What Do We See Through the Transfer Window?

Sometimes when RTG ponders the wrongs in football today, we wonder if maybe we’re just spoiling it for the countless people out there who still enjoy the game and simply want to appreciate it for the spectacle that it is. There’s no doubt that there are still many things about the modern football era that are worth praising. But, too often we find ourselves viewing events that seem to be nothing short of destructive to the long-term future of the game and it is hard to be anything other than pessimistic and critical. Monday night’s transfer window deadline did nothing to change our view that English football continues to plunge further and further into the abyss.

As RTG writes this article, Manchester City has accepted a bid from Abu Dhabi United Group to take over the club from Thaksin Shinawatra. In all likelihood this is a more positive move for City than sticking with Thailand’s deposed ex-Premier, given the reported skeletons in the closet. This time last year, many commentators and City supporters were delighted with Shinawatra’s purchase of the club in that it might represent a chance for City to achieve the standards their fans have long waited for and for them to finally challenge United for honours on an even playing field. RTG were less than optimistic about this situation and our viewpoint appears to have been vindicated.

One year later, City supporters are once again delighted that control of the club has passed into new, and wealthier, hands giving them, potentially, the biggest injection of cash into a club since Roman Abramovich took over Chelsea. Despite still being in due diligence, they have broken the English transfer record with the purchase of Robinho for a reported £32.5M from right under Chelsea’s nose. At the same time, they had reportedly had a similar bid for Berbatov accepted by Spurs—a deal that was never likely to happen. RTG can only speculate as to whether this was a deliberate ploy to make Manchester United pay over the odds for the Bulgarian striker. If the “Anyone But Uniteds” out there see this as a cause to smile you shouldn’t. Football is a sport and healthy rivalry should be about competition on the field not trying to put your rivals out of business. Despite what you may think, a Premier League with no Manchester United is no Premier League at all.

In all, the whole transfer window saga did not paint English football in a very good light. Why the English media, and especially Sky Sports News, feel they have their own role to play in this by constantly fuelling rumours based on little or no evidence is beyond RTG. The entire process appears designed to squeeze out yet more money in favour of a few beneficiaries rather than benefiting football as an entertainment and a sport. At a time when three clubs are languishing at the bottom of League 2 with negative points, following administration proceedings, this constant speculation about whether a player loves his club or would be flattered to play for another in order to get a few more digits added to their weekly salary haul is utterly obscene.

So used are we now to this increasingly over-egged August shenanigans that it is easy to forget that the transfer window only started in 2002 after our old friend Sepp Blatter conceived it as a way of preventing players walking out on their contracts at any time. The European Union's competition commissioner, Mario Monti, proposed at the time that transfer fees be outlawed entirely because they were against EU regulations for fair competition and free trading across Europe.

It was also suggested at the time that having no transfer fees would effectively put clubs in the lower leagues out of business, as they rely on selling their few home-grown gems in order to pay the bills. Consequently, the whole game signed up to a compromise that has sought to escalate transfer fees way out of proportion and has further polarised the gap between the haves and have-nots. The now desperate need to sign big players before the end of August, and the money it creates, has allowed the Premier League the licence to watch our national game be gradually flogged off to the highest bidder while genuine competition within the top level of the game gets ever-more scarce. Meanwhile, more and more clubs at the lower levels are struggling to simply stay afloat.

While Arsene Wenger attempts to claim the moral high ground by refusing to get involved in this annual end of August bun fight, RTG suspects that he is really just entrenching himself in his beliefs in order to fend off criticism from Arsenal supporters who feel the side has under-achieved in recent years. It is quite possible that he is merely sounding off in frustration at his inexperienced team who will, once again, struggle to compete for honours over the course of a season. Is it not the case that, even if he were to produce another championship winning team, many of his home-developed players would simply use it as a platform to jump ship for higher wages elsewhere? RTG strongly suspects that, if Arsenal win nothing significant again this season, Wenger may well take his skills to a new challenge. Sir Alex Ferguson, in contrast, knew that he needed to buy a striker and had no option but to pay way over the odds or be left with a squad that, potentially, might already be out of the running come the January window.

