2007–08 in English football, Club football, Football League, League One
In a season mired by controversy and points deductions at both ends of the table, Swansea City were the clear champions in League One. In terms of results, Leeds United were actually the best team behind Swansea, but had started the season on –15 points following their failure to reach an agreement with HM Revenue & Customs on their Creditors Voluntary Arrangement. This was the first time in the league's history that such a penalty had been imposed.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Football League, League One
Nottingham Forest therefore took the second automatic promotion spot on the final day of the season after a late surge of form, culminating in Forest defeating Yeovil 3–2 (Who ironically defeated them in the play-off semi final the previous season). Doncaster Rovers won promotion to the Championship by beating Leeds United 1–0 at Wembley Stadium in the League One play-off final, thus returning to the top two tiers for the first time since 1958.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Football League, League One
At the opposite end of the table, Port Vale were in fact the worst team going by results, but Luton Town went into administration and lost ten points causing them to finish bottom, though they would have been relegated even without this penalty. AFC Bournemouth also received a ten-point deduction for going into administration, and in their case it did prove fatal, sending the club down to League Two. If the points deduction did not occur, then Crewe would have gone down. Gillingham were the other team to suffer relegation.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Football League, League Two
Milton Keynes Dons won their first honours as a club, winning the League Two title and the Football League Trophy. The other clubs automatically promoted were runners-up Peterborough United, who had pushed the Dons close for most of the season, and Hereford United, who returned to the third level of English football for the first time in 30 years. Stockport County won promotion to League One by beating Rochdale 3–2 at Wembley Stadium in the League Two play-off final.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Football League, League Two
There was to be no repeat of Wrexham's last day heroics of the 2006–07 season, and this time they finished bottom and went out of the League. Despite a good run late in the season, Mansfield Town joined them. Both Dagenham & Redbridge and Morecambe played in The Football League for the first time, after securing promotion to League Two from the Conference National.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Cup competitions and Community Shield
Portsmouth won the FA Cup with a 1–0 victory over Cardiff City. Tottenham Hotspur won the League Cup, beating the holders Chelsea 2–1 after extra time. It was the first League Cup final to be played at the new Wembley Stadium. MK Dons won the Football League Trophy after beating Grimsby Town 2–0 in the final. Manchester United took the first silverware of the season when they beat Chelsea 3–0 on penalties in the FA Community Shield.


2007–08 in English football, Club football, Non-League football
The Conference National became known as the Blue Square Premier upon the announcement of a three-year sponsorship deal. The two regional feeder leagues became known as the Blue Square North and South respectively. The deal signalled the end of a nine-year association between the Conference and the Nationwide Building Society. Aldershot Town won the Conference National to gain automatic promotion to the Football League, while Exeter City beat Cambridge United 1–0 in the play-off final at Wembley Stadium to secure the other promotion place. Aldershot also won the Conference League Cup, beating Rushden & Diamonds in a penalty shootout after a 3–3 draw. The FA Trophy was won by Ebbsfleet United, who beat Torquay United 1–0 at Wembley.


2007–08 in English football, Events off the field
Deloitte reported in September 2007 that transfer spending by all Premier League and Football League clubs had exceeded £500 million, compared to £300 million spent the season before. Deloitte attributed the rise in spending to the huge increase in broadcasting revenue and new owners buying into Premier League clubs.


2007–08 in English football, Events off the field
Two league clubs moved to new grounds for 2007–08. Shrewsbury Town moved to the New Meadow for the start of this season, after leaving their old stadium, Gay Meadow. Milton Keynes Dons moved to their new 22,000 all seater stadium at Denbigh, Milton Keynes, known as Stadium:mk. The stadium was officially opened on 29 November 2007 by Queen Elizabeth.


2007–08 in English football, Events off the field
Sheffield, the world's oldest football club, celebrated their 150th anniversary; events included a friendly match against Inter Milan.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
1 July 2007: Tottenham Hotspur pay a club record £16.5 million for Charlton Athletic striker Darren Bent.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
2 July 2007: Manchester United shell out a combined total of £30 million for Brazilian midfielder Anderson (from Porto) and Portuguese winger Nani (from Sporting CP).


