Single-Game Format To Be Considered by UEFA

[Eco]

Just now, Bluewolf said:

Well all games would need to be at a neutral ground for it to work or there would be an unfair advantage for the side playing at home which then goes back to what I was saying about fans being able to attend games.. 

I can agree with this. 

Two of the biggest downsides IMO, is the stadium selection, and the fact that we would have lost some truly magical moments like PSG vs Barcelona game in 2017

[Mpache]

2 minutes ago, Eco said:

And this is where I presume you referred to boring

Not all clashes where teams sit back is boring, but what I meant was that weaker sides could put 10 men behind the ball, not showing any ability and win by a long shot, a dodgy penalty or on PK's after a 0-0 draw. With 180 minutes of game time it is possible to resort to this strategy too, but it's less likely to work.

[Stan]

2 minutes ago, Bluewolf said:

Well all games would need to be at a neutral ground for it to work or there would be an unfair advantage for the side playing at home which then goes back to what I was saying about fans being able to attend games.. 

On second thoughts, I suppose it isn't the worst thing. And perhaps that's the beauty of how it's worked out now (albeit without fans) because it's been neutral, so to speak.

And it worked in cups like the FA Cup (not Wembley) but when they used to be played at Villa Park/Hillsborough/Old Trafford etc. It's something I could get behind but having 1-legged games I think could be where they head in a few years time.

[Mpache]

1 minute ago, Stan said:

On second thoughts, I suppose it isn't the worst thing. And perhaps that's the beauty of how it's worked out now (albeit without fans) because it's been neutral, so to speak.

And it worked in cups like the FA Cup (not Wembley) but when they used to be played at Villa Park/Hillsborough/Old Trafford etc. It's something I could get behind but having 1-legged games I think could be where they head in a few years time.

Well I think that's another issue here. It can work in England because it's a small country and easy to get around. But in a continental clash it's a bit more difficult.

It doesn't affect me to be honest, but for fans it can pose an annoyance. I don't think grounds will have any problem filling out given the culture in Europe for the sport, but it does feel more artificial. 

[Stan]

1 minute ago, Mpache said:

Well I think that's another issue here. It can work in England because it's a small country and easy to get around. But in a continental clash it's a bit more difficult.

It doesn't affect me to be honest, but for fans it can pose an annoyance. I don't think grounds will have any problem filling out given the culture in Europe for the sport, but it does feel more artificial. 

I think it's quite easy to get around Europe (COVID-permitting). Not sure why it's more difficult?

In fact it's probably easier/cheaper for me to travel in to Netherlands/France/Germany/Spain than it is to get to other parts of the UK!

[Mpache]

1 hour ago, Stan said:

In fact it's probably easier/cheaper for me to travel in to Netherlands/France/Germany/Spain than it is to get to other parts of the UK!

Interesting!

[ScoRoss]

A horrendous idea that would only serve the interests of people who watch on television, or corporate sponsors that they can flood with tickets for these games. 

How is the average fan who might get to attend one of these home matches, meant to now afford travel to these games on top of the probably inflated ticket prices they already pay.

There's already enough farce about airlines and hotels fleecing fans for the demand for just finals. Now they are going to be 8 teams supporters competing for these places.

Atmosphere at these matches would be much better than they are this year...

Fuck this idea completely.

[Burning Gold]

Can't believe so many have such short memories about how good the two legged ties were just last year.

If you're in favour of this, I don't want to hear a single word of complaint when the tournament inevitably gets moved to Qatar or China either

[Stan]

22 minutes ago, Burning Gold said:

If you're in favour of this, I don't want to hear a single word of complaint when the tournament inevitably gets moved to Qatar or China either

?

[Burning Gold]

47 minutes ago, Stan said:

?

It should be very obvious that one-off Champions League matches would be a big target to be moved overseas to tap foreign markets.

[Stan]

1 minute ago, Burning Gold said:

It should be very obvious that one-off Champions League matches would be a big target to be moved overseas to tap foreign markets.

I think if this was the case, the final would have been moved there at least a few years back. 

[Burning Gold]

7 minutes ago, Stan said:

I think if this was the case, the final would have been moved there at least a few years back. 

Much easier to move individual quarter finals without generating too much uproar than the final. Thin end of the wedge type stuff

[The Artful Dodger]

Of course, we're now seeing the predicted 'why don't we just have one legged knockout rounds every year'? The usual stream watching brigade with no connection to the cities they support are loving it, their dream of course. This is it, the super league is on its way. Soon the bigger clubs will play one or two clubs in their own city, and the rest in Qatar/Saudi/Singapore/USA/China they care more about the kind of people who think its acceptable to not support your local team than real fans and seemingly so does UEFA.

Any decent football fan needs to oppose this greed fuelled, American shite. Football is not just entertainment, it is a local culture and should not be taken away from the people they represent and given to slobs who couldn't give two shits about the community the club comes from.

[Dr. Gonzo]

I think this is a terrible idea. Two legged ties have made for some of the best moments in recent CL history. I also think having one legged ties substantially changes the competition and while some might argue it's more exciting... I'm really not so sure considering how many times we've seen great turnarounds in a second leg. To me those matches were all more exciting than anything we saw in the post-covid lockdown.

