11 Feb 2018 10:26:46
Just regarding the breakaway league, it will be interesting to see how players react to not playing for there national teams, I know we live in a era of greed but it means the world to play for there national side especially the Spanish among others, maybe not the English, I wonder how many players would leave there clubs knowing they can't play for the national side which is the ultimate to a lot of players.

1.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 10:40:26
I don't think they'd care. They're all mercenaries and will follow the money wherever it goes.

{Ed002's Note - So you think all players are "mercenaries"?}

2.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 11:37:03
I can't help think that this bitterness is because Ed2 said we wouldn't be involved. I'm pretty sure if he'd said we were going to be a founder everyone would love the idea.

{Ed001's Note - if you believe that, then you clearly need to actually take some time and speak to more fans because it is nothing to do with that. It is more the issue of, if Liverpool were in it, who is going to be able to afford to go to the games? Get in the real world where people have to scrimp and save to go to games already and you might understand why people hate the idea.}

3.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 11:38:28
Yes Ed. Same as i am. If someone offers me more money to do the same job, I'll go.

{Ed002's Note - That is simply you then, plenty of people would not change their job simply for money. And tell me about all of the mercenaries at North Kelvin Sports? Or thos that turn out for Shakhtyor Prokopyevsk every week?}

4.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 11:45:25
Paul Scholes, Dirk Kuyt, Robbie Fowler, Kenny Dalglish, Frank Lampard. Just a few that you couldn’t describe as mercenaries. I think there are a few out there, but not all.

5.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 11:54:32
Disagree mk. Plenty of players would give anything for their internationals. Look at coutinho playing through injury. Seriously though, it probably won't stop them from listening to their agents but it certainly will have an affect. I don't think in any way is it to do with us being in the league either Putney. Personally I wouldn't want to be part of such a thing. I'll keep saying that something needs to be done but this is quite a few steps too far. Moreover I don't think the fans near and far will get behind this at any club. Especially when the greater teams start finishing bottom of this super league. Teams, players and fans want to win. Owners want to make money. If there is a breakaway, it'll never last a decade.

6.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 11:56:38
Well said Ed001.

{Ed001's Note - I never even mentioned the thought of losing the derby, which is the big game of the season. It would mean the loss of the real rivalries, which are what make the games more exciting than just playing a big club.}

7.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 12:04:45
I would hate the thought of Liverpool having anything to do with this.
I think the backlash from some of the big teams fans will be too big for them to eventually take the leap, teams like United, Bayern, Barcelona etc, less so for the likes of Citeh who have no fans anyway.

{Ed002's Note - Why would there be a backlash from fans? Do fans not already go to Champions League games? All of these teams have a world-wide fan base (and Liverpool fans bleat on and on about it) so local fans can go to the games in cities near to them. Other clubs fans also don't tend to suffer from being as xenophobic as some are here, and they already travel a lot further to games than English fans do - as England is much smaller - London to Manchester is nothing to the distances that fans in Spain, Italy, France or Germany have to travel. Being a typical Liverpool fan you are likely stuck in the past - but the world moves on, things change. Right now European football cannot carry on the way it is - and English football cannot sustain the number of professional sides it does.}

8.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 12:05:37
So Ed001, what can be done to put a spanner in the works and stop this happening? I don't want Liverpool playing Juventus etc every week, even if they were invited. I can only assume that a lot of fans would be the same? Even if LFC were the biggest, richest and most successful club in Europe I would be against it so it's not "sour grapes" by any stretch.

I think it is an awful idea and would hate it. Imagine not being able to play Everton? All those rivalries built up over the years, bogey teams etc?

Alas the fans are at the bottom of the pile. Only good for the club owners and sponsors.

{Ed001's Note - the only thing that would stop it would be no one watching it if it does happen.}

9.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 12:19:56
Ed, I can't see the prices in England changing significantly if we were in it, they're already at the edge of what they can get out of fans.

If this is coming then I'm pretty sure most Liverpool fans would rather be in it than out.

10.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 12:44:18
Fans do go to Champions League games off course but not at the expense of not going to local "English" (not British😊) games. I think if you are to ask fans if they were happy to lose those games at the expense of the European games you might get a different answer. Also can you imagine Liverpool, Man Utd etc with all their "worldwide" fans but no local support? Imagine the uproar?

{Ed001's Note - there would be an even worse atmosphere at games than there is now. It is a terrible idea.}

11.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 13:05:23
I would be interested to know if any fan apart from Texas (who offered a fair minded post) would support such a change?

12.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 13:09:10
I have just posted on the United pagd and will do also on the other pages to get a general view.

