There have been many proposals put forward by Scottish football fans as to how to help Scottish football attract larger crowds. Each proposal put forward aims to make leagues more competitive and exciting. One of the most frequent ideas put forward is a 16-team SPL.
There are only a few national leagues across Europe which currently have 16-teams in their top league including Portugal, Russia, Greece, Sweden and the Czech Republic. Most Football Associations prefer to have 18 or 20 teams in their top league.
With a sixteen team league structure, it would mean that teams would only play 30 games per season. This situation may mean the SPL would not have the current problem of extending the season and a winter break could also be incorporated into the season so there wouldn’t be situations like the debacle at Fir Park and its pitch. Domestic cup competitions should also be given more importance, as they could be played at weekends rather than midweek nights to give them a higher profile.
On the footballing side of things, an added freshness would also be introduced and most argue that the league would be more competitive. Most claim the league would be less boring, as teams will only have to play each other twice. Pitches should be in better condition promoting a more exciting brand of football due to less games played.
However, it is the chairmen of the SPL who vote on changes and proposals, so the best interests for their respective clubs are key to every decision made. Decisions taken are usually income based so on this basis most chairmen would be against a 16-team SPL due to less matches and TV revenue shared around more clubs.
There have been suggestions on fans messageboards that the split could still be in operation in a 16-team SPL. It is their view that it would provide the league with a similar amount of games as is currently in operation. It is also seen as a way of avoiding meaningless games in the middle of the table. The split, however, could pose problems, with an uneven amount of home and away ties for all 16 teams (i.e. 37 games). It has also been widely condemned due to the simple fact that at the end of the season 7th place in the current SPL can have more points than the team finishing in 6th.
The debate will rage on for years until something is changed. SFA Chief Executive Gordon Smith has not yet made any moves to restructure the league but stated his own preference of two 12 team leagues which split into three 8 team leagues at the halfway point. Theories will continue to come from fans, pundits and officials alike, but one thing is certain – the appetite for change is across the board.
Lion Rampant Sports 