Talks to bring about a 10 team top division and integrate it with the Scottish Football League have hit a stalemate.
Eleven out of 12 clubs are needed to vote for change with Kilmarnock and St Mirren dead set against the plan for change.
The most interesting aspect of the proposed changes for Celtic is that it will open up six places within the structure for colt/u-23 teams to replace the now defunct reserve league.
An SPL statement tonight said: “Positive talks were held today at Hampden on the SPL Strategic Plan during the SPL General Meeting.
“The Strategic Plan, developed by the Strategic Review Group over the past year, is a comprehensive plan that promotes the interests of all 42 SPL and SFL clubs.
“No formal vote was taken at the meeting. However, a majority of clubs backed the Strategic Plan and it is hoped that the concerns of the remaining minority of clubs can be addressed over the coming weeks.
“It is hoped that a further SPL General Meeting of clubs can be convened before the end of the season, with a view to approving the Strategic Plan – a process that requires 11 of the 12 clubs to vote in favour.”
Highlights of the Strategic Plan
Overall league structure
• Merge the SPL with the SFL by inviting all 30 members of the SFL to become members of a new, 42-club league on the following basis:
* the existing four divisions become the responsibility of one enlarged league (referred to below as the ‘Premier League’, the ‘Championship’, ‘League One’ and ‘League Two’) as part of a future pyramid incorporating the South of Scotland League, the East of Scotland League, the Highland League and the Juniors
* the net revenues available for distribution from the newly enlarged league be split in the ratio 80 : 15 : 5 between Premier League : Championship : League One & League Two combined. On current revenues, this would result in £3.7million being given to the clubs outwith the Clydesdale Bank Premier League – more than double that at present. It would also mean that the club at the top of the second tier would receive around £500,000 in league distributions, against less than a sixth of that at present
League format
• Move to a 10-team format for the Premier League and 12 teams within the Championship
• Create an extra potential relegation place in the Premier League (and therefore an extra potential promotion place in the Championship) through the creation of play-offs between the top two divisions
• Mirror the German and Spanish leagues by allowing six under-23 Premier League ‘Colt’ teams to play in League Two
• Create a more even distribution mechanism within the Premier League, by redistributing money away from the top two positions in the league and reallocating it to the other eight clubs
What Kenny Dalglish said to Arsene Wenger
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Colt teams MUST be introduced, for Celtic and Rangers, as there’s now no ‘bridge’ between 19s and 1st team.
Unfortunately it will come too late for the current crop of 2nd year u19s, despite 10 clean sheets from 19 league matches, by and almost unchanged back 4, 3 of whom weren’t offered terms, for next year, despite being on the brink of their 2nd double….
I don’t know what more the bhoys could have done, but certainly if there was a ‘Colt’ side playing in the 1st or 2nd division, they would almost certainly be given the benefit of another year’s development.