Everyone's giving it the bigun about how the Super League is shit and the Champions League rejig and Swiss format are shit. The current format with a pointless group stage is also shit. The big clubs are unlikely to budge and 4 places to the big leagues and/or qualification based on HERITAGE are likely a given from here on in.
With all that in mind, how are you solving it?
A series of friendlies in Asia every August.
I don't think there is any way of solving it whilst the 'big clubs' are in their current economic position, so it needs to be blown up and then the surviving debris then needs to be heavily regulated at FIFA/UEFA level. The business is great but it's nothing if you kill the sport, so they need to preserve the sport.
I feel sick typing these words, but a one of NFL style draft should be given a go.Originally Posted by Jimmy Floyd
Then put wage and transfer fee caps in place.
Ra Ra Rasputin.
Only the champions qualify, straight knockout, unseeded.
That solves everything, right?
Back to the European Cup and making the Europa League more prestigious
Football should be one game every year between the two teams with the biggest social media following. And given Agnelli so astutely pointed out kids don't want 90 minute games, this match will only be 10 minutes long. VAR will be controlled by a group of betting company representatives.
Bring back roaming coefficients capping the number of teams in the CL at 2 per league, distribute wealth more equally across European football, ban the super league teams.
Just get a heads and volleys tournament going.
I'm trying to figure out a way to get all UEFA member states involved but that would require finding out just what San Marino and Gibraltar have going domestically.
Each team starts every match with a goal deficit aligning with their world ranking number. So, if you're 245th in the world, you start with -245 goals in that match.
Okay, here's my crack at the Champions League. League champions only:
Preliminary Round
Lowest Ranked UEFA member v Second lowest ranked UEFA member (two legs)
This is basically to scrub off the fact there's 55 member states. The winner joins the remaining 53 teams in the next round.
First Round
Two-legged knockouts between the remaining 54 teams. No seeds. This leaves us with 26.
Group Stage
9 groups of 4 that play each other twice. Group winners go through, apart from the worst performing group winner. I had to get down to 8 somehow.
Quarter Finals / Semis
As you were. Two legged ties.
Final
One-off final to determine who is the dead good at football. 13 games total, unless some San Marino club shock the universe.
Last edited by Shindig; 19-04-2021 at 06:39 PM.
Remember when there were two rounds of groups stages? F me that was laborious.
It's the one thing about CM01-02 I hate.
I liked the old African CL format whereby they started with knockouts and then the group stage came in for the last eight (2x4), so you got a bunch of matches between the best teams but some jeopardy involved in getting there. It pretty much always sent the best two sides to that year's final, as well.
They've now changed to a similar thing but the groups are 4x4, which has more dreck in it (though it is good news for the Sudanese coefficient).
One thing I worry about is if my group stage idea backfires. Like say there's a group so tight (and every other group is a landslide) nobody has a hope of making it through to the next round. It could lead to some tepid nothingness.
Actually, fuck it. If there's no drama, they're going home anyway.
What's the general consensus around what is wrong with the current Champions League format?
It protects big teams if they do badly, the group stage sounds unwatchable and it renders big games between the 'glamour' sides less special by having them happening all the time.
EDIT: Ignore me, somehow read that as the new Champions League format.
I assume they want rid of the existing one because it doesn't funnel money at the established teams as much as they'd like and it has too much of a rewarding-success vibe rather than just letting overspending teams be shit but get to be in it anyway.
What the big clubs want is guarantees in terms of future revenue streams, the two legacy spots in the new format still leave far too much to sporting chance. Based on current league tables, if they had it for 21/22 then the two spots would go to Liverpool and Arsenal, leaving Spurs out in the cold. If Chelsea dropped into 5th below West Ham, then they would miss out too behind Arsenal.
The biggest problem with football's finances is how transfers and wages have continued to balloon. There's too many parties involved and they all want a slice. Roy Keane was happy with £80k a week. Imagine the savings if you got a squad on that.
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