Clubs against reduction to 14 teams - SYRIZA wont budge however..
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Originally posted by Soprano76 View PostI think downsizing to 14 teams is the best move IMO. Greece is a small country.
I am strongly against it. Firstly - quality wise - the smaller teams can still beat the bigger teams and often do - far more than in countries like the UK and France. If Panaitolikos was getting thrashed 7-0 every game - fine, but that is not the reality, the league as it stands is competitive.
Secondly, the small country issue.
Belgian top league - highly competitive - 16 teams. Country is 11 million.
Portuguese top league - highly competitive - 18 teams. 10 million population.
Greek top league - fairly competitive - 16 teams. 10 million population.
Czech Republic top league - fairly competitive - 16 teams. 10 million population.
Norway top league - meh.. - 16 teams. 5 million population.
Outside of Europe?
Uruguay top league - competitive - 16 teams. 3 million population.
Final point, the type of clubs. A healthy Greek league would have around 5 big teams. PAO, PAOK, Aris, OSFP, AEK. It should also have 4-5 clubs that compete well just behind, Panaitolikos, AEL, Atromitos, Panionios, Xanthi, Asteras etc. Also the smaller clubs below them should be able to take points off all the above, which happens as it stands.
I think we fit well. 14 teams divided into two league of 7 is ridiculous to me. I hope the teams stay strong and don't let it happen. The problem with Greek football has never for me had anything to do with the number of clubs. The big problems have been violence, poor quality stadiums, high ticket prices, government meddling and a media with Saudi levels of football knowledge and opinion.
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Bear in mind that Belgium and Portugal made investments into their footballing infrastructure as a result of hosting Euros in the early 2000s. It's one of the reasons they are reaping the benefits 10-20 years later.
Switzerland and Austria, two other countries that hosted Euros not long after, have 10 teams each in their top division. We should really be like them at 10-12 teams in a single league.
Also, there should be more balanced in representation. The best approach is having 12 teams with 3 divisions representing different regions (South, North, Islands) and the bottom side in each division (3 teams) faces demotion.
Less league action isn't a bad thing. It means teams will play more friendlies, giving younger players opportunities to play and coaches a chance to experiment and try different things.
The problem now is with so many teams in the top division, they all have a say in how the league is run. A big reason for so much of the dysfunction is because there are too many teams sharing too small a pie.
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I think it is 100% utopian to believe less league games will lead to greeks playing more friendlies and promoting more youth. What is more, with less competitive games, foreign stars and high earners will play the few competitive games available and the youth will get the occasional friendly - friendlies I doubt many teams will arrange. The whole idea is a disaster.
I also don't believe any of the dysfunction in Greek football is caused by having 16 teams in the league. Dysfunction is caused by the violence and condolence of violence by the big teams, lack of law and order and poor quality stadia.
On the plus, the one team that backed Syriza's 7 team league last week was Asteras. The only one. They lost today to AEL and are 1 point above the relegation zone. Hopefully they go down as karma for seeking to legitimise Syriza's plan:
I will smile for a long time if they are relegated by a system they fought for.
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How is the league going to the get cut to two leagues of 7 teams each? I am very confused with how Greek football is going to work next year... I'm happy with 14-16 teams tbh. That's the sweet spot for me. I just want to see some regional variation and representation in larger cities like Patras and Volos.
I thought they were re-organizing B Ethniki to Super League 2 and relegating 8 teams, promoting 1-2 teams and gaining 3-4 from the Super league.
Then there's question of G Ethniki.. Apparently each division winner will get promoted (8 teams) and the second place teams are going to a play-off for promotion (4 more teams).
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So Syriza has made the next league down to 14 teams. However they realise there will not be enough games to keep the league interesting..
So these are the bizarre options to increase the amount of games. A weird 3rd round in between round 1 and round 2 - or those hated play-offs returning.. just a total mess.
According to gazzetta.gr, two formats are being considered for the Super League to increase the amount of games. One includes a format with three rounds and the other includes a playoff and playout system after the conclusion of the regular season.
The three round format was proposed by AEK;s Minas Lysandrou earlier in the year. This includes a full first and third round, which will see each team play against the others in home and away fixtures, and between the two rounds, a second round will take place from December to January.
The second round will include two groups of seven teams each. Group 1 will include teams ranked in odd numbers after the conclusion of the first round (1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, etc) and Group 2 will include teams ranked in even numbers at the conclusion of the first round (2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, etc.). Teams will play one match against the other teams within their respective group and the hosts for each match will be decided with a particular method (ex. the group leaders will play at home against the teams ranked X, Y, Z in the group).
The points from round one will carry over to round two and the points from round two will carry over to round three. This will allow for 32 rounds in the league season, which will keep both the clubs and the broadcasting companies (Nova and ERT) content.
