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| Reluctant Hero |
SPL to vote on SPL 2 this ThursdayIf this comes off, I think this would be bad for Scottish football as a whole.Sure it will be great for the ten clubs that get in (in the short term) to benefit from sponsership, TV money etc, but what about the rest of Scottish football? We should be trying to encourage increased competition through the introduction of pyramid systems etc. This would help encourage people back through the gates as opposed to the stale closed shop that we have got at the moment. Anyway, here's the story: Top flight will discuss SPL Two The Scottish Premier League will discuss the formation of a second tier when the clubs meet on Thursday. The resolution to form SPL Two is the main item on the agenda for the general meeting and, if approved, the SPL board will take the proposal forward. The new division would consist of ten clubs who would have to meet strict criteria on stadia, seating, and pitch protection among other things. BBC Scotland understands that any new set up will not begin until 2008/2009. A senior SPL source told BBC's Sportsound that the move has a better than 50-50 chance of success. But any club wishing to leave the Scottish Football League must serve two years notice, unless 20 of the 30 clubs that make up Divisions One, Two and Three support the change. Those behind the proposal hope the development will generate new income streams, television deals and increase marketing opportunities. At present, the three Scottish Football Leagues below the SPL are without a sponsor and do not have regular television coverage. There would be promotion and relegation from the SPL to the new division, but only one club would come up and one go down. But it is understood that a play-off system between the leagues is not up for consideration. One First Division club owner told BBC Sport that a major international gaming company was lined up to sponsor both the current SPL and the new SPL Two. And Livingston chairman Pearce Flynn told BBC Sportsound that last May nine First Division clubs had agreed to support the development of a new league under the SPL umbrella. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/4796207.stm |
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| SLG |
Re: SPL to vote on SPL 2 this Thursday
I totally agree. The SFL have done nothing though, so you can understand why some clubs want out. If it means some sponsorship for the 1st division, then it is a slight improvement on the present situation. The problem is if the SFL and SFA finally get their arse in gear, there is another self-serving organisation for them to deal with. It might actually prompt the SFL and SFA to do something though. The SFL will be a pretty pointless body if these 10 clubs leave. |
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| Reluctant Hero |
Well that is the first hurdle jumped. WTF does the second tier of Scottish football need 3000 seats and a reserve team for? This is just restricting clubs further down the league ladder from getting in.
However, I do agree youth development programme and best practice in corporate governance. SPL to create a second division The Scottish Premier League has approved the creation of a second division, with invitations going out to 10 Scottish Football League clubs. SPL chairman Lex Gold described the move as "seismic" and said the restructuring would be good for top-flight football in Scotland. A meeting of the present 12 SPL clubs also approved the introduction of a cup tournament restricted to member clubs. It is hoped to have the new arrangement up and running for season 2008-09. The new "SPL Two" would: Retain the present one-up, one-down system from the SPL to the First Division. Replace the club finishing tenth in the new second division with the top side in the surviving SFL league below. Force the ninth-placed team into a play-off against a side missing out on automatic promotion. Restrict entry to clubs with a 3,000 all-seater stadium and a pitch protection scheme. (Criteria, such as a minimum of 6,000 seats, for entry to the SPL is retained). Require clubs to play in reserve and under-19 league. Require clubs to have an approved youth development programme. Require clubs to have audited accounts to be lodged with the league each year. Require clubs to "demonstrate current best practice in corporate governance". Any club wishing to leave the SFL must serve two years notice, unless 20 of the 30 clubs that make up Divisions One, Two and Three support the change. But Gold insisted nothing will be confirmed without consultation with other governing bodies. Our clubs decided it would be of interest to Scottish football to invite 10 further clubs to join a restructured top flight SPL chairman Lex Gold "The general motivation for our clubs has been to see if we can strengthen the top structure of the game in Scotland," he said. "They decided it would be of interest to Scottish football to invite 10 further clubs to join a restructured top flight. "We are going to be discussing that, in the first instance, with our colleagues in the Scottish Football League and with the Scottish Football Association. "Our clubs also had a look at the paper produced by nine of the 10 First Division clubs and broadly support the pyramid structure." The proposal, championed by Livingston chairman Pearse Flynn but not yet supported by Gretna, suggests that the remaining clubs below the SFL should form regional leagues. "Also, in relation to regionalisation, they believe this could serve as a catalyst for further thought to be given to that," said Gold. "But they were also clear that is not a matter for our clubs but for the SFL and the SFA. "With a change of this nature, you have to be sensitive to it, hence our decision to have discussions with our colleagues at the SFL and the SFA." At present, the three Scottish Football Leagues below the SPL are without a sponsor and do not have regular television coverage. But one First Division club owner told BBC Sport that a major international gaming company was lined up to sponsor both the current SPL and the new "SPL Two". http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/4796207.stm |
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| neil8r |
What we need in Scotland is first of all to have one footballing organisation, i.e. the SFA.
We should have a 16 team top league and second league after that we should have regional leagues, to protect revenues as the top two leagues would only play 30 games a season we could expand the League cup into regional mini leagues going into a standard cup format ala UEFA cup, The Scottish Cup would remain the same. |
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