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
4 July 2007: Everton pay £4 million for Sheffield United defender Phil Jagielka.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
5 July 2007: Aston Villa sign West Ham United midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker for £8.5 million.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
10 July 2007: West Ham United pay a club record £7.5 million for Liverpool striker Craig Bellamy, while Wigan Athletic break their own record fee with a £5.3 million deal for West Bromwich Albion midfielder Jason Koumas.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
13 July 2007: Liverpool pay £11.5 million to Ajax for winger Ryan Babel.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
23 July 2007: Freddie Ljungberg, Arsenal's longest-serving player, leaves after nearly nine years in a £3 million move to West Ham United.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
24 July 2007: Robbie Fowler leaves Liverpool for a second time to join Cardiff City on a free transfer.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
3 August 2007: Manchester United sell striker Alan Smith to Newcastle United for £6 million.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
4 August 2007: Leeds United, who have spent the summer on the brink of expulsion from the Football League due to their financial problems, are told that they will be allowed to take their place in League One, but will start on –15 points for exiting administration without a CVA. Leeds chairman Ken Bates immediately announces his intention to appeal against the penalty.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
5 August 2007: Manchester United beat Chelsea on penalties after a 1–1 draw to seal the Community Shield at Wembley Stadium.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
15 August 2007: Long-serving Aston Villa defender Mark Delaney retires from playing at the age of 31 after failing to fully recover from a succession of injuries.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
25 August 2007: Ray Jones, 18-year-old Queens Park Rangers striker, dies in a car crash in east London which claims the lives of two other people.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
28 August 2007: Manchester United's long-serving Norwegian striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær retires from playing at the age of 34.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
29 August 2007: Martin Allen, who was appointed manager of Leicester City only three months ago, is dismissed from his job. Everton pay a club record £11.25 million to Middlesbrough for striker Yakubu.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
31 August 2007: August ends with Chelsea top after four matches and looking to reclaim their title from Manchester United, who currently stand 10th after a slow start. Manchester City and Wigan Athletic are surprise members of the current top four, along with Liverpool. Everton, Arsenal and Newcastle United complete the top seven while Bolton Wanderers, Fulham and Derby County make up the relegation zone. In the Championship, Coventry City and Ipswich Town are joint leaders of the division while Wolverhampton Wanderers, Stoke City, recently relegated Watford and Colchester United stand in the play-offs. The table is propped up by QPR, Preston North End and Sheffield Wednesday.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
11 September 2007: Ian Porterfield, who scored the winning goal for Sunderland in the 1973 FA Cup Final, dies of cancer aged 61. Porterfield was managing Armenia at the time of his death, and earlier in his management career he had been in charge of teams including Sheffield United and Chelsea.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
13 September 2007: Gary Megson, former West Bromwich Albion and Nottingham Forest manager, ends his 18-month exile from football to take over at Leicester City.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
20 September 2007: José Mourinho, who in the last three years has guided Chelsea to two Premier League titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup triumph, resigns as manager after falling out with owner Roman Abramovich. Director of Football Avram Grant takes over control of the first team, becoming the first Israeli manager in English football.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
30 September 2007: At the end of September Arsenal have leaped to the top of the Premiership, followed closely by Manchester United. Manchester City are making a surprise title push and stand in third, while Liverpool, Everton, Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers are also attempting to make their mark in the push for Europe. Tottenham Hotspur, Bolton and Derby are joint bottom of the Premiership, although Derby's vastly inferior goal difference makes them appear the most vulnerable of the three sides.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
In the Championship, Watford and Charlton Athletic, relegated from the Premiership last season, are pushing for an immediate return to the top flight and stand first and third respectively, sandwiching West Bromwich Albion. Newly promoted sides Bristol City (4th) and Scunthorpe United (6th) are pushing for a second consecutive promotion, while fifth-placed Stoke City are pushing for a return to the top tier after a 20-year absence. The same three teams from August stand in the bottom three, although now QPR has dropped below Preston and Sheffield Wednesday to stand bottom.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
8 October 2007: Peter Taylor is sacked as manager of Crystal Palace after just 16 months in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
11 October 2007: Neil Warnock returns to management with Crystal Palace, just five months after leaving Sheffield United.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
17 October 2007: Bolton Wanderers, bottom of the Premier League, sack manager Sammy Lee after six months in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
19 October 2007: Steve Bruce resigns after six years as manager of Birmingham City. Speculations mounts that he is about to take over from Chris Hutchings as manager of Wigan Athletic, where he had a brief spell in 2001.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
25 October 2007: Gary Megson defects from Leicester City after six weeks as manager to take over at Bolton Wanderers, while Martin Jol is sacked as manager of Tottenham Hotspur (battling relegation from the Premier League after two successive fifth-place finishes) after three years.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
31 October 2007: Arsenal are continuing their bid for a first title in four years and finish October joint top with Manchester United, but with a game in hand. Manchester City are also continuing their push for European qualification and stand in third, although they are facing pressure from Chelsea, Blackburn, Liverpool and Portsmouth. The relegation zone is unchanged from the end of September, although only three points separate 14th-placed Fulham from 20th-placed Derby.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
In the Championship, Watford stand six points clear of nearest challengers Bristol City and look well placed for a quick return to the Premiership, while West Brom, Ipswich, Wolves and Stoke (joint sixth with Plymouth Argyle) compete for the play-off places. Norwich City now prop up the Championship, and are three points adrift of the nearest two sides, QPR and Crystal Palace.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
5 November 2007: Chris Hutchings is sacked as manager of Premier League strugglers Wigan Athletic after less than six months in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
21 November 2007: England fail to qualify for Euro 2008 after losing 3–2 to Croatia in their final qualifying game at Wembley Stadium.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
22 November 2007: Steve McClaren is dismissed as England manager by The Football Association after 16 months in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
26 November 2007: Billy Davies is sacked as manager of Derby County, bottom of the Premier League with just one win so far.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
28 November 2007: Paul Jewell returns to management with Derby County, six months after leaving Wigan Athletic. Alex McLeish resigns as Scotland manager to take over at Birmingham City.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
30 November 2007: Arsenal finish November three points ahead of Manchester United with a game still in hand, although only seven points separate Arsenal from seventh-placed Portsmouth, and the teams in between – United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Aston Villa – all look capable of sustaining a title bid if they can string together a few good results. Derby remain bottom of the Premiership, but are now joined in the bottom three by Wigan and Sunderland. In the Championship, West Brom have cut Watford's lead to only two points. Charlton have recovered from a poor October to stand third, joined in the top six by Wolves, Ipswich and Bristol City. Norwich remain bottom, along with Preston, but are now only a point adrift of 21st-placed Blackpool, who lead QPR only by goal difference.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
14 December 2007: Fabio Capello, 61-year-old Italian who has achieved great success with several top European clubs, accepts an offer from The Football Association (FA) to take charge of the England team.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
21 December 2007: Premier League strugglers Fulham sack manager Lawrie Sanchez after eight months in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
29 December 2007: Phil O'Donnell, former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder, dies from a heart attack during a Scottish Premier League game for Motherwell.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
30 December 2007: Roy Hodgson returns to English football, nine years after being sacked by Blackburn Rovers, to take over as Fulham manager.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
31 December 2007: The year closes with Arsenal still top, although they have failed to take advantage of their game in hand and are only two points clear of Manchester United. It appears now that the title will end up either at Old Trafford or the Emirates – Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Everton and Aston Villa appear to be now competing just for European qualification. At the other end of the table, Derby are ten points adrift of safety and look certain for relegation. They are joined in the drop zone by Wigan and Fulham.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
A division below, West Brom have leapfrogged Watford into first. Bristol City are ramping up the pressure on their Hertfordshire rivals and are below them only by goal difference. Stoke, Charlton and Plymouth complete the top six. Norwich have escaped the relegation zone after a good run of results and their local rivals Colchester now prop up the table, along with Sheffield Wednesday and Preston.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
7 January 2008: Fabio Capello officially takes over as England manager.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
9 January 2008: Sam Allardyce is sacked after eight months in charge of Newcastle United.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
11 January 2008: Chelsea pay Bolton Wanderers £15 million for French striker Nicolas Anelka.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
16 January 2008: Kevin Keegan is appointed manager of Newcastle United for the second time, having previously been their manager from 1992 until 1997.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
24 January 2008: George Burley quits Southampton to take over as Scotland manager.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
29 January 2008: Dennis Wise resigns as manager of Leeds United (who replace him with former captain Gary McAllister) to become executive director of Newcastle United.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
30 January 2008: Tottenham Hotspur pay £9 million for Rangers and Scotland defender Alan Hutton.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
31 January 2008: Manchester United lead Arsenal by goal difference as January closes, although Chelsea have undergone a renaissance under Avram Grant and are only four points off the Premiership summit. The West London club are ten points clear of fourth-placed Everton, who, along with Aston Villa, Manchester City and Liverpool, are now competing for the final Champions League place. The relegation zone is unchanged from the end of December. West Brom and Bristol City are joint top of the Championship, with Watford, Stoke, Charlton and Crystal Palace in the top six and Preston, Scunthorpe and Colchester in the bottom three.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
6 February 2008: England beat Switzerland 2–1 in a home friendly in Fabio Capello's first game in charge.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
24 February 2008: Tottenham Hotspur end their nine-year trophy drought with a 2–1 win over Chelsea in the Football League Cup final.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
28 February 2008: Arsenal have regained their three-point advantage over Manchester United at the top of the Premiership, with Chelsea nine points behind their London rivals in third. Everton, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Portsmouth continue their European push. At the other end of the table, Derby are 14 points adrift of safety and appear effectively relegated. With eleven games left to play, Reading and Fulham join the Midlands club in the bottom three. In the Championship, Stoke have jumped to the top of the table and are fighting with Bristol City and Watford for the Football League title. West Brom, Plymouth and Charlton compete for the play-off places. The Championship relegation zone is unchanged.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
1 March 2008: Colchester United's former England striker Teddy Sheringham, who turns 42 next month and is the oldest professional footballer in the country, announces that he will retire from playing at the end of the season, calling time on a 26-year playing career.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
29 March 2008: Derby County's relegation is confirmed after they can only manage a 2–2 draw at home to fellow Premier League strugglers Fulham – the earliest relegation to be confirmed in all 16 seasons of the Premier League.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
31 March 2008: Manchester United have established a five-point lead over Chelsea with six games left to play; Arsenal have suffered a slump in form and are in third. Liverpool have also established a five-point lead, but ahead of Everton in the race for the final Champions League place. Everton, Portsmouth and Blackburn now appear to be competing for UEFA Cup qualification. For Fulham and Bolton the challenge is to escape the drop zone, although with only six games left their hopes are becoming increasingly slimmer.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
Derby are already relegated, and are playing now only to avoid breaking Sunderland's record – set two seasons ago – of the lowest points tally ever accrued in a Premiership season. In the Championship, only two points separate Bristol City, Stoke and a Hull City side making a late bid for promotion, although West Brom are only four points off the top with two games in hand. Watford and Wolves make up the rest of the top six. Colchester United appear doomed, being 13 points behind 21st-placed Southampton with only 15 left to play for. Scunthorpe United, while above Colchester, also seem destined for the drop. Sheffield Wednesday, however, are only a point behind Southampton and with two games in hand they still have a good chance of survival.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
29 April 2008: Tottenham Hotspur match their club record fee with a £16.5 million move for Dinamo Zagreb and Croatia midfielder Luka Modrić.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
30 April 2008: With two matches left, Manchester United and Chelsea are level on 81 points; Arsenal are four points behind and look like they will be settling for third. Liverpool have sealed their fourth-place finish, while Everton seem destined for fifth despite late pressure from Aston Villa and Portsmouth. Derby have confirmed their 20th-place finish, but Fulham and Birmingham City are still hopeful of securing their top-flight survival at the expense of Reading, Bolton or Middlesbrough.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
The Championship has one round of matches left to play: West Brom's superior goal difference makes it likely that they will be automatically promoted, barring a 12-goal swing in the favour of third placed Hull. Second-placed Stoke need to avoid defeat or hope that Hull loses on the final day to seal automatic promotion. Bristol City have sealed their place in the play-offs, while Watford, Crystal Palace, Wolves, Ipswich and Sheffield United fight for the final two play-off spots. Scunthorpe and Colchester are relegated, while Southampton are 22nd, but Leicester, Sheffield Wednesday, Coventry and Blackpool could all still be relegated.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
11 May 2008: Manchester United seal their 10th Premier League title and their 17th top division title overall by beating Wigan Athletic at the JJB Stadium in Wigan, while Derby County finish the season in bottom place with a record top division low of one win and 11 points. Joining them in the Football League Championship for next season are Birmingham City and Reading.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
12 May 2008: Porto and Portugal defender José Bosingwa agrees to join Chelsea in a £16.2 million deal.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
17 May 2008: Portsmouth's 58-year wait for a major trophy ends with a 1–0 win over Cardiff City in the FA Cup final. Nwankwo Kanu scores the only goal of the game.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
21 May 2008: In the first all-English Champions League final, Manchester United beat Chelsea on penalties after a 1–1 draw in Moscow. Edwin van der Sar saves Nicolas Anelka's penalty kick to give the trophy to United, while earlier in the shoot-out John Terry misses the penalty that would have given Chelsea the trophy for the very first time.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
24 May 2008: Hull City reach the top flight for the first time in their history with a 1–0 win over Bristol City in the Football League Championship play-off final, with 39-year-old striker Dean Windass scoring the winning goal. It is Hull's third promotion in five seasons – the second-quickest rise from the league's fourth tier to the highest. On the same day, Avram Grant is sacked as manager of Chelsea (without a major trophy for the first time in four years) despite having taken them to the brink of Premier League and Champions League glory this season.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
25 May 2008: Doncaster Rovers reach the second tier of the English league for the first time in 50 years with a 1–0 win over Leeds United in the League One playoff final. Just six years ago, Leeds were a top-five Premier League club playing European football, while Doncaster were still in the Conference.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
2 June 2008: Sven-Göran Eriksson is sacked after one season as manager of Manchester City.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
5 June 2008: Mark Hughes leaves Blackburn Rovers after four years to take over at Manchester City.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
7 June 2008: Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper Luke McCormick, 24, is involved in a car crash on the M6 motorway in Cheshire in which two children are killed and four other people are injured.


