by Paul Hewitt
What happened to Thai League football this year was extraordinary to the point of being inexplicable. I never thought I would see tens of thousands of replica-shirt-clad Thais packing out stadiums to cheer on their teams. A bit of renaming here; some increased media coverage there, and the Kingdom's top division exploded into life.
But how many of these enthusiastic fans who have belatedly discovered the domestic game have also paid a visit to their local Division Two (Regional League) club?
There is a trickle-down theory that says that as the popularity of the Thai Premier League (TPL) grows exponentially, so too awareness, popularity and attendances will grow in the lower divisions. After all, it happened in the UK during the post-war and post-Hillsborough booms, and it is happening in Germany now. The thing is; it won't happen here. How can I put this delicately...Thais are glory hunters. OK, not too delicate. But true nonetheless.
It's no secret that the two best supported clubs in Thailand are Liverpool and Man U. Closely followed by Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, Man City et al, etc, ad nauseum and any other appropriate Latinisms. When the Reds took on the Thai National team at the Rajamangala in July, far, far more Thais were cheering on the Merseysiders than their own national team
And the Thai fans' instincts to throw their weight behind the best teams are in evidence here too. Chonburi's attendances rose from a few hundred to a few thousand as they climbed through the leagues on their way to TPL glory in 2007. PEA saw a huge surge in crowd numbers as they pipped Chonburi to the title in 2008. And nowhere was the Thai attraction to success more in evidence than in Nonthaburi as Muang Thong United, the 2009 champions, saw attendances rocket from several hundred to a TPL record of 16,600 over the course of the 2009 season.
Muang Thong aren't the only team to play in Nonthaburi, though. Rajpracha FC, one of the most decorated and historic of all Thai football clubs, also play in that province. They have enjoyed recent success too. In 2009 they were champions of the Bangkok Division in the Regional League (RL). But whilst Muang Thong were getting five-figure home gates; Rajpracha were struggling to attract 200. Thai fans wil not 'trickle-down' to clubs like Rajpracha. That's the sad and concerning reality.
At least Rajpracha are successful. Over at Bangkok Bravo the situation is even sadder. For years Bravo were a bright, green rebuttal to the criticism that all teams from the capital represent banks, other businesses or state institutions. Bravo had always been around ever since the inception of the old Provincial League. It's just hardly anyone bothered to go and watch them in those 'pre-boom' days. Now, as the TPL goes through the roof, Bravo are on the canvas. A mediocre debut season in the Bangkok Division, and bigger, brighter attractions a few miles to the west, have caused Bravo's attendances to plummet towards double figures. Bangkok Bravo may not appear for an encore next seasson as rumours of a merger with TPL side Bangkok United surface.
Outside of Bangkok the situation is not quite so concerning but there are problems. Most Thai League fans in the provinces don't have a nearby TPL team, and so must go to watch their local RL team if they want to see a live game. Clubs as disparate as Nakhon Ratchasima, Narathiwat and Chiang Rai all enjoy a good level of support - although they also enjoyed successful seasons, too. But for every well-run, well-supported lower-league club, there are many clubs run on a shoestring budget, playing in a municipal dump of a stadium, in front of a couple of hundred people. I saw Korat play Mukdahan back in May, and the travelling Mukdahan party comprised the starting eleven, three subs and one coach.
The problem was that the RL, with it's five geographical sections, was very hastily constucted. The Football Association of Thailand's (FAT) reorganisation of the lower reaches of the pyramid was fine in theory but there simply weren't enough clubs around this time last year to make it viable. New clubs sprang up overnight all over the country as the FAT encouraged local governments to form teams to enter the new league. Some of these new clubs were a success; some were a disaster.
Tak, of the Northern Division, took just five points from their twenty games losing by scorelines such as 11-1 and 10-2 along the way. Roiet of the Northeast Division did little better as they took seven points from their twenty games. Their particular claim to 'infame' was to concede eight goals in consecutive matches. And Rose Asia Pathum Thani earned just eight points from twenty-two games, winning just one match all season. What future for these clubs: hurriedly thrown together and hopelessly out of their depth? The RL should have been gradually phased in and prospective entrants means-tested more thoroughly in order to obviate huge gaps in class between the member clubs.
