Fixing Football

[Syn]

It's an accepted fact now that football is shit - and this is in no way related to us being garbage.

Ways to improve it or make it more interesting?

Goalline-tech is a given.

Video tech - I want a challenger system like in Tennis; each captain gets 1 challenge per match. That ensures they won't use it for stupid stuff like a shirt-pull on the halfway line and save it for the big decisions they felt were called wrong.

Salary cap - and all that financial fairplay shit that was supposed to come in soon 5 years ago. Emphasis on results-related pay.

Transparent ranking system for referees - evaluate proportion of right calls they made during each game and rank them. The challenger system would also help to see which ones are continuously getting the big decisions wrong. And we all know reffing's a hard job so the good ones at the top of the ranking would earn some kudos.

Retrospective punishment - for dangerous tackles, diving and stuff like that. But it'd be very hard to prove someone was diving even though it seems easy.

Go.

[Kano]

but football isn't shit?

[GP]

Syn for FIFA president

[GP]

but football isn't shit?

It is tbh

[Marc Overmars]

Some of the issues are just hardwired into the fabric of the game. Like diving or overreacting to a tackle in hope your opponent is punished. I remember an incident in an el classico game last year when Villa went down holding his foot, 2 Madrid players pulled him up and he didn't like it, then he started kicking off...erm, I thought you were hurt? There just doesn't seem to be any honour involved in the game now. I've never seen another sport where an inclination to cheat is so prevalent. You look at other sports where genuine pain is endured, then look at football, it's laughable.

I'm hopeful that FFP can sort out some of the financial issues because that is the single biggest killer. Although there will probably be plenty of loopholes I'm sure.

Players are also celebrities now, living in a different bubble to the rest of the world. It's not their fault because if you are offered the money, you take it, but it only serves to create contempt.

[Syn]

Scrap the Carling Cup and have conditional two-legged ties in the FA Cup. If a team loses by less than 2 goals, they have earned the right to make it into a two-legged game. e.g. Shrewsbury lose 2-1 to Aston Villa, it helps them get the revenues of an extra game at Villa Park (but it's not a replay, the scoreline just carries forward). It might also carry an incentive for non-teams like Sunderland and Stoke from butchering their pitches.

[Olivier's xmas twist]

Scrap the Carling Cup and have conditional two-legged ties in the FA Cup. If a team loses by less than 2 goals, they have earned the right to make it into a two-legged game. e.g. Shrewsbury lose 2-1 to Aston Villa, it helps them get the revenues of an extra game at Villa Park (but it's not a replay, the scoreline just carries forward). It might also carry an incentive for non-teams like Sunderland and Stoke from butchering their pitches.

Don't scrap it just not let the prem teams compete in it, let the lower leagues have a chance. Its so boring just seeing Prem teams win it and the fa cup.


Make the CL for Champions possibly second place teams. Maybe have the winner of the Fa cup get in the CL.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Football isn't shit but FIFA are, lamentably.

Change simulation from a bookable offence to an offence than can carry a ban, this can probably only be determined after a match for fairness but it would have an impact. As long as it remains only a yellow card offence though then nothing can change.

Kill Blatter.

And Phil Collins.

[Fats]

Cant scrap the League Cup for the Premiership. Sponsorship rules

Champions League should only be for champions and the money should be distributed to grass roots.

[Syn]

Change simulation from a bookable offence to an offence than can carry a ban, this can probably only be determined after a match for fairness but it would have an impact. As long as it remains only a yellow card offence though then nothing can change.

I agree. I think it's very difficult to 'prove' simulation in, say, 95% of cases. But if you place a heavy punishment whenever it is obvious - like it was when they banned-and-then-unbanned Eduardo then even players who generally fall in the 95% will stop for fear of getting caught.

It would create controversy..."why is x a definite dive while y isn't?" but controversy is caused anyway when these dives go unpunished. It should get the backing of the little Englanders on MOTD and the media considering it's an exclusively foreign trait. It'd be quite good to see some division 1 players get pulled up for it.

Definitely impossible to prove play-acting for fouls though. No way to prove a player wasn't hurt, I think. Even in the David Villa case that Moe described above.