3rd Football League (Russia)
The 3rd league ( Russian Третья лига / Tretja liga , long form Russian Третья лига ПФЛ or Профессиональной футбольной лигой / Tretja liga, the existing league from third to 1994 was the professional football league PFL or Professionalnoi futiellen = league from 1994 to 1994). under the top, 1st and 2nd leagues - Russian ( semi- ) professional football. It consisted of six (1997 five) parallel seasons below the three (1994 four) seasons of the 2nd division, today's 2nd division , until 1993 and since 1998 the Russian amateur league area begins directly below the 3rd level.
When the 3rd league was introduced, the number of seasons was reduced from seven to four, in 1995 to three and the surplus clubs with new professional clubs and promoters from the amateur sector were grouped into the six seasons. When the end of the third division was decided in 1997, most of the teams were upgraded to the second division, which was expanded to six seasons. The remaining teams either broke up, waived a 2nd division license or this was denied them; in some seasons virtually no team went down, in the others almost no team went back to the amateur field.
The number of participating teams also fluctuated greatly during the seasons. During the phase with five seasons, 98 to 105 teams began, depending on the season, and 88 clubs with five seasons in 1997, but at least six teams were excluded or disbanded during the current season. Sporty relegations were rare, since usually more teams gave up the license than relegation places were available per relay. There were regularly two promoters to the second division per season, but due to licensing problems it was often not champions and runners-up that rose, but instead third or fourth-placed players.