Scottish football "will take a significant step" toward embracing summer football when a "radical new format for the League Cup allows the re-introduction of a winter break next season," according to Stephen Halliday of the SCOTSMAN. The Scottish Professional Football League "unveiled details of the League Cup revamp which is being backed by BT Sport" in a four-year TV deal worth around £8M ($12M). The tournament will kick off on July 16 next year "with a new first-round group stage." It "will involve the 38 SPFL clubs not involved in European qualifiers at that time of the season, along with the winners of both the Highland and Lowland Leagues." The winter break, first introduced following the formation of the Scottish Premier League in '98, was scrapped in '03 "because of fixture congestion." SPFL CEO Neil Doncaster said, "The new format of the Scottish League Cup marks an exciting new chapter for the competition and sees Scottish football leading the way with a number of innovations" (SCOTSMAN, 12/8). In London, Paul Forsyth wrote an 80-match group stage "will be contested over five dates in July, allowing a winter break to be re-introduced in January." It "will shorten the close season for many clubs and move the Scottish game a step closer to summer football." A group stage will comprise eight sections of five teams "who play each other once." In the second stage, "it will revert to its traditional knockout format with the eight group winners and four best runners-up joined by the four who were involved in Europe." The group stage, which has not been a feature of the League Cup since '83, "will use a points system thought to be a first in world football." While there will still be three for a win and one for a draw, teams which draw "will contest a penalty shootout, the winners of which will earn a bonus point" (LONDON TIMES, 12/8).
SHOWPIECE FINAL: In Glasgow, Stewart Fisher wrote the tournament "will conclude, as usual, with a showpiece final in March, with the earlier start to the season and one less round during the campaign meaning that a two-week winter break will return for Ladbrokes Premiership sides at least from January 2016." Outfits in the Championship and Leagues One and Two "are still being consulted on whether they would rather take the time off too or else play right through" (HERALD SCOTLAND, 12/7). The BBC reported Scottish FA CEO Stewart Regan said that he was in favor of an "earlier start and winter break." Regan: "I think there's an acceptance that there needs to be some degree of change. Something has to be done to try to deal with fixture congestion. Our bigger clubs are keen to ensure they can be competitive in Europe and we need to consider their needs as well in making sure they are as prepared as they possibly can be going into European fixtures" (BBC, 12/7). The LONDON TIMES reported a "bigger and better" TV deal, more opportunities for smaller clubs to take a share of the money "and an end to the stagnant competition that has struggled to attract spectators, never mind sponsors, in recent years." What is "not to like about the new Scottish League Cup?" Assuming the group stages do not eventually turn the public off, as they did before they were abolished in the '80s, "there is a lot to like about the SPFL’s radical overhaul of Scotland’s ‘second’ knockout competition." Scottish football "is no different from its counterparts abroad: the rich are growing richer and the poor poorer." But "it will come as a pleasant surprise to the country’s minnows that the revamped League Cup, which will be introduced in the summer of next year, appears to offer them a helping hand." The inclusion of the Lowland and Highland League champions "is symptomatic of Scottish football’s attempt to become a meritocracy." Lowland League side Edinburgh City Chair Jim Lumsden "could hardly disguise his delight when he heard the news." He said, "That’s fantastic." Lumsden said that the expansion of the League Cup "reflects the opportunity Scottish football now affords its smaller clubs." He said, "We’re not stuck outside the sweetie shop, watching the big bairns eating them. We’ve got a chance to get in there now" (LONDON TIMES, 12/8).
IN THE DARK: The SCOTSMAN reported Heart of Midlothian Owner Ann Budge claimed that "she was left in the dark about the changes to the Scottish League Cup format." Budge claims she only found out about the details "when they were announced publicly." The Tynecastle chairwoman "welcomed the changes which will see the return of the group format and an improved TV deal." But she "would like to have been consulted more on the changes." Budge: "I would have liked to have known a little bit more about them before they were publicly announced" (SCOTSMAN, 12/8). The Scotland DAILY RECORD reported league bosses "sent details of the revamp to all 42 member clubs, as well as to Highland and Lowland League chiefs on Monday afternoon -- hours before they were announced on websites such as dailyrecord.co.uk." Budge said, "I'm all for change, we do need change. ... So I'm not saying it's wrong, just that I would have liked to have known more about it before it was announced" (DAILY RECORD, 12/8).