It is not RTG’s goal to be the harbinger of doom. Quite the opposite in fact. Were it not for the fact that we believe in the power of the supporter’s voice, and the desire to see the game continue, we would not be writing this blog. But Monday’s events seem to reinforce the fact that the game is on a collision course to disaster. Competiton and sound administration, at all levels, are essential to the continued enjoyment and longevity of the game. Otherwise, why not just put the Premier League trophy up for auction to the highest bidder at the beginning of the season and have done with it. Supporters exist in sufficient numbers to have a voice. And that must be heard now, more than ever, if football is not to be swallowed up by the greed and short-sightedness of people who seek only to use the loyalty of supporters to line their pockets.

New Season. Same Old Crap!

Apologies from RTG for a distinct lack of activity during the summer but outside of Euro 2008 there was little to get excited about and the constant transfer claims and counter-claims were, frankly, tedious in the extreme. All be it, perhaps, they only went to highlight, once more, one of the many ills that are currently dragging our beloved game into the abyss.

Let’s start with a quick congratulations to Spain who, for once, actually lived up to expectation and won a major international tournament. Perhaps, most pleasing of all, was the fact that they were the best team from the outset and thoroughly deserved to lift the trophy rather than acquiring it by being better defensively, or at taking penalties. And, regretfully, it pains RTG to admit, once again, that it was nice to appreciate the tournament purely for its football rather than having to pin ones hopes on a bunch of under-achieving, overpaid idiots who would have happily spread themselves liberally across the pages of the tabloids, alongside their useless WAGS, while telling us nothing insightful about how they intend to finally lift some silverware and answer the expectations of a long-suffering nation of football supporters.

But that’s all behind us now and season 2008/2009 is upon us already. The prospect of a new league campaign for our clubs, and a new World Cup qualifying campaign for the national side, fills us with wild anticipation for the coming months ahead.

Or does it in fact? The season is only a few games old, depending on which league your team plays in, and already RTG is beginning to feel the uneasy rise of acid bile in our stomachs.

Sky TV kicked it all off with, as ever, a completely over the top trailer to the new season featuring what looked like a string quartet of scantily clad women marching across a stage. Very relevant. Someone should, perhaps, mention to Sky that we don’t need sensationalist trailers to make us watch football on TV. What we really want is not to have to pay over the odds to watch teams we have no interest in. What we want is not to have to bow down and accept gratefully whatever matches Sky or Setanta choose to show us. What we really want is to watch matches at times that don’t involve us having to travel at ridiculous times of the day—on trains that aren’t running properly due to engineering works. Strange, but we’re simple folk like that! But no. We’re also football supporters. So we get what we’re given and pay a fortune for it.

But don’t fret if you thought the money wasn’t going to a good cause. It will help to furnish the pockets of the badge-kissers extraordinaire who spent all summer dropping hints that they might like to move away from their clubs if the price was right, only to beat and kiss the badge on the first day of the season once their team gave in to their ludicrous monetary demands. When Frank Lampard runs towards the banks of loyal supporters, jersey pulled toward his lips, he fails to realise that those people are having to cough up for his ridiculous wage demands and to fuel his burgeoning ego at a time when they can ill afford it. But, because of Roman Abramovich’s seemingly bottomless pit of money, the process goes on and on. Some clubs are barely running to stand still in their bid to simply compete. The likes of Lampard will continue to make obscene demands in the name of so-called Chelsea success until somebody puts a stop to it. The Premier League do not seem even remotely concerned about this situation and while we as supporters continue to let them get away with it, so nothing will change until the sport of football ceases to exist. The likes of Frank Lampard will have millions in the bank to cushion that blow should it happen. Your average supporter will have nothing but a huge void where once the game of football sat.

But what of England? Cause for optimism there maybe. Well, RTG has already stated that the decision to build the national development centre at Burton has to be a good thing. And so long as Capello is relatively untested as England manager we can still live in hope that he can turn the national team into winners.

But already we’ve had a huge, but completely unnecessary debate in the press about who is to be captain. The fact that John Terry has been given the nod suddenly seems to be more important than the success of the team. The media seem to have built him up as this colossus who would give his life for England and for who every player would happily die also. But where exactly is the evidence other than what drivel is written on the back pages? In RTG’s humble opinion JT is not even the second best centre back in England let alone the best. May we remind folk out there that he skippered us to our worst qualifying campaign since 1994. To use his record as captain of £300 million worth of Chelsea squad hardly counts and is not such a glowing record either given the resources at their disposal. If the position of captain is such an important factor in how the team performs, surely this was the time for a change.