2007–08 in English football, Diary of the season
22 June 2008: Paul Ince becomes manager of Blackburn Rovers, ending his season-long spell in charge of Milton Keynes Dons (where he won the League Two title and the Football League Trophy.


2007–08 in English football, National team
England played their first international match on a synthetic pitch against Russia. England lost the game 2–1 leaving qualification for UEFA Euro 2008 out of their hands. England failed to qualify for Euro 2008 after losing 3–2 to Croatia on 21 November 2007. As a result, England manager Steve McClaren was sacked the following day. Fabio Capello was confirmed as the new England manager on 14 December 2007. Capello was unveiled by the FA on 17 December 2007, and took up his new role on 7 January 2008.


2007–08 in English football, National team, Friendly matches
The home team is listed on the left; the visiting one on the right.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Premier League
Manchester United were crowned league champions for the second year in succession, the tenth time in the history of the Premier League and the 17th time overall. They also won the European Cup/UEFA Champions League for the third time, and Cristiano Ronaldo finished as the league's top scorer with 31 goals. While all three of their main rivals kept the battle for the title close, Chelsea had the more dramatic season; influential manager José Mourinho departed in mid-September and was replaced by Avram Grant, who became the first Chelsea manager in four years to go without a trophy. Arsenal, meanwhile, after two seasons of disappointment, finished third, just missing out on the title by four points. Rounding out the top four was Liverpool, which ensured that the same four teams qualified for Europe's elite competition once again.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Premier League
Everton and Aston Villa occupied the two qualification places for the UEFA Cup as managers David Moyes and Martin O'Neill continued to impress for their respective sides (Villa qualified for the Intertoto Cup), whilst Portsmouth collected their first piece of silverware in 58 years by winning the FA Cup in their most successful season ever. Tottenham shook off the shock sacking of Martin Jol with newly installed Juande Ramos winning them their first trophy in years in the League Cup and ensuring a third consecutive year of UEFA Cup qualification, even if their league form was far from stellar.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Premier League
Manchester City went into the season with high expectations, with a new owner in Thaksin Shinawatra and a new manager in Sven-Göran Eriksson, alongside an influx of new talent, but finished 9th after suffering from inconsistent form at the turn of the year. Eriksson then lost his job at the end of the season, which included an 8–1 loss to Middlesbrough on the final day. Newcastle welcomed the returning Kevin Keegan as manager after sacking Sam Allardyce, and while a winless run from Boxing Day left them 4 points off the relegation places in mid-March, the Magpies secured safety by winning 4 of their next 7.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Premier League
Newly promoted Derby County, once champions of the old First Division, were relegated straight back to the Championship after just one season in the Premier League, winning just one game and collecting a mere 11 points all season; the team's season broke records for all the wrong reasons as they had the worst goal difference, the lowest number of goals scored in the top flight and the earliest post-war relegation. Their relegation was effectively confirmed when manager Billy Davies stood down in November.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Premier League
The departure of long-serving manager Steve Bruce and subsequent appointment of Alex McLeish meant that Birmingham were relegated after a single season back in the top flight. Taking the final relegation spot were Reading, who seemed safe until the last few weeks of the season, and only a year after narrowly missing out on a European spot. Fulham narrowly survived on goal difference, seemingly dead and buried until the final few games, the appointment of Roy Hodgson, who returned to English football after nine years managing in Europe, saw significant improvement enabling them to escape the drop.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Championship
West Bromwich Albion won the Championship title and sealed promotion to the Premier League after a two-year absence. Stoke City joined them, clinching promotion on the last day of the season and returning to the top flight of English football after an absence of 23 years. Hull City reached the top flight for the first time in their history after beating Bristol City 1–0 in the playoff final, marking their third promotion in five seasons having battled relegation last season. Bristol City had actually lead the table at several points of the season but nonetheless their fourth-place finish proved a far cry from being the relegation favourites many had tipped them for.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Championship
Wolverhampton Wanderers narrowly missed out on the play-offs on goal difference to a Watford side who actually led the league for most of the first half of the campaign, but won just 1 of their last 16 to sneak into the playoffs, with not even the arrival of top scorer Sylvan Ebanks-Blake helping Wolves' cause. Ipswich Town lost just once at home but missed out despite a final day win over Hull. Crystal Palace initially looked in danger of relegation until the appointment of Neil Warnock in October saw them climb the table and clinch a play-off spot somewhat to the expense of his old club Sheffield United.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Championship
Colchester United couldn't build on last season's tenth-place finish and were relegated back to League One in bottom place after two years in this league. Scunthorpe United's return to the second tier was short lived as they made an immediate return to League One. Leicester City went down on the final day despite drawing at Stoke, after Southampton beat Sheffield United to move above them.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Championship
It meant that the foxes would spend next season playing in the third tier of English football for the first time in their history, the employment of four permanent managers throughout the season saw them finally hit rock-bottom after several years of struggle and managerial changes. Sheffield Wednesday, Coventry City and Blackpool also all survived on the last day, In Coventry's case despite losing 4–1 at Charlton.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League One
Swansea City won the League One title after amassing 92 points, the highest by a Welsh club in the Football League. Nottingham Forest moved back up to the Championship after a three-season absence, winning 6 of their last 7 and snatching promotion from Doncaster Rovers on the final day. Doncaster made amends for missing out on automatic promotion by winning the playoffs to enter the Championship after a half century absence.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League One
Leeds United's record would have seen them promoted at the expense of Forest, however a 15-point deduction preseason proved costly, and while they did wipe the deduction out with a 13-match unbeaten run to start the campaign, they lost to Doncaster in the playoff final, ending their hopes of an immediate return to the Championship. Carlisle proved to be the surprise package however, and remained in contention for 2nd place until the final day, narrowly losing to Leeds in the play-offs.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League One
Luton Town suffered their second consecutive relegation as they finished bottom and sat in administration for the entire season, resulting in a ten-point deduction. Port Vale, who were statistically the worst team in the division, joined them. Gillingham were relegated on the last day of the season, as were Bournemouth, the latter of whom also entered administration and suffered a ten-point deduction which proved fatal. Crewe narrowly escaped relegation courtesy of Bournemouth's points deduction and despite losing 4–1 on the final day. Cheltenham avoided the drop in part to their final day win that also cost Doncaster automatic promotion.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Two
MK Dons won the League Two title, returning to the third tier after a two-season absence and earning their first major achievement in their four-year history. New boss Darren Ferguson led Peterborough United to promotion as runners-up. Hereford United also climbed out of the bottom division meaning they would be playing third tier football for first time in thirty years next season. The final promotion place went to Stockport County, who won the playoffs.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Two
At the bottom, Wrexham lost their 87-year-old league status. Mansfield Town had a good FA Cup run, but could not cope in the league and were also relegated out of the league after 77 years.


2007–08 in English football, League tables, Football League Two
Entering the Football League for the following season were Aldershot Town (The successor of the original Aldershot that folded during the 1991–92 season) and Exeter City, who returned after five years away.


2007–08 in German football
The 2007–08 season is the 98th season of competitive football in Germany.


2007–08 in Greek football
The 2007–08 season was the ?? season of competitive football in Greece.


2007–08 in Greek football, Coaches
Below is the list of coaches who left their teams after the start of the season.


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Champions League, Group Stage
(Olympiacos advances by finishing second in the group with 11 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, First Round
(Aris advances 2 – 2 on the away goals rule)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Group Stage
(AEK Athens advances by finishing third in the group with 5 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Group Stage
(Panathinaikos advances by finishing second in the group with 9 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Group Stage
(Aris fail to advance by finishing fourth in the group with 5 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Group Stage
(Larissa fail to advance by finishing fifth in the group with 0 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Group Stage
(Panionios fail to advance by finishing fourth in the group with 4 points)


2007–08 in Greek football, European Competition, UEFA Cup, Round of 32
(Rangers FC advances 1 – 1 on the away goals rule)


2007–08 in Hong Kong football
The 2007-08 season in Hong Kong football, starting July 2007 and ending June 2008:


2007–08 in Hong Kong football, Representative team, Hong Kong team
Hong Kong have gone through their 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, where they were knocked out in the Second Round.


