Similarities now to resumption of leagues after WW1

Northerner

Northerner

Well-known member
With all the meetings regarding promotions / relegation in the current climate, it reminds me of how Arsenal got promoted to the then 1st division under dubious circumstances when the league was expanded to 22 clubs after the war when full national leagues resumed after a break for the war.

They had finished 5th in division 2, but after meetings / votes etc ended up in the top division where they have remained to this day.
Many articles have been written about this regarding alleged bribery and buying of votes etc.
History blurs the facts depending on what stance you take!

Looks similar to money talks / influence today and not what your actually league position might be. Money and brown envelopes is power :unsure:

http://www.thearsenalhistory.com/?p=9103
 
You only have to look at what happened in more recent times to Doncaster Belles in 2013 to know that football is nothing but a racket, they were told after one game of the season they would be relegated regardless of where they finished to make way for the newly expanded Manchester City women’s team.
 
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Wasn't really aware of the Doncaster Belles plight if I'm honest, but just looked into it and that is a truly despicable way to run a league.
 
When honest Arry says no one can be relegated from the Premiership but everything else stands - alarm bells ring for me. He says the relegated clubs will spend tens of millions suing the Premier League if they don't get a solution that satisfies them.

Think about does that mean no one is promoted in the football leagues unless the numbers in each league are changed.

My thoughts are:

There is no way will be a fair way to finish the season, but legally the safest solution is to cancel the league and call it void because it could not be finished close to the allotted times as per 1939/40 season. The virus is like an Act of God and out of the control of all football parties.

If we finished in by games:

Its looking like we need to start the Football Leagues by around the second week in June if it is finished. We will have to see if the clubs can agree to this, and the players and other authorities. I imagine it will be closed doors and the police will have to put cordons round the stadiums with pubs if open, not allowed to show games. I assume in June large gatherings will still be banned. Playing at neutral grounds will never be accepted by the clubs or be challenged legally. Large events with crowds in July are already abandoned in large numbers so I assume closed doors again in July. We might then just get the season finished right at the end of July. That allows for 2 games a week and the normal play offs. Players and other squad staff may have to locked away in locked down hotels while the season is on, to avoid them picking up viruses. Anyone entering a stadium when the players are there needs to be tested with negative result to be allowed in, such as match officials, cameramen, media reporters. Fans will have to watch the games at home.
 
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Whatever they decide somebody won't be happy!

I'm still not sure about the appetite for fans to watch football behind closed doors on TV
I personally don't have any subscriptions for any pay TV, so unless it ends up on a free format I wouldn't see them anyway.
I've seen a couple of games in the past where fans were banned and the game lacks any atmosphere.
All you can hear is the players shouting to each other echoing around the ground which is not what football is meant to be.
Football without fans is nothing.
 
Northerner said:
With all the meetings regarding promotions / relegation in the current climate, it reminds me of how Arsenal got promoted to the then 1st division under dubious circumstances when the league was expanded to 22 clubs after the war when full national leagues resumed after a break for the war.

They had finished 5th in division 2, but after meetings / votes etc ended up in the top division where they have remained to this day.
Many articles have been written about this regarding alleged bribery and buying of votes etc.
History blurs the facts depending on what stance you take!

Looks similar to money talks / influence today and not what your actually league position might be. Money and brown envelopes is power :unsure:

http://www.thearsenalhistory.com/?p=9103
Click to expand...
Thanks for that Northerner, I never knew that about Arsenal
 
Northerner said:
Whatever they decide somebody won't be happy!

I'm still not sure about the appetite for fans to watch football behind closed doors on TV
I personally don't have any subscriptions for any pay TV, so unless it ends up on a free format I wouldn't see them anyway.
I've seen a couple of games in the past where fans were banned and the game lacks any atmosphere.
All you can hear is the players shouting to each other echoing around the ground which is not what football is meant to be.
Football without fans is nothing.
Click to expand...
There was strong talk of it all being on FTA which would be good I think, and help keep people indoors, if of course it happened.
 
I agree its crap watching a game without a crowd. I do go to about 33% of Boro games despite living hundreds of miles away and even go to games that I could easily watch at home, but I am old Skool (Pre Sky).

However we are in very strange times and it is clear from this board that a lot of people are very wary even frightened of the virus until there is a vaccine and I accept that. So I would accept games behind closed doors to finish this season, played at their normal venues and with controls in place during June and July. My first choice (at present) though would be to end the season and call it null and void. Some teams will go bananas, but we have never experienced a virus like this during a football season. The closest event to me was the start of the World Wars.
 
If there isn't any relegation from the Premier League there is even less point finishing this season. The only answer is to null and void in these exceptional circumstances then. The sporting integrity argument is shot imho with the guff coming out of the Premier League at the moment.

Really, the obvious answer to me is to wait until it is safe to run football normally in stadiums with crowds and then resume. If that takes until there is a vaccine so be it.

In the meantime if some are so desperate for football on TV then organise some friendlies with those prepared to play. Personally I can live without competitive national league football for as long as our grandfather's did in WW2 and it wont be that long as there will be a vaccine in a year or so.
 
I've got a feeling many will be reluctant to return to watching for some time. This break could be good for the game in the long term. I've heard little of people being desperate to watch a game yet plenty unhappy at the attitudes within the game, particularly at the higher level.

I've attended at least one game a week for the last few years and watched many more on TV. I'm not missing it at all, particularly the televised top level stuff. My age maybe?
 
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