But insignificant matters such as this, when blown up out of all proportion, fill pages in papers and time on largely irrelevant sports news channels. Hence, the media obsession with it continues. All it serves to actually achieve is to make it difficult to drop him without a major national debate for weeks in advance when they should be getting on with the job of winning matches and picking the best side to do it. But don’t worry all you England fans out there. At least it gives JT another lucrative money earning channel through being the England skipper. If the team continues to perform like a bunch of rabbits in headlights, whenever put under pressure, we can take solace in the fact that JT is making a bit extra on the side. If there is a quiet confidence in the nation that England will suddenly turn it around and qualify for South Africa 2010, by way of the old adage that lightning never strikes twice, RTG does not share that optimism. We could be in for another long haul.

Much as we began, RTG would like to end with an apology. If we’ve dampened the spirits somewhat at a time when the season is young and full of promise, then we’re sorry. But we’re beginning another season with just more signs that greed, short sightedness and basic stupidity are gradually stripping away at the foundations of the game we love. Frankly, when you look at the way we’re being treated by the powers that be, we think we deserve better. With the prospects for a more exciting, more equally contested league, more financially secure clubs and a better England team looking as bleak as ever, this season has to be the point where we as supporters say enough is enough. Join us now.

Having a Lovely Time! Wish You Were Here

European Championships? Well hardly! In the absence of England, frankly standards have been a little poor to say the least. Where are the plastic chairs being hurled across a water cannon-sodden public square? Where are the deserted streets of once bustling cities covered in a thin haze of tear gas billowing among the narrow cobbled passageways? Call this an international tournament? There has been a complete absence of gangs of Stone Island-clad youths steaming the designer label shops. And you call that a fight between the Germans and the Poles? Sky News pictures revealed that the weapon of choice appeared to be beer foam. Yes, when it comes to pre- and post-match mob-behavioural technique, the English can certainly show the rest of Europe a thing or two. So is Euro 2008 really missing us?

Joking aside, of course, RTG is gutted not to see England there, but we have to confess to quite enjoying the prospect of watching the tournament for purely football reasons rather than turning a critical eye to England’s performances and another eye on fancied teams in the hope that they perform badly – in case England end up meeting them. Though, worryingly, Russia and Croatia’s performances so far have perhaps highlighted just how poor England were. But let’s not dwell on that any longer. It’s been done. Not least by RTG in previous posts.

The English press has done its level best to try and persuade the rest of Europe that the tournament is worse for our absence. Meanwhile BBC and ITV have glossed over England’s lack of participation with the occasional break from script, by a pundit, when viewing Russia and Croatia, with the lament: “how on earth did England not make it?” Michel Platini, when asked (amongst a whole host of ex-football players and managers) if he missed England, replied to the effect that missing England would be disrespecting those teams that have actually qualified. And it’s hard to argue against that point.

The only real losers, let’s be honest, are the licensees and brewers of Austria, Switzerland and, of course, England, who must still be crying in their beer when they survey their empty bars. Let’s also spare a thought for Umbro, JJB and other sporting goods purveyors who could have done with the boost in these troubled times. In fact, given the current oil and credit crisis, we could all have done with a bit of a market stimulus.

On a positive note, for football lovers, the first round has actually produced some great matches. Apart from Romania and Greece, getting the win has appeared to be the overriding objective of each team. Just like the World Cup of 2006, having only two teams qualifying from each group and three points for a win, has put a premium on winning group games – especially the first one. Indeed, in two of the best matches, Holland v Italy and Spain v Russia, despite the three goal margins, with different luck, the results may have been different. It should also be remembered that, due to the unfairness of World Cup qualifying regional groups, this tournament is probably of a higher standard then the World Cup. Austria aside, the other 15 teams are all in the top 32 of the world and hence worthy of a World Cup place.

