This sports piece was written for Anglosphere consumption.
DESCRIBING THE URALICAN PROMOTION-RELEGATION SYSTEM TO OUTSIDERS
Marko Ukhtov
In light of a recent article published by Gary Neville about our Year-End Gala and the further interest in Uralican football that it has generated, I have taken it upon myself to explain the promotion-relegation system of our country as it could cause confusion. In fairness, though, most if not all of the confusion will come from the relegation rather than the promotion.
Promotion
The promotion is nice and straightforward. With the exception of the Bolakliiga, the Kolmonen G, and the Viitonen's Peripheral Vyatka and Yekaterinburg Outer Suburbs zones, all divisions in Uralica get four new teams coming upward every year, and it's possible that it could be moved from three to four for the Bolakliiga starting next season. The exceptions all get three. A vote is going on this at the end of January. Looking at the totals:
Bolakliiga gets 3 teams from Ykkönen
Ykkönen gets 2 teams each from Kakkonen East and West.
Each Kakkonen division gets 1 team each from underlying Kolmonen divisions (A-D for West, E-H for East)
Each Kolmonen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Nelönen divisions, except for Kolmonen G, which only gets one (because there are three corresponding Nelönen divisions)
Each Nelönen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Viitonen divisions.
Each Viitonen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Kuutonen Divisions, except:
Since these numbers are fixed, though, the even number of teams in every level save the Kuutonen depends on the relegation, and here is where things get confusing. The default number of teams relegated assumes that the teams distribute evenly, but they very often don't. There is a trickle-down effect in the relegation, since the number relegated from a level is fixed in number, but the number relegated relegated from a division fluctuates, and it actually starts at the Ykkönen level technically speaking.
Since the Kakkonen is the highest geographical level, it is possible for an entire half of the system to have fewer or more relegations than the other. Teams from 17th to 20th place are all relegated. Say they were all from the West. Not only does that mean extra relegations for the West and fewer for the East the whole way down the system (the Kakkonen West would relegate six teams instead of four whereas the Kakkonen East would only relegate two).
Here's how the math works. First for a division that gets no teams relegated from above:
20 teams - 2 teams promoted to overlying division - 2 teams relegated to underlying division(s) +4 teams promoted from underlying divisions + 0 teams relegated from overlying divisions = 20 teams again
Or for divisions that have the other extreme:
20 teams - 2 teams promoted to overlying division - 6 teams relegated to underlying divisions + 4 teams promoted from underlying divisions + 4 teams relegated from overlying divisions = 20 teams again
Both create chain reactions down the system that result in the flexible-number leagues of the Kuutonen having a net loss or gain of teams, which is why those leagues try to keep to a number above the minimum allowed of 10 teams but below the minimum of 24, which only counts for the Kuutonen - the hard and fast number for all other levels' divisions is 20. This is actually why the Nelonen G1 split into the current G1 and G2 in 2013. You see great fluctuation in the numbers of teams in Kuutonen leagues. Some have gotten down to 10 - it's rarer, but it did happen in the short-lived Kuutonen South Kola Bay after two seasons in operation, which is why it merged with the Murmansk-Severomorsk league in 2015. What has never happened is that any one Kuutonen league has gotten four relegations from a Viitonen division unless it was a one-to-one correspondence like Kola Bay or Isthmus-Southwest Karelia.
So how does this work?
If all four relegated Ykkönen teams end up on one half of the Kakkonen (which almost happened this year), then the Kakkonen half also relegates the 14th- and 15th-place teams. The Kolmonen division(s) to which those two extra teams belong(s) then relegate(s) 16th (and 15th if one division gets two extras as a result).
If two Kolmonen divisions get one extra relegation, the chain reaction of one extra relegation contains down through the Nelönen half to which each Kolmonen division belongs, then the Viitonen Zone, and the corresponding Kuutonen zone ends with a net gain of one team.
If one Kolmonen division gets both, the split happens at a lower level. It is theoretically possible that both extra-relegated teams will be from the same division the whole way down, but the odds of that happening are infinitesimal, and to date, it has never happened.
For the side that gets fewer relegated teams in their Kakkonen division, there is a sequence of sparing relegations. At the very least, a division must relegate two teams unless they're right at the bottom. But 17th, and in some cases even 18th, get spared relegation.
It's actually lopsided this year, albeit not to the extreme. SO let's use this year as an example.
Three teams (GFK Izhevsk, Telekom Pazhga, and Lokomotiv Kotlas) got relegated to the Kakkonen West from the Ykkönen and only one (last-place Metafraks Gubakha) got relegated to the Kakkonen East.
