Coronavirus: Football Discussion Thread

[sh249]

I’d:

• cancel everything, declare the 19/20 season null and void. No title winners, no relegations, no promotions across the board. Not fair on those negatively effected, but the current situation is, unfortunately, unfair on so many.
• lobby UEFA to cancel all European football for 20/21 - which they should anyway, as far as I’m concerned, given the uncertainties around travel and the irresponsibility of demanding unnecessary travel from autumn onwards. If they won’t, withdraw English clubs for the 20/21 season. No issue then with European placings for this season.
• plan to start the 20/21 season in August/September/October/whenever is deemed fully safe. With all clubs aware that the league will start behind closed doors and probably finish that way too - unless we reach a point where it’s considered safe for spectators to attend. If the start has to be pushed back into winter, cancel either the FA cup or league cup (or both) to make space for fixtures.
• with those decisions made - concentrate all efforts and energies on redistributing the gargantuan sums of money flowing in and through the game to protect, as far as possible, the existence of smaller clubs and the livelihoods of those most at risk.

Pie in the sky, of course, especially not giving Liverpool the title and not playing European football.

Don’t really buy the line that the only way for clubs and football to survive is by starting up again immediately. A platitude peddled solely by those with a vested interest in resuming (administrators, club owners, broadcasters, pundits/journalists). Alternative forms of collective action are surely viable.

 

[Marvin]

Weird we haven’t heard from referees if they are happy to return? I think they are pretty important.

Every single person is anxious about returning to wider society. getting on public transport, sitting in a workplace etc. Football's major risk is the fans. They wont be there. Football has been largely de-risked in terms of the impact it has on wider society. On the 1st June, were told primary school-children will return. Imagine the risk there. Many construction companies have been operating throughout. Nothing is risk-free.

 

[mosssideblue]

Football has 3 revenue streams: broadcasting, commercial and matchday income. Subject to a vaccine, macthday income for 12 months has vanished, and broadcasting income could be halved. That's a potential crisis and what realistically do you expect them to do?

I get that most fans are not interested in watching the Premier League on tv playing training ground games. I'm the same. I would like to see City play Real Madrid though and see out the CL games. I'd definitely watch that.

In regards to social distancing and the contradiction between "Stay home, Save Lives" and team sport, well I'd imagine every fan's employer has a 'coronavirus disaster recovery plan' working out how they can function in a post-lockdown world. We're all heading there.

In terms of lifting the lockdown, we've been told there are two criteria:

1. Essential functions (football is not essential).
   
   
2. Risk to wider society.
   If you re-open, what affect does it have on R0? Is it going to increase the infection rate across society. Clearly 99% of the risk in football is with fans. And there's no question that fans will be attending games. Pubs, clubs, colleges etc are all going to be at the end of the list, but football returning without fans is a no-brainer for the UK government

Football is a business. I'm surprised fans don't understand that now. It's not the village cricket club or church bowling green that can stay idle for the next year.

Of course fans know top level football is a business, don't be a condescending prick, you are better than that. Many disagree with your views on this subject, maybe you should think a little broader than you are demonstrating, before throwing out churlish remarks

 

[mosssideblue]

Every single person is anxious about returning to wider society. getting on public transport, sitting in a workplace etc. Football's major risk is the fans. They wont be there. Football has been largely de-risked in terms of the impact it has on wider society. On the 1st June, were told primary school-children will return. Imagine the risk there. Many construction companies have been operating throughout. Nothing is risk-free.

The fans may not be in the stadiums, but to say the fans won't gather enmasse is naive imo

 

[Marvin]

I’d:

• cancel everything, declare the 19/20 season null and void. No title winners, no relegations, no promotions across the board. Not fair on those negatively effected, but the current situation is, unfortunately, unfair on so many.
• lobby UEFA to cancel all European football for 20/21 - which they should anyway, as far as I’m concerned, given the uncertainties around travel and the irresponsibility of demanding unnecessary travel from autumn onwards. If they won’t, withdraw English clubs for the 20/21 season. No issue then with European placings for this season.
• plan to start the 20/21 season in August/September/October/whenever is deemed fully safe. With all clubs aware that the league will start behind closed doors and probably finish that way too - unless we reach a point where it’s considered safe for spectators to attend. If the start has to be pushed back into winter, cancel either the FA cup or league cup (or both) to make space for fixtures.
• with those decisions made - concentrate all efforts and energies on redistributing the gargantuan sums of money flowing in and through the game to protect, as far as possible, the existence of smaller clubs and the livelihoods of those most at risk.

