This merger/affiliate absolute madness is why there will always be a place for smaller clubs. Of course, running a boutique/smaller club, I would say that. There are pros and cons to both which I’ve talked about and written about before but there will always be room for both big and small/niche IMO.
If you run a solid program and want to maintain coaching standards (among many other things that become uncontrollable at scale), I don’t see why you would want to merge or affiliate. I get the idea and some of the rationale behind it but by the sound of things, it more often than not turns out to be not anywhere near as good as promised and occasionally, turns into a disaster or farce.
Now, if you have an average/poor program and want to merge or affiliate to get a boost and try to revlitalise your club or program, I completely understand the merger or affiliate route. Ultimately, if the kids are better off then it’s hard to argue against it.