Integrity: Let’s secure that pyramid of love
Martin Cloake delves into the benefits of the English pyramid system and why Fair Game believes it should be sacred
THE English football pyramid matters. When fans of clubs in the top division came out so quickly and forcefully against plans to lay waste to the pyramid and break away into a European Super League, the embrace of the principles of the pyramid was at the heart of it. Understanding that is key to understanding the value of what we have, and why Fair Game is pushing measures to strengthen the pyramid.
Many in the game assume that, in the end, fans just want what’s best for the club they support. The backlash from fans of the self-appointed big six showed an understanding of why the game is the commercial and cultural success it is, and prompted the government to talk of it as part of the fabric of the nation. Fine words but too idealistic? Many would have had you believe that was the case. The hard reality was that commitment to the ideal of the pyramid holed the ESL project below the waterline.
There is little doubt the ESL plotters genuinely think if they can introduce a bit of promotion and relegation to the next iteration of their scheme they’ll get their way. They’ve missed the point. The pyramid is our connection to the game as a real thing, a living entity – not a brand of TV entertainment. Its ordinariness is why we hold it close, it is what imbues a simple game with so much value and meaning.
It’s easy to dismiss such talk as romantic tosh, especially as the principle upon which the pyramid is based has become so strained. Sure, it’s still theoretically possible for a team to work its way to the top on merit, but the chances of – to take an example that made an impression on me at a formative age – a team winning promotion, winning the league, and winning the European Cup in successive years are pretty much impossible.
The changes that would prevent that haven’t just happened. They are the product of specific decisions, and of a destructive line of thinking. The pyramid has been undermined because those at the top want to make sure there’s no chance of them not being at the top. Wanting to stay successful is fine, preventing others from having the chance to be successful isn’t. Fans understand this.
In England, the modern football product has been built on the basis that it is possible to go from the bottom to the top, that everyone has a chance of success when every new season starts. Every distortion of that makes the game less valued. The ESL was part of a vision that put distance between fans and the game, that sought to create a closed circle of games played for the sake of being played in order to attract advertisers and provide content for media companies. Think late-era The Simpsons when it was always on and no one cared, rather than the vibrancy of the early days.
People who understand the true value of the game know why a properly-functioning pyramid is infinitely more attractive than a permanent showreel.