Gent join chorus of sides wanting to end protected status of youth sides in Belgian second tier | OneFootball

As reported by HLN, Gent have joined with a number of clubs in the Challenger Pro League who want to see the protected status of four ‘reserve’ sides removed. Currently, the four teams that are playing in the second tier of Belgian football who are a ‘youth’ team for a Pro League side can only be relegated if another youth team is set to be promoted. Other second division sides who are also against this move are Lokeren, Francs Borains and Seraing, with those sides likely to be at risk because of this rule.

What makes Gent’s addition to their voices interesting is that they are one of the Pro League sides that would be set to benefit from the current rules. Jong Gent were promoted to the second tier last season and have had a decent start to the campaign. However, the Buffaloes have also added another layer to the now legal challenge. They would also like plans to increase the Pro League to 18 teams and to remove play-offs to also be scrapped. The latter could be harder to change, as there would likely be pushback from teams hoping to join the top flight and others who are worried about being relegated.

GBeNeFN | Ben Jackson