FC Porto and Benfica call for end to the League Cup | OneFootball

FC Porto and Benfica have expressed support for ending the League Cup, following a debate at the Presidents' Summit, where Liga Portugal proposed that all professional clubs participate in the competition (unlike the current situation). This intention was also shown by Nacional and P. Ferreira, at least.

In this new suggestion, clubs participating in European competitions would play the same number of games, with the idea being to have several stages from the start of the season, even on FIFA Dates, for the other professional competition clubs. A preliminary tournament, similar to the Champions League, where each club plays 2 to 6 games and a final ranking is made to determine the top four, who would then join the top four from the previous edition of the League.

Despite this new format being put on the table, the truth is, as reported by Portal dos Dragões, the continuation of the League Cup is in question, as those who opposed believe it does not provide financial returns and is a problem for the schedules. In this sense, there is no consensus on the proposed model, and it will need to be analyzed in the coming times. Reinaldo Teixeira expressed confidence that the competition is worth more, that it can generate and distribute more revenue. Despite the 2026/27 edition being contracted, the desire is to reformulate and continue it.

Additionally, Liga Portugal also proposed a promotion playoff to the 1st League with more clubs, up to the 5th place, which adds motivation to the competitions. The idea is that the 1st and 2nd of the 2nd League would be promoted directly, followed by a playoff with the 3rd, 4th, and 5th, joined by the 16th placed team from the top tier.

Finally, the League's Management also presented several disruptive competitive models. In light of this, the general opinion of the clubs is that at this stage, with changes related to television rights, it is not the time to make a profound change to the competitive frameworks.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.