However, RTG does believe that the opening matches will gradually give way to a more cautious approach in the knockout stages, again like World Cup 2006. So be prepared for the brandishment of yellows and reds, general haranguing of officials and blatant diving to make a comeback in approximately two weeks time. Germany will, at some stage, definitely get through on penalties, after a cagey knockout stage performance and before reaching the final. Portugal will eventually flatter to deceive, probably at the semi final stage, again. Holland will do their usual self-inflicted implosion, again probably at the semi final stage and lose on penalties. Italy, however, should not be disregarded until they are actually on a flight home. RTG is still scratching its head wondering which ‘one-tournament wonder’ will be bought by a Premier League side, at great cost, only to end up on the bench once Christmas has been and gone. We’ve spotted Gomis of France but we’re not too sure yet. And it was nice to be reacquainted with the Greek players who moved en masse after Euro 2004 – some into the Premier League – only to be returned, tail between their legs, one year later.

Over this summer, though, there are optimistic signs for England fans to ponder. RTG believes we have got the best manager for the job as a result of McClaren’s departure (although we could do without him reminding us of his shortcomings by being a pundit on Five Live), we have an FA that appears to be finally getting its act together in setting up a better infrastructure for the grass roots, as well as, finally, setting a target date for opening the Burton centre of excellence in 2010. Readers of this blog would have noted this as one of RTG’s main issues in assessing the demise of England. Hence, the fight is by no means over. After all, the FA is only one area of the football industry that needs reform. There are still many others. Join us by signing the guestbook.

Hat’s Off. Take a Bow (or not)!

Player of the Week – David Villa spearheaded an exciting Spanish performance with a hat-trick.

Villain of the Week – Ronaldo. RTG is bored with all his transfer shenanigans. He should have sorted this out before the tournament. Now it is going to continue to be referred to every bloody day. Yawn!

Hero of the Week – Ruud Van Nistelrooy. Could have done his usual and gone down for a penalty when rounding goalkeeper Buffon but opted to stay on his feet. Hopefully this is a trend that will long continue. Although not to do with Euro 2008, RTG felt compelled to highlight also Randy Lerner, Aston Villa’s owner and CEO, for finishing his team’s shirt sponsorship and replacing it with a hospice charity instead.

Shock of the Week – Italy losing by more than two goals in a major tournament for the first time since the World Cup final in 1970.

Cliché of the Week – “Are you missing England?” RTG feels for all the people who’ve been put on the spot and asked this question when they clearly are not.

All's Well, That End's Well?

At the close of another season, there are many in the game who believe English football has never been in better shape. After all, we’ve had a final day finish to the Premier League for the first time in nine years, the new record-breaking lucrative TV deal kicks in next season and gates are up in all leagues bar the Championship, where they are only slightly down. There was an all-English Champions League final and English teams made up three of the semi-final quartet and, but for the luck of the draw, Arsenal should have claimed the fourth spot. It would appear English football has finally emulated, and surpassed, the Italian and Spanish leagues. OK, we’ve had to accept not qualifying for Euro 2008, but that’s all Steve McClaren’s fault, isn’t it? Now, at least with the appointment of Fabio Capello, a commitment to building the academy at long last and the setting of some actual short and long-term objectives by the FA (debatable though they are), England seem to be going in the right direction.

So why is RTG not sharing in this euphoria? Let’s leave aside, for one minute, the disappointment of watching an Englandless tournament that starts next week. What actually happened during this season 2007/2008?

Before the start, Arsenal were written off by the pundits as likely to drop out of the top four, to be replaced by Spurs. After three games or so, Manchester United were written off for the title because they drew a couple of their opening games and lost to Manchester City. Similar sentiments were expressed about Chelsea following the departure of Mourinho. Whilst RTG does not claim to be the world expert on predictions, we stuck to our guns to reiterate the point made at the end of the 2006/2007 season that the same four would occupy the top four spots yet again. In fact, despite the fact that Manchester United lost five times in the season, there were still 22 points between first place and fifth and 51 points between first and the three relegation spots. So, effectively, nobody caught up despite Sky’s Andy Gray asserting boldly that, “this season the gap is closing”. The truth of the matter is that, due to changes of ownership and pre-mortgaging future TV revenue, a few more clubs had a lot more cash to splash around.

Worryingly, the perception that, nowadays, clubs and especially newly promoted clubs, need to spend heavily to survive, has really grown. Take the case of Sunderland, who spent around £50 million to survive their first season back in the Premier League – just! Recently, even more players have come out to plead the case to their chairmen to open the purse strings. Tim Howard, the Everton goalkeeper, being the latest in an ever-growing list. This, despite David Moyes’ pessimistic, but probably realistic, statement toward the end of the season that there is a glass ceiling above fifth place.

