FC United of Manchester hit out at the National League yesterday over the formation of a new League Cup.
Under the plans for the competition which starts next month, 16 National League clubs will play up to seven extra games a season.
But the move comes just months after the controversial decision to scrap FA Cup replays – costing non-league clubs much-needed revenue – in a move which the head of the National League, Mark Ives, said would ease fixture congestion and protect player welfare.
A spokesman from FC United of Manchester, one of the largest supporter-owned clubs in the country, said: “Today, the true motivation behind his stance – and the quid pro quo deal – has finally come to light.
“Ives claimed that scrapping replays would ease fixture congestion and protect player welfare.
“Yet, with the announcement of the new National League Cup, 16 National League sides will now face up to seven extra games, competing against Premier League U21 teams for a £1m prize pot -courtesy of the Premier League.
“Supporters nationwide voiced their opposition to the removal of FA Cup replays, and the reaction to today’s announcement has been overwhelmingly negative.”
The decision to scrap FA Cup replays proved to be an unpopular one for many non-league clubs all over the country who saw the competition replays as a money spinner.
“Figures like Ives love to romanticise non-league football when it suits them, but this competition does nothing more than deepen the divide between Step One and the rest of the pyramid,” added the club’s spokesman.
“Once again, it’s clear that the Premier League’s influence continues to infiltrate every level of the game, throwing money around to secure whatever outcome they desire.
“Fans of Football League clubs have already turned their backs on a similar setup in the EFL Trophy, where fixtures against Premier League Academy sides routinely draw fewer than 1,000 attendees.
“But for those running the game, fan sentiment means nothing. Money is the only language they speak.”
Featured image: Mark Lee, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
