What will happen if some of the 'smaller' leagues merge!!!
1. Belgium and Dutch leagues
2. Czech and Slovak leagues
3. Switzerland and Austrian leagues
4. Former Yougoslav leagues

Before the break-up Slovenia, Mecedonia and Montenigro only had handfull of teams in the Yugoslav League. Now these nations have 16-team leagues with teams from lower division supplementing teams that have actually played in a top league. Even leagues in Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia had to 'promote' teams for a sizable league. The same can be said about former Czechoslovakia.

As for Dutch, Belgian, Swiss or Austrian leagues, their strength is manifested in the European stage.

A league of Ajaz, PSV, Anderlecht, Liege is certainly more interesting and competitive than just half of them! This can translate into greater TV, Sponsorship (league & teams) and even ticket revenue. This is something they need.

It may also translate into better qualification process for CL & EL.

But most importantly, teams will benefit form better competition.

ahhh the old x-yu .... Crvenza Zvezda Piksi,Pancev, sekularac damn

That actually makes sense.

It's an interesting proposition, but I don't know would it feel right to kind of throw away the national aspect of a sport, that you play for pride and glory against clubs from your own country, that one town gets the bragging rights over another and so forth. In a way there's a better feel to it, for me, if a league is being contested in a single country, a stronger identity.

But obviously there are some examples of this already, like the Barclay's Premier League where 10% of clubs will be Welsh next season. In ice-hockey the NHL has cities from both Canada and the U.S. and it works just fine.

So I don't know. I think it would - at least initially - make such merged leagues feel a tad more superficial, but it could help them grow their fan-base and finances. Can't make my mind up would I like that or not.

i think the obvious answer is no, but i honestly wouldnt mind a couple mergers among the smaller leagues.

PL and SPL. Get Celtic and Rangers into English football so their fans could see that they won't be able to survive in PL.

Art Morte wrote:It's an interesting proposition, but I don't know would it feel right to kind of throw away the national aspect of a sport, that you play for pride and glory against clubs from your own country, that one town gets the bragging rights over another and so forth. In a way there's a better feel to it, for me, if a league is being contested in a single country, a stronger identity.

But obviously there are some examples of this already, like the Barclay's Premier League where 10% of clubs will be Welsh next season. In ice-hockey the NHL has cities from both Canada and the U.S. and it works just fine.

So I don't know. I think it would - at least initially - make such merged leagues feel a tad more superficial, but it could help them grow their fan-base and finances. Can't make my mind up would I like that or not.

The leagues that I have mentioned are geographically, culturally and historically close to each other. So a merger will not be superficial. Rather the merger may add a new dimension to rivalry.

Thing is these leagues are so fragmented and poor, they really have a very hard time ahead.

Both Yugoslavia and Czechslovakia disintegrated partly because of social differences, most of the successor states wanted to gain independance, I don't think it would be a good idea to merge them again even if we only talk about football.
Also, it should come to our minds that the breakup of Yugoslavia pretty much started with a football match.. So I'd say a no for both countries because of pure political and social reasons. There is too much hate between Croatia and Serbia (at least from what I know) and the wounds are way too fresh.

Irish (north & south), Welsh & Scottish leagues should merge. All 3 leagues are p*** poor and it would give it some life. Celtic v Shamrock Rovers

Dat Yugoslav national team team in Euro 2000...

Messiah "Aggerswagger" wrote:PL and SPL. Get Celtic and Rangers into English football so their fans could see that they won't be able to survive in PL.

celtic and rangers would walk epl mid table teams

Well, in Switzerland I read about thoughts to merge the Swiss and Austrian league in the tabloids once in a while to an "Alpenliga". Considering that the Swiss Super League consists of 10 clubs and the Austrian Bundesliga as well, this would make a manageable 20 teams if one takes both together.

The Swiss League already contains FC Vaduz of Liechtenstein in their 2nd division, so it is not completely alien to embrace a foreign team there.

The main point of critique is how the places for Champions League and Europe League should be distributed in a combined league. Right now Austria has two CL qualification spots, just like Switzerland, and if the leagues would be combined they would likely lose out there, which neither country would endorse considering the money that can be earned there.

Rangers wouldn't "walk" anyone right now.

nice idea, and some people will appreciate the sentiment of old Yugoslavia, but the security would be a huge problem. I mean Serbian fans were out of control in Italy. just imagine having them host teams from Bosnia or Croatia, or even Kosova (Kosova was constitutional part of ex YU). I mean same thing applies to other ex-YU countries. Would you be able to stop racist, nationalist chantes? Would you be able to stop fans from fighting?