{Ed002's Note - There is no plan for Liverpool to be involved so you are fussing over nothing.}

13.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 13:25:50
I have been going to Anfield since 1961 and I have seen lots happen over the years, one thing stands out in the days when Spurs won the double and Burnley were in the European cup even when Man U won the European cup fans of all clubs appreciated other great teams but now it's all about envy of what other teams do.
If a European league is on the menu it will be all about the money even more than it is now and all teams should be made to work on the same budget so the financial advantages are illiminated and every team has the same chance other wise it will be a farce .
Just my opinion .

{Ed002's Note - Teams don't work on the same budgets now - so another argument that has no foundation. But again, 1961? You are living in the past.}

14.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 13:31:26
Liverpool being involved or not has no relevance to me as i have already said, if Liverpool were the biggest, richest and most successful club in Europe i would still think its a horrible idea. let's see what fans of other clubs that might be involved think. I might stand corrected, maybe not!

{Ed002's Note - You are going to find more insular and xenophobic English fans to give an opinion?}

15.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:18:51
I personally think it will end up like the XFL in America that WWE chairman Vince McMahon set up.

16.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 13:55:58
Ed2 just out of interest what do the german, Spanish, Italian etc fans think of it? Are they open to it or are they too insular and xenophobic if they do not agree that it is a good idea? Not being awkward or trying to cause any grief just wondered if your aware of other countries fan base intentions.

{Ed002's Note - Quite a few of the clubs held discussions with their fan groups a while back and of the two clubs who have confirmed they would not take part on the break away one took account of the views of the fans as part of their decision. Others were supportive.}

17.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:07:34
Hello Ed002 I know teams don't work on the same budgets now that's why Barcelona, Real Madrid! Man U, City etc tend to be in the frame for being champions even when Blackburn won the premiership it can be put down to certain financial input from Mr Walker .
Yes 1961 is in the past but we can learn from the sportsmanship etc from that time,
My opinion for what it's worth is that eventually all the players will be registered with the league they are with and each club will have the same amount of money to spend and they will try to get players to join them from the "pool" .
Fans will always support their teams that's why teams who have never won anything
Still have support even when at the start of the season their fans know they have no chance of winning any thing.
I know you have great knowledge about current football arrangements and appreciate lots of things you say .


TRANSFER NEWS
Luis Suarez tells Philippe Coutinho he is welcome at Barcelona

PHILIPPE COUTINHO
Revealed - the young Liverpool fan who received Philippe Coutinho and Simon Mignolet shirts

EVERTON FC
How Gylfi Sigurdsson has turned it round at Everton

LIVERPOOL FC
Mohamed Salah remembers the day he wanted to play for Liverpool - and it was a game all Reds want to forget.

{Ed002's Note - I am afraid RT that players in Europe will never be all paid the same, will never be registered with their leagues and be picked from a pool. However idyllic that sounds it is simply never going to happen. In the US the MLS operate a system which sees most (but not all) player contracted centrally to them and there are restictions on wages the clubs can pay the few players they contract themselves. Then of course it gets creative with sponsorships etc.. In Brazil local business still buy in to the rights of players through nefarious means. I could tell you stories about one PL club that had players paid tax free in Monaco as temporary residents, and a player who was paid in oil paintings and classic cars. In Spain they have had numerous issues. All of that has been cleaned up and players are contracted to clubs, paid and taxed the same way as most folks.}

18.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:09:01
Do you think it's a good idea ed2? I know you are far better educated than us in the matter but as a football fan alone? Bear in mind, I'm aware something needs to change.

{Ed002's Note - Yes, I hold a reasonably strong view in terms of the need to restructure football in Europe in any case. For me an eventual a breakaway pan-European league would force the restructuring of many of the national leagues, possibly resulting in a British league with perhaps only a couple of professional tiers and then regionalised amateur leagues below that. Financially I do not see that so many pro sides can be sustained within the sport which, like it or not, will see more and more money going in to the highest levels of the game. Governments will ensure that grassroots sport get funding but everything in the middle (Southern, Northern, Conference, Division 2, Scottish Divisions 1-3, League of Wales will not get the funding needed to continue on any sort of professional basis. For me, clubs should already recognise this and put their efforts in to getting there finances in order to see if they can make it to a British professional league that will need to flourish without perhaps six sides that have eventually gone down the pan-European route - and have gone for good (it would be two or perhaps three initially). Clubs like Accrington Stanley will need to carry on as amateurs or face extinction (yet again). Recently Hartlepool has been struggling - again it needs to adapt. The mighty Third Lanark have started their long journey back to the top - it can be done.

