Champions Hockey League 20-21

[1878rgw]

The tournament has been cancelled.

2020/21 CHL season cancelled

Click to read more...

 

[Jussi]

Understandable in the current situation.

 

[OskarOskarius]

It could have been an interesting season with Frolunda without the North American players it would be likely another Champion, maybe Rögle/Luleå? Maybe even a non-SHL team.

 

[vorky]

It just showed the status quo of that competition. Their management is simply not capable of negotiating with governments across Europe. Looks at the UEFA competitions or the KHL. They are just fine.

You need a lot of resources, human and financial, to organise such competition at a very good level. They are not able to do so. End of story.

 

[Goller Daniel]

The tournament has been cancelled.

2020/21 CHL season cancelled

joke!!!

 

[OskarOskarius]

It just showed the status quo of that competition. Their management is simply not capable of negotiating with governments across Europe. Looks at the UEFA competitions or the KHL. They are just fine.

You need a lot of resources, human and financial, to organise such competition at a very good level. They are not able to do so. End of story.

That has nothing to do with it. In the case of UEFA competitions then the reason they are playing is that UEFA have sold media rights all around the world for a lot of money. If they were to cancel the competition then they would have to reimburse the distributors, which they can’t afford.

The KHL isn’t comparable to UEFA. It is a VERY SMALL AND INSIGNIFICANT LEAGUE paid by oligarchs who need to keep the populace calm while they suck the nation dry of its natural resources.

Regarding the CHL it’s a money losing operation. Without ticket sales it is losing even more money. There are also no major media deals that needs to be honored. So it is very sensible to cancel the season. Doesn’t mean it won’t come back after the Corona crisis. The organization itself isn’t the problem, indeed the CHL is a more attractive league than the KHL, at least to me. The business model just isn’t sustainable when you can’t sell tickets.

 

[romelson]

The business model just isn’t sustainable when you can’t sell tickets.

They you couldn't sell tickets for previous seasons either. At least not in Sweden.
Good riddance.
BS tournament that noone cared about.

 

[Exarz]

It just showed the status quo of that competition. Their management is simply not capable of negotiating with governments across Europe. Looks at the UEFA competitions or the KHL. They are just fine.

You need a lot of resources, human and financial, to organise such competition at a very good level. They are not able to do so. End of story.

To be fair, teams in the early UEFA qualification rounds were placed into special groups due to the travel restriction between nations.

And I really don't see any reason to push for this CHL season to be played considering how different the situation is around Europe. The potential PR disaster of teams spreading the virus in various nations would do more harm than good

 

[BlizzardSloth]

BS tournament that noone cared about.

Meh, they struggled in Switzerland as well, but I felt like they finally managed to get some attention. And in my personal opinion, I always enjoyed seeing my team compete against top teams from Sweden, Finland, and other countries.

 

[OskarOskarius]

They you couldn't sell tickets for previous seasons either. At least not in Sweden.
Good riddance.
BS tournament that noone cared about.

That was only true for the small teams. Frölunda had decent sales.

 

[member 305909]

This must be the least disappointing cancelation of any sports event this year. Most people won't even notice that there's no CHL.

A perfect opportunity to bin the competition altogether.

 

[vorky]

To be fair, teams in the early UEFA qualification rounds were placed into special groups due to the travel restriction between nations.

And I really don't see any reason to push for this CHL season to be played considering how different the situation is around Europe. The potential PR disaster of teams spreading the virus in various nations would do more harm than good

Regarding the UEFA, it is fine. My point is that a strong organisation/league will always find a way how to play. Especially if you have over six months to prepare.

 

[Albatros]

You mean an organization funded by an outside source for reasons largely unrelated to league operations.

In sustainable leagues the operations have to be profitable or at least breaking even, and for this to be possible you need customers. In other words fans attending the games. If that's not possible for health reasons then that's how it is, pushing forward in a way that is not sustainable is not likely to contribute to a better future.

 

[vorky]

That has nothing to do with it. In the case of UEFA competitions then the reason they are playing is that UEFA have sold media rights all around the world for a lot of money. If they were to cancel the competition then they would have to reimburse the distributors, which they can’t afford.

I agree with you on UEFA. Money solves many issues. When you have money, you can afford to play even with limited attendance. As you say the UEFA has money from media rights & sponsors.

The KHL isn’t comparable to UEFA. It is a VERY SMALL AND INSIGNIFICANT LEAGUE paid by oligarchs who need to keep the populace calm while they suck the nation dry of its natural resources.

I will politely skip your political statement on the matter.

Yes, the KHL is a much smaller competition. And, it is not even my point. I wrote it in my previous post, just repeating. You need resources. The KHL has financial resources, guessing above 500 million euro/season. But you also need human resources, especially strong leadership.

