Italian football league system

The Italian football league system, also known as the Italian football pyramid, refers to the hierarchically interconnected league system for the association football in Italy, that consists of 594 divisions having 3332 teams (excluding Seconda and Terza Categoria), in which all divisions are bound together by the principle of promotion and relegation, with one team from San Marino also competing. The system has a hierarchical format with promotion and relegation between leagues at different levels, allowing even the smallest club the theoretical possibility of ultimately rising to the very top of the system.

A certain number of the most successful clubs in each league can rise to a higher league, whilst those that finish at the bottom of their league can find themselves relegated. In addition to sporting performance, promotion is usually contingent on meeting criteria set by the higher league, especially concerning appropriate facilities and finances.

In theory it is possible for a lowly local amateur club to rise to the pinnacle of the Italian game and win the Scudetto. While this may be unlikely in practice (at the very least, in the short run), there certainly is significant movement within the pyramid. The top two levels contain one division each. Below this, the levels have progressively more parallel divisions, which each cover progressively smaller geographic areas.

Structure
The first tier of Italian football is Serie A, which is governed by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti Serie A and is made up of 20 teams. Next is the Serie B, which is organised by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti Serie B. Both of these leagues cover the whole of Italy.

The third tier is the Lega Pro, formerly known as Serie C. It is run by the Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico; it has three divisions (of 18 clubs each) which are generally split on the basis of location.

At the fourth tier is Serie D, a league of nine parallel divisions (in which the clubs are divided by geographical location) that is organised by the Dipartimento Interregionale of the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. Beneath these are five further levels; four of them, Eccellenza, Promozione, Prima Categoria and Seconda Categoria, are organised by regional committees of the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti; and the last one, [erza Categoria, by provincial committees.

All Serie A, Serie B and Lega Pro clubs are professional.