Not this month.
The big clubs of Europe and England were to setup a Super League, along North American lines.
No more relegation.
No more winning on merit.
Just a set number of teams, playing each other, over and over, ad infinitum.
So that rich owners can stay rich.
The fans and authorities objected.
All the English clubs pulled out yesterday.
Is this the end?
Don’t bet on it.
When you look at how much money the MLSE earn from a team that last won in 1967, and the docile fans that accept it, then just a matter of time before the Super League is tried again. It is a business. A business exists to make money.
Arsenal, for example, are struggling to finish high enough in the English Premier League (EPL) that will earn them a place in the second tier European competition for next season. European games are a huge money-maker, even the second tier.
Liverpool just pushed Chelsea down into that same second tier.
And Tottenham seem stuck in that second tier of European play for next season.
ManCity, ManU, Leicester and Liverpool look to be playing in the top tier, the Champions League, next season. But we won’t know for sure, until the last seven games are played.
What a way to run a business! Never sure of your revenue stream. Business profits dependent upon what eleven guys do, in a game, or rather 38++ games, over a season.
So in North America they have built a sports franchise model, where results don’t matter. As per Forbes, the Leafs have a win-to-playerExpenses ratio well below the league average, but are ranked as the second most valuable team. So the MLSE has done well for their shareholders, even though the fans have been without a Stanley Cup since 1967.
Therefore, look for another attempt at the Super League in the very near future.
But look for the second attempt to fail.
Sure the TV money likes the big guys. But the fans like to see their team earn their place. After all, we all have to do that. And the “big” teams won their status through results. Every one of them have dropped down into the lower divisions, then fought their way back up. They earned their worldwide support.
But what goes up, can come down.
Take a look at a team, Bolton Wanderers, that founded professional football in 1888, has won the FA Cup four times, but is now in the fourth tier, and financially was bankrupt.
If it can happen to Bolton, it could happen to the “big 6”.
A way out of this problem would be via a Super League. Where teams play on, regardless of results.
What would you want as an owner?
A team that could miss out on earnings? Or a guaranteed revenue stream?