This summer’s close season is predicted to break all records in transfer spending. Some are even predicting that Chelsea will break six figure millions for their transfer budget. To RTG, this is reminiscent of the arms build up, during the cold war, that ultimately bankrupted one of the only two countries that could compete. If, as is widely forecasted by the financial markets and government organisations, there is an economic downturn, are they still going to be able to fill grounds and reach the TV audiences that much of Premier League football is reliant upon? Most clubs have again announced inflation-busting rises in ticket prices for next season but how long will it be before supporters’ wallets are closed to pay for increased food and fuel prices? And when these economic factors kick in, how long will it be before supporters of the majority of teams in the Premier League decide that, watching a team that won't win anything, is not a priority in an ever-decreasing wage packet?

Let’s remind ourselves that the season’s all-English Champions League final was contested between the two most indebted clubs in the history of football. United and Chelsea have a combined total debt of approximately £1.5 billion. Chelsea’s debt would appear to be fairly safe as long as Abramovich maintains his interest. But what of Manchester United? It only takes a slight downturn and some of the fine margins they are trading under may come back to haunt them.

Website Up and RTG Campaign Never More Relevant

It’s been a busy few weeks here at RTG though you wouldn’t know it from our decidedly poor showing on the posting front of late. But there is a reason for that. We now have our website at http://www.reclaimthegame.org.uk/ up and running and there to give you a bit more information about what it is we are trying to achieve.

OK, so it is not in absolutely mint condition, but for the time being it is an attempt to get across what RTG is campaigning for. Not being technical experts, we’ve managed to get the basics done with only limited tears and temper tantrums. But events in football continue to convince us that what we are doing is the right thing.

Back in January, as the relationship between Hicks and Gillett, the Liverpool owners, began to break down, RTG cautioned Liverpool fans to “be careful what you wish for” on the news of the interest of Dubai International Capital (DIC). The situation at Liverpool has since gone from comedy to farce. Yet, so desperate are Liverpool supporters to see an end to this stand-off, that they would be delighted to see DIC join up with Gillett to get Hicks out of the club. How will this solve their problems RTG asks? After all, the real problem is the 50/50 ownership of Hicks and Gillett, not that one partner is any better than the other. If anything, replacing an American with an Arab-based consortium in that 50/50 partnership will just lead to even more problems.

As the ‘big four’ now talk of revenues of hundreds of millions, many concerned supporters are beginning to realise the unpalatable truth uttered by David Moyes, Everton’s Manager, this week; namely that he’d reached a “glass ceiling” in reaching fifth position in the Premier League. Clubs need, as Moyes summised, to be investing hundreds of millions and not the tens of millions that everyone excluding the ‘big four’ can currently command. The worry is that, by the industry not addressing these issues, the ‘big four’ are going to disappear over the horizon in terms of revenues in the coming years, as they continue to enjoy the fruits of the Champions League all to themselves.

Hence David Moyes’ comment and the growing pessimism among supporters of teams from fifth place downwards, in the Premier League, that, all they have to look forward to each year, is staying in the league. Do we really want to see a competition where most teams’ first objective is to make the magic 40 point safety mark? After which they relax due to having nothing to play for – and there are many recent examples of teams doing exactly that.

On top of enjoying elite status in the Premier League, the English ‘big four’ are on their way to becoming Europe’s ‘big four’ also. For the second year running the same three English teams are appearing in the semi-finals of the Champions League. But for the draw, it is not inconceivable that it could have been all four. Whilst, periodically, we have had specific leagues dominating the competition, with all Italian and all Spanish finals and semi-finals, this period of English domination appears to have some longevity. RTG wonders what UEFA will make of this – perhaps this is the real reason behind the ‘6+5’ Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini proposals. (See RTG post on this subject - 18th February 2008).

Speaking of the semi-finals, there is a conspiratorial body of Manchester United supporters who believe that UEFA do not want to see an all-English affair in Moscow. Hence, the reason Gattuso got away with murder for Milan last year (all be it they were the better team over both legs). Keep your eye on refereeing decisions in Wednesday’s game in Camp Nou. RTG will certainly be doing so. Given that UEFA has chosen a location where a visa is required to go and watch the game, perhaps, from the Russian Embassy’s perspective, an English final would be a recipe for chaos on an enormous scale.