As a result, the Kakkonen West relegated an extra team (Inter Enso, joining GFK Cheboksary, Darya Orichi, LesProm Petroskoi, and KiPS Kirssi) and the Kakkonen East spared a team (Metallurg Rezh, not joining TvinkiZavod Chaykovsky, Zenit Yekaterinburg, and UJK Usovuori.)
The Kolmonen B had dumb luck, though, because none of the relegations were from that division, so the Nelönen B2 actually gets one less as 17th-place (Spartak Plesetsk) was spared relegation. Both the Kolmonen A and the Kolmonen D had two teams each coming down, and therefore had to add an extra relegation. The Kolmonen C, who only got GFK Cheboksary, could continue normally with no extras or deductions. There were relegation issues farther down in this part of the system, but we'll ignore those for the purposes of this article.
The Kolmonen H also went without a relegated team, so Vakh Izluchinsk was spared. Kolmonen Divisions E, F, and G all got one relegated team, so there is no aftereffect from this division.
The after-effects in the Nelönen:
DESCRIBING THE URALICAN PROMOTION-RELEGATION SYSTEM TO OUTSIDERS
Marko Ukhtov
In light of a recent article published by Gary Neville about our Year-End Gala and the further interest in Uralican football that it has generated, I have taken it upon myself to explain the promotion-relegation system of our country as it could cause confusion. In fairness, though, most if not all of the confusion will come from the relegation rather than the promotion.
Promotion
The promotion is nice and straightforward. With the exception of the Bolakliiga, the Kolmonen G, and the Viitonen's Peripheral Vyatka and Yekaterinburg Outer Suburbs zones, all divisions in Uralica get four new teams coming upward every year, and it's possible that it could be moved from three to four for the Bolakliiga starting next season. The exceptions all get three. A vote is going on this at the end of January. Looking at the totals:
Bolakliiga gets 3 teams from Ykkönen
Ykkönen gets 2 teams each from Kakkonen East and West.
Each Kakkonen division gets 1 team each from underlying Kolmonen divisions (A-D for West, E-H for East)
Each Kolmonen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Nelönen divisions, except for Kolmonen G, which only gets one (because there are three corresponding Nelönen divisions)
Each Nelönen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Viitonen divisions.
Each Viitonen division gets 2 teams each from underlying Kuutonen Divisions, except:
- Viitonen Kola Bay gets four teams from Kuutonen Kola Bay
- Viitonen Isthmus-Southwest Karelia gets four teams from Kuutonen Isthmus-Southwest Karelia
- Viitonen Peripheral Vyatka gets one team each from Kuutonen North/West Vyatka, Kuutonen East Vyatka, and Kuutonen South Vyatka
- Viitonen Yekaterinburg Outer Suburbs gets one team each from Kuutonen Yekaterinburg Suburbs North, Kuutonen Yekaterinburg Suburbs South, and Kuutonen Yekaterinburg Suburbs East.
Since these numbers are fixed, though, the even number of teams in every level save the Kuutonen depends on the relegation, and here is where things get confusing. The default number of teams relegated assumes that the teams distribute evenly, but they very often don't. There is a trickle-down effect in the relegation, since the number relegated from a level is fixed in number, but the number relegated relegated from a division fluctuates, and it actually starts at the Ykkönen level technically speaking.
Since the Kakkonen is the highest geographical level, it is possible for an entire half of the system to have fewer or more relegations than the other. Teams from 17th to 20th place are all relegated. Say they were all from the West. Not only does that mean extra relegations for the West and fewer for the East the whole way down the system (the Kakkonen West would relegate six teams instead of four whereas the Kakkonen East would only relegate two).
Here's how the math works. First for a division that gets no teams relegated from above:
20 teams - 2 teams promoted to overlying division - 2 teams relegated to underlying division(s) +4 teams promoted from underlying divisions + 0 teams relegated from overlying divisions = 20 teams again
Or for divisions that have the other extreme:
20 teams - 2 teams promoted to overlying division - 6 teams relegated to underlying divisions + 4 teams promoted from underlying divisions + 4 teams relegated from overlying divisions = 20 teams again
Both create chain reactions down the system that result in the flexible-number leagues of the Kuutonen having a net loss or gain of teams, which is why those leagues try to keep to a number above the minimum allowed of 10 teams but below the minimum of 24, which only counts for the Kuutonen - the hard and fast number for all other levels' divisions is 20. This is actually why the Nelonen G1 split into the current G1 and G2 in 2013. You see great fluctuation in the numbers of teams in Kuutonen leagues. Some have gotten down to 10 - it's rarer, but it did happen in the short-lived Kuutonen South Kola Bay after two seasons in operation, which is why it merged with the Murmansk-Severomorsk league in 2015. What has never happened is that any one Kuutonen league has gotten four relegations from a Viitonen division unless it was a one-to-one correspondence like Kola Bay or Isthmus-Southwest Karelia.
