FA Cup Changes

[WestYorksRoyal]

Forgetting about greed, power grabs etc., those at the top of the pyramid just seem highly incompetent. The super league was a shit show too.

The EFL have just come out and denied being consulted. This will be reversed. Piss up and brewery come to mind. But of course they don't need a regulator.

[Greatwesternline]

Forgetting about greed, power grabs etc., those at the top of the pyramid just seem highly incompetent. The super league was a shit show too.

The EFL have just come out and denied being consulted. This will be reversed. Piss up and brewery come to mind. But of course they don't need a regulator.

The weird way the FA seem to have come to this decision seems to me to be the disgrace here, rather than the actual axing of replays.

EFL clubs dishonour the cup up and down the country, fielding weakened teams. Championship teams actively are trying to get knocked out. League 1 teams rest players in the hope of getting the Championship. It probably matters most to League 2 teams.

Also, unless your reply is away at big PL team ground, you dont want the reply either. Maybe they could sweeten this pill by allowing small teams the choice to switch a home tie to an away tie.

And non league teams can still have their replays till round 2, by which time they are essentially all knocked out.

[windermereROYAL]

Surely letting clubs involved in European comps enter in round 4 would be an option?

[NathStPaul]

Surely letting clubs involved in European comps enter in round 4 would be an option?

Yeah that would be a great help to the lower league clubs who get through to round 3 and it won't devalue the competition at all.....

[windermereROYAL]

Surely letting clubs involved in European comps enter in round 4 would be an option?

Yeah that would be a great help to the lower league clubs who get through to round 3 and it won't devalue the competition at all.....

It happens in the league cup, they enter in round 3.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Feels like momentum is now against this and we can start a sweepstake on the inevitable climb down. I'm going for about 1.30pm and the statement will be read out by Sky at HT in the early kick off.

[Winston Biscuit]

create a pretend euro super league, invite 'the big 6' to join with all the riches they could want, get them to sign a contract to say they are bang up for it, but the small print will say that they are leaving the PL, then once they have signed tell them the truth and laugh at them as they are then out of the PL but not in any Euro League

[Sutekh]

Insanely stupid of the FA to go down this route after only agreeing it with the 20 PL clubs, meanwhile the other 72 clubs are just railroaded into a siding somewhere, shows you the utter contempt the FA have for the lower roots of the game. BTW if replays are to be banned why are they being banned from rounds 1 and 2 (maybe Parky has been complaining about fixture congestion impeding AFC Hollywood's progress to Premier League glory?).

[tmesis]

Weird how these managers who kick up a fuss about cup games and replays never say a word of criticism about the champions league having more games added.

[Winston Biscuit]

Premier League 'big clubs' need replays ditched because they are playing too many games

In other news Spurs & Newcastle are playing against each other in Australia 3 days after the PL season ends

[Clyde1998]

EFL statement:

The EFL wishes to clarify further its position in respect of yesterday’s Premier League and Football Association bi-lateral announcement over the removal of FA Cup replays and the role of the League’s representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB).

The agreement which now sees the abolition of replays from the competition format was agreed solely between the Premier League and FA. Ahead of the deal being announced there was no agreement with the EFL nor was there any formal consultation with EFL Clubs as members of the FA and participants in the competition.

In September 2023, the EFL did initially discuss with Clubs potential changes to the FA Cup format but only as part of a wider and more fundamental change to financial distributions. As is now clear, there has been no movement in this area since September.

This latest agreement between the Premier League and the FA, in the absence of financial reform, is just a further example of how the EFL and its Clubs are being marginalised in favour of others further up the pyramid and that only serves to threaten the future of the English game.

The EFL today calls on both the Premier League and the FA, as the Governing body, to re-evaluate their approach to their footballing partnership with the EFL and engage more collaboratively on issues directly affecting our Clubs.

A separate issue is the role of the EFL representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB) in agreeing to the 2024/25 overall fixture calendar. PGB is there to make technical decisions across the game as opposed to key policy decisions such as competition changes or formats.

Any decisions taken on the calendar involving EFL representatives are in no way an endorsement of the joint deal agreed between the FA and Premier League that imposes changes to the FA Cup competition format in isolation.

As part of the discussions the EFL representatives did challenge the position and were told that Clubs would be comfortable with no replays. They were effectively advised that, as a result, of it being an FA competition, the fixture list needed to be agreed as presented. It is also important to note that this matter was not discussed by the FA Cup committee, a separate group that oversees the competition across the professional and national game.

The EFL, therefore, criticising the changes.

[Dirk Gently]

As with most things in the world, it would be much easier if people were honest. The PL don't want their team to play less games, they just want them to play different "higher value" ones.

As has been said, the FA and PL have just decided this is the way forward without obvious consultation - if they had, and put forward the plans suitably it would likely have got buy in from all.

Even in the early rounds, there aren't really any major money makers (I know it is relative) Cray Valley got a home replay against Charlton which will have brought in massive earnings for them. Outside of that, Slough earnt a replay at Grimsby - they travelled all the way to Cleethorpes to play in front of only 800 more people than saw the home game (3079 v 2250) that is hardly the dream or a money maker.

Yep. The problem isn't replays per se - it's replays between clubs at the same level, which are generally an unattractive pain in the arse for everyone concerned. They only get interesting if there's a giant-killing option.

I thought clubs already had the option to agree beforehand not to have a replay, they just never exercise it. Perhaps they should.

[Clyde1998]

Reading FC statement:

Reading Football Club condemns Thursday's decision made by The FA and the Premier League to withdraw FA Cup replays.

