Ligue 1: the LFP is considering a championship with 18 clubs from 2022

The famous sea serpent of French football will resurface: the reduction of Ligue 1 from 20 to 18 clubs has never been so present in the minds of French football decision-makers.

According to our information, during the board of directors of the Professional Football League (LFP) of April 21 carried out on Zoom, several voices - and not least - wanted to put the file back on the agenda.

Some have even gone so far as to imagine a Ligue 1 reduced to… 16 clubs.

"But it is rather to be sure to win the case at 18 clubs and give the impression of letting go of the ballast," confirms a member of the board present that day behind his screen.

Nothing has obviously been decided but it is clear that we are going straight ahead.

And maybe even from the 2022-2023 season.

Because there is fire everywhere in French football.

"

Read also Bordeaux dropped by its shareholder: should we be worried about the rest of Ligue 1?

Officially, this reduction would come under pressure from UEFA which, to launch its reform of the Champions League in 2024, is asking for such a change.

In reality, panic is general among the presidents who see drastically reduced TV rights, especially with Canal + which has just made it known that it is not a question for it of broadcasting the entire L1 but only the best posters.

"In fact, we must give pledges to Maxime Saada, the boss of Canal +, who asked for this reduction," explains a club president.

Going to 18 clubs would already make 38 fewer league games to broadcast.

"

Labrune agrees

The move to 18 clubs seems to be unanimous, starting with Vincent Labrune, the president of the LFP. It's just a matter of finding the right window to start the process. "Anyway, even if we say that it is for the sake of football, we will all lie," continues the president. The reality is that with the television rights cake melting, the number of beneficiaries must absolutely be reduced. It's human, isn't it? "

But if some, like the president of Lyon, Jean-Michel Aulas, supporter of an L1 to 16, want to accelerate, it is also to possibly take advantage of the economic weaknesses of several clubs. “The truth is that the financial problems of Bordeaux, Saint-Etienne or others can lead to bankruptcy filings, decrypts a member of the CA. And there, it would be enough not to replace these clubs by others. From the outside, I can imagine that it looks like a shark battle, but the reality today is that many presidents say to themselves that if in order to survive you have to let your neighbor die, they will. So frankly, 18 clubs instead of 20, that would really be a lesser evil. "