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[Football] Premier League / Football League attempts to finish the season



swindonseagull

Well-known member
Aug 6, 2003
9,228
Swindon, but used to be Manila
Well, if all games are played at a neutral ground why does that need to be in the UK? Could they be played in places like Australia, New Zealand or even China? Would they expect to be virus free soon - although maybe they wouldn't want us there anyway (but it would cut down on fans trying to get there).

CHINA.......virus free?? what planet do you live on?

BTW Falklands is virus free maybe the games could be played in Port Stanley or on the sports pitches at Mount Pleasant Airfield..

Your idea is frankly ridiculous.
 


sparkie

Well-known member
Jul 17, 2003
12,466
Hove
Unfortunately Sky and BT could withhold a huge amount of the television rights payment if the league isn’t completed which could ultimately bankrupt football. They will be desperate to find a way to finish and who we’ve played away won’t be considered at all.

In The Athletic it was stated that some clubs want to end the season now "regardless of the consequences".

Not all clubs are reportedly desperate to play on.
 


atomised

Well-known member
Mar 21, 2013
5,107
Read somewhere that there are due to be telephone discussions monday or tuesday where the return date is expected to be pushed back again
 


sparkie

Well-known member
Jul 17, 2003
12,466
Hove
I reckon football will be pushed back to June 1st. If it cannot be restarted then - with a finish date of June 30th - then the season will be abandoned.
 


drew

Drew
Oct 3, 2006
23,008
Burgess Hill
I favour the idea of a year without football and restart the league on the weekend it ended but in 2021.

That seems the most sensible option. Or maybe finish the season off in the autumn if possible, then fill the rest of the season with friendly tournaments. Start a new season proper August 2021.

I take it neither of you have really thought this through!!!

EPL clubs might just survive if players take a massive cut, which they could do and still be very comfortably off. Possibly most championship players could survive a year with no income but League One and League Two would see many clubs go under as their players don't earn a fortune.
 




Kalimantan Gull

Well-known member
Aug 13, 2003
12,898
Central Borneo / the Lizard
So what happens if players have already penned a pre-contract with another club which is due to go live 1st of July this year? What if they've agreed to join a club that is a promotion / title / relegation rival in their current season? would the new club want to give that advantage back to the old club? As they are now contracted in July at the new club, could they be eligible to play for them from July onwards? or do they have to sit around doing nothing (and what if part of their wage deal includes performance bonuses which they couldn't get if unable to play)

The new clubs they've joined would want them to settle and be up to speed with their own side, not playing for another, and what happens if they are made to return to their old clubs (say on loan) to see out the season and suffer a long term injury (say ruled out for a year) after the season was due to finish, affecting their new club?

It's not as simple as saying they stay on and play out this season at their old clubs or being unemployed.

Well obviously there will have to be compromises made by all sides. What you are describing is a few teams sticking their heels in and being difficult, but in reality I am sure that all the leagues in Europe will come together and agree a sensible way of resolving this to complete the season if at all possible.
 


Guy Fawkes

The voice of treason
Sep 29, 2007
8,187
What happens to clubs finances if games are played behind closed doors due to this virus? - would they be insured against this and able to get money or do they lose more money staging it than not staging it?

Do they get an insurance payout if the season is abandoned?

Players taking pay freezes / cuts whilst this delay takes place suggests that there is no insurance cover for delays to fixtures for incidents like this, so surely the longer the uncertainty goes on, the harder it will be for clubs to survive as they may only be able to claim once either the decision to play behind closed doors or to abandon the season is taken

What about next season, surely their insurance conditions will be affected or their premiums increased massively as the risk to insurers is so high that they could be forced to pay out then too. Clubs with massive debts, no income and big bills may struggle to get cover (if it exists)

A lot of clubs (especially down the footballing pyramid) rely heavily on matchday income to survive, and with a lot of clubs in a precarious financial position before this outbreak, how many will make it if this rumbles on well into when next season was due to take place?
 


nwgull

Well-known member
Jul 25, 2003
13,653
Manchester
I favour the idea of a year without football and restart the league on the weekend it ended but in 2021.

Absolutely not, unless this pandemic continues for another 11 months with no medical intervention. Apart from the huge financial issues that would cause loads of clubs throughout the leagues, an entire calendar year without football would be horrible, even more so when we'd then only play 9 games and have another 3 month break.
 








Weststander

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Aug 25, 2011
63,407
Withdean area
In The Athletic it was stated that some clubs want to end the season now "regardless of the consequences".

Not all clubs are reportedly desperate to play on.