The 2009 FA Cup was another good idea in theory: a knockout cup competition based on the venerated English version. In reality? Most RL clubs didn't enter. The early rounds should have been regionalised. Instead, they were played on neutral territory in Bangkok. Far-flung, cash-strapped clubs were never going to make the long journey to the capital for the sake of a preliminary round. And so potential exposure and success for RL clubs were dealt another blow.
The formation of a Southern Division was undoubtedly a plus-point for the RL. Although only eight-teams strong, the division produced an exciting finish as Satun and Narathiwat battled for the title. Romantics everywhere smiled as Thailand's most southerly and most deeply troubled province saw its team claim the championship. Equally satisfying was the dismal failure of the over-hyped, self-aggrandizing Phuket F.C. But how far can Narathiwat realistically go? At the time of writing they are contesting the Regional League play-offs with the four other champions. They are well-supported and an away trip there will always be a daunting one for any team. And therein lies the problem. If they made it all the way to the TPL, would the relatively coddled players of Muang Thong, Bangkok Glass and the like be prepared to make the journey to the deep south? I fear not. And so a club which could be a shining beacon for the region may encounter a glass ceiling in the pyramid.
There are three provincial towns and cities which are home to both RL and TPL clubs. The maritime town of Rayong is home to Navy Rayong of the TPL and Rayong F.C of the Central & East Division. The ancient capital of Ayutthaya hosts 2008 TPL champions PEA and Ayutthaya F.C - also of the Central & East Division. And, as of next season, Buriram will be the home town of TOT F.C as they move in alongside existing club Buriram F.C of the Northeast Division. Of the three aforementioned RL teams, I fear for Buriram the most. PEA seem to be imploding and may not stay in Ayutthaya anyway - which would obviously benefit Ayutthaya F.C.
Navy Rayong are so well supported that even if only one in ten Navy fans bothers to go and watch their RL sister club, then Rayong F.C will still get gates in excess of 1,000. But in Buriram the situation is very different. Politician Newin Chidchob will move the Army to the south Issan town. And he has big plans for 'Army-Buriram' including the constuction of a new stadium. All of which is portentous for Buriram F.C. They had a reasonable debut season in Thai football but, unlike their neighbours Surin and Korat, they struggled to attract fans. Buriram is a small town by comparison to those two and I don't think there is room for the Army FC and Buriram F.C in the town. Expect the RL club to be swallowed up or trodden underfoot by Thailand's latest Frankenstein club.
So to answer the title question 'Is Divison Two the loser...?'. In many ways, yes. But there are measures which can and should be taken to safeguard the future of the fledgling league and its member clubs, and to make the league more attractive to sponsors and fans who currently only have eyes for the TPL.
Second, all divisions should contain the same number of teams, or as near as damn it. Is it fair that in order to become champions Narathiwat only had to top an eight-team division whilst Samut Prakan had to win a twelve-team division?
The FA Cup needs to be regionalised so as to encourage RL clubs to enter. And there should be financial rewards as teams make it through each round, just as there are in the English FA Cup.
Finally, and this is absolutely fundamental. The champions of each region MUST be guaranteed automatic promotion. No more play-off mini-league. If this was introduced as the league is currently structured, it would mean five teams would have to be relegated from Division One: a far from ideal situation. So what's the solution? I can think of but one way out of it. At the moment the pyramid is bottom-heavy. There is a 5-1-1 formation with the five-division RL at the bottom and the national Division One and TPL above. Five into one doesn't go. We need a 4-2-1 formation which means getting rid of one RL divison: the Bangkok one. The TPL and Division One are still numerically dominated by teams from the capital. A division full of Bangkok teams in the RL is overkill.
Fortunately, owing to the capital's central location, teams that currently occupy that division could comfortably slip into any of the four remaining regions. I would then have two national divisions A & B, as was the case in 2007, at the Division One level. If this system was introduced, the maths would make far more sense. Each champion from the reduced four division RL would be promoted to Division One. Two promoted teams would go into Division One 'A' and two into Division One 'B'. And the top two from each Division One section progress to the TPL as four come down the other way. This is just pie in the sky, though. And, if I do say so myself, makes good sense. So don't expect the powers that be to implement anything of the sort any time soon. Depressingly, I can confidently predict that legitimate RL champions will once again be denied promotion next season.
In some ways the RL is the best thing to happen to Thai league football for years: affordable, nationwide, local football being played by teams which represent towns, cities and provinces. But we need to know that those running the league have a clear strategy for the future and are capable of exploiting the huge potential the league has.
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