Hearts back league revamp plans for 12-12-18

The SPL clubs held a four-hour meeting at Hampden yesterday to discuss the plans further, although they didn’t formally vote on the proposals.

Hearts chief executive David Southern, however, revealed that club owner Vladimir 
Romanov is fully behind the plans, along with every other top-flight club.

Whether the changes are pushed through now depends on the SFL clubs following their lead.

When asked what Romanov’s views are on the proposals, Southern said: “He is very much for a redistribution of the income across all clubs and that box has been ticked.

“He is very much for youth development and again that box has been ticked.

“He wants to see a vibrant, thriving game in this country and that box is also ticked.”

If at least 75 per cent of SFL clubs give their approval at the Hampden on Thursday, the proposal will likely be taken to a deciding vote in March.

Southern added: “The key positives, not just for Hearts, but for all SPL and SFL clubs, are that it gives a distinct vision for Scottish football.

“We do believe it can make the game much more attractive. We feel we might have a bright future for the game in this country.

“All I can do is give an assurance that Hearts will support anything that is to the benefit of Scottish football.

“We do believe the 12-12-18 model is the best approach for Scottish football at this time.

“What it will do is re-invigorate and refresh the game and we believe it will attract more supporters in time when they are given a chance to understand the model fully.

“We think it will create extra competition and there will be very few meaningless games. It is not fool proof and it’s not perfect, but it’s a step in the right direction. I don’t think it is fair to say we are not listening to the fans.

“We communicate with our fans regularly and this is 
another matter we will speak to them on.”