Fifa wants 18-team Premier League

[therockbox]

Fifa is heading for a showdown with the Premier League over its 20-club size.

On Thursday Fifa's Congress endorsed a proposal for Europe's top leagues to be reduced to a maximum of 18 clubs by the start of the 2007-08 season.

Fifa president Sepp Blatter said: "We've been given the power to work on it. We'll do it. It'll give four more days to the international calendar."

But Premier League spokesman Dan Johnson ruled out a reduction: "There's no appetite for this kind of change."

Johnson added: "The only people who are going to tell us how to run the Premier League are the league's 20 member clubs' chairmen.

"They are the only ones who can change the composition of the league and they are just not going to go for this - no way."

Fifa's decision could also hit the Spanish, Italian, and French leagues.

[Guest Small Red]

It's a shit idea. We need more competition in the Premiership, rather than less.

[Darloboy]

Agreed, terrible idea.

[hugobomb]

Bad idea. 20 clubs is a great size for a league.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

FIFA can push off.

They want the Champions League to have even more importance.

A Euro superleague in fact.

It's all a conspiracy! A CONSPIRACY I TELLS YA!

But 20 teams is perfect.

[Lineker]

That would mean 5 relegation spots.

Ta'ra Villa!

[ONO]

That would mean 5 relegation spots.

Ta'ra Villa!

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

They'd probably relegate 4 and promote only 2....But that means you'd need to feed it down as you can't have 26 in the Championship or div 1 or div 2....

It's NOT JUST the Premiership that would have to make the changes...

[Lineker]

Or they could have 3 go down as normal and nobody go up

I dunno, I'm tired.

EDIT - I didn't say Villa would go down this year. Depends on O'Leary and transfer funds.

Edited June 9, 2006 by Messiah-Dice

[TheArsenal]

No.

We want MORE TEAMS!!!!

22 or 24 or whatever it used to be.....

[ONO]

I can't see the FA even compromising with Fifa about this at all. Fuck off Fifa. This is the Premier League, we all love our twenty teams in it, and we all love our 38 games.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

22 teams it used to be with 42 games a season...That was a bit long really - 20 is just about perfecto!

Stupid FIFA poking their noses in. Are we the only European league with more than 18 teams? Is it just about screwing with England?

[The LBTN Express]

22 teams it used to be with 42 games a season...That was a bit long really - 20 is just about perfecto!

Stupid FIFA poking their noses in. Are we the only European league with more than 18 teams? Is it just about screwing with England?

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

See! Germany are just doing what they couldn't finish in World War 2!

[EddieG]

The dutch have 18 teams ^_^ And yeah.. I prefer the english league 'cause it's just about right while with the Dutch it finishes to soon even though it's just a few games difference

[britneyspearsisgod]

But it's the same chairmen and owners who push for MORE cup games, especially in Europe. They don't care about the fitness - they just want more games. When you've got half of the pitch falling down with cramp in the FA Cup Final, you KNOW they're playing too many games to be competetive. I can't remember a match being that bad. Both teams just had too many games, especially Liverpool. If Steven Gerrard had played every game this season, he would have played 96 professional games in the space of a season. Obviously he had a few injuries, which isn't surprising, considering.

Both sides have selfish reasons for more games, but I just think for the players health we should take a few teams out of the leagues. Besides, a few more teams in League Two would offer them more money and they'd play a schedule that is similar to the top leagues, but with the amount of teams who wouldn't have cups to worry about, it'd compensate itself.

[fineintent]

Who gives a shit about cramp etc? Back in the old days players played through all these little niggles that seem to keep players out for ages.

So Gerrard played loads of games, what is he paid a ridiculous amount of money to do?

While in nowhere near the same league, I play two competitive matches a week, train twice a week, play 5 a side on Sundays and have general kick abouts here and there. There should be no problem with 20 teams.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Well for a start:

a) The UEFA Cup should go back to straight knock out.

b) Teams going out in Champions League qualifying should not be allowed to go into UEFA Cup.

c) No League Cup replays ever.

d) Champions League should only have four groups of four with quarters, semis and the final. Before that it should be straight two-leg knock out.

[britneyspearsisgod]

Who gives a shit about cramp etc? Back in the old days players played through all these little niggles that seem to keep players out for ages.

So Gerrard played loads of games, what is he paid a ridiculous amount of money to do?

While in nowhere near the same league, I play two competitive matches a week, train twice a week, play 5 a side on Sundays and have general kick abouts here and there. There should be no problem with 20 teams.

[NobBe Nobbs]

For a hundred grand a week, I'd happily sleep one minute a day and spend the rest running away from wild pitbulls and the Devil for twenty years. Fuck Gerrard.