Fuming EFL claim they had no say in abolition of FA Cup replays as they blast FA and Premier League in damning statement
THE EFL have blasted the Premier League and FA over the revamping of the FA Cup and Premier League season schedules.
On Thursday the FA announced FA Cup replays were being scrapped along with other changes including the removal of the mid-season break and a £33million increase in funding for grassroots football.
However, after furious backlash from fans, the EFL have joined the chorus of dissent against the decision.
In a statement released today, the fuming EFL said there had been no agreement between it and the FA and Premier League over the changes which will come into play from next season.
A statement said: “The EFL wishes to clarify further its position in respect of yesterday’s Premier League and Football Association bi-lateral announcement over the removal of FA Cup replays and the role of the League’s representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB).
“The agreement which now sees the abolition of replays from the competition format was agreed solely between the Premier League and FA.
“Ahead of the deal being announced there was no agreement with the EFL nor was there any formal consultation with EFL clubs as members of the FA and participants in the competition.”
The statement continued: “In September 2023, the EFL did initially discuss with clubs potential changes to the FA Cup format but only as part of a wider and more fundamental change to financial distributions.
“As is now clear, there has been no movement in this area since September.
“This latest agreement between the Premier League and the FA, in the absence of financial reform, is just a further example of how the EFL and its clubs are being marginalised in favour of others further up the pyramid and that only serves to threaten the future of the English game.
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“The EFL today calls on both the Premier League and the FA, as the Governing body, to re-evaluate their approach to their footballing partnership with the EFL and engage more collaboratively on issues directly affecting our clubs.”
The EFL statement concluded: “A separate issue is the role of the EFL representatives on the Professional Game Board (PGB) in agreeing to the 2024/25 overall fixture calendar.
“PGB is there to make technical decisions across the game as opposed to key policy decisions such as competition changes or formats.
“Any decisions taken on the calendar involving EFL representatives are in no way an endorsement of the joint deal agreed between the FA and Premier League that imposes changes to the FA Cup competition format in isolation.
“As part of the discussions the EFL representatives did challenge the position and were told that clubs would be comfortable with no replays.
“They were effectively advised that, as a result, of it being an FA competition, the fixture list needed to be agreed as presented.
“It is also important to note that this matter was not discussed by the FA Cup committee, a separate group that oversees the competition across the professional and national game.”
The FA were hit with a “community note” – a feature on X, formerly Twitter, to fact check claims made on the site – which said: “To suggest that the revised format ‘strengthens the format’ of the FA Cup is fundamentally untrue.
“The decision to remove FA Cup replays deprives lower league clubs of crucial revenue and has been taken without consulting EFL or non-league clubs. The £33m is inadequate.”
The changes to the English game will run for six years.
In response to the backlash the FA Cup released a statement of its own earlier today.
It’s own statement tried to reduce fears of lower league teams regarding the financial impact of the changes by pointing out that more games would be shown on TV in earlier rounds and would therefore guarantee additional broadcast revenue.
However, the statement neglected to mention many FA Cup games are moving away from terrestrial television and to subscription service TNT Sports from 2025/26.
Why FA Cup changes are GOOD NEWS
By Martin Lipton
THE FA and Premier League should have done the deal to scrap FA Cup replays years ago.
No doubt traditionalists will moan but it is right that the competition has finally been brought into the 21st century.
Ending replays will bring extra sharpness and excitement to the ties, with the knowledge that there will be a winner, whether in 90 minutes, extra-time or penalties.
If big guns have a bad day, they are more likely to pay the price. Replays after draws give them a fall-back they do not deserve.
Giving the FA Cup total and absolute priority over four weekends – and ensuring there is no competing match on the day of the Final – will enhance the profile of a competition that was in danger of falling out of the spotlight.
And as long as the FA ensures a better split of the prize money fund, weighting it more towards the earlier rounds, and potentially a similar move with TV match money, there should be few losers.
Read more on the FA Cup by clicking here.