Rick Parry speaks on the future of the EFL Cup, the much talked about three up three down proposal and ‘trying to avoid another Bury’.
As part of their vision, the Football League is open to discussing “pretty much all possibilities” regarding the future of EFL Cup.
Another topic of conversation is the three promotion spots from the National League into League Two, something we could be seeing in the near future.
This month will see the publication of the long-awaited white paper by the UK government, which proposes reforms to shake-up football.
The EFL supports the idea of establishing an independent regulator for football in England with Rick Parry, the chief executive of the EFL, repeatedly calling for an end “evil” parachute payments to clubs that are relegated to the Premier League. He claims these payments only increase clubs’ desperateness to get to the top flight.
There are fears that the expansion of the Champions League in 2024, and it’s impact on the rest of the calendar, could pose a threat to the future of the EFL Cup.
Chief executive Rick Parry says it is one of several big issues the game needs to address.
More ⤵️#BBCFootball
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) February 20, 2023
He estimates that the Championship has suffered total losses of around £300m to £400m, while admitting that there are other issues in the game that require attention.
Parry is aware that the Champions League expansion plans from 2024 which will no doubt put more pressure on the football schedule, putting his organisation’s flagship competition at big risk with some talks of it being got rid of altogether, while others suggest refuse entry to those teams who qualify for Europe.
“Last year we had a record TV audience of four million for the Carabao Cup final,” said Parry, as per BBC Sport. “Attendances are up near record levels.
“If you ask the fans of Newcastle and Manchester United whether it matters, they would probably say it does.
“But of course we recognise there are challenges with the calendar. Are we prepared to have constructive dialogue, given those challenges? Yes, of course. We are prepared to consider pretty much every possibility.
“The calendar, development of young players and redistribution all need to be looked at together.”
Another matter needing sorting is the National League demands for three promotion places. Since 2004, the top tier of non league which sees just two EFL spots. No side that has gone up since then has come straight back down the following year.
EFL chief executive Rick Parry on promotion from the National League:
“We are having a lot of discussion about 3 up, 3 down”.
“We haven’t put proposals to our clubs yet, but do we envisage that being part of the package we put forward? Yes, 100%.”https://t.co/ACaWwFuxon pic.twitter.com/8mJRIac2nk
— Ollie Bayliss (@Ollie_Bayliss) February 20, 2023
“We are having a lot of discussion about three up, three down,” added Rick Parry. “We absolutely recognise the need to look downwards as well as up. We have to be consistent in our approach.
“We haven’t put proposals to our clubs yet, but do we envisage that being part of the package we put forward? Yes, 100%.”
Rick Parry thinks the welfare of the football pyramid and the European Super League (ESL) threat are the biggest examples of a need for a regulator for football.
In recent years, more so than ever before, clubs face financial difficulties and failed takeovers, with Bury being the most high profile one having been expelled from EFL in August 2019.
The list of clubs who came close to the brink or as fans call it, ‘slowly being killed off’, goes on and on. Something needs to change for the sake of English football.
“We don’t want another Bury and we are working day and night to ensure it doesn’t happen,” said Parry. “But you could say the next one will be the government’s responsibility.
“Given the outcry we had at the time, you have to assume they get that the pyramid matters, otherwise they wouldn’t be doing this. We think any rational regulator looking at the current system has to say it is broken.
“The dependence on owner funding is bad. Craig Hemmings (son of long-time Preston owner Trevor who died in 2021) wrote to supporters on behalf of the Preston ownership.
“Preston are a really well-run, sensible club. They are not chasing the dream and not over-spending. But he pointed out their annual budget is £24m and. of that, the Hemmings family provide £12m every year. Who replaces the Hemmings family? Who comes to Preston and says ‘starting point £12m-a-year’.
“There is the possibility for broadening ownership and fan ownership if you don’t have to start with a massive subsidy.
“Any rational regulator trying to produce solvency, looking at the pyramid, will come up with a solution.”
This is what fans are saying as Rick Parry speaks on the future of the EFL Cup, three up three down and ‘trying to avoid another Bury’…
@mike_overill: It’ll only happen if Wrexham don’t go up
@baby_niners: Will the National League promote 3 teams from each North & South then as well or does none of this matter once Wrexham are promoted?
@slough_womble: This should of happened years ago only right that 3 go up, 2 automatically & 1 via playoffs, as seen the clubs who do go up are consistently holding their own in L2 and most have since played L1 while clubs being relegated have not necessarily bounced straight back up
@Crashnburn2uk: To ease pressure on the calendar, reduce all leagues to 20 teams and create a 4th league with teams from the bottom half of division 2 and the top half of the national league. Then have 3 up 3 down right from the championship down to and including the national league.
@GeeCCee: Given that each member club would have to vote such a proposal through, do you think that would also mean greater funding being passed on to EFL clubs who are relegated to the NL? And if so, from which source? Otherwise I can’t see them wanting to agree to it.
@jeffers49: This is something that should have happened a long time ago. This is not only good news for Wrexham but also the other 23 clubs in this league.
@drc6469: Hope they do this every year national league teams prove they are good enough for league 2 the top 10 in the division would easily compete with league 2 teams
@Dave56944704: Why change it now? We (Tranmere) had to get promoted the hard way. Teams who are in the National league now voted against it when they were in league 2. So tough! 🙄⚽️
@andybrook1: Long overdue.
@andrewhewitt1: FFP needs to implemented in the Vanarama before discussions start about more promotion places. The absolute failure of the @EFL to do anything to promote or sustain the profile of League 2 makes owning and investing in a Vanarama club more attractive than a traditional L2 one.
@OrientMeatPie: League clubs won’t support it. Why should they? They had to fight their way out so a certain moneybags team that isn’t good enough to win the league can get a free pass? I say nah-let them go out to Bromley. In the playoffs. It will be funny.
@LancsIron: The @EFL probably want 3 up 3 down as it will rid them of badly run clubs and bring better ran clubs back into the league. The @TheVanaramaNL will as a result become poorer whilst those poor clubs sort their troubles out…
@brad_little11: Nothing this league does will impress me because of their decision to have us play fucking 10th placed Barnet in the play offs and lose. Good decision mind
@jpmacca91:
3. Wrexham
Playoff semi final: Wrexham 1-2 Barnet
@WillB_2003: So much deadwood at the bottom of League 2 so this makes sense (I’m not biased 🤣) Long overdue as well, but will stop teams from the fun of missing out on promotion with 95+ points
@DaleyBlindFC: It’s clear the quality is there for it, but it only really benefits a select few clubs so if it’s gonna happen the EFL and NL will need to leverage it heavily on the League 2 clubs who are more at risk from it.
@ChrisLukeJones: 3 up 3 down I feel like will fall in popularity if Notts and Wrexham come up this year. You’d end up with Woking Solihull and Boreham Wood one year and the same people arguing for it now would be crying if that happened
@ollie_walker: Needs this asap. Notts County and Wrexham are miles ahead of everyone else this season. Will make a mockery of it if one of them doesn’t get promoted.
@Tom__WD: Shouldn’t happen for a host of reasons and can’t see it happening either. As many others will have and will point out, it’s only largely in conversation again due to so called big clubs struggling to get out despite spending absurd amounts of money.
@KentWomble: Absolutely this should happen. And I’d go further and incorporate the NL as EFL League 3. The non-league pyramid apex should be NL North and South…
@TimScales94: Make National League clubs abide by FFP then
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