Livingston manager David Martindale has hit out at the rule change made as the SPFL pushed throughl the new Sky TV deal.
The Lions boss explained his club's initial reluctance to sign off on proposals, admitting he would have preferred all-club accordance. Rangers were the only side publicly opposing the deal and in light of the disagreement, the league body submitted a resolution to change the rules on voting. It meant that a unanimous outcome was no longer required resulting in the deal being pushed over the line by a 11-1 agreement, which was finalised on Tuesday.
But the Livingston gaffer has shared his concerns over the changed rules, insisting it is imperative that all clubs are in agreement when such big decisions are being made. Martindale further questioned the way in which regulations can just be altered every time a vote does not go the way the SPFL may have hoped.
"I think, when you are making such a big decision, it's imperative that all clubs are singing from the same hymn sheet," Martindale said.
"You won't get everybody agreeing on everything, which is fair enough, but we are big enough to sit round a table and get our heads together and work out a solution.
"We believed, if you don't get the vote to go your way, you don't just change the resolution to suit that. That's where we were coming from."
The new deal covers 2025-29, increasing the number of live Scottish top-flight clashes to be shown on Sky per season. The current agreement is 48, with that total increasing to 60 from 2025. Clubs will also be able to offer pay-per-view streams for up to five home leagues games each season, subject to conditions.
Rangers aired concerns over why the contract was not put to tender to allow the clubs throughout the league to discuss.
Livingston are hugely reliant on SPFL commercial revenue as things stand, with the club having just 1,000 season ticket holders. And Martindale has expressed concerns over whether the deal is actually a decent one to help sides like his benefit as much as possible.
"Do I think it's a good deal?" Martindale asked. "I think it's an okay deal. It could become a good deal if they take the extra quota of games. It helps us because it gives us a structured budget to work to.
"If you look at the current cost of living, the next 12 months look like they are going to be really hard for people, so it's good to get a bit of security.
"Most clubs wanted the Sky deal and we were happy to back that. You have to do what's best for the collective. If we all talked about our clubs individually, we probably wouldn't get very far.
"At times, the SPFL are in a no-win situation. We can all criticise, but it's very hard when you are not part of the process in the corridors of power and dealing with these big broadcasters.
"They have to do what they think is right for the group, but the way they went about it, I think it would have been better if we had come to a decision together rather than changing the resolution."
READ NEXT
