LogFAQs > #976852414

ZaziGuado posted...

I'm no expert in soccer, but I think English soccer is beginning to experience an issue with all that money. As a fan of a team that used to yo-yo between Tier 1 and Tier 2, the larger gap in ability between the teams in each tier is stark and it seems really hard for a team to plant roots in the Premier League before being kicked down to tier 2 again. At that point they have a lot of money spent on their roster and no longer have the income to justify that unless they are able to bounce right back up. Meanwhile there's only ever like five teams that have a chance of winning the Premier League.

There's more nuance to it than that and surely somebody who has been a fan longer than I have can expand on it, but the overall health I don't think is as great as the money would suggest.

Yeah, soccer is a bubble that will probably burst someday. Money is concentrated at the top, but the top clubs rely very heavily on smaller clubs existing to find the best players. The main thing that might keep it afloat is that literally every nation in the world cares about soccer, and there's always room for expansion or a new country to get big and bring new audiences. Don't think it's anything to do with the format though, it would probably be even more wealthy and concentrated at the top if it integrated the playoff style, especially if it meant an end to promotion/relegation. Big clubs have been trying to do it for years, but they're too integrated with local communities and culture, and too reliant on smaller clubs who have zero desire for a playoff system to change that (for now, anyway).