ENGLISH football could be set for its biggest change in decades after the Football League released plans to add a new division above Non-League.
The Football League revealed its radical proposal on Thursday, under the name of ‘A whole game solution’ which aims to add an extra division with 20 teams in each league from 2019-20.
The Championship, League One and League Two would become 20-team leagues, down from 24, with a new 20-team League Three added, taking the number of clubs in the structure from 92 to 100.
The plans also aim to all but end midweek matches with the Football League claiming fixture congestion is hurting the game.
Of the current 72 Football League clubs, 90 per cent would have to vote in favour for the plans to be put in place and a decision will be made at the League’s annual general meeting in June 2017.
Crucially for Non-League, there would be no relegation out of the Football League in 2018-19 and eight clubs – seemingly coming from the National League – would have to be found to fill the extra places.
That would then, of course, leave Non-League’s top tier with eight spaces to fill and it’s unclear where those teams would come from.
“The logical place for the extra clubs to come from (for League Three) would be promoting the next six teams from the National League,” said Football League chief executive Shaun Harvey.
“Some of those teams are already professional and the extension to the league may suit them.”
The National League have yet to comment directly on the plans, releasing a statement that read: “The National League has received the discussion paper “A Whole Game Solution” from The Football League.
“The proposals outlined therein appear to have potentially fundamental implications for our competition, and as such, the National League will consider these carefully in consultation with our clubs and discuss the matter with the game’s governing bodies at the earliest opportunity.”
The Football League claim clubs would not be worse off despite losing four home games a season, suggesting division sizes would keep more teams in the promotion and relegation battles for longer.
Accrington owner Andrew Holt said it had “no merit”, while Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn believes it “has value”.
Harvey said the Premier League and the FA have backed the idea in principle because “they can see potential benefits on an international basis”.
He added: “There are clear benefits for everyone. It is about taking a step back to try to work out what is best for English football.
“We hope that the Football League taking this first step is the catalyst for future change.”
