The attack on dogmas.
Barely elected president of the Professional Football League, Vincent Labrune had shown himself open to structural reforms in French football;
for the ex-leader of Olympique de Marseille, nothing seems immutable, not even the format of Ligue 1, as he recently indicated in an interview with the
Journal du Dimanche
: "We must redesign the format of our competitions.
It is mandatory, otherwise we will die of boredom in terms of entertainment and exhaustion in terms of investments, ”he said.
So what are the possible formulas to modernize Ligue 1 and thus make it more attractive and competitive?
Sport24-Le Figaro
make a list of possibilities, drawn from past formats, other championships and even other sports.
A reduction in the number of clubs and a Ligue 1 to 18 teams
The idea that emerges the most when discussing a modification of the competition format of Ligue 1 is a reduction in the number of clubs, with a passage from twenty to eighteen teams in the elite.
This debate regularly returns to the table (especially when French football is going through difficult times) and divides the main protagonists of the ecosystem.
Didier Deschamps, the coach of the France Team, said he was in favor of such a development while Vincent Labrune, who had yet raised the question, backpedaled by deciding against in the columns of
L'Equipe
.
“My goal is not to go to 18 clubs.
It is to reinvent French football through different points, he said.
We have to work on four axes: relations with broadcasters, the creation of a commercial subsidiary within the League, the format of the competitions, which I never said was with 18 clubs and the relationship with the fans, which must be placed more at the heart of our system. ”
>> READ ALSO
- Deschamps (very) favorable to a Ligue 1 with 18 clubs: "The more the elite is tightened, the better"
Defenders of such a change argue that with fewer clubs the championship would be more attractive.
For his part Christophe Lepetit, sports economist, recently told
AFP
that "there may be an increase in quality and uncertainty which will arouse interest".
But nothing guarantees that the show offered would be better with this reform because the quality of play depends on multiple factors (individual level of play, level of collective play, playing philosophy, etc.) which are not directly linked to the number of clubs. participants in the competition.
In addition, with this new formula, Ligue 1 would not become more unpredictable.
The winner would still be - almost - known in advance.
Paris Saint-Germain, driven by its vastly superior financial power, would (no doubt) still dominate the championship, even if it would then take place over thirty-four days and no longer over thirty-eight.
To see another team, such as AS Monaco in 2017 or Montpellier in 2012 (at the start of the Qatari era in Paris), becoming champion of France would remain exceptional.
Thus, it is not certain that the championship is more attractive to fans of the round ball.
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What about the competitiveness of French clubs on the European scene?
For those who defend it, a reduction in the number of formations in the elite would improve the results of the French teams in the European cups.
A hypothesis which is based on two main arguments.
First, with fewer clubs the talents would be less scattered;
which would improve the overall level of residents of Ligue 1. Second, the elite formations would also be less likely to share TV rights, their main source of income;
which would allow them to recruit better players or make new investments.
But it is still necessary that the broadcasters agree to pay the same sums of money for fewer matches: "It seems to me extremely risky to estimate that we will keep the size of the cake as it is by reducing the number of clubs ", considers on
Eurosport
Pierre Rondeau, sports economist, who also specifies that such a reform could not see the light of day in all cases before 2024" at the time of the sale of new TV rights ".
A system with a regular season and play-offs like in Championship or Top 14
Ligue 1 could also be inspired by the system set up in the EFL Championship (the second English division) or in the Top 14;
namely a regular season followed by play-offs.
In England, the first two in the standings are directly promoted to the Premier League while the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th compete in play-offs, with semi-finals and final, to obtain the third ticket for the elite;
in the first division of French rugby, the first two in the standings are directly qualified for the semi-finals and the teams classified between 3rd and 6th place play play-offs to reach the last four.
This model has a great advantage in terms of interest.
The champion is not known in advance since even a club finishing 5th or 6th can claim to become champion of France, like Castres Olympique who lifted the Brennus Shield in 2017-2018 by finishing in 6th place of the regular season.
With this system, the hegemony of Paris Saint-Germain could be disturbed;
a real plus for the attractiveness of the championship.
However, the attractiveness of a competition is not determined solely by the uncertainty of the winner.
It is necessary that the proposed spectacle - the quality of play etc.
- or at the rendezvous, and this system should not a priori improve it.
Likewise, the competitiveness of French clubs on the European scene should not be greater with this model;
worse, it could decrease since it would be more difficult for some clubs to settle permanently among the best teams, and therefore to progress.
In addition, with this competition format, the question of the allocation of places for the European Cups arises.
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A model inspired by the Jeep Elite with regular season and playoffs
Another possibility is to draw inspiration from French basketball.
In Jeep Elite, the model looks like the one presented above.
But instead of having a system of play-offs then semi-finals and a final between the various qualifiers, the elite of French basketball organizes playoffs between the top eight of the regular season.
The first of the classification faces the eighth, the second the seventh, the third the sixth and the fourth the fifth.
This format makes the competition even more unpredictable, with its pros and cons (the same as above).
The winner is very uncertain because the 7th and 8th in the regular season can believe in their chances of winning the title.
However, again, the competitiveness of French teams in Europe could be undermined with this system.
It would be even more difficult for clubs to win among the best in France in the long term.
>> READ ALSO
-
Ligue 1 with 18 clubs: "this is not the right time", believes Le Graët
Without going so far as to copy the Jeep Elite model, Ligue 1 could be inspired by it.
Why not just imagine the playoffs between the top four teams in the championship?
The suspense would thus be revived and the best teams could more easily establish themselves at the top of the basket;
thus favoring (normally) their performances in European cups.
But if with such a model the championship would be partly more attractive, the problem related to the spectacle would not be resolved.
Not sure then that it is more followed by fans of football, in France or abroad, and that TV rights take off.
Finally, French football could take up the idea of the Leaders Cup, this competition of the National Basketball League (LNB) bringing together the best eight Jeep Elite teams in the middle of the regular season which makes it possible to animate the basketball season. through its very short format (one cut over three days).
To see, however, whether the football world, which is rather favorable to a lighter calendar, is ready to welcome the return, in another form, of the League Cup.
Thus, changing the competition format of Ligue 1 can help improve, in part, the attractiveness of the French league.
But the perfect formula does not exist and no model seems to be able to solve all the problems, including those related to the spectacle offered and to competitiveness at European level;
even by mixing the different systems that it is possible to imagine (Ligue 1 to 18 clubs and play-offs or playoffs).
The task promises to be difficult for Vincent Labrune.
Read also
Deschamps (very) in favor of a Ligue 1 with 18 clubs: "The more the elite, the better"
Ligue 1 with 18 clubs: "this is not the right time", believes Le Graët