So how does this work?
If all four relegated Ykkönen teams end up on one half of the Kakkonen (which almost happened this year), then the Kakkonen half also relegates the 14th- and 15th-place teams. The Kolmonen division(s) to which those two extra teams belong(s) then relegate(s) 16th (and 15th if one division gets two extras as a result).
If two Kolmonen divisions get one extra relegation, the chain reaction of one extra relegation contains down through the Nelönen half to which each Kolmonen division belongs, then the Viitonen Zone, and the corresponding Kuutonen zone ends with a net gain of one team.
If one Kolmonen division gets both, the split happens at a lower level. It is theoretically possible that both extra-relegated teams will be from the same division the whole way down, but the odds of that happening are infinitesimal, and to date, it has never happened.
For the side that gets fewer relegated teams in their Kakkonen division, there is a sequence of sparing relegations. At the very least, a division must relegate two teams unless they're right at the bottom. But 17th, and in some cases even 18th, get spared relegation.
It's actually lopsided this year, albeit not to the extreme. SO let's use this year as an example.
Three teams (GFK Izhevsk, Telekom Pazhga, and Lokomotiv Kotlas) got relegated to the Kakkonen West from the Ykkönen and only one (last-place Metafraks Gubakha) got relegated to the Kakkonen East.
As a result, the Kakkonen West relegated an extra team (Inter Enso, joining GFK Cheboksary, Darya Orichi, LesProm Petroskoi, and KiPS Kirssi) and the Kakkonen East spared a team (Metallurg Rezh, not joining TvinkiZavod Chaykovsky, Zenit Yekaterinburg, and UJK Usovuori.)
The Kolmonen B had dumb luck, though, because none of the relegations were from that division, so the Nelönen B2 actually gets one less as 17th-place (Spartak Plesetsk) was spared relegation. Both the Kolmonen A and the Kolmonen D had two teams each coming down, and therefore had to add an extra relegation. The Kolmonen C, who only got GFK Cheboksary, could continue normally with no extras or deductions. There were relegation issues farther down in this part of the system, but we'll ignore those for the purposes of this article.
The Kolmonen H also went without a relegated team, so Vakh Izluchinsk was spared. Kolmonen Divisions E, F, and G all got one relegated team, so there is no aftereffect from this division.
The after-effects in the Nelönen:
- Nelönen A1 gets Severomineralnik Apatity (16th Kolmonen A) as an extra, joining Transit Kuálõk and Polaris Zapadnaya Revda
- Nelönen B2 can spare Akademklub Arkhangel'sk relegation, since Spartak Plesetsk is from the Nelonen B2 zone
- Nelönen D2 gets Dinamo Igra (16th Kolmonen D) as an extra, joining SK Glazov and Velocitas Votka
- Nelönen H2 can spare FK Fyodorovsky, since Vakh Izluchinsk is from the Nelönen H2 zone.
- Viitonen Peripheral Sapmi gets Metallurg Kolosjoki (16th Nelönen A1) as an extra, but this balances out because only one (Hiipinän JK) of the "usual four" (17th-20th) was relegated to Peripheral Sapmi; no extra net gain or loss for Kuutonen West Sapmi or South/Central Sapmi as a result
- Instead, it is Kuutonen Kola Bay that ends up with the net gain of one, since three teams (FK Polyarny, FK Gadzhiyevo, and Remontnik Snezhnogorsk) were relegated from Nelönen A1 to Viitonen Kola Bay, who relegate Matrosy Murmansk along with their "usual four."
- Viitonen Lower Viena-White Sea spares FK Savinsky (17th in Nelönen B2), which results in a net loss of one for North Viena State.
- Viitonen Izhevsk-South Udmurtia gets FK Alnashi (16th Nelönen D2) as an extra, joining Dinamo Sarapul and Torpedo Purga, and resulting in the net gain of one for Kuutonen South Udmurtia (Kama Sarapul).
- The East chain stops at Viitonen Central Yugra, who spares 17th-place Sadovnik Nizhnesortymsky, resulting in a net loss of one for Kuutonen Eastbank-Oilfields.
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(06-11-2022, 10:13 PM)Kyng Wrote: I love how [Abacab] has a track with a section named "Lurker", when the album title itself looks like Lurker's attempt to spell "Abacus" or something .
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