Big League One divide – where Cats stand and what’s next
The fate of the League One season remains entirely uncertain, with clubs still divided on what should happen next.
So what’s going on, where do Sunderland fit in and what should we expect to happen next? We take a detailed look. What’ s the latest on where talks stand ?: Sunderland CEO
Jim Rodwell said that he could not see how a definitive decision on the season would be made this week.
The EFL board held their weekly meeting, but Peterborough United’s Director of Football Barry Fry said clubs had been given no indication of any conclusions reached. The third tier is bitterly divided.
While League Two clubs held an indicative vote to end the season last week, the Championship is slowly moving towards a resumption.
League One is torn between the two and that is why last week, the EFL asked clubs to put forward‘ creative solutions’ to finish the campaign.
It has three principles that must nevertheless stand in any solution: Promotion, Relegation,
Play-offs. The debate over how to achieve this is provingcomplex and divisive, and is unlikely to be settled until next week at the earliest.
The issue of course is that this begins to make it harder to conclude any campaign before the EFL’s own deadline of July 31.Sunderland remain keen to resume, but Rod well has urged the EFL to produce a paper for all clubs detailing the exact costs of playing and not playing before any vote is held. What are the arguments
for not playing on?: Those who do not want to resume say the costs are too high, and the reasons for this are three fold. Firstly, the costs of testing in line with the protocols proposed by the EFL are deemed to be too significant.
In the Premier League, the costs are being covered centrally but this is controversial in the Football League where clubs believe that money will be essential for other purposes.
An interesting proposal gathering pace in the Championship is that the clubs who are eventually promoted could retrospectively cover the costs.
Clearly, this is not feasible in League One where the financial rewards of promotion are nowhere near as significant.
Secondly, many clubs who
are dependent on matchday gate revenue believe the losses incurred by playing behind closed doors are too great.
What are the counter arguments from those who
want to play on?: The costs of testing area major hurdle. Rod well suggested the PFA could use some of its considerable reserves to help get their players back in action.
With regards to playing behind closed doors, the argument put forward by those who want to play on is that the situation is unlikely to change before the start of any new campaign.The obvious response to that from clubs eager for curtailment is that in which case, it makes sense to stop now and save cash reserves so they are in a position to play a new season behind closed doors until fans can return.
One fear is that using the cash advanced from the EFL and the Premier League to play now could lead to a cash flow crisis later this year. It’s another issue that underlines the divide between clubs in the division. For those with larger fanbases, the costs of rebates for season card holders and such like are larger, as is the potentialincome from streaming.
One central question that has still not been answered is what the implications would be for the league’s broadcasting contract if games are not played. Without knowing what potential rebate would be due to TV rights holders, assessing what clubs would lose from not playing is difficult to define.
One other unknown is whether there will be financial support from the Premier League. The government have said they expect this, but the top tier has its own questions surrounding broadcast deals and possible rebates to consider in the short-term.
What’s the latest with the ‘compromise solution’ put forward?:Amini-tournament or extended play-off has been mooted as it would potentially allow those clubs who do not want to play for financial reasons to hibernate, while still sticking to the EFL principles for a curtailment.
It has been backed by Phil Parkinson, who believes it would help address the issue of integrity surrounding player contracts, and that it could also create a more manage able time frame to conclude the season. Could that get the numbers in a vote?: Theoretically, there’s a way this could get a majority in League One, but it is far from clear-cut.
If Coventry City and Rotherham United were not included and were awarded automatic promotion, then theoretically you could see them supporting it. Then there would be potentially eight teams involved in the play-offs and clearly, some of those would support it. The difficulties then begin, however. Firstly, while the top half clubs have broadly agreed on playing on, this compromise could test that unity. Would those who are guaranteed a play-off place under a pointsper-game formula essentially reduce their chances by voting to allow more teams in?
There is also a significant number who believe Rotherham should be involved in any play-off, given their current position.
Winning widespread support in the top half would surely require a system that offered an advantage to those nearer the top of a PP G table( and such a proposal has been mooted).
Some support would also be required from the bottom half of the table and this is again far from straightforward.
Some have already said that in line with League Two, they would support promotion on PPG, but not relegation.
Any vote to change the regulations mid-season( which this would involve) needs not just a majority of League One to support, but also the EFL and FA board. Crucially, a majority of Championship clubs also need to agree. They are committed to relegation throughout the pyramid as they have already warned the Premier League that they expect the principles of promotion and relegation to be observed.