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Will a new Scottish football format benefit the few rather than the many?

Quite what is going to happen in Scottish football when it resumes is far from resolved.  As always, particular clubs are pursuing their own narrow interests.

Former Inverness Caledonian Thistle manager Craig Brewster is surely right when he says that finances will dictate the format adopted: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/sport/football/inverness-caledonian-thistle/2222282/brewster-says-finances-will-dictate-proposal-to-expand-premiership/

He reckons calls for a 14-team Premiership will only succeed if the proposal is financially viable for the league’s leading clubs.  Hearts are desperate to push through an expanded top-flight in order to avoid relegation to the Championship, while the proposal would also see Inverness promoted as second-tier runners-up.

The Scottish Supporters' Network has commented: 'In the absence of Scottish football action, countless column inches and Zoom call minutes have been taken up with planning for an eventual return, and the league configurations that could possibly make that happen.

At the heart of this are the objectives of protecting supporter, player and staff welfare; ensuring sporting integrity and fairness; and minimising financial stress on our clubs. Early in this process it was clear that there were no perfect solutions and no easy answers, and that trade-offs and compromises would be needed. Everyone who cared about Scottish football would need to come together to find a way through the crisis, and it was in this spirit that we offered to take part in the league reconstruction task force. Ultimately that offer was not accepted, and it was disappointing to see this challenge undertaken by the SPFL clubs alone.

In the absence of full involvement in the process, we offered input in the form of a high-level survey, asking Scottish football supporters what they liked and disliked about the current league structure, and what changes they wished to see this summer.

Survey Findings

The current structure is viewed positively, but there is clear and strong support for larger divisions – although not at the expense of the current competitiveness. The play-offs are broadly seen as positive, but there is scope for improvement – to ensure fairness, and to remove the current bias in favour of teams from higher divisions. The premiership split is also seen as broadly positive, although the imbalance in home and away fixtures is of great concern. The pyramid has been well received, and there is support for opening this up further.

The financial distribution model is a major concern for fans, relegation can put clubs in crisis and easier transitions between the divisions are needed. We have also seen a lot of criticism towards the SPFL’s voting mechanism and decision-making processes, with suspicion that the current reconstruction discussions are taking place to benefit the few rather than the many.'

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