The introduction of a winter break in English football appears further away than ever after talks across the game over fixture congestion broke down, leaving the Football League and the Football Association at loggerheads over the issue.
The EFL had said at the start of the season it was taking the initiative by proposing a so-called Whole Game Solution that would involve the expansion of the league to take in eight new clubs and a reorganisation into four divisions of 20 teams. It proposed to consult on the plans with clubs, some of which were concerned about potential lost revenue.
The plans were designed to provoke a discussion with the Premier League and the FA that could ultimately lead to the introduction of a winter break. But on Wednesday the EFL abruptly abandoned its proposals, saying that the FA’s unwillingness to consider moving FA Cup matches to midweek in rounds four and five to free up more weekends had made the plan unworkable.
“As a result of the FA’s decision, the board has been left with no option but to end the Whole Game Solution discussions as, in its current form, it is no longer viable. If the weekend slots are not available, then there is simply no way we can meet the financial conditions [to be no worse off] as outlined at the very outset,” the EFL chief executive, Shaun Harvey, said.
“The stance the FA has adopted has brought the discussions to a premature end, before fully understanding what the financial outcome from the creation of a new distribution model could be.”
The FA recently announced a new six‑year overseas deal for the FA Cup that guarantees £800m over that period and which the chief executive, Martin Glenn, said would be “transformative” to the organisation’s finances. As a condition of the deal it promised to keep FA Cup matches on weekends, but remains open to further negotiation over replays.
The FA immediately hit back, saying it was still open to discussions over fixture congestion. Glenn emailed Harvey last week to say that he did not see “sufficient advantage” in the EFL plan, highlighting the “massive economic value” of weekend FA Cup ties. Insiders said it had never indicated that it might be willing to give up weekend FA Cup ties and were surprised by the EFL’s sudden decision to abandon discussions.
“The FA remains fully committed to working with the EFL and the Premier League to address the issue of fixture congestion in the professional game,” an FA spokesman said. “This is why we are trialling the removal of sixth-round replays in the FA Cup this season and why we supported the EFL in consulting on its innovative ideas for reform. That commitment remains.”
Glenn told the Observer this month that the weekend slots must stay sacrosanct but that he remained “optimistic” a solution could be found that would allow for the introduction of a winter break which could be to the benefit of both England and Premier League clubs in European competition.
Any movement on the issue now appears dead in the water, however, with the EFL convinced a winter break would be impossible without the FA giving ground on weekend FA Cup ties. It already faced a struggle to convince its own clubs of the merits of the plan, which would have required a 90% majority at the annual meeting next summer.
