Editing Shropshire (section)

==Sport==
[[File:STFC - New Meadow (Aerial).jpg|thumb|right|The [[New Meadow]] football stadium, home to [[Shrewsbury Town Football Club]]]]
[[File:Hawkstone international 2007 hawkstone hill 01 jamie clarke.jpg|thumb|right|Hawkstone Motocross Circuit]]

There are a significant number of sporting clubs and facilities in Shropshire, many of which are found in [[Shrewsbury#Sport|Shrewsbury]] and [[Telford#Sport|Telford]] in addition to a number of clubs found locally throughout the county. Shropshire is home to a variety of established amateur, semi-pro and professional sports clubs.

The county is home to one of five [[National Sports Centres]]. Situated at [[Lilleshall Hall]] just outside [[Newport, Shropshire|Newport]] in [[Lilleshall]], this is where the [[England national football team|1966 England National football team]] trained for two weeks prior to their success in the [[1966 FIFA World Cup|World Cup of 1966]].

===Football===

The three highest [[association football|football]] (and only professional) clubs in the county are [[Shrewsbury Town F.C.|Shrewsbury Town]] ([[EFL League One]]), [[A.F.C. Telford United]] ([[Southern Football League|Southern League Premier Division Central]]) and [[The New Saints F.C.|The New Saints]] ([[Welsh Premier League]]) in Oswestry.

There are numerous semi-professional football clubs in the lower leagues. The [[sport governing body|governing body]] in the county is the [[Shropshire Football Association]], who organise a number of county-wide cup competitions, including the [[Shropshire Senior Cup]]. In 2020 the [[Shropshire County Football League]] was created, replacing the [[Shropshire Premier League]]. {{As of|2022|alt=As of the 2022–23 football season}} the following Shropshire clubs play in these English leagues (the highest team of each club shown only):

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! [[English football league system|Level]] !! League !! Clubs
|-
|3
|[[EFL League One|League One]]
|[[Shrewsbury Town F.C.|Shrewsbury Town]]
|-
|7
|[[Southern Football League|Southern League Premier Division Central]]
|[[A.F.C. Telford United|AFC Telford United]]
|-
|9
|[[Midland Football League|Midland League]] Premier Division
|[[Market Drayton Town F.C.|Market Drayton Town]], [[Shifnal Town F.C.|Shifnal Town]], [[Whitchurch Alport F.C.|Whitchurch Alport]]
|-
|rowspan=2|10
|[[Midland Football League|Midland League]] Division One
|[[A.F.C. Bridgnorth|AFC Bridgnorth]], [[Haughmond F.C.|Haughmond]], [[Shawbury United F.C.|Shawbury United]]
|-
|-
|[[North West Counties Football League|North West Counties League]] Division One South
|[[Ellesmere Rangers F.C.|Ellesmere Rangers]]
|}

Also, some clubs situated near the Welsh border play in the [[Welsh football league system|Welsh league system]]:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! [[Welsh football league system|Level]] !! League !! Clubs
|-
|1
|[[Cymru Premier]]
|[[The New Saints F.C.|The New Saints]]
|-
|4
|[[Central Wales Football League]] Northern Division
|[[Bishops Castle Town F.C.|Bishop's Castle Town]]
|}

===Other sports===
The historic [[Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games]] (begun 1850) are held annually in [[Much Wenlock]] during the second weekend in July. A four-day festival, the Games include cricket, volleyball, tennis, bowls, badminton, triathlon, 10k road race, track and field events, archery, five-a-side football, veteran cycle events, clay pigeon shooting and a golf competition.

The county [[:Category:Golf clubs and courses in Shropshire|has a number]] of private and public [[golf course]]s, including the [[Church Stretton#Golf course|Church Stretton Golf Club]], situated on the slopes of the [[Long Mynd]]. It is the oldest 18-hole golf course in Shropshire, opened in 1898, and one of the highest in the United Kingdom. There is one notable horse racing [[racecourse]] in Shropshire, near Ludlow, the [[Ludlow Racecourse]].

[[File:Nocturanl barlie.jpg|thumb|right|[[Shropshire Star Newport Nocturne]] bike race 2006]]

The area also has a rich motorsports heritage, with the [[Loton Park Hillclimb]] and [[Hawkstone Park Motocross Circuit]] situated near Shrewsbury. [[Shrewsbury Motocross Club]] has staged [[motocross]] events in the area for over 30 years. There is additionally an ice hockey club in the county, the [[Telford Tigers]].

One of the biggest one-day events in Shropshire and the biggest one-day cycle race in the UK is the [[Shropshire Star Newport Nocturne]], founded 1970; held every four years, it is Britain's only floodlit cycle race.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/web/site/BC/roa/News2007/20070814_Newport_Nocturne.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828021428/http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/web/site/BC/roa/News2007/20070814_Newport_Nocturne.asp|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 August 2008|title=Newport Nocturne Returns|date=28 August 2008|access-date=14 December 2018}}</ref>

The county has one [[American football]] team, [[Shropshire Revolution]], which was founded in 2006, and is a club in the [[British American Football League]]. Former teams in the county have included the [[Wrekin Giants]], which ran from 1985 to 1989 and the [[Shropshire Giants]] which ran in 1989. Shropshire has a number of rugby clubs, including [[Newport (Salop) Rugby Union Football Club]], the highest-leveled team in the county, playing in the [[National League 3 Midlands]].