In this the hour of our discontent ... there is talk once again about some sort of pro merger. The source would appear to be other than either of the leagues but that may be a bit of misdirection as it rather smells like a trial balloon to me. (Or perhaps it's just my cynical unwillingness to take anything--about paintball--at face value.)
At any rate the gist of the proposal is a blended format of 7-man, playing multiple head-to-head games to create a match, etc. which is not new as something very similar was being bandied about during one of the earlier league merger talks.
One difference here is that (apparently) the league(s) aren't part of the discussion, just the pro teams, or at least most of them. I presume the pitch relied on the twin supports of unity and poverty to entice the teams to consider it. We can make our own destinies mixed with the whole two leagues, reduced support is killing us off one by one is a reasonably seductive argument and may even garner a lot of agreement but--
It won't make any difference. Too many of the teams are more dependent now than they were in the past when they refused to act and too many of the teams don't have the power to make that decision for themselves anyway so it's a moot point. (Disclaimer: don't get me wrong, I have long advocated the pro teams band together as a means of improving their negotiating power so I'm not against the idea at all. I just don't see either the will nor much of an opportunity anymore. Still, there is a small window ... but it's not where the proponents of this latest plan want it to be.)
How was that for cryptic?
The really interesting part of all this isn't the modified format chit-chat or the dictat of the Pro teams but the ramifications if all this is in fact a trial balloon being floated by one of the leagues.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
3 comments:
I foresee a change of landscape when the NPPL go to 3 events next year and the PSP drop down to 4. Both leagues will make more money, thats for sure, as both 4th events lose money, PSP LA loses and events 2 through 4 are a wash for the NPPL, who are bleeding teams like a teenage suicide.
With 7 US events available will teams save money and still play one league or will they play both, or then again, will they play a mixture of the 2 and will that have an effect on series points? Will these teams care about series points anymore? Other than the Pro's, who will suddenly have money to spare (assuming their sponsorships remain intact) what will the teams do? Are 3 NPPL events enough to keep that leagues player-base from dipping their toes in the PSP waters?
I personally believe it was a mistake to move the Tampa event to Jacksonville.
Part of this is bias on my part (Tampa is a 'home' event for me) but beyond the bias, Tampa is a better location for the NPPL than Jacksonville, since Tampa is an easier trek for those in the Miami area to get to.
Another issue is the general suckiness of Jax in general, and the lack of a tournament player base in the NorFla/SoGA area in general.
If for some odd reason the practice fields at RayJay aren't an option, what about the fairgrounds out on I4? Nicer facility in general, easier and less expensive to get, and it's a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Hard Rock Casino...
Granted, this makes the trek to Death Maybe and the strip clubs a little tougher, but not *that* hard...
The leagues may see better turn-outs if the format went to a conference-type thing, where teams play their mandatory conference tournaments, for points, and also have a choice of playing "unofficial" events for just cash prizes, while still being assured that these other tournaments will be run just as well as the major ones, because they'd all be sanctioned by the same league.
This way, teams have fewer events to commit to in order to stay on the map, while having the option to still compete for prizes and money on the down time.
Post a Comment