How are football league positions decided if teams are level on points?

Yahoo

06-05-2025

When football teams in the elite levels in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are level on points in the league table, they are first separated by goal difference.
Goal difference is calculated by subtracting the total number of goals a team has conceded during the season from the number they have scored. So a team who has scored 60 and conceded 55 will have a goal difference of +5.
But sometimes, two teams will have both the same number of points and the same goal difference. In that scenario, the makeup of that goal difference comes into play.
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Priority is given to the team with the higher goals scored tally. So let's take the above as an example again. Team A has a goal difference of +5, having scored 60 and conceded 55. While Team B also sits on +5, it has scored 70 while conceding 65. Therefore, Team B is placed higher in the league table.
After goals scored, teams can be separated based on their head-to-head record. If Team A accrued more points during games between the two sides than Team B, then Team A would sit higher in the table. If they earned the same amount of points in those games, the team which scored more goals in head-to-head matches is given priority, followed by the team which scored more goals away from home in those fixtures.
If, after all of that, two teams are somehow still precisely level, then disciplinary records or alphabetical order can be used to determine who goes where.
But if that were to happen at the end of a season, and a crucial outcome like the title, qualification for a European place or relegation was being decided, a one-off playoff match between the two teams is used as a fairer alternative.
A special play-off decider has never had to be used in the Premier League [Getty Images]
What about in other leagues?
The above rules do not necessarily apply to leagues in other countries, or lower down the football pyramid, though.
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Some divisions - like LaLiga in Spain and Serie A in Italy - use head-to-head records to separate teams before even moving to goal difference.
In fact, Serie A re-introduced a rule in 2022 stating that if two teams competing for the title, or fighting relegation, finish level on points then they are required to meet in a play-off.
Goal difference would still play a role though, with the team boasting the better record earning the right to play the one-off tie at their home stadium.
In the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League, teams are separated by points total, goal difference, goal scored, away goals scored, number of wins, and finally number of away wins. If teams are somehow still equal, they are given equal ranking in the table, ordered alphabetically.
Serie A's rules mean it is the most likely league to be decided by a one-off play-off match [Getty Images]
This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. The question was sent to us by Dave in Somerset. Thanks, Dave!
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