The Premier League: Money & Greed
Problems of Foreign Investment, Takeovers and WAGs
This article looks at the current state of the Premier League, the increasingly worrying effect money has on the game, and what can be done in future to stem the issue.
The English Premier League is the most watched, richest football league in the world, but at what cost? Some observers contend that the league has lost its soul, the very nature of its existence and indeed the reason, the love of the beautiful game, which has allowed for its transformation into the money-spinning, capitalist machine that it has become.
Working Class Fans Hit Hardest
The increasing disillusionment among fans with today’s game has already seen worrying developments. Clubs are constantly seeking methods of increasing revenue, and ultimately, profits. In many cases, this has led to an increase in ticket prices, which has priced a large section of working class fans across the country out of attending games. In an ideal world, surely this would be enough for the league, for the figureheads in power, to take a look at what has become of the national game. Unfortunately, it is apparent that greed permeates through the Premier League.
Money, or more significantly the pursuit of more money, seemingly motivates clubs to achieve and progress in competitions, rather than the prestige of victory and the will to win. The media more often speaks of the millions of pounds at stake between progressing from the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League and being knocked out, instead of the honour of continuing to be involved in such a prestigious competition. Although this type of occurrence has been the reality of football for quite some time now, in recent years we have seen an alarming acceleration in the stranglehold that money flow has over the game.
Foreign Investment in English Clubs
The flood of foreign takeovers of English clubs has bore witness to cash pouring into some of the Premier League’s most loved clubs, notably, the takeover of Chelsea by the Russian oil billionaire, Roman Abramovich, and Manchester United’s takeover by the American tycoon, Malcolm Glazer. More recently, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Portsmouth and Manchester City have seen mega-rich foreign investors take ownership of their clubs. Make no mistake, these takeovers have one thing in common; they are all vying for the riches that the premiership can offer. Abramovich and Glazer may lavishly sanction the spending of millions on players every summer, but the eventual goal is to profit, and to profit well.
There is something not quite right about Chelski buying any and every player they want. They are in the unique position of having access to virtually limitless funds. The normal rules of football often do not affect the club as they would another. For example, fines for club misdemeanours, domestically, and from UEFA, intended to punish clubs and act as a deterrent for the future, are barely a drop in the ocean for Chelsea. With their vast wealth, the London club can comfortably outbid rival clubs for players. Talking to EUFootball.biz in 2004 about Chelsea’s spending power, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger asked, “Who can compete with Chelsea? They go out first and buy what they want, and then everyone else comes in, so it’s very hard to compete”. The club outwardly flouts the laws of football, with ill consideration of any consequences. For example, while still playing at Arsenal, Chelsea were found guilty of illegally “tapping up” Ashley Cole, before his move across London to the Blues.
In recent years there have also emerged scandals and corruption allegations concerned with club managers receiving “bungs”, namely Sam Allardyce and Harry Redknapp. Although neither manager was charged with any wrongdoing Sports minister Richard Caborn rightly stated, “these allegations damage the integrity of football and need to be looked at properly”, as reported by the BBC on 20 September 2006.
Football's Celebrity Culture
The sport has been glamourized to the extent that a celebrity culture has been created in the media, which has seen the advent of “WAGs” – wives and girlfriends of footballers – living a life of leisure based on their footballer partner's wealth. As role models for young children, is this really the example that football players should be giving? A game revered and followed by millions should carry with it a sense of responsibility.
With such a bleak state of affairs, can the English Premier League recover? There are many other factors to consider. Breakaway clubs such as FC United, and the fact that as a result of so many foreign players in the premiership, the national team will inevitably suffer, are, ultimately, reactions to the influence of money on clubs.
FC Barcelona
Perhaps we should look to Spain, where FC Barcelona advocates social values as well as success on the pitch. Barca’s motto, “Mes Que Un Club”, which translates as “more than a club”, advocates the defence of these values, as reported by Phil Barnett for Esquire magazine, May 2008 edition. Famously the club always turned down commercial sponsorship of the team shirt. They are now sponsored by Unicef, who the club donates 1.5 million euros to annually, a far cry from the money-making exploits of the Premier League’s top clubs.
We can also look to the example of certain individuals in football, such as Niall Quinn, who in 2002 donated the proceeds of his testimonial game to charity. Oleguer Presas, the Barcelona player, regularly plays charity football matches and actively speaks out against social suppression. These are just a few examples of what can occur in football. Otherwise, greed of the English Premier League's money men will likely continue to engulf the game, which will see the millions of fans across the country suffer, exploited for the love of their club.