Balkan has an ugly history, and a really recent one. I see no way in having it done anytime soon.

The rest of the leagues would have problems about allocating CL and EL spots.

czech republic and slovakia are already in talks about merging leagues lol... i don't really see the point though, the participating teams won't be any less shit

rwo power wrote:Well, in Switzerland I read about thoughts to merge the Swiss and Austrian league in the tabloids once in a while to an "Alpenliga". Considering that the Swiss Super League consists of 10 clubs and the Austrian Bundesliga as well, this would make a manageable 20 teams if one takes both together.

The Swiss League already contains FC Vaduz of Liechtenstein in their 2nd division, so it is not completely alien to embrace a foreign team there.

The main point of critique is how the places for Champions League and Europe League should be distributed in a combined league. Right now Austria has two CL qualification spots, just like Switzerland, and if the leagues would be combined they would likely lose out there, which neither country would endorse considering the money that can be earned there.

There are two ways of sorting this problem/issue (not that UEFA is asking for my advise).

1. The comined league keeps the four places. Other countries will not lose any place so no objections.
2. The combines league may lose a place but they are compensated with better qualification (may be a group-stage place)

@Che: atleast there will be less (number) shit teams and games.

iftikhar wrote:1. The comined league keeps the four places. Other countries will not lose any place so no objections.
2. The combines league may lose a place but they are compensated with better qualification (may be a group-stage place)

The problem is more what happens if the first 4 league places go to either Switzerland or Austria - then one of the countries could lose all spots and the other get more than it is due. And if you say "well the first two Swiss and the first two Austrian teams get a CL quali spot", then it sort of defies trying to win the league, as you could be a midfield team if you just belong to the right country to get into the CL.

That can only happen if one of the league is way better than the other. Do you think even in a freak season four Swiss or Austrian teams can get the top-four places!

The very idea of merging steams from the fact that the leagues are equally weak.

Well, if you compare where the Austrian and Swiss teams end up in CL/EL, one can surmise that the Austrian teams look considerably weaker.

True Swiss teams may have an upperhand over the Austrian teams at least for a while. But since they aren't doing much (group stage in EL don't give decent revenue), they don't stand to lose much. Even that can be complemented by GREATER revenue from TV deals, sponsorships and gate-receipts of matches with Basel, Zurich, Lausanne.

The very point of such mergers have to be small short-term sacrifices for greater long-term benefits, right!

Do anyone know anything about a merger of Serbia, Montenegro and (possibly) Mecedonia (pressured by ethnic Serbs) leagues!!! Seems to recall reading something like this sometimes ago.

iftikhar wrote:
Do anyone know anything about a merger of Serbia, Montenegro and (possibly) Mecedonia (pressured by ethnic Serbs) leagues!!! Seems to recall reading something like this sometimes ago.

I haven't read anything about it, but i think that could work, especially Serbia and Montenegro. These three states did not have any recent bloody history between them the way other republics did, so there is no hyper-nationalism here, only problems would be of technical nature.

iftikhar wrote:True Swiss teams may have an upperhand over the Austrian teams at least for a while. But since they aren't doing much (group stage in EL don't give decent revenue), they don't stand to lose much. Even that can be complemented by GREATER revenue from TV deals, sponsorships and gate-receipts of matches with Basel, Zurich, Lausanne.

I think there might be another problem as Austria belongs to the European Union and Switzerland does not. I think there might be some tricky stuff with TV deals, taxes and money there, if they would want all teams to play in one league.

che, rwo: would please give some details/ links (in English) regarding the mergers of Swiss & Austrian and Czech & Slovak leagues!!!

@iftikhar

I'm sorry, I never saw anything in English about the Swiss league in that respect. What I read was in Swiss online papers, and I'd have to try and see if there is some of it still online - but it is all in German (or rather Schwyzerdütsch )

Here's one article (albeit in German, sorry): http://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/archiv/Von_der_Gurkenliga_zur_Alpenliga.html?cid=3267058

Since that suggestion in 2003, nothing really has happened, though. In some Swiss and Austrian football forums the topic is discussed once in a while, but with no results or conviction.

Danke. Was ek Das! Guten Tag/Morgen. That is the extent of my German proficiency :-). Thanx.