And I'm in agreement with the idea that making the permanent switch to one-legged ties is such a substantial change that it'll make it easier for UEFA to eventually whore the competition out to places like Qatar, Riyad and Beijing. If it's one-legged ties, clubs are going to start to insist on neutral venues rather than have to be an away side in Europe. And I also think that takes a bit of the magic away from Europe - having to play home and away for the two legs is just such a big part of the test to make it to the final.

It's a slippery slope and it's not one I think we should be taking football's premier club trophy (which really means football's premier trophy, as clubs > international sides in terms of quality). To me this year's CL wasn't a "farce" like that one dickhead kept saying over and over... but the CL after the restart really did not feel like the same tournament to me. I could stomach the necessity of the change due to the season being postponed due to a pandemic.

But I am dead set against it being a permanent change to the competition. I think it's a dreadful idea.

But I can see why FIFA/UEFA would be for less CL games (although those are better games than the shite they'd serve us as a "replacement") - it justifies shite like the Nations League and the unnecessary expansion of the Club World Cup, which really shouldn't have come about but make UEFA/FIFA more money.

Because it's a dreadful idea that can make these two corrupt institutions more money, I'm sure it'll fucking happen though.

[Mel81x+]

Its bad enough that fans didn't get to watch their teams this year and had to sit at home and watch them on the TV now this. Imagine you reach the knockout stages of the UCL for the first time in your club's history and you have to fly to another country for a one-leg match instead of letting your fans who have watched you play in your stadium enjoy the fact that their team has made it to a stage where they can watch some of the best in Europe play at their home stadium. Ludicrous.

[The Käiser]

The final match to this coveted trophy has been a one off match for many years. 
Has there been any complaints about that??

[ScoRoss]

7 hours ago, The Käiser said:

The final match to this coveted trophy has been a one off match for many years. 
Has there been any complaints about that??

Asking fans to travel for a one off match isn't comparable to a two week mini tournament. 

The tournament has been two legged matches for many years. Has there been about complaints about that?

[Guest]

I like the idea but I understand why many fans wouldn't. A lot of Europe though is relatively cheap to get to and cheaper once you get there. The one of games have been good. Personally I like it but it will come down to tv money we all know that. However I wouldn't like to see it come in if fans don't want it.

[Azeem]

Besides two legged finals are weird

[The Käiser]

17 hours ago, ScoRoss said:

Asking fans to travel for a one off match isn't comparable to a two week mini tournament. 

The tournament has been two legged matches for many years. Has there been about complaints about that?

As mentioned above, there has been games where teams park the bus. Or first leg is so Lopsided that the second leg is redundant 

And the away goal rule has been complained about. 

[CaaC (John)+]

Quote

Champions League: Reformed 36-team tournament could be agreed this month

Plans for a reformed 36-team Champions League which would start in 2024 could be agreed by the end of this month.

European Clubs' Association (ECA) chairman Andrea Agnelli expects the final details - around how the four extra places will be allocated - to be resolved in the next couple of weeks.

If the ECA meets that timescale, European governing body Uefa would almost certainly look to sign it off.

Should that happen it would end further talk of a European Super League (ESL).

Uefa general secretary Giorgio Marchetti referred to the ESL concept in his opening address to the ECA general assembly on Monday.

"Unity can be lost when insidious ideas are pursued under the pretence of survival, growth and business needs," he said.

Agnelli, who is also chairman of Juventus, was vague when asked about his involvement in ESL talks but described the new-style Champions League as very close to his ideal.

What would the new Champions League look like?

The idea, which has been credited to Ajax chief executive Edwin van der Sar, would lead to radical change to the group phase.

Instead of eight groups of four playing six games each as is currently the case, all clubs would play 10 matches against opponents of varying strengths.

Results in these matches would form an overall table, which would determine qualification for the post-Christmas knockout round, preceded by two-legged play-offs.

The European leagues want the four additional places to go to champions of 'middle-tier countries, and be decided on sporting merit.

But the likelihood is two of the places will be given as 'wildcards' - with England likely to benefit from an additional fifth place - which could be decided on co-efficient.

Confirmation of the impending changes will sharpen minds across the English game as there is little space for additional European matches in the calendar and is therefore likely to generate further discussion around the future of the EFL Cup.

"The balance we are trying to strike is one-third international and two-thirds domestic," said Agnelli.

"We do think for competitive balance purposes, 20-team leagues is too many."

The Premier League has already dismissed the idea of moving to 18 teams, which was part of the 'Project Big Picture' proposals that surfaced last year.

Will there be more changes?

In answering a question about the likelihood of capping player salaries and agents' fees, Agnelli spoke about major changes to the transfer system which, as impractical as it appears, he feels may involve an agreement by leading clubs not to sell players to each other.

"The moment is fertile to think of greater solutions," he said. "We should be looking at a wide range of reforms.

"We could think of a double path transfer system, where clubs qualifying for specific tiers of international competition wouldn't be allowed to buy each other's players.

"That would improve the indirect solidarity to other clubs and mean no triple-figure transfers amongst Champions League participating clubs. These are elements we are discussing."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56325695

 

[Dan+]

Sounds predictably shit. They never know when they've stumbled across a good thing. It's never enough.