The right move for football

The merger of five clubs into two will strengthen the beautiful game in the long run

The football shake-up that began yesterday will lead to a substantial change in how our clubs operate. As The National reported, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, ordered the merger of Al Shabab, Al Ahli and Dubai club to become Shabab Al Ahli Dubai Club. On the same day in Sharjah, Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed, Ruler of Sharjah, ordered the merger of Sharjah and Al Shaab to become Sharjah Cultural Club.

These mergers will bring many challenges, but they are likely to create a more sustainable economic future for our football clubs. Mergers make sound business sense, although few football fans would thank us for comparing the club they support with a normal commercial enterprise. Sadly, most clubs are not self-sufficient and don’t seem to have a solid economic plan. As such, change is needed and sometimes that shift in culture has to be brought about in the most dramatic of fashions.

These mergers may also produce a greater depth of talent in a shallower pool of teams. As Sheikh Mohammed said, this could help build a club that can compete regionally and globally. Local football clubs can look to leagues elsewhere in the world where a division of fewer teams delivers a tougher competition.

There are other issues as well. While we have modern and attractive stadiums dotted around the country, those venues rarely put out the “sold out” signs on match day. Al Jazira, crowned champions of the AGL on Friday, played their final home league game of the season in front of just over 17,000 fans – a creditable figure, but well below the 42,000 capacity of the Mohammed bin Zayed stadium. The aim of the mergers in Sharjah and Dubai is to deliver a pair of superclubs with bigger fanbases and higher attendances, even if supporters of Shabab, Al Ahli, Dubai, Sharjah and Al Shaab may, in the short-term at least, stumble when asked which team they support.

The Qatari ministry of culture and sports used the same plan to merge Lekhwiya and El Jaish into Al Duhail Sports Club from next season. A shift is under way in our football scene and it makes for the most absorbing spectator sport.