London League (badminton)
The London League was one of the most important badminton tournaments in the early days of the sport since the first decade of the 20th century and the first league competition in badminton.
history
In 1908 the league was played for the first time, with only mixed doubles being played from the beginning to the last edition. From one division, the league grew to 12 in the 1930s. The London League existed before the English County Associations in badminton were founded, but with their founding and the introduction of the Inter-County Championships organized by them, it faced stiff competition. In the last pre-war year 1939, the first division of the London League included Alexandra Palace, Logan, Cazenove (all Middlesex), Crystal Palace, Sundridge Park (both Kent) and Sutton (Surrey). Several of these clubs no longer existed after the Second World War (today only Cazenove exists). The lack of sports halls made it difficult to start after the war, which ultimately took place in 1950, but not in the glamor of the 1930s. The 1st division included Badgers (Kent), Cazenove (Middlesex), Frognal (Middlesex), Ebbisham (Surrey) and Wimbledon (Surrey) in this premiere post-war edition. The league was played for the last time in the 1978/1979 season.