Should Football (soccer) take a lesson from American sports?

I can see the arguments for a draft, but can't see how it would work. As you say, there is a pyramid system in English (and other countries) football. It is possible for a team to go up or down not only within the Football League structure, but enter and exit the league.

The other issue is that it is the professional teams, through academies, that develop the players in the UK and Europe, whereas the NBA takes players from college. At the moment, though the system is not perfect, clubs are compensated if a young player moves on.

Of course, another issue is that none of the European teams are franchises. The Premier League simply can't exercise the control over teams that the NBA must be able to do.

I have to admit that I like the system in football more than the American sports, which I perceive as 'manufactured' sports. My own team, Dunfermline Athletic, tried to play with the big boys, paid the price and are suffering just now - but these ups and downs are part of being a football fan. The club is still, in a lot of cases, linked to the community, and people still (despite the rise in the 'Surrey Man United fans') tend to stick with their team. How can you become emotionally engaged when the league just decides to move a franchise, as was the case in the NFL with the LA Raiders?

Rob Robson
Chartered Sport & Exercise Psychologist

I fully agree that the dedication shown by fans to teams in all leagues is a testiment to the love that people have for the game and the community spirit that is built within these clubs. At the same time, it seems that this community spirit is being removed from the major clubs through the business aspects of the game. Personally, I would see the take-over of clubs by businessmen and the resultant power that they have over the club as more manufactered sport than in the American system, Manchester City being an obvious example at the moment. I do agree that the movement of franchises within America does not do much to engage the community, the plight of the Seattle franchise in the NBA being the most recent victim of this issue (or at least it is likely to be so in the near future). Although, you only need to look at the MK Dons to see that this is not always such a negative move. So, if drafts are not the answer then what are the options available? Or are the fans happy to have 4/5 teams dominate the league with those promoted most likely to face relegation the following season? In the last Match of the Day that I saw, the pundits suggested that those being promoted from the championship would have to spend at least £45 million in order to stand any chance of staying up. I'm not suggesting that drafts are necessarily the best way forward, we've highlighted enough issues to show that it would never be workable, but does a change need to be made in order to lvel the playing field a little? Salary caps for example?

I'd like to think that salary caps would be an answer. People would then argue "who should get the money, if not the players", but one answer to this might be to go easier on the fans and reduce ticket prices, which have become ridiculous.

The big issue with capping is that it would have to be introduced worldwide, by FIFA, as players would otherwise simply move elsewhere to play, leaving the British game with no product to sell. That's one of the issues of being a global sport.

Rob Robson
Chartered Sport & Exercise Psychologist

UK based players wouldn't stand for salary caps and if caps were put in place the players would just go play elsewhere (i.e., Spain, Italy) to earn their money, leading to a drop in overall quality. A draft in the UK would never work as there is no college system or similar young player development programme. In my view, the only way the EPL will achieve parity is through more and more rich foreigners plugging money into non-top 4 teams thus significantly reducing the gap in spending power.