I do like the relegate Barnsley and Luton but not us ideas.
If we're just going to pick and choose which clubs to relegate, I prefer the relegate Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday idea
If Wednesday get a 10 point deduction, they'll be in the bottom 3 anyway; while they have a lot on their plate, the EFL do need to come to a decision on Wednesday and Derby
Very good point
If the season is abandoned, then Sheff Weds and Derby (if found guilty) would have to start on a minus points. Same thing if they just decide to promote the top two clubs with no relegation.
I don't see any way euro 2020 happens at this point. Looking further ahead, given the calendar issues caused by the 2022 world cup I wonder if this presents an opportunity to only have one season over 20/21 and 21/22. Gives everyone a bit more breathing space. No solution is ideal I appreciate
I do like the relegate Barnsley and Luton but not us ideas.
If we're just going to pick and choose which clubs to relegate, I prefer the relegate Millwall and Sheffield Wednesday idea
If Wednesday get a 10 point deduction, they'll be in the bottom 3 anyway; while they have a lot on their plate, the EFL do need to come to a decision on Wednesday and Derby
Very good point
If the season is abandoned, then Sheff Weds and Derby (if found guilty) would have to start on a minus points. Same thing if they just decide to promote the top two clubs with no relegation.
I can see this as an easy out for the EFL. Give SW & Derby the points deductions this season & then null & void the season. Punishment given but no damage done.
I don't see any way euro 2020 happens at this point. Looking further ahead, given the calendar issues caused by the 2022 world cup I wonder if this presents an opportunity to only have one season over 20/21 and 21/22. Gives everyone a bit more breathing space. No solution is ideal I appreciate
Practically impossible to happen. Some countries have yet to even qualify and their upcoming qualifiers are now obviously all postponed.
I've seen 2 proposed options. One of them (winter 2020) i'm not sure will work because of the weather across Europe in December. For example it'd be rough to ask teams and fans to go to St Petersburg in December.
The 2nd option, summer 2021 will surely be the preferred option.
The football authorities are caught between a rock and a hard place; whatever they decide there will be someone pissed off. The only people who are likely to be in a win-win position are the lawyers who'll see this situation as a lovely cash cow.
The available options may be a bit clearer after UEFA have decided what's happening with this summer's Euros: if it's postponed to Summer 2021 that gives a lot more wriggle room for sorting out the remainder of this season.
As it is, there are already a number of problems that have to be overcome the biggest of which is player contracts ending on 30 June, closely followed by clubs' stadia being used for other events after the originally-scheduled end of the season (we're not just talking about the "big" clubs using their grounds for concerts, baseball etc but the lower league clubs that rent the ground out for community events as a way of generating much-needed cash during the summer months when there aren't any fixtures.
What options are there?
End the season now, promotion and relegation as is: non-runner for me. This would be changing the playing regulations part-way through the season. Unlike cricket, football doesn't have an equivalent of Duckworth-Lewis so it's impossible to extrapolate to the end of the season. There are 9 or 10 matches left to play (some teams may have more) which is plenty of time for major changes in positions. The only issues that wouldn't be argued with would be Liverpool champions and Bolton and Southend relegated, but you can't chery-pick what you do.
End the season, promotion only: no, same reasons as above.
End the season, null and void, no champions, promotion, relegation: the howls from Anfield and Elland Road, amongst other places, would be defeaning and excruciating. What happens with clubs that have had points deductions for rule breaches this season? Surely those would have to be applied again next season otherwise the penalties would effectively mean nothing. Would Division Three run with 23 teams again next year? Possible Lifeline for Bury?
Options for finishing the season ...
Six weeks would probably be the shortest period of time required to play the remaining matches so, in order to finish before players' contracts ended, they'd need to restart by mid-May. You can't play matches behind closed doors, it's a spectator sport and all the fans will do is gather outside grounds instead creating another problem?
Can the resumption of the season be delayed until August/September? It would mean there'd be another transfer window before the end of the season - is that allowed under the current playing regs? And the FA Cup? The eight remaining sides may have lost some players in the transfer window and their replacements may be cup-tied ... it may be a bigger turnover of players than January so teams could be well and truly buggered.
If the season was finished in October what would happen for the following season? Do you play a full season and squeeze the matches into a shorter period? Playing each team in the division only once is unsatisfactory, it would be an uneven spread of fixtures; home advantage can be crucial so playing certain teams away from home only would be a disadvantage.
Do you split the divisions in half for a season, North and South, to play a shortened campaign with a modified play-off system at the end. It may have a benefit of reducing running costs for lower-league teams after the current disaster.
Whatever happens it's going to be a logistical nightmare.
I feel like it'd need at least 2 months to complete the season and even then you need to be aligned with the rest of Europe because of European matches.
If it was just domestic games then we could rattle off 9-10 league games in 4-5 weeks but there's CL and Europa too, so everything needs to be rescheduled accordingly. And some countries (Italy for example) might not be ready to play at the same time as we are.
On top of that there's the FA cup. Man City and United could have more cup games to play than league games. As many as 19 games in total. You'd need at least 2 months for that.