My wild guess:

Norwich
Villa
Bmuff
Brighton
Watford
West Ham
Everton

Probably wanting results expunged also, with car crash seasons for the high-spending latter two.
 




kevo

Well-known member
Mar 8, 2008
9,085
I take it neither of you have really thought this through!!!

EPL clubs might just survive if players take a massive cut, which they could do and still be very comfortably off. Possibly most championship players could survive a year with no income but League One and League Two would see many clubs go under as their players don't earn a fortune.

Whatever happens that is going to be the case. With the scenario I suggested at least there would be some games next season which could help keep clubs afloat. I can't see any way we can finish this season and then have a full season of football next year. Many clubs, like many businesses, will go to the wall, unless there is help from the government to save them.
 


Stat Brother

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Jul 11, 2003
73,381
West west west Sussex
even more so when we'd then only play 9 games and have another 3 month break.

They'll probably also need to fit in a week off for an international friendly, as well. :jester:
 


Neville's Breakfast

Well-known member
May 1, 2016
13,423
Oxton, Birkenhead
Whatever happens that is going to be the case. With the scenario I suggested at least there would be some games next season which could help keep clubs afloat. I can't see any way we can finish this season and then have a full season of football next year. Many clubs, like many businesses, will go to the wall, unless there is help from the government to save them.

If the football industry is not prepared to bail out fellow clubs then I don’t see why the taxpayer should do it.
 






kevo

Well-known member
Mar 8, 2008
9,085
If the football industry is not prepared to bail out fellow clubs then I don’t see why the taxpayer should do it.

Fair enough point. Some clubs will definitely need bailing out though, that's for sure.
 


GT49er

Well-known member
Feb 1, 2009
46,475
Gloucester
In The Athletic it was stated that some clubs want to end the season now "regardless of the consequences".

Not all clubs are reportedly desperate to play on.

An increasing number will be moving to this, I believe, as football's original gung-ho keep-right-on-to-the-end-of-the-road we'll-fight-them-on-the-beaches and finish the season come what may, behind-closed-doors-with-gas-masks on attitude crumbles as reality clicks in..
 


Jim in the West

Well-known member
NSC Patreon
Sep 13, 2003
4,532
Way out West
I have been completely bemused over the past three weeks or so, as countless “pundits” on the likes of 5Live spout off about finishing the season in May or June or July. It’s like they are completely ignoring the NEWS!! Thousands of people are dying of this thing, and yet these so-called experts think we can resume the season, and fit it in before the next season is due to start.
The same people are taking about “preserving the integrity of the competition”, which they seem to think can be achieved by playing games behind closed doors, or as some sort of mini tournament!!
The only way you preserve the competition’s “integrity” is to ensure the remaining games are played under the same conditions as the first part of the season....and to do so you need to wait until the virus is more or less eradicated. Certainly you need to wait until the players themselves can play football safely. That will all take MONTHS.
The only realistic option is to call an end to this season, tell the players to take a break, and reconvene when football can be played safely in a reasonably normal environment - ie, with crowds present.
We’re probably looking at somewhere around September at the earliest. I’d be amazed if we saw a PL match before then.
 




jevs

Well-known member
Mar 24, 2004
4,339
Preston Rock Garden
The sensible thing to do (probably been mentioned many times) would be to award Liverpool the title, no relegation from all divisions, first two to be promoted from each league resulting in 22 in the Prem....to be reduced over the next 2 years.

However

If they voided the season now and Liverpool weren't awarded the title and Leeds didn't get promoted.....I will laugh my fecking ar$e off for the rest of my life. It'll never happen though.
 


sully

Dunscouting
Jul 7, 2003
7,824
Worthing
The sensible thing to do (probably been mentioned many times) would be to award Liverpool the title, no relegation from all divisions, first two to be promoted from each league resulting in 22 in the Prem....to be reduced over the next 2 years.

However

If they voided the season now and Liverpool weren't awarded the title and Leeds didn't get promoted.....I will laugh my fecking ar$e off for the rest of my life. It'll never happen though.

Awarding any promotions based on current positions makes no more sense than relegating teams at the bottom. 9 games can change a lot and there’s often a last minute surprise.

Unless the games can be played, I can’t see how anything can be decided on anyone changing divisions.

As time moves on, there seems less and less logic to trying to preserve the 19-20 season. It’s very harsh on Liverpool, who are about the only team remotely close to being nailed on to win anything, but it’s just an unfortunate consequence of the situation in which there are far more important things to worry about than football.
 



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