MOT View: Reported plan for Championship is most radical yet but it would be terrible for Leeds
There’s been a lot of talk about what football will look like in the post-Coronavirus world but an EFL plan reported by the Sun on Sunday (via LeedsLive) is the most radical yet.
It would see the Championship split into North and South sub-leagues, with each team playing just 11 home games.
After that, the two leagues would merge for play-offs to decide promotion and possibly relegation too.
There are numerous examples of leagues around the world that play a main league before splitting for the end of the season – the Scottish Premiership and the Jupiler Pro League in Belgium do this.
But splitting the league on regional terms is something more akin to non-league football in England.
We can see where the EFL is coming from with this and it would cut costs for fans and make the Championship more manageable if there’s a second wave of Coronavirus.
But we hate the idea.
These are the teams Leeds would have played this season if that plan was in place.
- Barnsley
- Blackburn Rovers
- Derby County
- Huddersfield
- Hull City
- Middlesbrough
- Nottingham Forest
- Preston North End
- Sheffield Wednesday
- Stoke City
- Wigan Athletic
These are the teams we’d have missed out on playing.
- West Brom
- Fulham
- Brentford
- Nottingham Forest
- Bristol City
- Millwall
- Cardiff City
- Swansea
- QPR
- Reading
- Birmingham
- Luton
They include four teams in the current top six in the Championship and eight of the top 12.
Now hopefully this won’t be an issue for Leeds United. Seven points clear of Fulham in third, we’re confident that Leeds will be in the Premier League next season.
However, given what’s going on that’s no certainty.
Irrespective, the Championship is one of the best leagues in the world. Splitting into north and south would take away much of the competition and relegate it to a second-class feeder competition.
We hope that it never comes to pass.
In other Leeds United news, Danny Murphy steps in after Jim White takes stupid dig at Leeds ace after talkSPORT interview