League One and League Two clubs have voted to curtail their seasons because of coronavirus, with promotion and relegation decided according to points per game and play-offs held.
Although League One clubs were split over whether to carry on, with teams such as Peterborough and Portsmouth strongly in favour of continuing, a majority voted to halt league games. Coventry and Rotherham move up to the Championship and Tranmere, much to their vocal displeasure, join Southend and Bolton in being relegated.
League Two clubs had indicated last month their desire to curtail the season and this was confirmed in Tuesday’s vote, with only Forest Green voting to continue with league matches. Crewe, Swindon and Plymouth are promoted automatically and one club will be relegated to the National League.
Stevenage are bottom but the situation is complicated by a disciplinary case brought by the league against Macclesfield, who are three points above Stevenage but could have points deducted if found guilty by an independent commission.
“Due to ongoing disciplinary matters, the final placings cannot yet be confirmed,” the league said. It added relegation would be implemented only if the National League provides assurances it will start season 2020-21.
The play-offs will be contested in League One by Oxford, Portsmouth, Fleetwood and Wycombe, who move into third from eighth place via the points-per-game model, and in League Two by Exeter, Cheltenham, Colchester and Northampton. Those clubs are being tested for Covid-19.
The votes were held after an extraordinary general meeting of all 71 league clubs agreed to adopt the EFL board’s framework to finalise the table, rejecting alternative proposals put forward by Barnsley and Tranmere.
Championship club agreed three teams will be relegated from that division in the event the season, which is set to resume on 20 June, is not completed. Amendments to the EFL board’s framework put forward by Ipswich, Lincoln and Stevenage were rejected.
Forest’s Green owner, Dale Vince, said: “The vote didn’t take too long. It wasn’t a surprise because I think the decision had been made by most clubs over a month ago but this was just confirming it. We know where we stand now. We’ve been looking at what things will look like next year.”
Vince said the club were considering following Hibernian by operating a cashless stadium and were hopeful of reaching fans despite being resigned to matches being behind closed doors until the turn of the year. “We’ve got a growing global fanbase that we want to do more for,” he said.
The National League board is set to convene on Wednesday, with proposals on how to determine the final standings and end the season expected to be put forward by the league’s chief executive, Michael Tattersall. It is likely that the National League will follow the EFL in using a points-per-game model, and it is understood there remains clamour for the play-offs. Another anticipated option is that points per game could promote two teams in the event the play-offs are not played.
Meanwhile, the shadow sports minister, Alison McGovern, and shadow secretary of state, Jo Stevens, have called for an urgent meeting with the government and EFL. A letter sent to the secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, Oliver Dowden, expressed grave concern at the “acute” challenges facing lower-league clubs following the coronavirus. Several clubs are thought to be in extremely precarious financial positions and some at risk of going bust without matchday revenue.
“So much work has been undertaken to try to address the current season, but the challenges in the season to come for EFL clubs will be just as acute,” read the letter sent to Dowden and parliamentary under-secretary Nigel Huddleston on Monday evening. “Unlike the Premier League, many rely on ticket income as their major source of revenue. Many clubs are located in places that have see highly challenging economic environments for the past decade, not just during this Covid-19 outbreak. Their fans may not be wealthy but they are dedicated, and we believe that no one should lose a well-loved club because of a virus outbreak.”