At fourteen, sixteen or eighteen? The clubs will face each other from next Wednesday in a new discussion on the format of the competition.
Peter Croonen, president of competition leader Genk, fired the first shot in The Newspaper (https://tinyurl.com/3vvmtey5).
“We must move towards a competition with fourteen clubs and play-offs,” he said, without risking displeasing the other “big guys” of the JPL, Club Bruges, Anderlecht and Antwerp.
The former president of KV Kortrijk Joseph Allijns, however, immediately replied on X: “Is it good for Belgian football? No, it’s good for the big clubs!”
End of the first round which will not have been observation.
The tone of the debate is set.
58 games less?
We might be surprised to see it launched now, when the rights to Belgian football for the next five years have already been resold to the British streaming platform DAZN.
“But this has nothing to do with the format of the competition which is not taken into account when negotiating rights,” explains Pro League spokesperson Stijn Van Bever on this subject.
“The agreement does not indicate what format will be used.”
However, it is the format that determines the number of matches that DAZN can broadcast.
However, it will fall from 240 in the regular season to 182, or 58 matches less, if Croonen’s proposal is approved.
Four formulas on the table
It is a risk that DAZN was apparently ready to take, and which may also have lowered the amount of TV rights somewhat.
For professional clubs, this has the advantage of knowing exactly how much money from these rights will be distributed before sitting down at the table.
The reform of the competition is therefore the most important subject of discussion over the next six months in the Pro League.
Most big clubs prefer fewer matches: with forty days, Belgian clubs have one of the busiest calendars in Europe.
Especially now that the Champions League and the Europa League have extended their competition phase by two additional days.
Croonen and Genk’s proposal – 14 teams and six-a-side play-offs (36 days) – is one of four realistic options.
Also on the menu: 18 teams without play-offs (34 days), 16 teams with four-way play-offs (36 days).
Without a two-thirds majority, we remain at 16 teams and play-offs at six (40 match days).
Less busy schedules…and money!
But it’s not just about timing.
A top division of fourteen would also mean that TV money would have to be shared with two fewer teams, leaving more per club.
The big clubs would like this to happen: more money and less busy schedules should make them stronger at international level, which would allow them to raise more money at European level as well.
They argue that this would increase the general level of our competition, and its influence abroad.
Needless to say, the group of clubs left behind, which is much more numerous, will not applaud with both hands, but will instead plead to be given the means to compete as best as possible with the top of the class.
They are also more dependent on ticket sales and therefore prefer to play as many matches as possible, especially since they do not have to perform on the European stage.
Ultimately, their votes will be needed if the top clubs actually want to change the format.
Suffice to say that in this case we will have to promise them serious financial guarantees and compensation…
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