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Asked by anon-292579 on 21 Apr 2021.
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Steve Briddon answered on 21 Apr 2021:
I’ll preface this by saying I’m a Sheffield United fan (I know…..)! I think football only works because everyone can go up as well as down. I’m old enough to remember football in the 1980s and 1990s. Teams in the top flight then like Swindon, Oldham, Blackburn – all had their moments. Even Man City spent years in the bottom leagues. For most teams outside the rich boys, you have to have that as a dream and hope.
I know the clubs won’t be leaving the Premiership, but the idea that the richest can go off make an exclusive league for themselves goes against what I think football is about.
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Neil Guthrie answered on 21 Apr 2021:
I echo what Steve has said. A big part of being a football fan is the dream that your team can do a Blackburn Rovers or a Leicester City and defy the odds! I live in Scotland and I am an Aberdeen fan but I can appreciate the backlash that came from the ESL plans. As an Aberdeen fan I look forward to the European games we are lucky to get most seasons now (unlike when I was growing up!) and the opportunity to potentially progress and play some of the biggest teams in the world at Pittodrie! Two of the best games I have ever been to were Aberdeen v Bayern Munich (home and away legs) – the atmosphere at Pittodrie was amazing. Taking those nights away from fans would be awful! (I know Bayern weren’t joining the ESL but they are a good example of a massive club!).
I also love watching the Euros and the World Cup. FIFA and UEFA stated that players involved in the ESL would be banned from international football which would deny some of the best players in the world the opportunity to play in these competitions. And deny the fans the opportunity to see them play on the biggest stage of all!
Thankfully it’s probably not going to happen anymore! 🙂
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Kip Heath answered on 21 Apr 2021:
So my selfish response is that removal of the six premier league teams would put my team (West Ham) second and not far behind the top. Also, I believe the heads of the teams are showing their opinion that money is more important than anything else – I’ve long believed that the fans care more about the clubs than anyone who is actually involved in them! I am curious if the announcement will do any longterm damage to those clubs reputation, in someways more than if the league had gone ahead because in a few years it may have succeeded and they would have been proved correct.
For football – it’s a very American system where the teams are static in one league. But you would lose stories like Leicester’s surprise win in 2016 and here in Britain we do like an underdog.
It would have been interesting to see what happened to the players too. Would they be happy in a league like the ESL?
But it’s all finished now (for the best, I think) and so we will never see!
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