Editing Playoffs (section)

=== Belgium ===
The Belgian [[Belgian First Division A|First Division A]] (previously known as the "First Division" and "Pro League") has a fairly complex playoff system, currently consisting of two levels and at one time three.

Since the 2009–10 season, playoffs have been held to determine the champion and tickets for the Champions League and Europa League. The six highest ranked teams play home-and-away matches against each other; a total of 10 matches each. The 6 participating teams start with the points accumulated during the regular competition divided by two. The first 3 teams after the play-offs get a European ticket. The fourth ranked team (or fifth, when the cup holder is already qualified for European football) plays a knock-out match against the winner of play-off 2. From 2009 to 2010 through 2015–16, teams ranked 7–14 played in two groups; from 2016 to 2017 forward, this playoff will continue to be contested in two groups, but with a total of 12 teams (details below). All points gained from the regular competition are lost. The two group winners play a final match to determine the winner of play-off 2. The winning team plays a final match against the fourth-ranked team (or fifth) for the last European ticket.

The play-off system has been criticized because more points per match can be earned in the play-off stage than in the regular competition. This way the team who wins the most matches isn't automatically the national champion. The biggest upside in favor of the play-off system is the higher number of matches (40 instead of 34 compared to the previous season) and more top matches. The extra matches also generate higher revenues for the teams.

Nonetheless, the higher number of matches takes an extra toll on teams and players. Besides play-offs, the Royal Belgian Football Association (KBVB) also introduced Christmas football in order to complete the extra matches in time. This posed some problems because a few matches had to be cancelled due to snowy pitches.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sporza.be/cm/sporza/voetbal/Jupiler_Pro_League/091219_charleroi_standard_vooraf |title=Sneeuwval maakt voetballen onmogelijk |language =nl|date = December 19, 2009 |website = Sporza |access-date = December 23, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20091224110500/http://www.sporza.be/cm/sporza/voetbal/Jupiler_Pro_League/091219_charleroi_standard_vooraf |archive-date=December 24, 2009 }}</ref> The delays will probably cause the tight schedule to fail and postpone the end of the season.{{speculation inline|date=November 2023}}

Some structural changes were instituted in [[2015–16 Belgian Pro League|2015–16]]:
* The team that finished atop the regular-season table is now assured of a Europa League place if they fail to finish in a Champions League qualifying spot (currently top two places).
* The first tiebreaker between Championship Round teams is now regular-season position.
* Accumulated yellow cards from the regular season are erased, although suspensions will continue to carry over. During the playoffs, three accumulated yellow cards will result in a suspension, as opposed to five during the regular season.

From 1974 through 2015, the 15th team out of 16 in the final standings was involved in a playoff pool with three teams from the [[Belgian First Division B|Belgian Second Division]] after each season, to determine which of these teams played in the First Division/Pro League the oncoming season. The lowest ranked team of the First Division/Pro League was relegated and replaced by the Second Division champion.

Originally, these playoffs were introduced in 1974 and were part of the Second Division, to determine which team was promoted to the highest level together with the division champions. From the [[2005–06 Belgian First Division|2005–06 season]] on, only one team was relegated directly from the First Division, with the 17th team taking part in the playoff. As a result, this playoff was still called the [[Belgian Second Division final round]], although one team from the Pro League took part each year.

Starting in 2015–16, this playoff was scrapped and replaced with direct relegation for the bottom Pro League/First Division A team only.

Further changes will be introduced to the Europa League playoffs from 2016 to 2017 forward.{{needs update-inline|date=March 2024}} The playoff will involve a total of 12 teams—nine from First Division A, and three from First Division B (the renamed Second Division). The First Division A qualifiers will be those finishing between 7th and 15th on the regular-season table. The First Division B qualifiers will be the top three teams from that league's regular-season table, excluding the division champion, which instead earns promotion to First Division A. As in the previous format, the teams will be divided into two groups, each playing home-and-away within the group, and the two group winners will play a one-off final, with the winner of that match advancing to a one-off match against the fourth- or fifth-place team from the championship playoff (depending on available European slots) for the final Europa League place.