In the Russian Premier League (RPL), decide on the list of participants in the next draw of the Russian football championship. It still consists of 16 teams, and Rotor and Khimki will play instead of Krylia Sovetov and Orenburg. This decision was made following a general meeting of all RPL clubs.
During the videoconference, the issue of expanding the league to 18 teams was also raised. Such a proposal was made by the Samara club, which took 15th place in the season ended the day before. However, this initiative did not find support, so the number of participants in the next year will remain the same. According to some reports, only Rubin and Akhmat voted for the expansion of the RPL.
According to the president of the RPL Sergei Pryadkin, the league will not yet increase its composition due to the tight schedule of matches expected next season.
“The question of expanding the league to eighteen teams in the 2020/21 season has been raised. Members of the meeting expressed support for the outgoing clubs, but due to the complicated calendar in the coming season, the majority did not support this initiative. The regulations were approved by all clubs at the beginning of the season, then before the resumption, everyone agreed with the decision of the executive committee to cancel the play-off matches when two teams are out, ”Pryadkin said following the meeting.
The head of the RPL also expressed regret that Krylia Sovetov and Orenburg would play in the National Football League (FNL), but wished them to return to the elite division.
“Of course, it's a pity for the clubs that leave the league. It's a shame to lose Wings, which have a rich history, large audience and excellent infrastructure. It is a pity for Orenburg, which found itself in a very difficult situation. We hope that next season they will return to Tinkoff RPL, "Pryadkin said.
The meeting of RPL clubs finally decided that Rotor and Khimki would replace Samara and Orenburg residents. The participation of the Moscow Region team was in doubt until the last moment. The club that took second place in the FNL was experiencing financial difficulties, which is why it did not exclude the refusal of a promotion in the class. So, in June, the Minister of Sports of the Moscow Region Roman Teryushkov claimed that Khimki would remain in the FNL, although they were licensed to participate in the RPL.
However, the day before, a decision was made to return Khimki to the elite division after 11 years of performances in the lower leagues. This information was confirmed by Teryushkov himself.
“The decision has just been made - we are going to the Premier League, we deserve it! The Governor supports our decision, we will fight and represent the Moscow Region with dignity. We have an agreement with new sponsors, but we have not signed contracts yet, we will announce it soon. The necessary documents in the RFU and RPL are being prepared and will soon be handed over, "the Minister of Sports said to the Championship.
Shortly before that, Khimki reached the Russian Cup final, beating Ural away. The Moscow Region club will contest the title in a meeting with Zenit and will be able, in case of victory, not only to win the trophy, but also to play in the Europa League.
If Khimki had refused to enter the RPL, then Wings of the Soviets would have retained their registration in the league, but now Samara will go to the next division in strength for the third time in the last six years. Earlier, Khimki head coach Sergey Yuran said that his team's place in the RPL was allegedly sold, but Teryushkov denied these allegations.
“The information about the sold place in the Premier League, which Juran spoke about, comes from the fact that he is a“ burning ”person. If he was not, the team would not be so motivated and not achieve such results. Much is forgiven him, he is a wonderful and talented coach. But such information is nonsense, which is on the surface. It is unlikely that this is possible at all, it would have become the property of the public, ”the official said.
As for Rotor, the Volgograd team is returning to the top division after an even longer break - the last time they fought for medals was in 2004. Rotor will play at the Volgograd Arena, built for the 2018 World Cup. Now the only stadium of the World Cup that did not host RPL matches will be Kaliningrad.
The new season in the Russian Premier League will begin on August 8-9, and on the 7th the match for the Russian Super Cup will take place at the VEB Arena. The complete calendar will be approved by the Executive Committee of the Russian Football Union on July 24.