Hat's Off. Take a Bow! (Or Not).

Player of the Week - Ashley Young. Could also have gone to John Carew but by all accounts a vintage performance from our Ashley as Villa destroyed rivals Birmingham in the "Second City Derby" as it has suddenly become known in the media.

Hero of the Week - Keith Andrews of MK Dons. OK, let's be fair, the principle behind the franchising of the Dons does not sit all that well with RTG's viewpoint but a team is a team after all and supporters are supporters whoever they may follow. So congratulations to Paul Ince and Keith Andrews himself, scorer of the winner.

Villain of the Week - Tom Hicks. For referring to Liverpool as "the top brand in world football" which, aside from being the height of arrogance itself, is a phrase that goes against everything we at RTG stand for.

Shock of the Week - Avram Grant. For amazingly holding it together right up to the point of only having three games to go, despite being under enormous pressure from supporters, players and the media. But sadly it all went wrong in his last press conference after the Everton game.

Cliche of the Week - "Another one of those special Anfield European nights. It's like playing with 12 men." Well maybe, although Arsenal supporters might claim that they were playing against 12 men both at the Emirates and Anfield. It just so happened it was a bloke with a whistle rather than the crowd.

And We're Back...... to Corruption and Gambling

Yes, RTG has been off-line for a couple of weeks or so, because we’re in the process of setting up a website, as part of our on-going campaign. So, do bear with us with our, temporarily, irregular posts to the RTG blog.

Now that we are in the “business end” of the football season, what’s been happening? To some, RTG’s musings on how the football industry would become more corrupt and more difficult to control with the ever increasing amount of money sloshing around it, seemed like too much scare mongering . Yet, in the last couple of weeks, a Premier League player has admitted to getting himself sent off deliberately, as a pay off for his own substantial gambling losses. Gone are the days when you bet simply on a result or who scored. Nowadays, you can bet on winning/losing margins, number of corners, number of red and yellow cards being brandished, time of first thrown in or corner – and a whole host of aspects of the game that RTG has never come across or considered. RTG not being of the gambling fraternity, except for Grand Nationals (lost again on Saturday!).

It’s clear that the FA, in their tireless pursuit of more and more money, courted gambling organisations for sponsorships and joint deals. In this spirit, it also relaxed the rule on players betting on matches, as long as they didn't bet on their own teams' involvement. Of course, given that gambling is legal in the UK, it would be foolish to attempt a ban on players gambling in general, but it seems very appropriate to impose a blanket ban on players and associated management and back room staff within football. What recent revelations have shown us is that the English league's bribery scandals of the sixties and the case of Ossie Ardiles' Swindon team, who were denied promotion to the top division, because of the gambling misdemeanours of a previous manager, were not isolated cases. It is hard to imagine that they are not taking place now.

It’s worth pointing out that in the US, players are absolutely forbidden to bet on their sport. This situation came about mainly as a result of the infamous 1919 Baseball world series, where Chicago Black Sox players were bribed to throw the series. It is also strictly enforced. One of Baseball’s all time greats as both player and manager, Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds was thrown out of baseball and excluded from the Baseball Hall of Fame. His crime? Betting on his own team to win!

A few seasons back, rumours persisted of an odd incident involving Manchester United and West Ham in a Premier League televised match. If RTG’s memory serves it right, straight from the West Ham kick off, Frank Lampard – then of West Ham – belted the ball out to touch. There was much talk of there having been money riding on the timing of the first throw in of the match. Rumours, we know, but with the Premier League’s avowed intention of investigating recent claims, they might just want to have a look at that incident too.

And it’s not just in our country. Last week, the Portuguese FA announced that they were investigating corruption and bribery at Portugal’s top club Porto. This allegedly involved Porto officials making bribes to opponents to throw matches. Interest in this country is mainly because the allegations stem from the period that a certain Jose Mourinho was in charge.

It is clear that safeguards, in this commercially crazy era, must be put in place to protect the integrity of Football. That’s why RTG believes that a blanket ban on footballers gambling on their own sport must be put in place – with stringent punishments being meted out to those transgressors. If, like RTG, you believe that football integrity is under threat from coporate interests, then please join the Reclaim the Game cause by signing up for our campaign (on the right of this page).