Also assuming we aren't ready to play again until the middle of May (for example) wouldn't all teams need friendlies to get back up to speed after 2 months of no games?
End the season. No promotions, no relegations. Anything else will get legal challenges and injunction flying all over the place, prevent the start of the next season and cause even more clubs to declare bankruptcy whilst its sorted out.
Can’t see 5 down, can see 4 down 2 up, feels normal and was done when the Premier League went from 22 to 20
But that screws over the top of the Championship as they lose out on the play-offs. Better to revert to the original play-off format for two seasons - 3 down 2 up, and 4th from bottom goes into the play-offs with 3, 4 and 5 from the Championship.
As far as the cup games go, suspend all the outstanding domestic cup competitions, plus the Europa and Champions League until roughly this time next year, and complete those competitions then. Make the League Cup EFL only for 2020-21 if we have a reasonably long season, or abandon it altogether if we don't. Then for the 2021-22 season, at the start of the season have play-off matches between those teams who would have qualified in each country in 19-20 and 20-21 for the Champions League and Europa League, and in this country exempt those teams who qualify for those competitions from the League Cup for the season.
Null and void this season, or have an unlimited time frame to finish this one.
I think we'll see current standings apply for promotion, but not for relegation. Although in league one they might decide Southend and Bolton were going down anyway, likewise with Stevenage in league 2.
So most leagues will have extra teams next season.
Null and void this season, or have an unlimited time frame to finish this one.
I think we'll see current standings apply for promotion, but not for relegation. Although in league one they might decide Southend and Bolton were going down anyway, likewise with Stevenage in league 2.
So most leagues will have extra teams next season.
If there were only one or two matches left in the season that could be an option but there's too long left in this season to make a call on promotion and relegation.
Who's to say that Leeds and West Brom won't have another wobble and drop out of the automatic places? They've already blown a 12+ points over the chasing pack so they're more than capable of chucking away a 6/7 point advantage especially with how unpredictable the second division has been this year - in recent weeks both have lost to at-the-time-bottom-three Wigan!
Realistically it's either scrap this season - no champions, no promotion, no relegation - or play it to a finish as soon as they can and then worry about structuring next season.
I really don’t see the issue. Once the Government says it’s ok to do so just restart the season. Once you know when that is you start planning for next season. If it doesn’t start till November so be it. It then finishes in June not May, you scrap the Cups, you play midweek, every week. Surely it’s not hard to work out.
If Euro 2020 is pushed back to 2021, that’ll mean the next season will need to finish earlier than usual too. So finishing this season then starting the next one late might not be as straight forward as you first think.
If Euro 2020 is pushed back to 2021, that’ll mean the next season will need to finish earlier than usual too. So finishing this season then starting the next one late might not be as straight forward as you first think.
I think they need to set a season end date for the end of June because of player contracts expiring.
So realistically if we can restart by early May then it might be ok, finish by end of June, then have a shorter than usual pre-season as clubs will have had a 2 month break already.
If we can't restart by May then it's a huge problem and other options need to be considered.
I really don’t see the issue. Once the Government says it’s ok to do so just restart the season. Once you know when that is you start planning for next season. If it doesn’t start till November so be it. It then finishes in June not May, you scrap the Cups, you play midweek, every week. Surely it’s not hard to work out.
Indeed. Surely this season , which is about 75% completed, is more important than next season. Announce the break now until say August or whenever, and then work out the details. If next season has to be shortened or meddled with then so be it.
I've heard people comparing this to 1939 and saying precedent has been set, which is nonsense because a) only 3 games had been played and b) it was a world war.
Null and void this season, or have an unlimited time frame to finish this one.
I think we'll see current standings apply for promotion, but not for relegation. Although in league one they might decide Southend and Bolton were going down anyway, likewise with Stevenage in league 2.
So most leagues will have extra teams next season.
If there were only one or two matches left in the season that could be an option but there's too long left in this season to make a call on promotion and relegation.
Who's to say that Leeds and West Brom won't have another wobble and drop out of the automatic places? They've already blown a 12+ points over the chasing pack so they're more than capable of chucking away a 6/7 point advantage especially with how unpredictable the second division has been this year - in recent weeks both have lost to at-the-time-bottom-three Wigan!
Realistically it's either scrap this season - no champions, no promotion, no relegation - or play it to a finish as soon as they can and then worry about structuring next season.
And you can't say that Luton and Barnsley are certs for relegation either just because they're currently 7 points below Hull. On current form one or both could easily overtake Hull before the end of the season
After June 30th it will be chaos. If football hasn't restarted by then, and there's no set date for a return, a lot of small club simply won't bother recruiting, as they can't afford the financial risk of signing players and then having no income coming in.
If I was a journeyman or squad player, I might take a lower offer now, rather than waiting until the summer and risking several months without a club
That will be challenged by players. Some of them will be able to get transfers and big pay rises when their contracts end. You have to decide a latest commencement date where it is feasible to complete the season. Then you have to decide how you are going to implement next season if this season can't be completed. I really can't see how anything can be done but void this season. Give the league winners a trophy, but a league leaders trophy because that is all it can be called.
