Scholarship table
The Championship used to be on BEIN Sports. They would show a game every week and it was pretty good stuff. Still have big crowds and decent play at that level. I guess ESPN now owns the rights and you can only get games on ESPN+.
I think that this is really the only option. We're still so vastly untapped compared to many of the other huge markets out there. Throw in that the unpredictability is so much larger at the lower divisions and you can really pour it on. Weird that IMO, we're seen as the most viable long term solution for aspects of English soccer.
Another option could be that they need to convert League One and Two to semi-pro and/or amateaur status. Maybe I don't understand the cost structure enough but I think most third and fourth tier leagues in Europe have that status. Even in Germany and Spain.
I've been following the stories around the English Football League and the financial problems of its members for awhile now. The EFL are the three leagues underneath the Premier League. Essentially one team is about to be kicked out of the League, with another team not that far behind. And rumors are that a lot more are going to be in similar straights within the next decade.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2019/08/20/experts-warned-efl-two-years-ago-clubs-like-bolton-bury-faced/The basic problem is that interest, and the money that follows it, is concentrating more and more at the top.
The Championship is some of the most fun football Ive ever seen.Obviously it’s a step down from the Prem in terms of pure player quality, but man those games are a blast.
If English football as we know it is to survive, I think they need more shared revenue from the Prem to the lower leagues. Without that, this already near unbreachable divide will only grow larger.
I'm not sure that the EPL teams care all that much about "English football as we know it." In today's age, I'm not sure it's sustainable because it's based on television revenue and the viewership that goes along with that. Why go out and watch some local League 2 team play when Man City and Liverpool are playing on television?
Probably for some of the same reasons tens of thousands of people fill college football and basketball stadiums every Saturday when the Patriots, Cowboys, Warriors and Lakers are on TV ..
I'm not sure that the EPL teams care all that much about "English football as we know it." In today's age, I'm not sure it's sustainable because it's based on television revenue and the viewership that goes along with that. Why go out and watch some local League 2 team play when Man City and Liverpool are playing on television?They may just need to implement salary caps at these lower leagues.
Except college football doesn't go up against the NFL. And college basketball largely avoids the meat of the NBA season. And regular season attendance for both is decreasing anyway.
Pakuni, yes I think if college football teams went up against the NFL, college football would suffer from the lack of attention in most areas of the country. Locally, UW attendance would be much less if they went up against the Packers. Ditto for most places in the Big Ten.
This varies greatly by the part of the country you live in. If the NFL went up against college in Florida, I have zero doubt whatsoever FSU, Florida, or Miami wouldn't be struggling for attendance, though the Jaguars, Bucs, and Dolphins certainly would be. I suspect the same is true in Texas and most of the southern states.
You're answering a question nobody asked.And making a weird (and obviously false) assumption that the people who go to college football games are the same people who go to NFL games. Except for perhaps an infinitesimally small number of fans, people don't attend a college game on Saturday and then a pro game on Sunday.And I don't think fans would abandon their college season tickets in droves because the nearest NFL team plays on the same day. They'd just DVR the game they're missing.
I think a fair number of UW season ticket holders would stay home and watch a Packer game instead of attending a Badger game.But regardless, what is happening in League 1 and 2 isn't a hypothetical. It is actually happening. People aren't attending the games. There seems to be less loyalty to the local clubs.
I'll stick with my opinion on Gold. He'll be in foul trouble within the first eight minutes.
I don't think it's a loyalty issue, I think it just comes down to numbers. 330 million people for 32 NLF teams (and overlap with college football happens frequently and is encouraged). 66 million people for 92 professional soccer teams (where there is very little to no overlap within the country). The bigger clubs are still growing because if you're looking for a club to start supporting why not go for one of the big boys. Bury's stadium is 11 miles from the Etihad and 14 from Old Trafford. Unless you're in a Chicago/NY/LA-esque market, three professional teams cannot co-exist that close to each other.
But regardless, what is happening in League 1 and 2 isn't a hypothetical. It is actually happening. People aren't attending the games. There seems to be less loyalty to the local clubs.
Its also 35 miles from Anfield and Goodison Park. And covering that short distance to Liverpool, you cross over Bolton and Wigan, who have both been in the EPL within the last 6-7 years. For a club like Bury that hasn't sniffed the top division since WWII, thats a huge problem. Interestingly Bolton is also at a crossroads of financial problems despite their fairly recent success.The saturation of soccer success in that M62 corridor right there is pretty impressive and a death sentence for a middling club like Bury.
https://www.buryfc.co.uk/news/2019/august/volunteers-needed/300 people showed up to clean for free. A food truck showed up to feed everyone for free. Even Bolton sent over some help (https://twitter.com/buryfcofficial/status/1166352831613476864). They can't even afford to get a full mascot suit, but they still have support. I don't think anyone's loyalty should be questioned.