BAD NEWS

[Jay]

I personally think that all this moaning about games is a load of bo11ocks!

you want to be a succesfull team then you have to play matches, simple as... these players get paid a fortune to do a job that most of us can only dream about they play 2matches a week train for about 3hrs a day have a massage then go home in their sports cars and spend the rest of the day doing very little also teams have squads of about 30 players!! I say quit the moaning and get on with it!!

Blatter only wants to reduce the size of the leagues so he can arrange more pointless money spinning, dull as dish water world club championships that make him more pocket money!!

[Head Honcho]

Most of our top Premiership teams are totally against this so unless FIFA come up with some compensation package it will never happen.

40 less games a season for the FA to take a cut of. 2 less home matches for the top clubs equates to around 2 million a season each. Not to mention Sky TV have just done a deal that includes a 20 team premiership they won't be too happy with reduced advertising.

[Jon the Hat]

I reckon we should have a prem 1 / prem 2 structure of 16 teams each with a playoff system the same as Spain, where the teams in some of the relegation spots play against those in the promotion spots.

Then you have 3 leagues below of 20 each. This would push some more cash downwards and reduce the gulf between the Prem and Championship. Also means more clubs involved in something interesting.

P1 - 16

P2 - 16

L1 - 20

L2 - 20

L3 - 20

Tot 92

[Nationwider]

I reckon we should have a prem 1 / prem 2 structure of 16 teams each with a playoff system the same as Spain, where the teams in some of the relegation spots play against those in the promotion spots.

Then you have 3 leagues below of 20 each. This would push some more cash downwards and reduce the gulf between the Prem and Championship. Also means more clubs involved in something interesting.

P1 - 16

P2 - 16

L1 - 20

L2 - 20

L3 - 20

Tot 92

I imagine City wouldn't be too happy with eight less home games to draw revenue from. Having said that, we'd be in L1 rather than P2 I guess.

[Jon the Hat]

I imagine City wouldn't be too happy with eight less home games to draw revenue from. Having said that, we'd be in L1 rather than P2 I guess.

4 less home games.

But then we would have a realistic chance of promotion into the P2, which could offer more revenue than you would get finishing just outside the playoffs, or in the playoffs but not going up. And if the finances were structured better the distribution of cash could be more favourable to clubs in the lower leagues.

[MC Prussian]

This is all so hypothetical.

The current mode has always worked fine and in the past 14 years since establishing the Premiership, football has made a positive turn in England.

It has worked for so long and the rythm in English football has always been one of the highest in Europe anyway. Clubs, managers, players and fans are appreciating the way things are.

More teams in the Prem means more money for all clubs involved up there.

Instead of reducing the number of clubs, they'd better start using a salary cap in order to make the game more even and avoiding a bigger gap between richer and less richer teams.

[Ultra]

The problem is though, in Europe the clubs would quickly find loopholes in the law to bypass the salary cap, and even if they couldn't, would probably try and argue that it was illegal anyway.

[potter3]

But the Salary cap would have to be made compulsory, and even across Europe, otherwise it would have a negative impact due to all the better players moving to Europe for better pay. And another way too "bypass" it is to make it up with huge appearance bonuses etc.