway Seasons Tier One League Top division 1929 1929 1930 1930 1931 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Tier Two League Second division 1934 1936 1937 1938 1939 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Tier Three League Third division 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1994 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Champions League champions Cup winners

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [British League Division Two](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_League_Division_Two) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_League_Division_Two?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.