2007–08 in Hong Kong football, Representative team, Hong Kong national under-23 football team
Hong Kong national under-23 football team this season is preparing for the 2009 East Asian Games to be hosted in Hong Kong.


2007–08 in Hong Kong football, Exhibition Matches, The Citizen Athletic Association 60th Anniversary Invitation Football Match
Citizen organized an exhibition competition on 22 August 2007 for celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the club. It featured two matches including the host Citizen against Guangdong, and another Hong Kong team South China versus J. League team Vissel Kobe.


2007–08 in Israeli football
The 2007–08 season was the 76th season of competitive football in Israel.


2007–08 in Italian football
The 2007–2008 season was the 106th season of competitive football in Italy.


2007–08 in Italian football, National team
Italy will continue their qualifying campaign for Euro 2008. They are coached by Roberto Donadoni.


2007–08 in Scottish football
The 2007–08 season was the 111th season of competitive football in Scotland.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Premier League
Celtic won their third consecutive title, having been off the pace for much of the season before a run of seven consecutive victories in the closing stages lifted them to the top of the table. Their title win was dedicated to the memory of assistant manager Tommy Burns, who passed away from cancer a week before the season ended.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Premier League
Rangers lost out on the title thanks to indifferent form in the final weeks of the campaign, though the fact that they came so close and recorded victories in both domestic cups nonetheless meant the season was a considerable improvement on the two previous seasons, which both ended up trophyless and without a serious challenge for the title. Motherwell finished third and took the UEFA Cup berth, as former player Mark McGhee's return as manager brought a major turnaround in form.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Premier League
At the other end of the table, Gretna's meteoric rise up the Scottish football pyramid came to a juddering halt; they went bottom of the table following a 4-0 thrashing in their first match, and never left it. The withdrawal of millionaire owner Brooks Mileson plunged them into a financial crisis that forced the club into administration, resulting in them becoming the first top-flight club to earn a ten-point deduction for doing so.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Premier League
This helped cause them to set a new record for the lowest top-flight points total since the adoption of 3 points for a win, and their financial troubles would ultimately prove terminal, resulting in the club folding and being reformed as Gretna F.C. 2008 in the Lowland League for the following year.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish First Division
Hamilton Academical won the title, and with it, their third promotion in seven years, bringing them back into the top-flight for the first time since 1989.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish First Division
Stirling Albion finished well adrift in bottom place, and suffered automatic relegation as a result. Clyde were sent into the play-offs, and retained their place in the First Division by beating Airdrie United in the final.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Second Division
Ross County won immediate promotion back to the First Division, vindicating their shock decision to sack manager Dick Campbell early in the campaign with the club top of the table, as rookie manager Derek Adams managed to further improve the club's form, resulting in them comfortably winning the title. Airdrie United initially lost out on promotion after failing to beat Clyde in the play-offs, but Gretna's demise meant Airdrie ended up being promoted anyway.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Second Division
Berwick Rangers were relegated in bottom place after a dismal campaign, and Cowdenbeath joined them after losing in the play-offs.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Third Division
East Fife won the division by a wide margin after their play-off heartbreak the previous season. Arbroath, who had likewise lost out on promotion in the previous season's play-offs, were victorious in this year's campaign. Stranraer, who lost to Arbroath in the play-off final, still ended up earning an immediate return to Division Two, thanks to Gretna's demise.


2007–08 in Scottish football, League competitions, Scottish Third Division
East Stirlingshire, who had been given a suspended reduction to associate members in the previous campaign (meaning they would have faced an expulsion vote had they finished bottom in both this and the next seasons), managed to avoid this fate by pulling above Forfar Athletic on the final day of the season. It was the first time since 2002 that any other team had finished bottom of the SFL pyramid.


2007–08 in Scottish football, National teams, Summary
Scotland failed in their attempt to qualify for the Euro 2008, finishing third in Group B behind 2006 World Cup finalists France and Italy despite beating France twice. Scotland needed a win in their final group game against Italy to qualify, although a draw would have been enough if Ukraine beat France in the last group fixture. Scotland lost 2–1 as a result of a heavily criticised decision by Spanish referee Manuel Mejuto González to award Italy a free kick in stoppage time (resulting in a goal) when it was clear it should have been a free kick to Scotland.


2007–08 in Scottish football, National teams, Summary
Manager Alex McLeish resigned on 27 November 2007 following the loss against Italy and became manager of Birmingham City, his assistants Roy Aitken and Andy Watson joined him at Birmingham. He was eventually replaced on 24 January 2008 by Southampton manager George Burley, he appointed Steven Pressley and former England captain Terry Butcher as his assistants. In first match in charge a 1–1 draw was achieved against Croatia despite the withdrawal of 7 players.


2007–08 in Scottish reserve and youth football
The 2007–08 season was a season of reserve and youth football in Scotland. The season commenced in August 2007.


2007–08 in Scottish reserve and youth football, Youth Cup competitions, East of Scotland Shield
(This was the 2006-07 edition which, due to scheduling issues, had been held-over unplayed and was thus completed in 2007-08).


2007–08 in Swedish bandy
The 2007–08 season in Swedish bandy, starting August 2007 and ending July 2008:


2007–08 in Swedish bandy, National team results
This bandy article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .


2007–08 in Turkish football
The 2007–08 season was the 104th season of competitive football in Turkey.


2007–08 in Uruguayan football, Second Division, Teams
These are the teams that currently participates in Uruguayan Second Division:


2007–08 in Uruguayan football, Uruguay national teams
This section will cover Uruguay's games from the end of the Copa América 2007 until the June 30, 2008.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football
The following article presents a summary of the 2007-08 football season in Venezuela.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football, Results
The home teams are read down the left hand side while the away teams are indicated along the top.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football, Results
Last updated: May 25, 2008Source:  Fixtures in green represent games played during the Apertura 2007 tournament, fixtures in red represent those played during the Clausura 2008.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football, Aggregate Table
Last updated: May 25, 2008Source: 1 Winner of 2007–08 Copa VenezuelaPos = Position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football, "Championship" playoff
Caracas F.C. and Deportivo Táchira F.C. ended with one championship each at the end of the Apertura and Clausura. Tournament rules establish that a playoff game is required. Deportivo Táchira won on away goal.


2007–08 in Venezuelan football, Venezuela national team
This section will cover Venezuela's games from the end of the Copa América 2007 until June 19, 2008.


2007–08 in Welsh football, National team
2007-08 saw Wales continue their quest for qualification to Euro 2008 in Austria and Switzerland. They played the Republic of Ireland, San Marino, Cyprus, Germany, Czech Republic and Slovakia. They did not qualify for the finals tournament


2007–08 in Welsh football, FAW Premier Cup
In March 2008, Newport County won the FAW Premier Cup beating Llanelli 1–0 in the final.


2007–08 in Welsh football, Welsh Cup
Bangor City won the 2008 Welsh Cup beating Llanelli in the final 4-2 after extra time.


2007–08 in Welsh football, Welsh League Cup
Llanelli won the 2008 Welsh League Cup beating Rhyl 2–0 in the final.


2007–08 in Welsh football, Welsh Premier League
2007-08 was the first since 2005 that the top division had 18 teams as a result of Neath Athletic's promotion from the Welsh Football League. This meant that all teams were in action on every matchday whereas for the previous 2 seasons there were 17 teams with one team inactive every weekend.


2007–08 in Welsh football, Welsh Football League Division One
Cwmbran Town's relegation from the Welsh Premier League in the 2006–07 season saw them play in the First Division for 2007–08.


2007–08 in Welsh football, Welsh Football League Division One
Barry Town, historically the most successful team in the League of Wales, suffered further relegation from the First Division to Second Division. This followed their relegation from the Welsh Premier League in 2004.


2007–08 snooker season
The 2007–08 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 16 June 2007 and 15 May 2008. This season saw the introduction of a new ranking tournament in Shanghai, while the Malta Cup lost its status as a ranking tournament.


2007–08 snooker season, New professional players
Note: new means in these case, that these players were not on the 2006/2007 professional Main Tour.


2007–08 snooker season, Calendar
The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.


2007–08 snooker season, Official rankings
The top 16 of the world rankings, these players automatically played in the final rounds of the world ranking events and were invited for the Masters.


