re: Charlton Athletic question

England has 4 tiers in their professional football (soccer) configuration.

Over the course of my life, the names have changed frequently of these tiers, so it is very confusing.

But just think of them as Tiers 1, 2, 3, and 4.

There are 20 teams in Tier 1, and 24 teams in the remaining 3.

Each year, the bottom 3 teams are relegated from Tiers 1, 2, and 3 to the lower tier, and the top 3 teams are promoted from Tiers 2, 3, and 4 to the above tier.

Historically, the last team of the 4th Tier has been relegated out of the setup entirely, and another club is brought up into the 4th Tier from the Football League (a lower grouping of professional clubs).

Charlton is in the 2nd Tier- this past season they finished near the bottom, but not in the Bottom 3, so they were "safe" from relegation.

The confusing part is the renaming of these tiers. When I was growing up, they were easily called the First Division, Second Division, etc. In 1992, they re-named the 1st Division the "Premier League", the 2nd Division became the First Division, and so on. Now, they are calling the 1st Division (the old 2nd Division) the Championship, and the old 3rd Division became the 2nd Division, is now the 1st Division, and so on.

Hope this helps!