The 53 football clubs that form the Spanish third division, except for clubs affiliated with La Liga and second division sides, have "formed a working group of 11 club representatives with a mission to 'give value' and 'make profitable'" a category affected by the economic crisis and "peculiarities in its scheduling," according to Conrado Valle of AS. Three weeks ago, "the clubs all met in Madrid to establish the foundations of the project." The group's "first meeting was scheduled for Tuesday." Among the objectives, "a change to the current competition format was not ruled out." Huracán Valencia President Toni Hernández, one of the 11 representatives, said, "The priority is to find a way for the product to sell better." One proposal that will be presented to the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the Spanish Footballers' Association (AFE) will "request an exclusive hour during weekends that would be designated for third division games." This would not "mean that all games would be played at the same time, but it would guarantee that every weekend, some games would clash with neither La Liga nor the second division." The group is "also looking to define the third division's profile." It is currently "considered semi-professional -- teams have to have at least six professional players." The "idea is to become either fully professional or be given amateur status" (AS, 3/4).
