EFL clubs will vote on expanding play-offs in the Championship from four to six teams at a meeting on 5 March. The proposal, which has been under consideration for a number of seasons, would mean the teams finishing from third to eighth compete for a place in the Premier League. It would mirror the format used in the National League.
The main issues are focused on compensation and benefits for players on the lower end of the pay scale. Sources said that the union and the league have agreed on implementing a standard contract length of 12 months, instead of the 10 months stipulated by the previous CBA. This had been a sore spot for the USLPA given that being a professional soccer player is essentially a year-round job.
I thought we should be getting better results, but if you look at the bigger picture, you think, What were your resources? Dyche even had a pub named after him in Burnley (Image credit: Getty) Look at the squad. I knew some of the players were just going over the edge and we should have refreshed two years earlier. The owner was trying to sell the club though, so there was no investment in players.
The USL's planned new competition will operate in US Soccer's first division the same level as MLS and is set to start play by 2028. In his role, Scholes will oversee the launch of the still-unnamed league and participate in the USL's implementation of promotion and relegation between that league and the USL's other men's professional competitions the Championship and League One.
Clubs will continue to be graded under media giant IMG and Rugby League Commercial's "Reimagining Rugby League" initiative, with the top 12 clubs under that criteria named on Thursday (10:00 BST). Meanwhile a further announcement will be made on two further successful teams on Friday (10:00 BST) based on the decision of a seven-person panel - chaired by Lord Caine.
The most important thing is to create a solid base and with Mercury13 we're going to be able to do that," Losada told BBC Radio Bristol. "But it's also on us, on the players, on knowing what we do every day and not just getting promoted to then next year get relegated. Losada said the team need to be "realistic", following the takeover news, that change will not happen overnight.