Fine, then you issue a contract extension to those who agree to it and the rest sit on their collective arses until such time as the window for the next season opens.
^^ just unilaterally say that all contracts ending 30th June are extended to xx date, xx being the end of the season.
Which as well as being impossible for the reasons other posters have listed, is also not possible because some players have already signed pre-contract agreements with other clubs for 1 July.
I would can the play offs, I know it’s sounds self serving, but I think we’ll end up with the tables being locked at where they are, and the teams in automatic spots go up, with the required numbers coming down, other then the Premier League
Would be ridiculous to lock the tables as they are. How can teams be relegated without completing the season?
I would can the play offs, I know it’s sounds self serving, but I think we’ll end up with the tables being locked at where they are, and the teams in automatic spots go up, with the required numbers coming down, other then the Premier League
Would be ridiculous to lock the tables as they are. How can teams be relegated without completing the season?
I didn't think it through, promotion fine, relegation less so, but only 2 up and no one down.
Comments
If the season is abandoned, then Sheff Weds and Derby (if found guilty) would have to start on a minus points. Same thing if they just decide to promote the top two clubs with no relegation.
Win win
I've seen 2 proposed options. One of them (winter 2020) i'm not sure will work because of the weather across Europe in December. For example it'd be rough to ask teams and fans to go to St Petersburg in December.
The 2nd option, summer 2021 will surely be the preferred option.
The available options may be a bit clearer after UEFA have decided what's happening with this summer's Euros: if it's postponed to Summer 2021 that gives a lot more wriggle room for sorting out the remainder of this season.
As it is, there are already a number of problems that have to be overcome the biggest of which is player contracts ending on 30 June, closely followed by clubs' stadia being used for other events after the originally-scheduled end of the season (we're not just talking about the "big" clubs using their grounds for concerts, baseball etc but the lower league clubs that rent the ground out for community events as a way of generating much-needed cash during the summer months when there aren't any fixtures.
What options are there?
End the season now, promotion and relegation as is: non-runner for me. This would be changing the playing regulations part-way through the season. Unlike cricket, football doesn't have an equivalent of Duckworth-Lewis so it's impossible to extrapolate to the end of the season. There are 9 or 10 matches left to play (some teams may have more) which is plenty of time for major changes in positions. The only issues that wouldn't be argued with would be Liverpool champions and Bolton and Southend relegated, but you can't chery-pick what you do.
End the season, promotion only: no, same reasons as above.
End the season, null and void, no champions, promotion, relegation: the howls from Anfield and Elland Road, amongst other places, would be defeaning and excruciating. What happens with clubs that have had points deductions for rule breaches this season? Surely those would have to be applied again next season otherwise the penalties would effectively mean nothing. Would Division Three run with 23 teams again next year? Possible Lifeline for Bury?
Options for finishing the season ...
Six weeks would probably be the shortest period of time required to play the remaining matches so, in order to finish before players' contracts ended, they'd need to restart by mid-May. You can't play matches behind closed doors, it's a spectator sport and all the fans will do is gather outside grounds instead creating another problem?
Can the resumption of the season be delayed until August/September? It would mean there'd be another transfer window before the end of the season - is that allowed under the current playing regs? And the FA Cup? The eight remaining sides may have lost some players in the transfer window and their replacements may be cup-tied ... it may be a bigger turnover of players than January so teams could be well and truly buggered.
If the season was finished in October what would happen for the following season? Do you play a full season and squeeze the matches into a shorter period? Playing each team in the division only once is unsatisfactory, it would be an uneven spread of fixtures; home advantage can be crucial so playing certain teams away from home only would be a disadvantage.
Do you split the divisions in half for a season, North and South, to play a shortened campaign with a modified play-off system at the end. It may have a benefit of reducing running costs for lower-league teams after the current disaster.
Whatever happens it's going to be a logistical nightmare.
If it was just domestic games then we could rattle off 9-10 league games in 4-5 weeks but there's CL and Europa too, so everything needs to be rescheduled accordingly. And some countries (Italy for example) might not be ready to play at the same time as we are.
On top of that there's the FA cup. Man City and United could have more cup games to play than league games. As many as 19 games in total. You'd need at least 2 months for that.
Also assuming we aren't ready to play again until the middle of May (for example) wouldn't all teams need friendlies to get back up to speed after 2 months of no games?
Null and void this season, or have an unlimited time frame to finish this one.
So most leagues will have extra teams next season.
Who's to say that Leeds and West Brom won't have another wobble and drop out of the automatic places? They've already blown a 12+ points over the chasing pack so they're more than capable of chucking away a 6/7 point advantage especially with how unpredictable the second division has been this year - in recent weeks both have lost to at-the-time-bottom-three Wigan!
Realistically it's either scrap this season - no champions, no promotion, no relegation - or play it to a finish as soon as they can and then worry about structuring next season.
So realistically if we can restart by early May then it might be ok, finish by end of June, then have a shorter than usual pre-season as clubs will have had a 2 month break already.
If we can't restart by May then it's a huge problem and other options need to be considered.
If I was a journeyman or squad player, I might take a lower offer now, rather than waiting until the summer and risking several months without a club
There is a thing called employment law.