As a club we have enjoyed some of the most memorable moments in our history through FA Cup replays. Extra time victories at both Anfield and The Hawthorns in the 2009-10 competition, and of course in 2015 where victory over Bradford secured a first semi-final place since 1927.

The decision by The FA and the Premier League was taken without consultation with the EFL, National League or the wider grassroots community, with the club first made aware of this change via Thursday's public statement, with no prior warning.

To alter the rules and regulations of the most-respected cup competition in the world is hugely disappointing, and reinforces the need for a strong and effective independent regulator to govern the National Game.

The Club therefore calls on The FA to suspend this decision and bring all stakeholders to the table in the interests of sporting integrity.

[Lighthouse]

All a massive overreaction. Let's be honest unless you get a big club in a replay they are massive loss makers for the majority of clubs and inconvenient for teams, players and fans. Just take our match at Eastleigh this season. We'd have had to push back the Oxford (H) match by a week to fit the replay in.

I also note our last home midweek replay attracted a crowd of 4.5k. Hardly the magic of the cup was it.

It should be noted at the time of this match. Reading were being deducted points for failure to pay tax on time. If they had drawn that match and won the replay they’d have earns an extra £60,000. They’d then have drawn Newport with the winners being drawn at home to Man Utd. Another potential huge windfall missed.
Should also be noted that Eastleigh drew at Newport and had a sell out for their replay earning significant extra revenue.

[Royal Rother]

If they are so concerned about the number of games / lack of rest for the PL players, maybe stop taking them away on those money-grabbing Pre-season tours.

[Sutekh]

EFL statement:

The EFL wishes to clarify further its position in respect of yesterday’s Premier League and Football Association bi-lateral announcement over the removal of FA Cup replays and the role of the League’s representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB).

The agreement which now sees the abolition of replays from the competition format was agreed solely between the Premier League and FA. Ahead of the deal being announced there was no agreement with the EFL nor was there any formal consultation with EFL Clubs as members of the FA and participants in the competition.

In September 2023, the EFL did initially discuss with Clubs potential changes to the FA Cup format but only as part of a wider and more fundamental change to financial distributions. As is now clear, there has been no movement in this area since September.

This latest agreement between the Premier League and the FA, in the absence of financial reform, is just a further example of how the EFL and its Clubs are being marginalised in favour of others further up the pyramid and that only serves to threaten the future of the English game.

The EFL today calls on both the Premier League and the FA, as the Governing body, to re-evaluate their approach to their footballing partnership with the EFL and engage more collaboratively on issues directly affecting our Clubs.

A separate issue is the role of the EFL representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB) in agreeing to the 2024/25 overall fixture calendar. PGB is there to make technical decisions across the game as opposed to key policy decisions such as competition changes or formats.

Any decisions taken on the calendar involving EFL representatives are in no way an endorsement of the joint deal agreed between the FA and Premier League that imposes changes to the FA Cup competition format in isolation.

As part of the discussions the EFL representatives did challenge the position and were told that Clubs would be comfortable with no replays. They were effectively advised that, as a result, of it being an FA competition, the fixture list needed to be agreed as presented. It is also important to note that this matter was not discussed by the FA Cup committee, a separate group that oversees the competition across the professional and national game.

The EFL, therefore, criticising the changes.

Good to see the FL backing the general feeling of its members. Hope the FA back down over it but that'll probably cause the PL to lose its **** so won't happen. Yet another demonstration of why it's so ****** silly to have two organisations managing what is effectively the same league competition.

[South Coast Royal]

This is all very much like our Tory Government-decide and announce something and then probably back-track and then say "we listened" (eventually)
As for this whole raft of changes if the money really does get down to the lower clubs then fine but in saying "grassroots" it is unclear how much will be paid to clubs at the various levels.

Will West Reading get £100, Reading Town £500 and Reading FC £30,000 ??

I agree with RR about the money-making tours both pre and post season but I guess nothing can be done about that.

I would prefer the CL to become a cup competition again which would mean a reduction in fixtures and revenue but they could increase the numbers in the PL again or just encourage tours all over the place-both would replace revenue that comes from all those often pointless group stage CL games.

BTW didn't Liverpool play something like 62 games in one of their successful seasons using just 15 players when medical care was so inferior as was dietary consideration , even transport slower and with games not necessarily played on pristine pitches and no such thing as 5 subs.?

Players today eh?

[WestYorksRoyal]

Tbf I think the advent of sports science and increased professionalism mean the intensity is higher these days compared to the 90s and prior; perhaps even the 00s.

But the increase in playing demands are coming from UEFA, the bigger Club World Cup and lucrative pre season tours. The traditions of the English game are an inconvenience these owners at the top can do without. A leak from the Super League farce showed that these guys expected opposition from their "legacy fans", and the disdain they feel for us is apparent in so many decisions. That is why we need the regulator; a body with power on the side of fans. My fear is it'll be toothless and not actually achieve what we want from it.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Could the EFL fight fire with fire and introduce more Carabao cup games? Say a couple of knock out rounds to whittle L2 and L1 clubs to 20. Then add in 44 Championship and PL sides and create 8 groups of 8 with a round robin stage, so 7 games each.

Top 2 from each group qualify for last 16. Then last 16, QFs and SFs are all 2 legged ties.

And then hey presto. If you want to reduce the game workload we can go back to the old format, but obviously we'd need to agree it alongside your FA Cup changes and the wider money deal.

Would love to see the response of Klopp and Guardiola.

[Silver Fox]

Considering he's managed his last FA and Rumbelows cup games I'd imagine Klopp's not overly fussed