Is there any other league in the world as poorly run and as shambolic as the Scottish Premiership? Where else can you play one team 3 times away from home, then just once at home, or the team in 7th place finishing the season with more points than 6th, this my friends is the life of a Scottish football fan.
The league structure needs changing before we lose a generation of young fans out of sheer boredom if nothing else.
My plan is neither drastic nor earth-shattering, it is nothing more than a bit of common sense, something that has been lacking from the powers that be in our game for as long as I can remember. The rich get richer, fat cats look after their own and it’s jobs for boys time and time again.
What I propose is to merge the leagues into two leagues of 15 teams, 3 up 3 down. 2 automatically, the other via a playoff system like the English Championship. Teams would play each other home and away once a season, in order to make up the fixture shortfall I propose making the League Cup fixtures on a Saturday. This would without question bring some prestige back to the competition, no fan really wants to travel long distances on a cold wet Tuesday or Wednesday winter’s night after a hard day’s work. Currently, the playoff system is suited all towards the team in the higher division, what brainchild came up with that grand plan? This is just turkeys not voting for Christmas, all about money, pure and simple.
The TV deal should be split equally amongst all clubs, I would like to see a model similar to the NFL gamepass model, where you can pay a set fee per season that allows you access to the team of your choice every match and a large number of highlight packages. Let’s be honest Rangers fans what to watch Rangers games, Partick fans Partick games and so forth.
It is simple, if you increase the competition by sharing the profit equally between all the clubs the overall standard of the league will only rise. We have tried every other grand plan and think tank, nothing has worked. Scottish football is currently run for the benefit of the few not the many, and at present, we all know who by.
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I suspect this will fall on deaf ears, money and not what fans who attend matches week in week out are what counts to the men in blazers. I am fed up with playing the same sides a minimum of 4 times a season, it is neither exciting nor captivating, just think of the build-up if we only had two Old Firm games a season, less is more.
Every few years somebody comes up with a master plan funded by the government based on whoever is the most fashionable at that time, after ’98 it was France, 2010 Spain and 2014 Germany, you get the picture. We do not have the planning, funding or vision and most importantly of all correct people in power to make the change so many of us long for, so, for now, settle in for Aberdeen away 3 times and Hearts at home 3 times a year.
I know my plans will have chairmen across the country shaking in their boots at the prospect of losing revenue due to a lower number of games, but here’s a radical solution, make your stadium self-sufficient. Yes, that’s right, make it open 365 days a year and able to bring in income when matches are not on. This is a model used in many countries across the world, except Scotland.
Build it and they will come.
Do you agree? Tell me your thoughts.
@steven_harrigan @rangersnewsuk