A World Without Relegation (October 2011)

Recently, a story came out about American owners in the English Premier League and how they may want to get rid of relegation. One anonymous source thought that one or two more American owners would cause a vote to create solid leagues that do not relegate or promote teams between themselves.

This got me thinking. First, are the Americans who own teams in this league that selfish that they would change a tradition that has been occurring since well before the formation of the EPL? Second, how would this change the competitiveness of the league? These are two scary questions that I am going to answer in honor of Halloween.

The idea that a few American owners would propose such a change is pretty huge. Relegation is the idea that the bottom three teams are demoted to the league below while the top three teams from that league are brought up to the EPL. The FA, which is in charge of the English soccer leagues, would have to decide who stays in which league. Furthermore, other incentives would be necessary to keep teams at the bottom of the table competitive at the end of the season. Usually, teams in the top half are still fighting for spots in European competitions, but with nothing available for the bottom half, competition may go stale.

Just because this is a foreign concept to US sports fans does not mean it is wrong or ineffective. In fact, relegation should be considered by leagues like MLB and the NBA to make every season even more exciting. Bottom feeders are encouraged to compete through the end of the season and lower league teams are encouraged to finish in the top three so they can face better competition the following season. There is no such thing as an easy game for any team. In fact, facing a team fighting relegation at the end of a season is just as dangerous as facing a team at the top.

Without the concept of relegation in the EPL and its associated leagues, English soccer would suffer immensely. Fewer players would be able to enjoy the spotlight of the Premier League because their teams would remain in lower leagues. Financially, teams could not afford to stay afloat if they did not receive the fiscal benefits of playing at a higher level. Teams in the bottom half would have nothing to really fight for and would suffer lower game energy and confidence. Pillow fight matches would mean lower fan attendance and those games would not be televised. League play would become stale and players would fight to transfer to top-flight teams. There would be no “middle class” of teams. Finally, the EPL would struggle financially from lack of table-wide competition and be forced to either shut down or have fewer teams.

Basically, getting rid of relegation would be the biggest buzzkill to English club soccer history. It would benefit us to consider relegation for American sports; the lack of an open mind to new ideas has become evident in professional sports leagues in this country with lockouts and rifts between owners and players. Instead of trying to imperialize other leagues around the world, we should be receptive to other ideas for keeping competition at its highest level. Viva la relegation!

Relegation allows for excitement all season long (May 2011)

With a huge final matchday coming up this Sunday, I figured it would be a great time to talk about how great relegation is for the sport of soccer. Relegation, you ask? For all you unfamiliar with the idea or how it works, let me explain. Every year in the English Premier League, teams fight not only for the top five spots (which qualify them for European competitions the following season), but fight to stay out of the bottom of the table. Each season, the teams who finish in the bottom 3 will be relegated to the League Championship (the AAA league of English club soccer). The top 3 teams from the League Championship then move up to the Premier League.

At the end of the season, while teams at the top of the table are vying for a title, the teams in the lower half have reason to field their best lineups and fight for every point. Staying up means a team can attract better players, play in front of larger crowds, participate in higher levels of competition, draw more sponsors and ultimately, make more money. And at the end of the season, instead of slacking off in hopes of a better draft spot, teams are playing at 100% effort, making for great sports viewing.

Every season, we hear accusations of last place teams in MLB, the NBA, and the NFL dogging it because they have no reason to perform well (with more of an incentive to finish poorly). However, if these teams were subject to relegation, you would see a full season of effort. The best matchups this season have not only included the Chelsea’s and Manchester United’s, but the Wigan’s and Blackpool’s and Wolverhampton’s as well. There has been no slacking off or questionable lineups to argue about on Around the Horn (not that Woody Paige knows anything about soccer).

Plus, next season when we see Queens Park Rangers, Norwich and one other team that is yet to be determined, the Premier League will experience new players, new fans, and new venues. Not only do the fans of these freshly promoted teams have a chance to see how they stack up against the top teams, but their players are also rewarded for playing hard all season.

While it is 99.99999% unlikely that American sports will ever adapt this idea, it would be easiest to incorporate into Major League Baseball. While the NBA and NFL would probably suffer due to a less-than-elite level of play, baseball already has a good structure to incorporate relegation (see ya later, Pittsburgh Pirates). There are levels from Rookie Ball all the way up to the majors, so the major hurdle has already been overcome. Obviously, MLB would have to do away with team-specific farm systems, but expanded regular season rosters would help to deal with this problem. Of course this is not something that could be implemented in a season; it would require a paradigm shift in sports thinking in this country.

Could relegation work in American sports? Sure. Will I or my children or my children’s children see it? Who knows. All I know is this Sunday will offer the most exciting relegation battle in recent history! Make sure to tune in.