So, the KHL negotiated with respective governments´ organs in all participating countries during the summer to organise the season. For example, they agreed with the Finnish organs how the testing will be organised in Finland, then travelling in/out Finland for other teams, what happens when Jokerit coming back from other countries. That are tough and long negotiations with multiple governments. The KHL did their job. That is a reason why I put the UEFA and KHL in one sentence. Their capabilities to solve problems.

Then we have the Czech hockey league with only Czech clubs. The government stopped their season these days. It looks like the Czech league is not capable to negotiate with their government. And now, it is not important who is guilty, the league or government. The very similar problem in Slovakia with clubs and the government just now starting to negotiate. They should do it a few months ago.

Regarding the CHL it’s a money losing operation. Without ticket sales it is losing even more money. There are also no major media deals that needs to be honored. So it is very sensible to cancel the season. Doesn’t mean it won’t come back after the Corona crisis. The organization itself isn’t the problem, indeed the CHL is a more attractive league than the KHL, at least to me. The business model just isn’t sustainable when you can’t sell tickets.

The fact is that the CHL did not solve the issue. They chose to cancel the season while they had 6 months to solve all problems. Yes, it is complicated and they do not have money. I understand it.

Their slogan says about elite European competition. Now, the competition has disappeared. Yes, they might be back in a year. But right now, it looks they are not as strong as they say. And what if the COVID (another disease) will last a few years? They will skip all those seasons?

The true strength of any organisation is shown in difficult times like this. Either you are capable of solving problems or you are not. If looking back we have seen an economic crisis around 2008, especially the KHL was hit by 2014 events and now COVID.

I know the 2008 CHL and 2020 CHL are different entities, but the point is the same. The 2008 crisis resulted in the CHL´s dead. Now, you believe in more positive destiny for the 2020 CHL. And it is just fine. I support you.

The 2014 events caused problems to the KHL, much more serious problems than COVID is doing now in Europe. But, the KHL has been strong enough to come back even stronger.

You say that it is not sustainable when you can not sell tickets. Agree. But what about owners? They are owners only in good times? Or also in bad times? And now I am not saying about the CHL but rather the AHL and DEL. They have a club, so they should normally run the club. At the end of a day, they can afford it.

 

[OskarOskarius]

I agree with you on UEFA. Money solves many issues. When you have money, you can afford to play even with limited attendance. As you say the UEFA has money from media rights & sponsors.


I will politely skip your political statement on the matter.

Yes, the KHL is a much smaller competition. And, it is not even my point. I wrote it in my previous post, just repeating. You need resources. The KHL has financial resources, guessing above 500 million euro/season. But you also need human resources, especially strong leadership.

So, the KHL negotiated with respective governments´ organs in all participating countries during the summer to organise the season. For example, they agreed with the Finnish organs how the testing will be organised in Finland, then travelling in/out Finland for other teams, what happens when Jokerit coming back from other countries. That are tough and long negotiations with multiple governments. The KHL did their job. That is a reason why I put the UEFA and KHL in one sentence. Their capabilities to solve problems.

Then we have the Czech hockey league with only Czech clubs. The government stopped their season these days. It looks like the Czech league is not capable to negotiate with their government. And now, it is not important who is guilty, the league or government. The very similar problem in Slovakia with clubs and the government just now starting to negotiate. They should do it a few months ago.


The fact is that the CHL did not solve the issue. They chose to cancel the season while they had 6 months to solve all problems. Yes, it is complicated and they do not have money. I understand it.

Their slogan says about elite European competition. Now, the competition has disappeared. Yes, they might be back in a year. But right now, it looks they are not as strong as they say. And what if the COVID (another disease) will last a few years? They will skip all those seasons?

The true strength of any organisation is shown in difficult times like this. Either you are capable of solving problems or you are not. If looking back we have seen an economic crisis around 2008, especially the KHL was hit by 2014 events and now COVID.

I know the 2008 CHL and 2020 CHL are different entities, but the point is the same. The 2008 crisis resulted in the CHL´s dead. Now, you believe in more positive destiny for the 2020 CHL. And it is just fine. I support you.

The 2014 events caused problems to the KHL, much more serious problems than COVID is doing now in Europe. But, the KHL has been strong enough to come back even stronger.

You say that it is not sustainable when you can not sell tickets. Agree. But what about owners? They are owners only in good times? Or also in bad times? And now I am not saying about the CHL but rather the AHL and DEL. They have a club, so they should normally run the club. At the end of a day, they can afford it.

The CHL is a bad idea based on the UEFA Champions League. If it ever takes off it will ruin the sport in Europe for good, like it did to European soccer which is today a boring sport fans only follow in lack of better alternatives. In that sense I hope the CHL dies.