Relegation is already decided for this year's Premier League. Hull City, Middlesbrough and Sunderland will play next season in the Championship, the second division in England. It's not a surprise for any of the three teams, as all have suffered this fate before. All three probably will be back, soon enough, and then drop down again.
It's the dark side of the English system, and every big European league: Reaching the top is all but impossible, but the punishments — in the form of relegations — can be unlimited. It's worth wondering whether this is actually a good way to do things.
Finding fallen giants in the lower leagues is not difficult. Blackburn, which won the Premier League in 1995, was relegated from the Championship this year, becoming the first Premier League winner to land in the third division. Nottingham Forest won two consecutive European Cups in 1979 and 1980, but only escaped the same fate as Blackburn based on goal difference.
Six other former Premier League teams have fallen to the third tier. Three more — Blackpool, Coventry City and Swindon Town — are now in the fourth division.
Really, the only team that has made the reverse journey — from a lower league to among the regular Premier League elite — is Manchester City, which is funded by uncountable oil riches and plays in one of England's biggest cities.
Six teams have played all 25 seasons of the Premier League — Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Liverpool and Everton. Every other team has struggled.
Middlesbrough and Sunderland's relegations are their fourth from the Premier League, tied for first in the relegation standings. Six others have suffered that fate three times.
The story of Blackburn or Forest or Blackpool should be a cautionary tale. But for the fans of those teams, it is a nightmare in real time. Blackpool fans have given up going to games, the only form of protest left to them. Charlton Athletic fans have traveled to protest at other European clubs owned by their team's owner. Leyton Orient fans stormed the field at their club's final home game of the year, in protest of their club's poor management.