British ice hockey league champions
The British ice hockey league champions are the winners of the regular season of the highest
While the regular season winners are recognised as the British League champions, the British champions are regarded as the winners of the end-of-season playoffs, for which the league provides qualification and seeding.
History
Prior to the formation of the British National League,
Following the closure of the British National League, no league competition took place in the
There has been a British league competition for 47 seasons and 16 teams have won the league championship. The most successful club is the Sheffield Steelers, who have won the championship on ten occasions, followed by the Belfast Giants (7), the Cardiff Devils (6), the now-defunct Durham Wasps (5) and the Coventry Blaze (4). The Nottingham Panthers, the only club to have played in all 47 seasons,[2] have won the title twice (additionally Nottingham were English champions twice before the British National League was formed). The Durham Wasps, Murrayfield Racers, Cardiff Devils, Sheffield Steelers and Coventry Blaze are the only sides to have successfully defended a title.
Champions
1954–60: British National League
| Season | Winner (number of titles) | Runner-up | Third | Top points scorer[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Points | ||||
| 1954–55 | Harringay Racers (1) | Nottingham Panthers | Paisley Pirates | Chick Zamick (Nottingham) | 112 |
| 1955–56 | Nottingham Panthers (1) | Wembley Lions | Paisley Pirates | Statistics not available[a] | |
| 1956–57 | Wembley Lions (1) | Harringay Racers | Brighton Tigers | ||
| 1957–58 | Brighton Tigers (1) | Nottingham Panthers | Harringay Racers | ||
| 1958–59 | Paisley Pirates (1) | Wembley Lions | Brighton Tigers | ||
| 1959–60 | Streatham (1)
|
Nottingham Panthers | Brighton Tigers | ||
1982–96: Premier Division
1996–2003: Ice Hockey Superleague
| Season | Winner (number of titles) | Runner-up | Third | Top points scorer[4][5] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Points | ||||
| 1996–97 | Cardiff Devils (4) | Sheffield Steelers | Ayr Scottish Eagles | Dale Junkin (Bracknell) | 60 |
| 1997–98 | Ayr Scottish Eagles (1) | Manchester Storm | Cardiff Devils | Tony Hand (Sheffield) | 39 |
| 1998–99 | Manchester Storm (1) | Cardiff Devils | Nottingham Panthers | Paul Adey (Nottingham) | 56 |
| 1999–2000 | Bracknell Bees (1)
|
Sheffield Steelers | Manchester Storm | Ed Courtenay (Sheffield) | 70 |
| 2000–01 | Sheffield Steelers (3) | Cardiff Devils | Bracknell Bees
|
Greg Bullock (Manchester) | 60 |
| 2001–02 | Belfast Giants (1) | Ayr Scottish Eagles | Sheffield Steelers | Kevin Riehl (Belfast) | 56 |
| 2002–03 | Sheffield Steelers (4) | Belfast Giants | Nottingham Panthers | Lee Jinman (Nottingham) | 36 |
2003–present: Elite Ice Hockey League
Total titles won
Teams in bold are current Elite Ice Hockey League members. Teams in italics are teams which play outside of the Elite Ice Hockey League. The remaining teams are defunct, although Dundee, Edinburgh (home of the Murrayfield Racers) and Manchester still have their own ice hockey teams.
| Club | Winners | Runners-up | Winning Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sheffield Steelers | 10
|
7
|
1994–95, 1995–96, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2023–24 |
| Belfast Giants | 7
|
6
|
2001–02, 2005–06, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2018–19, 2021–22, 2022-23 |
| Cardiff Devils | 6
|
8
|
1989–90, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1996–97, 2016–17, 2017–18 |
| Durham Wasps | 5
|
2
|
1984–85, 1985–86, 1988–89, 1990–91, 1991–92 |
| Coventry Blaze | 4
|
1
|
2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2009–10 |
| Nottingham Panthers | 2
|
5
|
1955–56, 2012–13 |
| Murrayfield Racers | 2
|
4
|
1986–87, 1987–88 |
| Dundee Rockets | 2
|
1
|
1982-83, 1983–84 |
| Wembley Lions | 1
|
2
|
1956–57 |
| Harringay Racers | 1
|
1
|
1954–55 |
| Ayr Scottish Eagles | 1
|
1
|
1997–98 |
| Manchester Storm | 1
|
1
|
1998–99 |
| Brighton Tigers | 1
|
0
|
1957–58 |
| Paisley Pirates | 1
|
0
|
1958–59 |
Streatham
|
1
|
0
|
1959–60 |
Bracknell Bees
|
1
|
0
|
1999–2000 |
Total titles won by Home Nation
Each of the four constituent nations of the United Kingdom have had at least one team who have been British champions. Teams from England have been league champions on 24 occasions, Scottish sides five times, while Welsh side Cardiff Devils and the Northern Ireland based Belfast Giants are the only sides from their parts of the United Kingdom to win the league.
| Nation | Number of titles | Clubs |
|---|---|---|
 England
|
27
|
(1) |
 Northern Ireland
|
7
|
Belfast Giants (7) |
 Wales
|
6
|
Cardiff Devils (6) |
 Scotland
|
5
|
Murrayfield Racers (2), Ayr Scottish Eagles (1), Dundee Rockets (1), Paisley Pirates (1) |
Notes
- ^ The primary source for statistics in British ice hockey in the post war period was the Ice Hockey World Annual. This ceased publishing following its 1956 edition and therefore the top points scorer after that time is not presently known.
References
- ^ "English League". A to Z Encyclopedia of Ice Hockey. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
- ^ ISBN 0-9539398-1-2.
- ^ "Ice Hockey History". Ice Hockey Journalists UK. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-10.
- ^ ISBN 0-9539398-0-4.
- ^ ISBN 0-9536410-7-4.
- ^ "Player Rankings". Elite Ice Hockey League. Archived from the original on 2008-06-03. Retrieved 2008-07-12.