Will we qualify for the CL?

[VillaTim]

The tournament was designed for smaller nations for their teams to have a go .

[Dave]

The tournament was designed for smaller nations for their teams to have a go .

It was designed so that there were another hundred odd games per season for UEFA to sell television rights for.

But if you want to put a bit of sporting integrity in there, it was designed for teams other than the same old, same old to get to play European football.

We still very much fall into that category.

[frank black]

Conference league is rubbish, it was a novelty for us at the time. But now we’ve had a taste of a real quality European competition, it’s not a contest I want us to take part in again. Play the kids (and Olsen)

[Ads]

I want us to be in the Champions League. I don't envisage a scenario likely for us to play in the Conference League, but I'd rather be in that than nothing else. Following the Villa in Europe is class, even if you have to go to absolute backwaters like Ajax, Lille, Olympiacos.

[AV82EC]

Also, whilst it’s not mega important any Euro competition helps with the Clubs coefficient. We only got an extra 10 pts I think for CL QF over the ECL Semi so from my perspective even if the competition isn’t as prestigious keeping that number ticking over is important imv. Not least because there’s extra revenue to be had in UEfAs value pillar from continued European qualification. 

[SamTheMouse]

Some Europe is always better than no Europe. I cannot for the life of me see how anyone could think otherwise.

[eamonn]

I think we need a poll on Conference participation.

[VillaTim]

UEFA created the competition in order to offer European competition for more clubs and have more representation from associations that might not qualify for the group stages of the Champions League or Europa League.
Basically a tournament for the likes of Scotland, Bosnia and Azerbaijan. Not for Premier League Clubs who are in the Deloitte world top 20 biggest clubs .

[Percy McCarthy]

UEFA created the competition in order to offer European competition for more clubs and have more representation from associations that might not qualify for the group stages of the Champions League or Europa League.
Basically a tournament for the likes of Scotland, Bosnia and Azerbaijan. Not for Premier League Clubs who are in the Deloitte world top 20 biggest clubs .

If it benefits one particular club in Deloitte’s top 20 I don’t give a fuck what it was created for.

FC Beergarden in the final please.

[Smithy]

Also, whilst it’s not mega important any Euro competition helps with the Clubs coefficient. We only got an extra 10 pts I think for CL QF over the ECL Semi so from my perspective even if the competition isn’t as prestigious keeping that number ticking over is important imv. Not least because there’s extra revenue to be had in UEfAs value pillar from continued European qualification. 

This is an important - if a bit mercenary - point to consider.  Another year in the conference league (disappointing as it would be from a purely footballing perspective) would mean we'd get MORE money if we get into the Champions League in a subsequent season, because CL earnings are also based on a club's UEFA coefficient (there are teams that finished lower than us in the league phase who earned a lot more than us due to their coefficient).

The coefficient is a five- and ten-year calculation, so getting European football of ANY kind helps with that. 

Personally, my memories of cold nights away in the Championship are still WAY too fresh in my mind to even consider turning my nose up at European competition, even the smaller third-tier one.

[Sexual Ealing]

UEFA created the competition in order to offer European competition for more clubs and have more representation from associations that might not qualify for the group stages of the Champions League or Europa League.
Basically a tournament for the likes of Scotland, Bosnia and Azerbaijan. Not for Premier League Clubs who are in the Deloitte world top 20 biggest clubs .

And yet, if you asked UEFA or the clubs in those smaller leagues whether the big league teams ought to be excluded, you'd get an enormous no because nobody would watch/broadcast the competition if those teams weren't there. Not that anyone watches it now, but it's on.

[PeterWithesShin]

The Conference was created for the same reason the European Cup became the CL and the Uefa became the Europa. Money. I doubt anyone thinks that a highly greedy and corrupt organisation created the Conference to benefit minnow countries like Azerbaijan, Ireland and Scotland. The vast majority of seasons it will be won by a club from England, Spain, Germany or Italy, same as the other two competions.

And if we won it that would be around £20m going into our accounts, without selling a player or fleecing fans.

And it would end the trophy drought, guarantee the Europa and for the first time in our history European football for a 4th consecutive season.

We all want CL but we are far from a position to look at either of the other two competitions with disdain.

[LeeB]

The Conference was created for the same reason the European Cup became the CL and the Uefa became the Europa. Money. I doubt anyone thinks that a highly greedy and corrupt organisation created the Conference to benefit minnow countries like Azerbaijan, Ireland and Scotland. The vast majority of seasons it will be won by a club from England, Spain, Germany or Italy, same as the other two competions.

And if we won it that would be around £20m going into our accounts, without selling a player or fleecing fans.

And it would end the trophy drought, guarantee the Europa and for the first time in our history European football for a 4th consecutive season.

We all want CL but we are far from a position to look at either of the other two competitions with disdain.

I agree with all of this and would absolutely not be arsed with turning up to watch until the semi-finals at best.

[eamonn]

Agreed. I'll be fair-weather with Conference if that's what we get til we're close to the final. I've put in enough of a shift as a Villan to have princess privilege now and then.

[TheToffnar]

Speak for yourselves. As someone else said earlier, those cold nights in the Championship are still with me...