Old Firm exit talk and TV deal dominate Scottish football debate
The Journos looked ten years ahead, from league size and the TV deal to whether Celtic and Rangers might one day leave the Scottish Premiership.
By PLZ Soccer,
On The Journos, the panel set out to answer where Scottish football will be in ten years. They covered league structure, broadcasting, player development and the long-running question of whether Celtic and Rangers will stay in the Scottish Premiership.
League size and the Old Firm
The size of the Scottish Premiership was described as "the biggest bugbear". The panel tied the difficulty of changing the format to the four Old Firm games, which they said drive the TV deal. They also asked whether Scottish clubs should go "cold turkey" on what was called an "addiction" to buying abroad.
Cross-border leagues were on the agenda too, along with whether Celtic and Rangers "find another platform". The discussion drew a comparison with La Liga's duopoly.
The TV deal
Deloitte's review featured in a section on broadcasting. The panel examined why the Scottish TV deal sells 60 to 80 games when Scandinavia sells 240. They considered whether DAZN will come to the table and looked at pay-per-game, with DAZN discussed as a blueprint. SPL TV and the idea of a Scottish football subscription were also raised.
The BBC's cuts and their effect on Championship coverage came up, as did how people consume football now. The Champions League and Premier League were described as "devouring everything". One line heard in the debate was "I'm not going to football anymore".
Developing Scottish players
The panel cited the figure "38 out of 132" in relation to Scottish starters. They pointed out that Robertson, Christie and Tierney played 80 to 100 games first, and referred to Norway and a figure of 64%.
The bigger question
The phrase "the death throes of Scottish football" was put to the panel. The episode closed on the subject of Scottish football's "last rites" and whether Celtic and Rangers might be jumping ship.