Ultra Super Turbo League

[duncs500]

You mean it’s anti-competition in terms of the gameplay of the sport itself right? As an outsider the fact some teams can’t set up their own league is pretty anti-competition and the definition of a monopoly.

No. It's effectively denying other businesses entry to a market.

[duncs500]

Is this one of these threads where people say "I don't watch football or understand how it works, but...<insert strong opinion>". It's really the F1 threads all over again.

[Mito Man]

So if it were open for more teams to join in the future it would all be fine?

[tim]

Will this stop meatheads battering other meatheads because they like a different set of meatheads kicking a ball about? If so then I'm all for it. Otherwise IDGAF.

No charge for this contribution.

[duncs500]

So if it were open for more teams to join in the future it would all be fine?

No, the point is it is unregulated and controlled by the clubs involved. They'll all fall out soon enough I imagine anyway, I can't see them happily regulating themselves for too long.

[duncs500]

Will this stop meatheads battering other meatheads because they like a different set of meatheads kicking a ball about? If so then I'm all for it. Otherwise IDGAF.

No charge for this contribution.

Meatheads will always find reasons to batter other meatheads... this might send meatheads that have a clear target loose on the wider population! They might all take up religion and move to NI for a scrap instead.

[Swervin_Mervin]

You mean it’s anti-competition in terms of the gameplay of the sport itself right? As an outsider the fact some teams can’t set up their own league is pretty anti-competition and the definition of a monopoly.

No. It's effectively denying other businesses entry to a market.

I'm not so sure it is - the intention as I understand it is to operate it like the American sports leagues i.e. as a franchise model. So only money becomes a barrier to entry.

I used to watch football religiously until about 15 years ago, when I realised I no longer gave a shit and thought the majority of the top flight footballers no longer gave much of a shit either. It became fairly stale and boring, and I think much of that is because of it becoming so awash with money. I'm torn on this - part of me sides with the view that it's a massive shame and could potentially decimate the sport.

But then part of me also thinks that almost everyone involved in football has been implicit in the sport reaching this point, and now it's time for them all to reap what they sowed, be that fans, owners, players, managers, the media etc. It will either flourish, or it will very quickly fail monumentally. It doesn't have to be the death of football for everyone not involved, as long as they organise and ensure they do all they can to keep the sport alive.

[dinny_g]

@dinny_g How is it contrary to the public interest? Genuine question - I don’t know.

I do mean public interest and not national interest. Hard to quantify or describe but no matter how alien it seems to our little corner of the world, football is really important to many people in this country. As an illustration, my brothers are Man United, Man City and Liverpool fans and when I checked my phone yesterday afternoon, our What's App group had 70+ messages.

For reasons I don't fully understand football carries with it a passion and an identity that belies what it actually is - 22 lads kicking around a ball. Don't understand it but it does.

This move will devalue what will remain of the UK game, will probably reduce future revenue and therefore "risk" the other 85 odd clubs in the UK football system. This based on the fact I can't see a way they can remain in the Premier League and play in this new competition

If the government did nothing, they'd be accused of neglecting their electorate etc.

[duncs500]

I think @dinny_g most of the people* here are well aware how much football matters to great swathes of our nation, particularly the less affluent. It's no doubt more entertaining to just keep saying "I don't get it, kickball, etc.".

* - Possibly not Mito, who hasn't lived a day of his life in the world the rest of us occupy.

[mik]

I don’t find it entertaining to tell you that I don’t understand the interest levels in the game, or the levels of passion/love/hatred that it creates and covets - I just don’t. But I can still hold an opinion that it isn’t something I am interested in, and hold the opinion that it seems - in my very limited experience - to have become more game than sport. That doesn’t mean I am winding anyone up, or covering up a deep held fascination in the topic.

[Brannen]

As a football fan, I think it's essentially a money making scheme for the "big" clubs and remove some of the potential risks associated with the current leagues. As mentioned above, teams in the Premier League earn a lot of money from TV deals etc, and if they were to get relegated, they lose a lot of money.

This league will take that risk away, even if you don't perform well. Teams like Arsenal haven't won the Premier League in a very long time - they've also got the potential of finishing in the bottom half of the table this year, yet get a seat at the table as they have money to get involved. Spurs have never won the PL title and are considered a Super League level team. Some of the Italian teams in the initial 12 are the same. From what I've read, some of the bigger German teams said no, as did PSG (Biggest French team).

Personally I think it takes away competition, teams like Leicester who managed to get promoted to the PL and then win the league a few years back then get the opportunity to compete in the Champions League where the best teams currently earn their right to play.

I'd be interested to see how some of the fixtures would actually work etc as well, as players already complain about having too many games in the week at the moment. I'm not sure how people would afford to go to Madrid to catch a mid week game, then on to Milan the following week. Takes away some of the specialness of those occasions you currently get.

It feels like they're just trying to Americanise the sport as well...

[dinny_g]

The "Big Clubs" is nothing to do with success and everything to do with the financial backing - and international brand. The "big 6" are very well known brands around the world whereas for the most part, outside of Thailand, Leicester are "Who ??"

Take Basketball - outside America, the Boston Celtics V The New York Nicks sounds like a big game to the neutral but the Celtics have only 1 championship since the 80''s and the nicks haven't won since the 70's. But this would probably sell better than Golden State V Brooklyn.

The German Clubs are majority owned by the fans so they will never join this league, even if the club hierarchy would want them to.

[Foz]

The faux outrage is nauseating..

Football lost its soul years ago!

[Broccers]

I'm surprised any of you like kickball.

I think its a crap idea. Our local pub was paying 3k a month to show football, I can't see the appetite for this move so noone will be bothered.

[Zonda_]

I can’t abide football and genuinely don’t understand what this was for, I see it’s collapsing already, some kind of protest to get something changed and was never intended to be seen through?

[_andy]

It’s football, not pharmaceuticals or defence. Government shouldn’t be touching it.

Football is far more important than either of those!

/s

[Gavin]

Seemingly a couple of UK clubs pulling out and barca and Atletico Madrid I think.

Just another way to rip money from fans I guess with pay per view or some extra subscription yet again.

[duncs500]

LOL

How embarrassing, it will be interesting to see what happens next, I suspect there will be lots of clamouring to try and get us on to a German type model to prevent this happening again. In which case the clubs have completely fucked themselves.

[ZedLeg]

I bet Boris is wishing the drama had continued for another couple of days. Would be a useful distraction about now

[Zonda_]

This got me thinking, whatever happened to A1 GP, the supposed F1 breakaway