Ferguson was in charge of Manchester United from November 1986 until his retirement at the end of the 2012–13 season, meaning he was manager for the last five years of the old Football League First Division and all of the first 21 seasons of the Premier League. The Premier League, often referred to as the English Premier League or the EPL outside England, is the top level of the English football league system. Several caretaker managers have gone on to secure a permanent managerial post after performing well as a caretaker, including Paul Hart at Portsmouth and David Pleat at Tottenham Hotspur. [6] The Premier League's production arm, Premier League Productions, is operated by IMG Productions and produces all content for its international television partners. [173] The Hillsborough disaster in 1989 and the subsequent Taylor Report saw a recommendation that standing terraces should be abolished. Between 2005 and 2012 there was a Premier League representative in seven of the eight Champions League finals, with only "Top Four" clubs reaching that stage. [66] The former chairman and chief executive, John Quinton and Peter Leaver, were forced to resign in March 1999 after awarding consultancy contracts to former Sky executives Sam Chisholm and David Chance. Monthly awards are also given for the Manager of the Month, Player of the Month and Goal of the Month. Andrew Cole and Alan Shearer hold the record for most goals in a season (34) – for Newcastle and Blackburn respectively. [135] An investigation by the Office of Fair Trading in 2002 found BSkyB to be dominant within the pay TV sports market, but concluded that there were insufficient grounds for the claim that BSkyB had abused its dominant position. It sold the rights itself on a territory-by-territory basis. The winner of the EFL Cup qualifies for the subsequent season's UEFA Europa League second qualifying round, but if the winner already qualified for a UEFA competition via their performance in another competition, then this place reverts to the team that finished sixth in the Premier League, or seventh if the FA Cup result already caused the sixth-placed team to qualify.[90]. [58], "Project Big Picture" is a plan to reunite the top Premier League clubs with the English Football League, proposed by leading Premier League clubs Manchester United and Liverpool. He broke the record set by Alex Ferguson, who had managed 810 matches with Manchester United from the Premier League's inception to his retirement at the end of the 2012–13 season. [118], The Premier League is the fourth wealthiest professional sport league after the NFL, the MLB, and the NBA by revenue. [72], A system of promotion and relegation exists between the Premier League and the EFL Championship. No points are awarded for a loss. [53][54] The top flight had only been expanded to 22 teams at the start of the 1991–92 season – the year prior to the formation of the Premier League. [197] A non-EU player applying for the permit must have played for his country in at least 75 per cent of its competitive 'A' team matches for which he was available for selection during the previous two years, and his country must have averaged at least 70th place in the official FIFA world rankings over the previous two years. [30] The newly formed top division was to have commercial independence from The Football Association and the Football League, giving the FA Premier League licence to negotiate its own broadcast and sponsorship agreements. [244] The ribbons that drape the handles are presented in the team colours of the league champions that year. Prior to the start of the first Premier League season Alan Shearer became the first British player to command a transfer fee of more than £3 million. Bridgewater's study found clubs generally sack their managers upon dropping below an average of one point per match. [140] On 13 June 2012, the Premier League announced that BT had been awarded 38 games a season for the 2013–14, 2014–15 and 2015–16 seasons at £246 million-a-year. a: Founding member of the Premier League [241], The current Premier League trophy was created by Royal Jewellers Asprey of London. [32] Luton Town, Notts County, and West Ham United were the three teams relegated from the old First Division at the end of the 1991–92 season, and did not take part in the inaugural Premier League season. [138] Television rights alone for the period 2010 to 2013 have been purchased for £1.782 billion. [110] Launched in the 2007–08 season, Topps’ Match Attax, the official Premier League trading card game, is the best selling boys collectable in the UK, and is also the biggest selling sports trading card game in the world. The Premier League is broadcast by SuperSport across sub-Saharan Africa. [57], From the 2019–20 season, video assistant referees were used in the league. The remaining 116 games were retained by Sky, which paid £760 million-a-year. [5], Television has played a major role in the history of the Premier League.