Pie in the sky, of course, especially not giving Liverpool the title and not playing European football.

Don’t really buy the line that the only way for clubs and football to survive is by starting up again immediately. A platitude peddled solely by those with a vested interest in resuming (administrators, club owners, broadcasters, pundits/journalists). Alternative forms of collective action are surely viable.

The 'gargantuan floods of money' that you want to re-distribute are evaporating. Football needs to retain its broadcasting deal or clubs will go under hence the scrabbling around making all kinds of concessions to clubs under threat of relegation so that they can get the majority vote they need to return. I'm not interested in watching it either but I'm not going to condemn football from trying to sort its own problems out.

I've already had emails from my 'employer' making all kinds of dire forecasts and advising that absolutely everything in under review. Every commercial organisation in the country is carrying out some kind of review and many of us will be asked to exit the lockdown in the coming weeks. We all have more to worry about than football at the moment. I get that entirely but I don't get the moral objections to the measures the game is taking.

 

[bluebrother55]

Kill me now

Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal have held talks with a German tech company who have developed an app which allows fans to send virtual cheers or jeers from their homes to stadiums in under a second, in an attempt to generate an atmosphere behind closed doors. [
@MailSport

Christ sake, not even Monty Python could think up something as daft as this.

 

[waspish]

Every single person is anxious about returning to wider society. getting on public transport, sitting in a workplace etc. Football's major risk is the fans. They wont be there. Football has been largely de-risked in terms of the impact it has on wider society. On the 1st June, were told primary school-children will return. Imagine the risk there. Many construction companies have been operating throughout. Nothing is risk-free.

Yeah wonder how many families will send there children to school? Suppose if there parents have to work they will or send them to there grandparents who then be at risk. Be interesting how Germany go on once if they get the go ahead to Play.

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

The 'gargantuan floods of money' that you want to re-distribute are evaporating. Football needs to retain its broadcasting deal or clubs will go under hence the scrabbling around making all kinds of concessions to clubs under threat of relegation so that they can get the majority vote they need to return. I'm not interested in watching it either but I'm not going to condemn football from trying to sort its own problems out.

I've already had emails from my 'employer' making all kinds of dire forecasts and advising that absolutely everything in under review. Every commercial organisation in the country is carrying out some kind of review and many of us will be asked to exit the lockdown in the coming weeks. We all have more to worry about than football at the moment. I get that entirely but I don't get the moral objections to the measures the game is taking.

That is what Project Restart is about. Sorting out football's problems, which I think is a remarkable singular problem - one of money stream. They have come up with a solution, which I think is in the best American tradition of finding a solution (wasn't it the Americans who came up with the phrase 'collateral damage'?), and it's one which safeguards as much of the loot as possible. But with some solutions there are 'latent dysfunctions' and it is these that the football apparatchiks couldn't give a tuppenny toss about - the players, the fans (particularly those who would see their daily dose of exercise coinciding with their team playing at a neutral ground, and any further spread of contagion as a result of the 'Project'. Once the season's fixtures are complete they can breath a vast sigh of relief, and fuck any thing and anyone else.

 

[Marvin]

Yeah wonder how many families will send there children to school? Suppose if there parents have to work they will or send them to there grandparents who then be at risk. Be interesting how Germany go on once if they get the go ahead to Play.

UK ha the advantage of being able to look and watch and see the effect. I think if families see that it has worked in other countries then they'll be 'relatively accepting' of it happening here.

This has been going on for 4 months now. It's going to be with us until there's a vaccine, or until we get immunity. Until then it affects everything including football. Fans aren't being asked to go to the games so why worry. I understand the indifference. I don't get why some get angry. Worry about sending your kids to school, or how you're going to get to work, or even whether you have work. Don't worry about City playing Bournemouth behind closed doors.

 

[bluemoon32]

I won't be watching, so no need for the app thanks.

Same here