The North Eastern League was a regional Scottish
football competition held during the
Second World War, due to the suspension of the
Scottish Football League. Held between 1941 and 1945 (an interim nationwide
War Emergency League was played in the
1939–40 season followed by one year of hiatus), the competition was played in two stages each season (autumn and spring), with bonus points awarded in the second stage: initially, for teams with higher aggregate scores over the two series; latterly, for away draws/wins. Some
reserve teams from the bigger clubs competing in the other region, the
Southern League, entered the North Eastern League, with the
Rangers 'A' team winning both stages in the first season.
In the
1945–46 season, with the war itself at an end, the North Eastern League merged with the Southern League; however, only
Aberdeen participated in the A Division (finishing in
third position); the rest of the clubs were placed in the B Division along with some from the Southern region including those who had finished at the foot of the table in its
previous edition.
There was also a
North Eastern League Cup. Regular football returned in 1946, with the regional competitions disbanded.