The game has changed significantly and will continue to do so whether the Liverpool supporters like it or not. Football at the highest level is big business and attracts the sponsorship it does because the sponsors wish to tap in to the disposable income of the fans and ride the back of the advertising that flows naturally from the success some clubs achieve. Long gone are the days of the cloth-capped, hobnailed-booted, chimney sweep making his way, rattle in hand, to cheer on his team at Anfield on a Saturday afternoon. I have explained that there will be changes, probably within the next 10 to 12 years, which will force the restructuring of all of the leagues in Europe and likely do away with the likes of UEFA. You will have the opportunity to see the likes of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus and the other major European sides play in week-on-week regular competition at The Emirates, St James Park, Stamford Bridge or wherever. Fans of the sides who take the plunge will have the opportunity to visit cities such as Milan, Barcelona, Munich, etc. every couple of weeks to watch their team play. If you want to don your cloth cap, have a pint of wallop with your chums before going off to the local match through the grim, wet and cobbled streets of the Northwest of England where there is smog, dead & dying pit ponies laying on the street and only chips and fried curry to eat., perhaps one of the sides from the suburbs will have survived so you can go and watch them?}

19.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:32:10
So just because fans like the league setup they have and like the Champions League format as it is that makes them. insular and xenophobic? What if fans from other clubs in other countries feel the same? Are the also insular and xenophobic?

{Ed002's Note - Fans are generally willing to embrace change and don't live in the past or have a fear of all things "foreign". It is the fans of certain English sides that suffer such maladies.}

20.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:56:17
About the mercenary bit earlier. It took me 38 years to realize in life that there are more important things than money. Money makes the world go round, but my family and health are more important. Our happiness is too. It is nice when some athletes realize that, and turn down bigger contract elsewhere to stay with their team. And as for whatever league Liverpool FC plays in, I Will support them till I die.
Matt in FL.

21.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:17:19
Not sure anyone is being xenophobic ed002?
this new league is totally about money and a big portion of the fans will just simply not watch it from the start and another huge portion will grow bored of it eventually as it will be completely tedious.
It might seem like good business sense to some people but at the end of the day if the product your offering is crap it’s going to fail eventually.

{Ed002's Note - The Liverpool fans won't be asked to watch it Mikey, but as I have previously said, the fans of certain English sides do suffer from xenophobia. It seems like good business sense to just about eveyone Mikey - that is why the big money from television, sponsorship etc. would go with a breakaway league. The product will be league football as you have now, but with the high-profile teams playing each week. So the chances of it failing are slim.}

22.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 14:48:27
Ps
That would be British and Irish fans, possibly a few European and Worldwide fans and not just "English". We have an eclectic mix on this forum. Maybe they are all xenophobic!

{Ed002's Note - It would generally be the English and Irish based fans who have such a problem - which is becoming clearer and clearer.}

23.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:05:50
Thanks Ed002, you are the one .
Fantastic inside info .
Good luck.

{Ed002's Note - Thanks. If it hadn't of been clean ed up (and I forgot to mention "image rights" as well) then another solution would have been required.}

24.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:16:09
Do Liverpool fans or any other English club have a fear of any thing foreign when they welcome players from all over the world and every religion? doesn't sound xenophobic to me!

{Ed002's Note - Try not to be so stupid.}

25.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:17:07
Thanks ed002, the site has been really interesting and entertaining this morning, almost forgot we are playing today, need to get a pint of wallop in ASAP.
Have a good evening, I will look forward to talking to you again about this over the coming years, maybe over a fried curry if your ever in town. Lol.

{Ed002's Note - Thanks Mikey.}

26.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:37:25
Great reply Ed002, thanks. I think the stupidity started when you classed British and Irish fans (not just English) xenophobic because they might have more of an interest in playing Man Utd or West Brom on a more regular basis than European clubs, even tho they do play these clubs on occassions every season on a less regular timescale. Well done!

{Ed002's Note - Actually I said English, it was you who said British and Irish. You really do struggle don't you?}

27.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:43:36
Much appreciated ed2 for your thoughts on the matter. As I've said on a few occasions. I'm in agreement that things need to change but on this super league I just can't for the life of me see it happening regardless of Liverpool's presence. In truth, such a change scares the sh*ep out of me. But at least we'd probably win the league again.