Promotion to Premier League: a Step to Financial Ruin?

It may not have escaped your notice that RTG doesn’t appear to talk much about the lower leagues and, indeed, you would be right. For clarity’s sake, RTG decided to rectify this today.

It is not a lack of interest in the other three tiers of professional football – and even lower leagues too – it’s just that, well, as the saying goes ‘you have to strike at the head of a snake to kill it’. So our focus has been on the Premier League, where RTG believes the vast majority of football’s problems lay.

Since the inception of the premiership in the ’92-’93 season, the financial gap between the top level of football and the rest has grown inexorably. So much so, that the Championship play-off for the final Premiership spot is now viewed as the most valuable match in the world. In purely financial terms it is. Not through the gate receipts for the match itself, of course, but for the TV money and increased ticket prices that membership of the Premier League affords.

However, if you delve a little deeper than the obvious (as RTG always tries to do), promotion to, and subsequent relegation from, the Premier League has proven to be a millstone around some clubs’ necks. Barnsley, Sheffield Wednesday, Bradford City, Coventry City, Leicester City and many others have struggled to come to terms financially with life outside the top flight. Taking Leeds as another example – all be it that their financial ruin began in the Premier League – it is now difficult for their supporters to ever imagine how they will get back there again, without the support of a rich owner, foreign or otherwise, as seems to be the requirement these days. This paradox is still being perpetuated by the media and pundits whose business it is to talk up the Premier League and make out it is the answer to every football club’s supporters’ aspirations. The reality is that in many cases, it has been the start of their demise and been a crushing of those aspirations.

If, like RTG, you are sick to the back teeth of pundits talking about the Premier League as ‘The Best League in the World’, as if it is something English football should be held up as a shining example to the rest of the sport, you will also be wondering how it is that English football is not developing at grass roots level as a result. Like all foreign commentators, RTG realises that the current strength of English teams in the Champions League is purely based on their financial might rather than the superior technique of English players. The difficulty Championship teams find in staying in the Premier league, and the subsequent problems many face, just highlights the gulf in class that has resulted since its inception. The bigger sums of money, and the undoubted improvement in the standard of football played, are not trickling down to help improve football at the lower levels. Quite the opposite in fact.

If you take the Division 2 Southampton team of 1976 that beat Manchester United in the FA Cup final, or the West Ham team, then in football’s second tier also, that beat Arsenal in 1980, they were still full of top class professional players that were at the beginning or tail end of their careers. The standard was not that different between Division 1 and Division 2. Contrast that with the Millwall side that was comprehensively outclassed by Manchester United in 2004, and the difference is clear. If you get the chance, check out ESPN Classic’s occasional broadcasts of old Match of the Days where you will see that the Second Division matches were not far below the First in terms of quality. If anything, teams in the Championship have to be more aggressive and direct to claw their way out of the division. But, in terms of a competition, it is far more interesting than the Premier League, with the lead changing hands, throughout the season, on a regular basis. Realistically it is still possible for half the Championship teams to gain promotion whereas the Premier League is a done deal within the big four, and has been for years.

Worryingly, as another side effect, the lower leagues do not appear to be acting as feeders of talent to the Premier League and, therefore, the England national team.

The next time you hear a pundit, or commentator, on TV extolling the virtues of ‘The Best League in the World’ you might wish to stop and think for a while of the price we are paying for the development of this elite league.

Reclaim the Game – The Week’s Events

• For those other clubs dependent on a ‘sugar daddy’ for survival, the plight of Gretna in SPL should serve as a warning to what could happen in the future. Owner, Brooks Mileson, has contracted a life threatening brain infection resulting in Gretna not being able to maintain his funding and will likely go bankrupt today.
• RTG felt the need to draw your attention to this letter from a Simon Charterton in The Guardian yesterday. "If England are to play the USA, allowing David Beckham to gain his 100th cap, why not name Gary Lineker as a substitute to come on and take a penalty so he can equal Bobby Charlton’s goalscoring record as well?" RTG’s sentiments also but, why not keep naming him on the bench until he breaks the record? In fact, why not name Sir Bobby Charlton on the bench also, so the two can go head to head? After all, this appears to be the main objective behind England’s friendly matches these days if the media are to be believed.