The other option is the playoff and playout format at the end of the regular season. In this scenario, a full 26 rounds will be played (each team will play the others in home and away fixtures) and at the conclusion of this first stage, teams will be separated into playoff and playout groups. The champion and European places will be decided in the playoff group while the playouts will determine who is relegated to the Super League 2.
Both formats are still in the preliminary phase and more developments and possibly more proposals will be discussed at Tuesday’s Super League Board of Directors meeting.
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Nova owns the rights and they are the ones who encouraged these exact changes. They want the league reduced to 12 teams because people aren't watching Greek football. Just look at the lack of crowds in most matches.
I agree they should stick to 16 teams, but only for the next season.
What they should do is split the league into 4 divisions based on geographical considerations. All the teams across the divisions will still play each other home and away, like they do now in the league. The league should then be formatted as follows:
League winner and European places
The side that finishes with most points in the league still wins the title. The sides that finish 2nd and 3rd on league totals qualify for European places.The cup winner still takes the Europa League group stage spot as they do now.Assuming Greece has a fifth spot for Europe, then the two highest ranked league sides that finish top of their respective divisions, but outside the top three, play-off for a place in Europe. Once the league is reduced to 12 sides, there will be no need for a play-off.
Demotion, promotion and reduction (from 16 to 12 teams)The sides that finish bottom in each division are demoted. Only two teams would gain promotion for the following season and they qualify to a division relative to their location, thus the following season would be reduced to 14 teams and we maintain good geographic league representation.
Repeat the process of demoting four and promoting two for the following season, reducing the league to 12 teams.
From there on end, the league should be restructured to three divisions, four sides in each division.
There are number of scenarios to consider that may upset the balance of things, but the above covers all the important bases.
This way we get good representation of the whole of Greece in the top division and keep the league both interesting and competitive. The league must also promote more friendly games. This is needed in order to experiment, especially in preparation for matches in Europe. And to rotate squads, giving players, especially young players, chances.
For the health of the league, I think this is the best solution.Last edited by Don Giovanni; 04-17-2019, 02:02 AM.
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Originally posted by Don Giovanni View PostNova owns the rights and they are the ones who encouraged these exact changes. They want the league reduced to 12 teams because people aren't watching Greek football. Just look at the lack of crowds in most matches.
People aren’t watching Greek Football for two very simple reasons, and ridiculous restructures are not gonna do anything, EPO & SL is constantly changing with one thing or another.
In order to get more people to watch we need to sort out the corruption & fan violence, it’s really that simple and that’s we’re the focus needs to be, not on changing the wheel like everyone is trying to do.
Make it safe for families to go to games, fix up these 70’s style stadiums (which is ganing momentum), punish the hooligans that stop and abandon games, not the people THAT WHAT TO WATCH GAMES!
Having teams lose points EVERY season because of thugs is so retarded yet it’s ok, this is what puts fans off and the inconsistent penalties - this is where the focus needs to be, we clean up our act, watch the league prosper with 16 teams no problem
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Originally posted by Don Giovanni View PostNova owns the rights and they are the ones who encouraged these exact changes. They want the league reduced to 12 teams because people aren't watching Greek football. Just look at the lack of crowds in most matches.
I agree they should stick to 16 teams, but only for the next season.
What they should do is split the league into 4 divisions based on geographical considerations. All the teams across the divisions will still play each other home and away, like they do now in the league. The league should then be formatted as follows:
League winner and European places
The side that finishes with most points in the league still wins the title. The sides that finish 2nd and 3rd on league totals qualify for European places.The cup winner still takes the Europa League group stage spot as they do now.Assuming Greece has a fifth spot for Europe, then the two highest ranked league sides that finish top of their respective divisions, but outside the top three, play-off for a place in Europe. Once the league is reduced to 12 sides, there will be no need for a play-off.
Demotion, promotion and reduction (from 16 to 12 teams)The sides that finish bottom in each division are demoted. Only two teams would gain promotion for the following season and they qualify to a division relative to their location, thus the following season would be reduced to 14 teams and we maintain good geographic league representation.
Repeat the process of demoting four and promoting two for the following season, reducing the league to 12 teams.
From there on end, the league should be restructured to three divisions, four sides in each division.
There are number of scenarios to consider that may upset the balance of things, but the above covers all the important bases.
This way we get good representation of the whole of Greece in the top division and keep the league both interesting and competitive. The league must also promote more friendly games. This is needed in order to experiment, especially in preparation for matches in Europe. And to rotate squads, giving players, especially young players, chances.
For the health of the league, I think this is the best solution.
As for people not attending games. If you go to spain the stands are full of grandparents taking their grandchildren to games. Families. Friends. What sane Greek would risk the health and even lives of his children taking them a game full of criminal hooligans who throw missiles, set fire to everything and attack police and rival fans?
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Seems there will be a return to 16 clubs in the top league, a number that I feel is the best.
https://www.metrosport.gr/ante-tora-...echoyme-271559
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