# Elite League (speedway)
The Elite League was the top division of league speedway in the United Kingdom from the mid-1990s until the end of the 2016 season, when it was replaced by the Speedway Great Britain (SGB) [Premiership](https://www.edgepedia.org/premiership). It was contested by professional clubs, mostly English, racing over a regular league season followed by end-of-season play-offs that decided the championship from 2002 onward.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Status | Top flight of British speedway until 2016; replaced from 2017 by the SGB Premiership[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267) |
| First play-offs | 2002, with the top five league finishers qualifying[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) |
| First play-off champion | Wolverhampton, beating Eastbourne 93-87 on aggregate in the 2002 final[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) |
| Most successful club in play-offs | Poole, champions in 2003, 2004, 2008, 2011, and 2013, and the club with the most play-off qualifications (15)[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) |
| Final season (2016) | Belle Vue topped the regular table; Wolverhampton won the Grand Final 96-86 on aggregate[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267) • [2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) |
| End of promotion/relegation link | From 2008 to 2010 the second-tier Premier League play-offs decided a Promotion/Relegation Race-Off against an Elite League side rather than a second-tier champion[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) |
## Format and the play-off era
League meetings were between two teams of seven riders run over 15 heats, with race points of 3, 2, 1, and 0 for first to fourth place contributing to the team total and league points toward the table[3](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/what-is-speedway/). From 2002 the league championship was decided by play-offs rather than by the final league table. The number of qualifiers varied: the top five clubs entered in 2002 and 2004, and the top four in most other seasons, with quarter-finals, semi-finals, and an aggregate-score final[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/).
**Early champions.** [Wolverhampton](https://www.edgepedia.org/wolverhampton) took the inaugural title in 2002, defeating [Eastbourne](https://www.edgepedia.org/eastbourne) 93-87 in the final after finishing second in the league behind Eastbourne's 58 points[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/). Poole then won consecutive titles in 2003 (100-79 over Coventry) and 2004 (112-71 over Wolverhampton), in both seasons having finished top of the regular table[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/). Coventry won in 2005 and 2007, and [Peterborough](https://www.edgepedia.org/peterborough) in 2006, edging Reading 95-94 in the closest final of the era[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/).
Poole remained the era's dominant club, adding titles in 2008, 2011, and 2013 to its 2003 and 2004 wins, and qualifying for the play-offs 15 times between 2002 and 2019, more than any other club[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/). Wolverhampton won in 2009 and 2016, Coventry in 2010, and Swindon in 2012[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/). In 2013 [Birmingham](https://www.edgepedia.org/birmingham) topped the regular season but lost the Grand Final to Poole 104-79[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) • [4](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/miscellaneous/graham-drury-1952-2024/).
## Links with the second tier
From 2008 to 2010 the second-tier Premier League play-offs did not decide that division's championship. Instead they identified a club to face an Elite League side in a Promotion/Relegation Race-Off: Edinburgh lost to Wolverhampton 106-76 in 2008, Belle Vue beat Edinburgh 127-53 in 2009, and Ipswich beat Newcastle 110-76 in 2010[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/). The Premier League did not stage play-offs at all in 2011 because of an extended league program[2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/).
## The final season, 2016
[Belle Vue Aces](https://www.edgepedia.org/belle-vue-aces) finished top of the Elite League table in 2016 before the play-offs, in their first season at the new National Speedway Stadium in Manchester[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267). Poole, the reigning champions from 2015's structure, were beaten by Wolverhampton in the semi-finals, and Wolverhampton then defeated Belle Vue 96-86 on aggregate in the Grand Final[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267) • [2](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/) • [8](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/speedway/34411126). [Coventry Bees](https://www.edgepedia.org/coventry-bees) finished seventh of the eight teams and were then refused a license for 2017 by the British Speedway Promoters' Association after failing to agree terms to remain at their Brandon home[5](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/speedway/39096054).
The league's standing had been slipping against its continental rival: Britain's [Tai Woffinden](https://www.edgepedia.org/tai-woffinden), then leading the Speedway Grand Prix World Championship, rode in Poland's Ekstraliga rather than the Elite League[6](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/33724964).
## Replacement by the Premiership
In November 2016 the British Speedway Promoters' Association announced a revamp in which the top two divisions were renamed, with the Elite League becoming the SGB Premiership and the Premier League becoming the SGB Championship from 2017[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267). [Promotion and relegation](https://www.edgepedia.org/promotion-and-relegation) between the two was introduced, with the bottom Premiership side racing the Championship play-off champions in an end-of-season contest to decide who rode in the following season's top tier[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267). BSPA chairman Buster Chapman described the changes as a response to a sport that was, in his words, going stale[1](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267). The Premiership has continued the Elite League's play-off model, with the title still decided by end-of-season play-offs[7](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/rowe-motor-oil-premiership/premiership-2026-update/).
## References
1. [Speedway: Promotion and relegation introduced to revamped competition, BBC Sport (3 November 2016)](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/37864267)
2. [Statistical History of British Speedway Play-Offs, British Speedway Official Website](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/playoff-history/)
3. [What is Speedway?, British Speedway Official Website](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/what-is-speedway/)
4. [Graham Drury (1952-2024), British Speedway Official Website](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/miscellaneous/graham-drury-1952-2024/)
5. [Coventry Bees will not race in 2017 as BSPA withdraws licence, BBC Sport (24 February 2017)](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/speedway/39096054)
6. [Does speedway have a future in the UK?, BBC Sport (July 2015)](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/motorsport/33724964)
7. [Premiership 2026 Update, British Speedway Official Website](https://britishspeedway.co.uk/rowe-motor-oil-premiership/premiership-2026-update/)
8. [Poole Pirates claim third successive Elite League title](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/speedway/34411126)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Individual sports and outdoor recreation › Cycling and motor sport › Motorcycle racing › Speedway and long track › National speedway leagues and clubs*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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