Premier League set for reforms to avoid ESL-type situation, Possibility of using Germany’s 50+1 rule

Championship playoffs for Premier League qualification

Premier League reforms underway

The Premier League is all set to introduce a new rule which will prevent any of its clubs from joining a breakaway League in future.

Recently six Premier League clubs tried to form the European Super League along with six other European clubs, and the Premier League are thought to be disappointed with the situation, and they are now looking to amend the rules which will prevent these events from occurring again in future.

According to reports, a governance review is already underway with Premier League Chief Richard Masters, who is working along with the FA.

The existing set of regulations have a list of other competitions the Premier League teams can participate in however the FA are now looking to remove any ambiguity in the rules and they are looking to add the punishment of expulsion from the League.

The likes of Manchester United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham announced their participation in the European Super League on Sunday but they had to withdraw two days later following the massive backlash from the media and the fans.

Germany’s 50+1 rule

Meanwhile, there have been calls for Germany’s 50 + 1 rule to be implemented in English football.

The rule states that the German football clubs will always own a majority of their voting rights which means that the members and the fans have a 51% voting majority when it comes to any significant decisions.

Commercial parties can share their suggestions to the clubs and its fanbase but the ultimate decision rests with the members and the fans and nothing can proceed without their approval.

Such a move would put the power back into the hands of the fans and it is highly likely that the Premier League fans will welcome such an idea.

Recently Boris Johnson announced that he wants a bigger role of fans in the governance of football clubs and culture secretary Oliver Dowden also revealed that the government could look at how the German 50 + 1 rule could be adopted in England.

The adoption of the German method is a distinct possibility in future and it will be interesting to see if the fans can carve out an important role for themselves in the running of their football clubs.