I don't see anything radical being done for the 2024 season. Would it be fair to not promote Dewsbury and the Dons in order to make a 12 team Championship and an 11 team League One? No!
The Championship season comprises of 14 teams/27 games. Would the Championship clubs really want a 12 team/23 game season instead of 27? Probably not, as it would reduce the number of home games and match day income, although a reduced league would see central funding split 12 ways instead of 14. Maybe that could compensate for a reduction in match day revenue and win them over to such a structure?
Could one division with 23 teams work? With difficulty, I suspect. If the preferred number of games in a season is 27, it'd be hard to reach that number with any degree of fairness. You'd have to play everyone once, with 5 games added from somewhere.
My suggestion for the 2024 season retains the integrity of promotion and relegation from the 2023 season and gives League One clubs a better opportunity to make ends meet from a financial point of view:
1) Championship - no change, 14 teams with a 27 game season
2) League One comprises of 9 teams. Teams play each other home and away to give each side 16 matches. The league then splits into two: the top five (Promotion Group) and the bottom four (Challengers' Group).
The Promotion Group play each other home and away to give 8 extra fixtures (24 in total). The Challengers' Group play each other home and away to give an extra 6 fixtures (22 in total). Keeping things as they are would give an 18 game season.
The top team in the Promotion Group would automatically go into the Championship. The other four teams in the Promotion Group would qualify for the promotion play-offs.
The top team in the Challengers' Group would also qualify for the play-offs. This would give five teams in the play-offs. Every team in the league would still have something to play for after the 'split'.
The structure for the play-offs would remain the same as this season.
Admittedly, splitting leagues halfway through a season brings potential conflicts for fans with new fixture dates clashing with planned holidays. Teams will play each other up to four times before the play-offs which isn't ideal especially as they could meet twice again in the play-offs but with only 9 teams in League One 'repeat fixtures' appears unavoidable if teams are to bring in enough money to be able to survive.
If clubs choose to change the Championship/League One structure more radically, this should take effect in the 2025 season. The 2024 season should provide a pathway to achieving that structure.
For example, how could a 12 team Championship and 11 team League One be achieved for 2025? I don't think this is a good option but is shown as an example of how a pathway could be defined.
Maybe the bottom three teams in the Championship would be relegated. The top team in League One would be promoted. The second team in League One (or the play-off winners) could play the fourth from bottom side in the Chamionship for a place in the Championship in 2025; the loser playing in League One.
This would achieve the 12/11 split for 2025 with League One teams still having something to play for in the 2024 season - rather than relegating the bottom two in the Championship with no promotion at all from League One. League One would be a complete 'lame duck' in 2024 should this happen although from a personal point of view, the thought of four teams potentially being relegated from the Championship would bring a very high degree of jeopody to the Dons.
There's probably no easy way to 'restructure' without upsetting someone. This is the challenge IMG and the RFL face.