2007–08 synchronized skating season
The 2007–08 synchronized skating season began on July 1, 2007, and ended on June 30, 2008. During this season, which was concurrent with the season for the other four disciplines (men's single, ladies' single, pair skating and ice dancing), elite synchronized skating teams competed on the International Skating Union (ISU) Championship level at the 2008 World Championships and Junior World Challenge Cup. They also competed at various other international as well as national synchronized skating competitions.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation
The 2007–2008 Belgian government formation followed the general election of 10 June 2007, and comprised a period of negotiation in which the Flemish parties Flemish Liberal Democratic (Open VLD), Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V) and New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), and the French-speaking parties Reformist Movement (MR), Democratic Front of Francophones (FDF) and Humanist Democratic Centre (CdH) negotiated to form a government coalition. The negotiations were characterized by the disagreement between the Dutch- and French-speaking parties about the need for and nature of a constitutional reform. According to some, this political conflict could have led to a partition of Belgium.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation
On November 6, the formation talks became the longest in Belgian history. When the Parliament confirmed the formation of an interim Government, it had been 196 days since the Belgian people had voted out the previous coalition. It was the second longest formation period in European history, after the Dutch record of 208 days in 1977. Talks were interrupted twice by the resignation of the formateur, which left the political parties waiting for a new appointment by the King.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation
Guy Verhofstadt was appointed as mediator on December 3, with the task not only of looking into the formation of a new government, but also of investigating how the government could handle certain urgent policy matters. Pressed by time, and some say by the King, on 19 December, Verhofstadt concluded a deal on a Government and presented it to Parliament on 21 December; on the same day the Ministers took the oath of office.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation
On Sunday 23 December, the interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour. The transitional period came to an end on March 20, 2008, when Yves Leterme was sworn in as Prime Minister. The new government seemed short-lived as Leterme offered the King his resignation on 15 July 2008. The King refused.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Conventions
After a federal election, the process of government formation starts. This process is based on constitutional convention rather than written law and generally consists of two stages: information and formation. The King consults the presidents of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate and a number of prominent politicians in order to discuss the election results. Following these meetings, he appoints an informateur.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Conventions
The informateur has the task of exploring the various possibilities for a new federal government and for examining which parties can form a majority in the Federal Parliament. He also meets with prominent people in various fields to hear their views on what policies the new federal government should pursue. The informateur then reports to the King and advises him about the appointment of a formateur. However, the King can also decide to appoint a second informateur or appoint a royal mediator.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Conventions
The formateur, who is usually the prospective prime minister is appointed by the King on the basis of the informateur's report. The task of the formateur is to form a new government coalition and lead the negotiations about the government agreement and the composition of the government. If these negotiations succeed, the formateur presents a new federal government to the King.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Election and immediate aftermath, 10 – 13 June
On June 10, federal elections were held in Belgium. In Flanders, the ruling purple coalition – the liberal Open VLD and the centre-left electoral list of Socialist Party – Different (SP.a) and Spirit – lost the most seats, while the electoral coalition CD&V/N-VA gained the most and the CD&V became the largest party in Flanders and Belgium. The CD&V/N-VA had an electoral program that emphasized the need for far-reaching state reform. Yves Leterme of the CD&V personally gained 800,000 votes and was considered to be the prospective prime minister. The SP.a, the party that lost the most seats, declared it would prepare itself for a role in the opposition, and would support state reform from that position.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Election and immediate aftermath, 10 – 13 June
In the French-speaking part of Belgium, the liberal party MR lost some seats but nevertheless became the largest party and replaced the Socialist Party (PS) as the dominant party for the first time in history. Before he was appointed informateur, Didier Reynders, the MR party leader, indicated his preference for a coalition of Christian Democratic parties CD&V (Flanders) and CDH (Wallonia) and liberal parties MR (Wallonia) and Open VLD (Flanders) and noted the fact that the PS was no longer the largest francophone party "a state reform in itself". Reynders also emphasized that the MR was the largest political party of the largest political group, as the combined number of seats of liberals in Flanders and French-speaking Belgium (MR + Open VLD) surpassed the combined number of seats of the Christian-democrats (CD&V + CDH).


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First information round, 13 June – 4 July
On 13 June 2007, King Albert II appointed Reynders as informateur. The CD&V/N-VA caused a minor controversy when they immediately agreed with Reynders to stall constitutional reform until after the coinciding regional and European elections of 2009.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First information round, 13 June – 4 July
Reynders presented his 170-page final report, titled Develop, unite and protect, to the king on 4 July 2007. It included a list of a record-breaking 450 people he talked to as informateur and contained an inventory of their views. Reynders talked to, among others, Guy Quaden, the Governor of the National Bank of Belgium, Joaquín Almunia, the European Commissioner for Economic & Financial Affairs, Herman De Croo, Anne-Marie Lizin, the leaders of trade unions and employers' organisations and several senior civil servants.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Mediation round, 5 – 15 July
Following the informateur's report, King Albert II on July 5 asked former Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene to accept a "mediation and negotiation assignment" in order to prepare the ground for the formateur and to look into the possibility of state reform. Dehaene reached the conclusion that only an orange-blue coalition with CD&V/N-VA, OpenVLD, MR and Humanist Democratic Centre was viable.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Mediation round, 5 – 15 July
Initially Dehaene stated there should be a formateur by July 21, the Belgian national holiday, but he ended his assignment prematurely on Sunday July 15, one week before the July 21 deadline. The former mediator said the four orange-blue parties would accept an invitation to coalition talks, but that this did not "mean all obstacles have been removed, far from it!"


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Leterme begins his mission
The King then appointed Yves Leterme as formateur on Sunday July 15 with the task of forming a new government coalition after Jean-Luc Dehaene was relieved from his task as mediator and negotiator. On his first day as formateur, Leterme met with outgoing Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt (Open VLD), the new President of the Chamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy (CD&V), and the new President of the Senate, Armand De Decker (MR). The following day, Tuesday July 17, Leterme received the presidents of the orange-blue parties: Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V), Bart De Wever (N-VA), Didier Reynders (MR), Bart Somers (Open VLD) and Joëlle Milquet (Humanist Democratic Centre).


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Leterme begins his mission
On Monday July 23, Formateur Leterme presented his formation memorandum called The Power of People – Turning Challenges Into Opportunities Together. This formation memorandum formed the basis for the real negotiations. It contained 80 pages and nine chapters about various issues; however, it did not contain a separate chapter on constitutional reform and devolution. In his memorandum, Leterme proposed lowering income taxes for those with low and median incomes, changing the unemployment benefits system, and expanding parental leave.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Leterme begins his mission
He also wanted to keep several nuclear power stations open longer, build 1,500 additional prison cells, and establish an emergency budget for the FPS Justice to hire more people. The formateur did not want a collective regularisation of illegal immigrants, but proposed the establishment criteria to allow regularisation in individual cases.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Suspension of negotiations and consultations by the King
Coalition talks at Valley of the Duchess proceeded with much difficulty due to differences between Flemish and Francophone parties over constitutional reform, with communautary tensions reached a high on Thursday August 16. Negotiator for Humanist Democratic Centre Francis Delpérée described the situation with the following words: "Il y a un parfum de crise" (English: There is a whiff of crisis). Formal negotiations were temporarily suspended on Friday August 17, following a meeting between the King and the formateur, to allow the King to conduct a series of political consultations.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Suspension of negotiations and consultations by the King
It was the third time since he was appointed formateur that Leterme reported to the King on the progress of the coalition talks. This move was heavily criticised by Johan Vande Lanotte, the outgoing chairman of the Flemish socialist party SP.A and a professor in constitutional law, who accused the parties involved in the coalition talks of forcing the King, who is supposed to remain impartial, to play a political role.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Suspension of negotiations and consultations by the King
That evening, the King received Jo Vandeurzen, the CD&V chairman, and Didier Reynders, the chairman of the MR. The next day the King received the chairpersons of the two other orange-blue parties, Bart Somers (Open Vld) and Joëlle Milquet (CDH), in order to attempt to defuse the tensions. The King did not receive the chairmen of the N-VA and the FDF; however, Bart De Wever (N-VA) reportedly did receive an exploratory phone call from the Royal Palace. During the weekend, there also were informal consultations between the formateur and all other parties involved in the coalition talks.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, First formation round, 15 July – 23 August, Leterme resumes his mission and resigns
On Sunday August 19, the formateur Leterme was summoned by the King to discuss his consultations. Afterwards, the King asked him to resume his work as formateur, but asked him to make new political contacts before resuming the negotiations. After further negotiations produced no results, Leterme resigned as formateur on August 23.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
Following Yves Leterme's resignation, King Albert asked Didier Reynders, the chairman of the Francophone liberal party MR and erstwhile informateur, to seek a way out of the stalemate. At first, the Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep (VRT) reported that Philippe Maystadt or Melchior Wathelet would probably take over, either as informateur or as royal mediator. The Flemish parties felt it was up to a member of CDH to take an initiative; however, the CDH wanted a Flemish politician to be involved in the mediation efforts as well. It was later reported that, according to observers, King Albert would probably ask Raymond Langendries (CDH) and Herman De Croo (Open Vld) to mediate.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
On August 24, a survey conducted by VTM showed that 45.8% of the 1300 Flemings polled wanted Flanders to be declared independent and that 54.2% opposed such an action. The same survey showed that 58% of the respondents thought that the state reform is worth a crisis. Also, 72% could not understand the French-speaking opposition, and 53% thought that Milquet was to blame for the crisis and 15% thought that Leterme was to blame.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
On August 25, the King received Herman Van Rompuy (CD&V), President of the Chamber of Representatives and Armand De Decker (MR), President of the Senate, and on August 27 the Royal Palace announced that the King would receive several ministers of State to discuss the political crisis. It was suggested by De Standaard that the King would not appoint the duo Langendries and De Croo because they were already named too much in the media which caused several politicians, such as Hendrik Bogaert (CD&V) and Bart De Wever (N-VA), to object or criticize such a choice.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
The Open VLD also held a press conference in which Bart Somers called the remarks about De Croo "inconvenient and unseen". He also said that the problem of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde (BHV) electoral district should be tackled before all other issues, something regarded by the VRT as a direct criticism of Leterme because he did not once mention this problem when he was formateur. Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht, who is a negotiator for Open VLD in the coalition talks, described the government formation as "surrealistic" and added: "Ceci n'est pas une formation".


