Will we end up with just 2 leagues in the near future?
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I thought this as well. I remember an article on the BBC Sports website by Tim Vickery, who writes on South American football and he contrasted the English league with Latin American football.

The English league, according to Vickery, was unique in that many of its founding clubs were small, provincial towns in contrast to Latin American, where the big metropolitan areas tended to dominate, i.e. Buenos Aires in Argentina.

One of the strengths of English football has been its league structure in contrast to other Euro leagues which tend to have a two tier structure (Germany, Spain) with regional leagues then dominating.

I think over the last twenty years, since the inception of the PL, the top tier has become dominated by London & Manchester teams; less money has filtered down the leagues; and the second tier is beginning to resemble an unofficial PL2 (Did Alex Ferguson or someone this week point out that at least eight sides in the Championship possess proud histories?).

The only way for some lower league sides to survive might be to revert to part-time status. You see how sides promoted via the Conference often end up struggling financially after a spell in the league, though even the majority of sides in the Conference are full-time now.

I think the community aspect of the FL has gone and money dominates now.

5 s barmy

The way I see it is that rightly or wrongly you ain't gonna buck what the market wants.

If we weren't in thrall to Sky and the EPL, I don't think that these financial gymnastics would surface, flicker and then be gone - as will happen with this latest debacle. For the record I have not and will not subscribe to Murdoch and his empire - so no live EPL for me .

Why not just let the 'Big 4/5/6' do one, go away and form their own European League?

(Apologies if this widening the debate, I read about this threat to academies some weeks ago - I think DCFC will be OK and may even act as a 'predator' club but what about the likes of Crewe and Burton Albion?)

I think the Premier League will split and there will be Championship 1 and Championship 2.
Championship 1 will contain all these PL also ran Clubs like Wigan, Bolton, Fulham etc and the better clubs in the current Championship to form one division.
The top 10 say, of the PL will play eachother 4 times a season ( like in Scotland ) and other European Clubs.
I think the current Premier League set up will opt out of the League Cup before too long, giving more opportunity for lower placed clubs to win it and play in The Europa League.
I don't know exactly how it would work, but this is the kind of thing I anticipate happening.

Why not just let the 'Big 4/5/6' do one, go away and form their own European League
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Totaly agree with that!

What is the point of being in a league you cant win. It amazes me that nothing has been done or even attempted to make it a more level playing field. The gap gets wider and it baffles me that the powers that be cant see whats happening to the game.

Well they probably can see it but are being well paid to overlook it

THIS is the way the not-so-beautiful game is going:

http://wantsomemoore.wordpress.com/2011/10/26/tevez-grow-up-you-pathetic-south-american-git/

Tail/dog spring to mind Mojaca.

It does make me weep (almost literally) that a young man with VERY average intelligence can be so manipulated by agents, advisors and entourage without ever SEEING it....

Hi View

Yes, they have one skillset, and that's it. I'm reminded of a woman who was married to a tiler I employed for my kitchen floor once. "He's thick as pig-$h*t , but he can lay a good floor." High praise indeed.

Its true - but the cerebal capacity of footballers (those that CAN think and act for themselves) is often diminished in the English game as they live in a bubble with everything from cooking to buying a car done for them.

On the continent, cerebal players who can think are encouraged more so than those of - ahem - less intelligence. Remember the intellect of Eric Cantona - is Wayne Rooney able to hold a candle to that?

Look at the Barcelona players - all THINKERS - not just functioning automatons that are unable to adapt, without instructions during a football match?

(sorry, I'm digressing from the posting)

Very good point, View. With regard to the topic in hand, I think what the Championship currently offers (i.e. a reasonably level-playing field) is a very precious thing indeed, and we mess with it at our peril. The EPL is falling deeper and deeper into the trap of Elitism, and it stinks.
There's a lot of similarity between Wayne Rooney and a candle.....they're both quite dim........

Do you remember back in the eighties when the idea of this 'elite' league was mooted?

There were then 6 so called 'elite' teams who would have qualified automatically, I'm not making this up - Arsenal, Liverpool, Everton, Man Utd, Tottenham and Derby County - honest!

The sting was that they wished to whittle it down to 5 and they couldn't decide between Spurs and Derby.

But. therein was born the idea of an Elite League and it finally begat the EPL.....

So possibly, as a club and as fans we would have been quite keen on this in the very early days.......ain't hindsight wonderful.....

Ajisa
would the likes of Everton and Aston Villa want to play in a top 10 and lose probably about 25 games every season?
I'd doubt it

I just want the top 6 gone and in to a European league

I think we have three options

Let the greedy ghosts of what once were football clubs like Man U n their poisoned ilk have their global super league.

Try and reform the system with a salary cap and ask for big business to be nicer to the working fan and club (cos that always works )

or take the matter into our own hands. Boycott's don't work, what will work is direct action if we stop the camera's getting into the big games or the signals getting out; we stop the exploitative disease that shackles the majority of our clubs into poverty.

We are the many they are few.

If we really want to see the beautiful game survive then we need to take it to them, we can't beat them on the pitch, the rules are stacked in their favour it's like playing at a 45 degree angle so if we do really want to save the beautiful game, methinks we're gonna have to get our hands dirty. The rich clubs like rich bankers/politicians are never going to share the wealth we have to ask for it and if it is denied us the same way jobs, pensions, services, houses are denied us under the guise of austerity then we're just gonna have to take it from them.

When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty.

It's our Fluffing Game n we want our ball back.

Be careful now

2 Wellies that sounds like commie talk and know how the yankie's take to that :D lol

I'll hold his coat. I'm too old and fragile for confrontation nowadays. Besides, it'll give me a chance to nick his wallet.

Capitalism in a nutshell Eddie

Can't you tell its half-term??

Good point Taiwan don't wanna risk the possibility of sanctions or a pride park embargo so I apologise for my ill founded argument and youthful folly.

Old One Eye think you'd be dissappointed with my wallet the older I get the thinner it gets but I will not complain, if i work just that little bit harder I and Derby County will be free.

Reminds me of something my first bandleader said when I kept complaining about having to play rubbish covers to earn a living and why couldn't we play some rock. He just shook his head sagely and said:
"Kev, Thin Lizzy equals Thin Wallet....."

That's deep Moj - I'm gonna go and set up my own broadcasting company now; who do you guys want as pundits...Robbie Savage I think could headline it....lol...cue the hatred.

Me. I can't work any harder
Pay freeze for two years, work longer, less pension

K so it's Robbie Savage and View from at the moment, any other suggestions...or will I have to resort to the afore mentioned insurrectionary activity and general liberation of the footballing world.

wellies, if the 'free world' (you know that place which invades other countries and oppresses any internal or external political ethos which do not submit to its ideals...yer as free as my a$s) does invade, least Derbyshire will make good grounds for guerilla warfare. XD

"Old One Eye think you'd be dissappointed with my wallet the older I get the thinner...."

It's not money I'm after, 2 Wellies. I'm a founder member and active campaigner for FLFDW - "Free Lepidoptera From Deep Wallets" - and yours is full of them.

(allegedly).

FREE THE MOTHS - BUY OOE A PINT.

Capn and view from, valid posts again.
It would be interesting to see how fans of the big clubs feel about how the game is going? I wonder if they are happy with winning it all the time? Long term effect is a disaster for football.

Taiwan I agree the Peak District would be happy Guerilla territory could do with a bit more jungle though n OOE your dedication to animal rights shames me a pint for you Sir