Football League proposes reorganizing into 4 divisions below Premier League

[Infield Infidel]

http://www.football-league.co.uk/news/article/2016/a-whole-game-solution-3119809.aspx

Clubs are being asked to consider the re-organisation of the domestic league system into five divisions of 20 teams from the 2019/20 season.

Under the proposal, The Football League would become a four division competition below the Premier League, including a new League Three, with 100 clubs competing across the professional game. In addition, the League Cup and League Trophy will be retained with the latter potentially having a revised format include a group structure of three games before becoming a knockout competition thereafter.

If implemented , the proposal would The number of midweek matches reduce from next season’s nine in the Championship, seven in League One and six in League Two to just one in the Championship, League Two and the new League Three and none in League One in 2019/20.
Read more at http://www.football-league.co.uk/news/article/2016/a-whole-game-solution-3119809.aspx#WImx1EPp3aTAUZSi.99

For those not aware, it would go from the current 3 divisions (Championship, League One, League Two) with 24 teams each, to 4 divisions with 20 teams each, adding a League Three. In 2019, they would alter the number of promotion/relegation spots in all three divisions, relegating more than normal, like 6 or 8. It would be weird. They should probably phase it in over a couple seasons. Edit - no one would be relegated from League 2 in 2019.

This would cut 8 matches off each team's schedule. Teams would probably have smaller rosters.

Doesn't really change anything for the Premier League, but it shows that the Football League is really invested in the League Cup since they are considering scrapping 8 matches per team but not considering scrapping the League Cup.

no decisions until Jun 2017

 

[Phil Plantier]

And the BBC article didn't hesitate to bring up adding Celtic and Rangers.

I'm not sure the teams will go for it. I don't see the upside for them.

 

[Titans Bastard]

Given that England has probably the narrowest pyramid in the world as it is (no regionalization until the 6th tier), adding an additional national tier is probably the opposite of what is needed. It's a hardscrabble life, financially, in the lower tiers of the Football League and below, so why not regionalize so that teams have less travel and more derbies? It's not like regionalization at the lower levels is a foreign concept to the Football League, historically speaking.

 

[SoxFanInCali]

Well, if this basically replaces the Conference National and regionalizaton still begins at the 6th tier, it could be OK. 46 league games plus cup ties is a lot to ask of those teams.

 

[Infield Infidel]

Given that England has probably the narrowest pyramid in the world as it is (no regionalization until the 6th tier), adding an additional national tier is probably the opposite of what is needed. It's a hardscrabble life, financially, in the lower tiers of the Football League and below, so why not regionalize so that teams have less travel and more derbies? It's not like regionalization at the lower levels is a foreign concept to the Football League, historically speaking.

I thought more about this post, and it seems it would be smarter, if they want to go to 20 teams per division, to also split League 2 into North and South regions, 20 teams each, thereby getting 100 teams into the top four levels but not adding new national level.

Prem: 20
Champ: 20
League 1: 20
League 2: 40 (North/South 20 each)

They could promote the winners of each League Two region, then have a playoff between the two 2nd place teams or a four-team playoff among the 2nd and 3rd place teams. And each region would only relegate 2 teams to conference.

 

[Titans Bastard]

I thought more about this post, and it seems it would be smarter, if they want to go to 20 teams per division, to also split League 2 into North and South regions, 20 teams each, thereby getting 100 teams into the top four levels but not adding new national level.

Prem: 20
Champ: 20
League 1: 20
League 2: 40 (North/South 20 each)

They could promote the winners of each League Two region, then have a playoff between the two 2nd place teams or a four-team playoff among the 2nd and 3rd place teams. And each region would only relegate 2 teams to conference.

I'm all for it. England's pyramid was regionalized at the third level from 1921 to 1958 (Football League Division Three North/South). I'm not sure if there would be an appetite to regionalize at the third level now, but it seems reasonable to do so at the 4th level rather than the 6th level. All that being said, I'd be curious to know what the attitude towards this would be from fans & clubs in the lower half of the Football League.

Off the top of my head, the only other countries I can think of with even three national levels are Germany, France, Scotland, and Brazil. The Netherlands will re-institute a national third division next year. Then there are some small countries like Iceland and Cyprus, too, but those are not good comps. Iceland's leagues are basically the Reykjavik & District Adult League with a tiny geographic footprint.

This re-org would also totally blow up the non-league structure, which is a complicated patchwork of leagues that have been stitched together for various reasons over time.