As outspoken clubs have their say: Where will Sheffield Wednesday land on ‘Project Big Picture’ shake-up?
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‘Project Big Picture’, a plan devised by some of the biggest clubs in the country alongside EFL chief Rick Parry, would see more administrative power handed over to the nine longest-serving Premier League clubs as potentially club-saving funds are funnelled into a football league pyramid that continues to spiral in the face of the coronavirus crisis.
A Wednesday representative – thought not to be chairman Dejphon Chansiri – attended a virtual meeting of all 72 EFL clubs yesterday to discuss the plans, which has reportedly split opinion throughout the football league.
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Hide AdSpeaking to the Daily Mail, outspoken Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson described the adoption of the plans as ‘absolutely essential’ before claiming conversations he had had with other directors at Championship clubs had indicated unanimous approval.
“When I first saw the document I was excited by it,” he said. “It is self-interest, of course. Is it better for my club? Yes. But certainly all of the Championship clubs I've spoken to are behind it. As for those in League One and Two, it would be huge. It would save a lot of them.”
The plan also requires the acceptance of 14 of the 20 Premier League clubs to go through, an outcome that is understood to be some way off as top tier clubs enter a similar meeting today. Up to 10 clubs are believed to be vehemently against the plans in their current form.