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
Jean-Luc Dehaene, Wilfried Martens and Philippe Moureaux were the first ministers of State to be received by the King. A photographer took a picture of a document Dehaene had with him when he arrived at the palace. The document reportedly stated that the state reform should not be an issue during the formation whereas the issue of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde should be included in a coalition agreement, and that all elections (federal, regional and European) should coincide in 2009.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 23 – 29 August
On Tuesday August 28, King Albert received Willy Claes (SP.A), Gérard Deprez (MR), Jos Geysels (Groen! ), Philippe Busquin (PS), Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb (Humanist Democratic Centre) and José Daras (Ecolo). The following day, the King received three more ministers of State: Raymond Langendries (Humanist Democratic Centre), Herman De Croo (Open VLD) and Louis Michel (MR).


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
Following consultations with a number of ministers of State, King Albert received Herman Van Rompuy (CD&V), the outgoing President of the Chamber of Representatives, and charged him with an exploratory mission in order to find a solution to the political crisis. Van Rompuy was considered by Flemish and French-speaking parties and newspapers as a good choice. He met on August 30 with the presidents of several parties of the orange-blue coalition, in particular Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V), Bart De Wever (N-VA), Bart Somers (Open VLD) and Jöelle Milquet (CDH).


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
On August 31, he met with presidents Didier Reynders (MR), Olivier Maingain, (FDF) and Jean-Michel Javaux (Ecolo). The content of the discussions is unknown as Van Rompuy wanted to communicate and negotiate discreetly. De Standaard noted that Van Rompuy did not talk with a member of the PS, which could mean he wanted to reach the required two-thirds majority for constitutional reform with the ecologists (Ecolo on the French-speaking side) and rather that the PS.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
Also on August 30, the Walloon government held its first meeting since the summer holidays. Rudy Demotte (PS), the minister-president of the Walloon government criticized the long duration of the government formation and was skeptical about whether Van Rompuy would be able to solve the crisis. He also said that he was waiting for formation proposals. On August 31, Milquet said institutional reform was less important than other topics and all French-speaking parties should formulate a common strategy. She also expressed her wish to replace the current "confrontational federalism" with a modern "cooperative federalism".


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
Gérard Deprez (MCC, a part of the MR just like the FDF) criticized Maingain's (FDF) demand for the territorial expansion of the region of Brussels to several Flemish towns in return for the split of the BHV electoral district. Deprez said in La Libre Belgique that "Maingain acts like the Inquisition and excommunicates everyone that does not share his dogmas".


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
In an international press meeting, the Flemish nationalist party Vlaams Belang said that the formation crisis was an example of Belgium's failure to function as a state and that the time had come to declare Flemish independence. On September 1, the Flemish newspaper De Standaard devoted an issue to the question of whether a Flemish secession was realistic and viable.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Van Rompuy begins his mission
On September 2, during De Gordel, an annual Flemish cycling event in the periphery of Brussels with a strong political undertone, Eric Van Rompuy (member of the CD&V and the brother of explorateur Herman) and Bart De Wever (N-VA) emphasized that this should be the last De Gordel in which the problems surrounding the BHV were not solved. Flemish minister Geert Bourgeois (N-VA) also stated that the Flemish majority in the newly elected parliament should urgently solve the problem unilaterally – i.e. without the consent of the French speaking parties and thus without any offers. Other politicians, such as Flemish minister-president Kris Peeters (CD&V) and federal minister of Internal Affairs Patrick Dewael (Open VLD) participated in the event, but did not comment on BHV. Prominent absentees were Yves Leterme and Guy Verhofstadt.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Non-participation of Ecolo
During this period, speculation about the participation of the French-speaking ecologist party Ecolo in the orange-blue coalition increased. Van Rompuy tried to obtain the support of Ecolo for the coalition to address left-winged CDH's desire to have a left-wing partner in the centre-right coalition.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Non-participation of Ecolo
On September 3, Ecolo said that three conditions must be met for it to participate in a coalition. First, the party refused to join any coalition involving N-VA. A coalition without the N-VA would "respect the different communities" of Belgium. Second, Groen!, the Flemish ecologists would have to be part of the coalition as well. Third, formation would have to be renegotiated to give the climate change a central place in the coalition programme.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Non-participation of Ecolo
CD&V/N-VA said Ecolo's demands could not "be taken seriously" because the CD&V without the N-VA was unthinkable. They also said the presence of N-VA was not a problem, but that the problem is the unreasonableness of the French-speaking parties to negotiate around the Flemish demands. Groen! said it was unwilling to participate in a coalition in which it is not necessary to obtain a majority in parliament. The need to undertake the negotiations again also meant the agreement between the partners about the prolonged existence of several nuclear power plants had to be reconsidered.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Non-participation of Ecolo
Herman Van Rompuy provided the King a first interim report on September 3. Although his effort to include Ecolo in the coalition failed, Van Rompuy continued his mission despite a general decline in optimism about his likelihood of success of his mission steeply declined. He formulated several proposals that he suggested to the orange-blue parties. On 10 September, Van Rompuy provided the King with a second "interim" report – something that indicated his work would be prolonged.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Plenary session of the Flemish parliament
Filip Dewinter of the Vlaams Belang proposed to have an earlier plenary session in the Flemish parliament to discuss the communitarian crisis, a request that was granted. On September 10, under the eyes of the international media, he proposed in the plenary session to prepare a plan for an independent Flanders and to hold a referendum on independence. He said that the Flemish resolutions agreed upon in the Flemish parliament in 1999 (that supported a far-reaching devolution of powers) were a breaking point. He also called Belgium "a country that is terminally ill" and that it was time to say "bye bye Belgium".


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Plenary session of the Flemish parliament
Other parties vehemently opposed the course of action, proposed by Dewinter. For instance, Ludwig Caluwé (CD&V) said that the Flemish Interest did not vote for the resolutions in 1999. He added that more power to the regions does not imply the end of inter-regional solidarity. Patrcia Ceysens (Open VLD) said that "the country is not going to split, the parliament is not going to declare independence."


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Leterme's controversial remark
In Karrewiet, a Flemish news program for children, Leterme was interviewed. He said "We could make sure that they [French-speaking Belgium] could build schools more cheaply. That would be beneficial for students from Wallonia and Brussels. Maybe if we could agree about that, French-speakers would be willing to negotiate about our demands."


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Leterme's controversial remark
French-speaking politicians and the French-speaking media were enraged about Leterme's remark. Marie Arena (PS) and Joëlle Milquet (CDH) interpreted Leterme's remark as making the Flemish youth believe Walloon parties are only interested in money and could be bribed. They also said that the lower VAT for building schools was already agreed upon in a six-year-old accord which was still not executed. Milquet said that Leterme should refrain from giving interviews.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Leterme's controversial remark
Wilfried Martens (CD&V) criticized the French-speaking side of the country for misinterpreting a "sign of goodwill" made by Leterme. Karel de Gucht (Open VLD) said that they do not have a veto right about which Fleming can become prime minister. He also added that they overreacted. "Who takes away his position as prime minister, turns him into a political martyr. I do not feel like competing against a political martyr during the next election. Why should he not be allowed to speak? The campaign waged against him...is unacceptable."