{Ed002's Note - It scares the sh*ep out of UEFA as well - hence there are two/three counter-proposals to the pan-European breakaway that have partially been backed by UEFA to try and save their own skin. The first proposal is to rename and change the format of the UEFA Champions League to make it an elite closed-shop pan-European league with a fixed number of teams – and these would be the same teams every year and be based on past winners of the Champions League and European Cup and a few (not specified) more. It would then require the restructuring of the Europa League and the possible introduction of a lower-tier European competition again. Although they have yet to flesh out the detail and there is now a major concern that the impetus for this is not coming from Europe, although one major Football Association has given their support and discussions have also been held with the leading clubs from England (Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal). The American backer, Stephen Ross of the Miami Dolphins, has on several occasions requested a meeting with an extant group of sides considering the pan-European breakaway to discuss his proposals. They have yet to respond but having identified the source of much of the funding (and that raising a concern) will wish to discuss it between themselves first. This has dragged on for a year and nothing has happened.
However, UEFA are now considering a variant proposal that would see some places in the CL fixed (probably to previous winners) and then see it supplemented by Champions and second place sides each season. This complicates matters again as it means the re-introduction of a third competition or the significant restructuring of the EL. The plan being put to clubs is a summer/preseason tournament that will evolve in to a parallel league, and of course eventually in to a complete breakaway for these clubs. As a first step to all of this, UEFA have negotiated minor changes that will see the four entrants from England, Germany, Spain and Italy enter the existing Champions League group stages without any qualification beyond their National League position (so no entry to qualifying rounds). This has been agreed by the European Club Association but UEFA did not want to discuss it with the separate group of “elite” sides discussing the Pan European League (and that “elite” group includes three English sides) as they are aware they will get no more than a shrug and no long-term support.

The second major counter proposal is a Chinese proposal from the Dalian Wanda Group proposes to open up the lucrative Chinese and Far Eastern media markets by extending the league to include Chinese and South American clubs. This has yet to be discussed by the "elite" sides as a group although the proposals have been presented to a number of them already on an individual basis. The proposals are very broad-based and lack detail - their selling point is significant additional income for the "elite". The general feeling from informal discussions over cocktails is that the "elite" would not want it on a league basis but could be open to including other sides in a some sort of expanded World Club competition.}

28.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 15:59:12
Another great reply, thanks. Maybe you stuggle that yours is not the only opinion and because someone doesn't fall into line with Your opinion it makes them xenophobic.

You fail to see that it is purely footballing reasons, maybe some historic yet you in all your wisdom decide that it is because xenophobic.

{Ed002's Note - You didn't read the posts and it is nothing to do with people not agreeing with me being xenophobic - that is simply a pig ignorant answer. You clearly have some massive chip on your shoulder.}

29.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 16:29:15
Wow, cheers for the info ed. I think this is a matter that will come up again and again. I foresee you having to do a sharkopod in the very near future on the matter, which would be amazing. I'm also expecting some media outlets to start spewing their own vitriol on this, since the posts here have become quite active on the matter. (On match day as well) I might add that the expanded world club competition is something I'd love to see and anything to improve the Europa league would be no bad thing. Any further discussions you hear between the powers that be would be greatly appreciated ed2 whenever that may be. Again, thank you very much for the enlightening and thoroughly frightening information. It's a terrific read even if it's something many of us aren't at all ready to see.

{Ed002's Note - This has been going on for some years.}

30.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 16:49:01
Liverpool ...............

{Ed002's Note - Why are you now trolling the posts?}

31.) 11 Feb 2018
11 Feb 2018 17:02:11
I am not trolling the posts at all. I am responding to your reply. Why do you feel the need to not put it up?

{Ed002's Note - It is simply a cut and paste - trolling. Everyone else has dealt with this with interest and asked good questions. And then we have to deal with you and your chip just trying to wreck everything for everyone else.}

32.) 12 Feb 2018
12 Feb 2018 12:08:15
It would be scary to see the best teams disappear to their own league, would diminish the competitiveness of the premier league for example. what would it mean winning the league when say Man city, chelsea and united not playing in it! Would almost be a sour victory, winning in a league without some of the best teams!
I'd want us to be involved, playing the best teams week in week out. Plus what of your "best" players, huge amount of talent will go to the more competitive league for the financial as well as prestige from playing for/ against the biggest clubs. and if the TV goes with it then what our the remaining teams going to spend without the extra income!

33.) 13 Feb 2018
13 Feb 2018 18:25:10
To me, the only real scary thing about the proposals is the potential loss of merit based participation. Just like football didn't start 26 years ago, football prior to 2025 (lets say) should just be considered one big qualifying round for the next structure of football. In recent years teams like Brighton have come from the brink of nothing to being a solid premiership side, teams like Leicester and Dortmund have appeared from the shadows to win it all etc.

I'd hate to lose that aspect and possibility in a new structure, to have a guaranteed set of possible winners for the next decade and for all others to have a limit to their potential - no matter how good they get, they can never play the best teams around. As long as there is some way to mitigate this, to reward the best of the rest and give them a chance at being the best of the best, then change away.