Champions League play-offs not the answer

So the Premier League has come up with its latest great idea to even up the growing disparity in the English top flight. The Premier League top four is now such an elite club, something must be done about it. Well that’s what they are saying anyway.

The play-off system for the final Champions League place, which would feature the
sides finishing from fourth to seventh, sounds quite exciting on paper but the
timing of the announcement fills me with cynicism. After all it comes around two years after Richard Scudamore proposed the now infamous 39th game, matches which would have been played in venues across the globe. That was unceremoniously booted out by FIFA and criticised by the fans. But it is now obvious Scudamore and co have been thinking of money making alternatives ever since.

Cue the play-off idea.

We would get between six and eight extra high stakes games, with all the TV and sponsorship money that entails. Furthermore, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if these games were played abroad in Singapore, Bangkok, Sydney and New York - thereby sneaking in the 39th game idea in after all.

This blatant money-making is what annoys me about the modern game and the people who run it. This idea isn’t about levelling up the league, it’s about exploiting the fans for more cash. It is all the evidence you need to prove the game has lost touch with the fans who kept it going for more than 100 years. If they want to level out the league, why not re-distribute the TV money? Oh no, because that would see the big four giving up some of their cash.

Why not reduce the number of teams in the Champions League to two? The idea that a side finishing fourth in its division should compete in the ‘Champions’ League is ludicrous anyway. The competition should be a reward for real success. This in turn would strengthen the Europa League which would be open to the winners of the two cups and two extra spots in the league. With better teams in the competition, the TV
money would increase but it would be distributed more fairly. Unfortunately it all sounds a little too sensible to ever happen, and the Premier League worldwide tour could be coming to a city near you very soon.

Meanwhile, the football betting makes Manchester United 5/1 shots to win this year’s Champions League after they defeated Milan 3-2 in the first leg of their tie last night.

Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.