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Criticism on the duration of negotiations
Guy Quaden, president of the National Bank of Belgium, warned on September 13 that the long duration of negotiations were not without a price as much-needed measures in the domains of budget, competition and employment are still not taken. Didier Reynders said that Quaden should occupy himself with "interest rates, not politics". CDH agreed with Quaden. CD&V and Open-VLD also agreed, but said that a good agreement was better than a quick but bad agreement.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Criticism on the duration of negotiations
Elio Di Rupo, the president of the PS, sharply criticized the duration of the negotiations. "Three months on from the election, they're not even sitting around the negotiation table. This has never happened before". He continued, "If we would have participated in the talks, negotiations would never have been derailed". Di Rupo also called the talks a "guerrilla war" rather than negotiations.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Criticism on the duration of negotiations
Belgian Minister of State Louis Tobback and Trends journalist Geert Noels blamed the Euro for allowing the formation talks to last this long. Since the Belgian government is no longer in charge of its own monetary policy, the value of the currency will not be affected by this political crisis, so there is no monetary incentive to force the formation partners to find a quick solution.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, No participation of the PS
On August 31, the magazine Knack reported that talks were taking place to include the francophone Socialist Party (PS) in a tripartite coalition. This was denied by Di Rupo, whilst Didier Reynders absolutely ruled out the MR joining a coalition with the PS. Rumours continued until September 7 when Van Rompuy denied any negotiations on extending the Orange-Blue coalition to include the PS.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, No participation of the PS
On September 14, Jean-Jacques Viseur (CDH), mayor of Charleroi, said that it was wrong to keep the socialists out of the government. On September 16, Open VLD senator Patrik Vankrunkelsven agreed and openly questioned his party's opposition to the participation of the socialists in government. He said that as long as the PS is an opposition party, the MR will not make any concessions on state reform.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, No participation of the PS
On September 17, it was revealed that Van Rompuy had used Jean-Luc Dehaene to contact the PS secretly a week earlier. Dehaene met Elio Di Rupo and enquired as to whether the PS would support some parts of a state reform from opposition, as the SP.a has said it will. Di Rupo declined to support reforms as long as the PS is not a member of the coalition.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Larger role for Van Rompuy
Van Rompuy's discretion was appreciated in French-speaking Belgium. MR and CDH proposed that Van Rompuy would include issues such as the federal budget, justice and social-economic matters in his exploratory mandate. Until then, Van Rompuy only tried to determine communatarian issues ranging from the BHV to the regionalisation of power. Van Rompuy's spokesman said that such a widening of his mandate was not being considered.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Exploratory round, 29 August – 29 September, Larger role for Van Rompuy
Open VLD and CD&V supported the French-speaking proposal. CD&V added that a widening of his role can only happen if Van Rompuy remains an explorer, does not become a formateur and does not negotiate. Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V) also emphasized that Leterme remains the prime minister designate. VLD responded that they did not have any intention to undermine the position of Leterme.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December
On September 29, Herman Van Rompuy presented his final report to the King. Afterwards, the Royal Palace announced that King Albert II relieved him of his exploratory mission. Later that day, King Albert II again appointed Yves Leterme as formateur. On Friday, 5 October, Leterme provided the King his first interim report, after which negotiations with all orange-blue parties began.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Voting about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
Talks for a new government were interrupted on November 7, with agreements about everything not related to strengthening Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels; or to monetary affairs. Chairman Pieter De Crem (Christian Democratic and Flemish) of the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior had decided to go ahead with a vote on the split of electoral district Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde. The six Francophone committee members walked out in protest. The 11 Dutch-speaking members continued the meeting, and voted in favour of the split, with only Tinne Van der Straeten (Groen!) abstaining.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Voting about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde
The Francophone parties subsequently invoked a procedure known as the conflict of interest (Dutch: belangenconflict, French: conflit d'intérêt), a procedure whereby a regional parliament can indicate that it feels that the interests of the region are hurt by the decision of another political body in Belgium, in this case the Belgian Chamber Committee on the Interior. The Parliament of the French Community of Belgium approved the procedure on November 9, with three members of the National Front abstaining. This suspends a decision about Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde for a period of 60 days.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
On November 9, King Albert II intervened. He took state reform off the agenda for the negotiations, and instructed the chairmen of the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate to "start a dialogue" on the matter. In a joint statement, the parties CD&V and N-VA rejected the decision, and stated they would only join a government if there were "guarantees for big state reform."


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
On November 12, the King met with the chairmen of the socialist parties SP.A and PS, and the green parties Groen! and Ecolo, who would be part of the opposition if the orange-blue government were to be formed. The purpose of the meeting was to see whether the parties were willing to take part in a Committee of Wise Men that would examine the possibilities for state reform. SP.A chairwoman Caroline Gennez declined the offer, saying it was not the job of her party to make an orange-blue government possible.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
She called the Council of Wise Men "not a way towards a solution to state reform, but a getaway route to nowhere." Mieke Vogels, chairwoman of Groen!, stated her party would not give the new government a "blank check" for state reform. Chairman Elio Di Rupo of the PS said he wanted to see the "menu" of the Committee of Wise Men first; "without a serious menu, [the Committee of Wise Men] risks becoming a talking shop."


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
The next day, the King met with the chairmen of CD&V, CDH, Open VLD and MR, and with Chamber of Representatives chairman Herman Van Rompuy (CD&V) and Senate chairman Armand De Decker (MR), to discuss ways to start dialogue on state reform.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
CD&V's partner party in the negotiations, N-VA, was not invited, nor was FDF, which is affiliated with MR. The chairmen of right-wing parties Flemish Interest, List Dedecker and FN – who would be in opposition if the orange-blue government was to be formed – were not invited either.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, The King intervenes
One of the instructions the King had given to De Decker and Van Rompuy, was to find a way to start a dialogue on state reform. In an interview with RTBF on November 14, Armand De Decker said he and Karel Van Rompuy wanted to establish a National Committee of Dialogue (French: Collège national pour le dialogue, Dutch: Nationaal College van Dialoog). The committee would consist of prominent politicians of the Christian-democratic, liberal, socialist and green parties, who together have a two-thirds majority in both the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate. Van Rompuy stated that nothing had been agreed upon, and that De Decker had spoken in his own name.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Negotiations at a standstill
While the King was trying to find a new way to hold negotiations between the parties involved, the negotiations themselves came to a standstill. The parties have not spoken with each other since November 8, and the Francophone parties have stated that they would only rejoin the negotiating table if the Flemish parties apologize for the Chamber Committee on the Interior vote on Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Negotiations at a standstill
Several politicians had suggested a tripartite government of liberal, Christian-democratic and socialist parties. The newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen and Het Belang van Limburg reported on November 13 that the CD&V was leaning towards that option as well. Party spokesman Peter Poulussen denounced the reports as "pure speculation," and Open VLD and MR rejected the idea of a tripartite government.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Negotiations at a standstill
Bruno De Wever, professor at the Ghent University and brother of N-VA chairman Bart De Wever on 17 November stated on Kanaal Z, a Flemish business television channel, that "a periphery around Brussels where 80% speaks French, is not Flemish." He said that a compromise should be worked with an increase in social and economic competences for Flanders in exchange for the expansion of the bilingual Brussels-Capital Region. Bruno De Wever also said that it is hard to continue to call a municipality where a large majority of the population speaks French a Flemish municipality.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem
Flemish Interior Minister Marino Keulen (Open VLD) announced on November 14 that he had decided not to appoint the French-speaking mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem, three municipalities with linguistic facilities in the Flemish Periphery of Brussels, because they had sent letters of convocation (letters calling citizens to vote and informing them where their polling station is) in French for the 2006 municipal elections and the 2007 federal election. This was a violation of rules established by the Flemish Government. The three mayors are all members of the FDF. Marino Keulen will ask the municipal councils of these municipalities to nominate a new mayor for appointment.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem
The three mayors also violated language legislation by allowing French to be spoken during the meetings of the municipal councils of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem on Monday 22 October 2007, which Minister Marino Keulen described as a provocation.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem
Myriam Delacroix-Rolin (CDH), the Mayor of Sint-Genesius-Rode, another municipality with linguistic facilities, will be appointed; her municipality had only sent letters of convocation in French for the 2006 municipal elections.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Mayors of Kraainem, Linkebeek and Wezembeek-Oppem
The Francophone political parties put forth a united declaration in the Walloon parliament on November 16, calling the act by Flemish minister Keulen "a rejection of democracy." The appointment of the mayors should be seen in the broader perspective of the Brussels' periphery, the declaration stated. Damien Thiery, the Mayor of Linkebeek, announced the following day that he will again be presented for appointment as Mayor.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Resignation of Leterme
A confused week of negotiations started on 26 November 2007 with an agreement proposed by Yves Leterme and immediately accepted by CDH, MR, FDF and OpenVLD. Ironically, his own close partner N-VA did not accept the agreement, requesting more concessions for government reforms in the agreement instead; this led to a week of back and forth statements and interviews in the media.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Resignation of Leterme
On 30 November 2007, Leterme made a final proposal with three questions; he requested positive responses to all questions by all parties in order to continue negotiations. The questions were:


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second formation round, 29 September – 1 December, Resignation of Leterme
The French-speaking party CDH gave no response to all three questions, and FDF did not accept the transfer of business tax regulations to the regions. Faced with this defeat, on 1 December 2007 Leterme gave his resignation as formateur to the King, which the King accepted.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Consultations by the King, 1 – 3 December
Guy Verhofstadt, who remains the head of government, was received by the King on 1 December. He was one of many politicians who could be asked by the King to try to seek a new consensus between Dutch and French-speaking parties. After visiting the royal palace twice on 3 December, prime minister Verhofstadt was nominated informateur by the King, although with a smaller role than an informateur usually plays. Verhofstadt stated he was hesitant at first to accept the job.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second information round, 4 – 17 December
Verhofstadt started his information round on December 4, talking to the chairmen of the Belgian Senate andChamber of Representatives, Herman Van Rompuy and Armand De Decker respectively. The chairman have already been given the task by the Belgian King to organize a convention on constitutional reform, with members from the Belgian political class. Verhofstadt also met with the leaders of the largest political parties, followed by the smaller political parties on December 5. The main political parties have not ruled out a tripartite coalition, although Verhofstadt's own party, Open VLD, has come out against such arrangement. List Dedecker has declared it will not support Verhofstadt's endeavours, and wants to see new elections instead. Vlaams Belang and the Front National were not invited by Verhofstadt.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Second information round, 4 – 17 December
There were several difficulties associated with forming a temporary government. On the French-speaking side, the MR opposed a government that included all French-speaking parties. On the Flemish side, the VLD opposed the participation of the SP.a, the Flemish socialist party.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Forming interim government, 17 December – 23 December
On 17 December, Guy Verhofstadt was asked by the King to start the formation of an "interim government" that would last until 23 March 2008. On the morning of 18 December, Verhofstadt met with CDH head Joëlle Milquet and offered the party a part in an interim Government through a person outside the party, a move that confirmed the refusal by MR to a full participation of cdH in the interim Government. In reaction, CDH called a party meeting, soon followed by a press conference where cdH announced its withdrawal from formation talks.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Forming interim government, 17 December – 23 December
The move was followed in the afternoon by a call for francophone unity by PS head Elio Di Rupo that announced it will not take part in a Government without CDH. Later in the afternoon, CD&V head Jo Vandeurzen and Yves Leterme requested a meeting with Verhofstadt where they call for an inclusion of CDH in the coalition.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Forming interim government, 17 December – 23 December
MR thus remained the only party opposing a deal that would include CDH, Verhofstadt decided to meet with Milquet again in the evening and bring back his morning proposal of a participation of CDH in the Government through an external actor, but added that this Minister would have the rank though not the title of Deputy Prime Minister. Milquet and her party met and agreed on this proposal.


2007–2008 Belgian government formation, Forming interim government, 17 December – 23 December
In the early hours of 19 December, Belga News Agency announced a deal had been struck by all parties and an interim Government was to be formed by 21 December and approved by Parliament by 23 December. Later in the day, it was confirmed Guy Verhofstadt would address the Parliament on 21 December with a General Policy Declaration. It was also announced the legal 48-hour delay following the declaration would lead the Parliament to vote its confidence to the interim Government on 23 December. The interim Government officially came into office when it was acknowledged by the lower house of Parliament with 97 votes in favour, 46 against on Sunday 23 December 2007.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike
The Berlitz Japan 2007–2008 strike was a strike held by Berlitz Japan teachers of the Berlitz General Union Tokyo (Begunto), which was part of the National Union of General Workers  (NUGW) before moving to Tozen Union in 2019. Beginning in December 2007 and continuing until November 2008, it grew into the longest and largest sustained strike among language teachers in Japan. Although the union had ceased strike action in November 2008, on December 3, 2008 Berlitz Japan sued the union and seven individual union officials for ¥110 million each (US$1,178,430) in the Tokyo District Court.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike
The union took Berlitz to the Labor Commission for firing two teachers and several other complaints. Berlitz' suit against the union was dismissed by the Tokyo District Court on 27 February 2012, with "all claims rejected" but Berlitz decided within a week that it would appeal its loss to the High Court. After further negotiations and legal wrangling Berlitz's High Court case against the union was withdrawn on December 27, 2012.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike
A little over five years after the strike initially started matters were finally concluded with the union winning a raise and a bonus for teachers at Berlitz Japan.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
Berlitz Japan is a subsidiary of Berlitz International, owned by Benesse Corporation. Some staff in the Kanto area are represented by the Berlitz General Union Tokyo (Begunto). Begunto was a part of the National Union of General Workers Tokyo Nambu, which is itself affiliated to the National Union of General Workers (NUGW). The NUGW is in turn affiliated to the National Trade Union Council (Zenrokyo).


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
Until 2003, when Benesse took majority control of Berlitz, all teachers would get an annual base-up raise on June 18, as well as a seniority bonus. Since Benesse bought the company, there has been no across-the-board base-up increase.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
While Berlitz offered contracts of less than 30 hours a week (thereby avoiding paying for health insurance and pension for their workers) Paul Baca, Begunto Vice-President at the time the strike started, stated that actual working hours come close to 40 when unpaid lesson preparation time and times between lessons were included.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
Catherine Campbell, Begunto President, stated that workers hired since 2005 were essentially being paid less, because they were paid 250,000 yen per month, but had to teach 40 lessons a week. Other teachers, hired before 2005, had to teach 35 lessons per week. Teachers hired in the early 1990s only had to teach 30 lessons per week. Berlitz lessons in Japan are for 40 minutes.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
In 2005, the union took action over a number of grievances, and claimed this forced Berlitz management into paying the performance increase for that year. But there was no across-the board pay increase or bonus.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
Its “Language Company” sector had been taking losses during 2004, but in the fiscal year 2007, its operation profits were 34.9 billion yen. That sector accounted for 16% of the Benesse's total sales and 18% of its profits.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Background
For the last 6 months of 2007, Berlitz told its teachers that it had no money to give raises. In September 2007, there was an event at the Keio Plaza Hotel to which teachers were invited, but which they had to pay to attend.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
On December 13, 2007, Berlitz management held a party at the Roppongi Hills Grand Hyatt to celebrate good financial results. The strike started this evening, with teachers picketing the hotel.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
Less than two weeks later, the Japan Business Federation encouraged member firms to pay workers more. In March 2008, then-Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda concurred, saying that "I think now is the time when the fruits of reform should be passed on to the people and household budgets."


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
By May 2008, at least 55 teachers had struck at a 16 different schools. Berlitz had managers wait in coffee shops ready to step in if teachers went on strike, and also asked other teachers to cover the lessons. Some teachers refused, but others did, leading to some tension between union and non-union teachers.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
By September 2008, more than 100 teachers had struck at dozens of different schools around the Kanto region, and it had become the largest sustained strike in the history of Japan's language schools. The union held demonstrations, hired a sound bus to advertise their campaign around Tokyo, and more than half the Berlitz schools in Kanto had participated.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
In addition to striking regular lessons at Berlitz Learning Centers, union members assigned to outservice lessons also struck.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
Berlitz continued to have teachers, which the union referred to as “caffeine cowboys”, on call ready to fill in for possible strikes. Louis Carlet, the Begunto union case officer, said that management had made two pay hike offers, but these were short of demands, and expected to be rejected by the union.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
Berlitz has three pay scales, one called "seniority", one called "performance", and the other called "rank". One of the offered pay raises was only for teachers on the "seniority" system, and to accept it would have split the union.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
The union had reduced its original nine demands to two: a 4.6% base-pay raise for all teachers and staff, and a bonus equal to one month's salary. After management offered a raise of less than 1% in September 2008, the union rejected it. Strikes continued, leafleting sessions increased, and on October 22 there was a demonstration in front of Benesse's HQ in Tama plaza, which was supported by members of the Kawasaki City Union. The union demanded that Benesse address the issue of the strike. Protests and threats of litigation soon followed.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
On November 10, 2008, Berlitz sent letters to striking teachers telling them that the strike was illegal and they should stop. It also posted memos at all Berlitz branches to the same effect.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
The union held a meeting and decided that although they believed the strike was legal, they did not want to risk the possibility that striking workers might be fired, and suspended the strikes.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Beginning
Since the start of the strike a year earlier, more than 100 English, Spanish, and French teachers had participated in spot strikes of almost 3,500 lessons - a total of 3455 strikes. Teachers at 32 of the 46 Kanto area schools had been on strike.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Union Labor Commission Unfair Labor Practice case
On November 17, 2008 Begunto and NUGW Nambu filed a claim of an Unfair Labor Practice with the Tokyo Labor Commission, claiming that Berlitz had violated the Trade Union Law. The unions argued that the memos Berlitz Japan had posted at all its schools in November declaring the strike illegal and letters sent to union members telling them to end the strike were illegal interference, and thus in violation of Article 7 of the Act.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Union Labor Commission Unfair Labor Practice case
The union also asked the Labor Commission to investigate Berlitz Japan's refusal to meet the union's pay demands and failure to provide data on the company's finances to the union.


2007–2008 Berlitz Japan strike, Berlitz takes legal action
Soon after this, on December 3, 2008, Berlitz Japan sued the five teachers who served as volunteer Begunto executives, as well as two officials from the National Union of General Workers (NUGW), president Yujio Hiraga and Louis Carlet, the deputy general secretary and case officer for Begunto. Also, Berlitz sued NUGW Tokyo Nambu and Begunto, demanding 110 million yen from each defendant. In USD this sum was $1,178,430 per defendant. By way of comparison, a "semi full time contract" teacher at Berlitz earned a basic salary of ¥250,000 per month, or ¥3,000,000 ($32,139.1) per year.