It’s Official: Bryan Robson Agrees with Us!

“I disagree with people when they say football is a sport. Football lost its sporting thing when money started coming in and Sky TV and all that. Football’s a business”.

So said Bryan Robson as he was filmed secretly by Channel 4’s Dispatches program broadcast last month. But we don’t just need to take Robson’s word for it. This summer, without a major tournament for England to torture us supporters with, has provided further evidence of football’s interminable slide into commercialisation and, above all, the continuing shift of football’s focus from on field sporting prowess to off field business issues.

It’s been a summer that has seen legal challenges, a parliamentary investigation into football’s running, FIFA accusations and resignations, the initial phase of UEFA’s “fair play rules” implementation, and already its initial abuses, as well as further proof of the player tail wagging the club dog. Hardly surprising that you might have missed the fact that England put out teams for the European under-23 and World under-20 tournaments. Or, for that matter, that the two major tournaments for the Americas had taken place.

The season had not even ended when Swansea City were threatening a legal challenge to QPR’s promotion over their fielding of an ineligible player. The threat of action was only averted by Swansea bagging the Championship’s play-off promotion spot. Farcically, QPR’s fans were made to wait until just before kick off in their final match of the season to find out if their promotion was to go ahead. This is not the first time that legal actions between clubs have happened, as those who can recall Sheffield United’s successful compensation suit against West Ham over the Carlos Tevez affair, nor will it be the last – supporters had better get used to it as the financial stakes get higher.

Then, RTG’s favourite bête noire, FIFA, was mired in yet more corruption allegations. First Lord Triesman, giving evidence with legal immunity to a MP commons select committee, stated that England’s 2018 world cup bid was spoiled not only by desires from the usual FIFA suspects for cash bribes, but also by requests for knighthoods and UK state visits! Following that, in an astonishing mix of claims, denials and counter claims that brought to mind the phrase linking rats and sinking ships, Jack Warner resigned from FIFA, Mohammed Bin Hammam was forced to pull out of his presidential bid, Qatar’s 2022 world cup hosting was put in jeopardy and further FIFA Exco members were suspended. Out of the original 24 Exco members who were to vote on World cup bids, unbelievably, eight have now been suspended, resigned or been kicked out!

Sadly, Lord Triesman’s evidence appears to have come to nought and, worse, has illustrated the chasm that exists between the FA and the Premier League; the latter run by our other bête noire Richard Scudamore, who was quick to refuse to back up Triesman’s claims – despite being present when FIFA’s verbal “requests” were made. It also emerged that Scudamore effectively attempted to blackmail England’s World Cup bid in return for support for the Premier League’s infamous “39th game”. Proof, once more, that RTG’s assertion that the three separate governing bodies of football are all pulling in different directions. It is a subject that RTG will return to in the near future.

The reign of Blatter, therefore, continues without abatement and with the now customary smoke and mirrors of yet more lip service to “transparency”. Bizarrely, Placido Domingo, yes, that Placido Domingo, has been added as a resource to FIFA’s ethics committee, along with the octogenarian and eager recipient of FIFA freebies , Henry Kissinger. Yet again, it will be a subject to which RTG will return.

But don’t worry! UEFA’s initial phase of “football fair play rules” has kicked in this season. RTG has wholly endorsed the principles behind the rules – albeit with huge reservations given that it continues to allow highly leveraged club buy outs (à la Glazers at Manchester United) AND as RTG predicted, clubs would be bending the rules to fit.

I mean come on: Manchester City announce a $640 million, 10 year naming rights deal for the City of Manchester Stadium from City’s sister company Etihad, a ground not even owned by City. Compare that to the $300 million, 10 year deal announced at roughly the same time for the naming rights of one of the world’s most iconic venues, Madison Square Gardens. Clearly, this is a blatant case of, as Arsene Wenger put it, “financial doping”. Worryingly, the media, and Sky Sports in particular, seem to be ignoring the issue, apart from reporting the two objections raised by Arsenal and Liverpool. They’ve also ignored reports/rumours of Chelsea paying compensation to Porto over the “transfer” of Andre Boas Villas with funds drawn from outside Chelsea PLC – that is, it may not appear in Chelsea’s financial accounts. At the current moment, neither Chelsea nor Manchester City comes close to meeting the criteria for financial fair play. Yet, the majority of the media do not seem to feel this is an issue worth any significant comment. It will be interesting to see how UEFA responds to these issues.

Excuse us then, for not jumping for joy at the prospect of Sky’s claims that we are embarking (yet again!) on the most “exciting Premier League season ever” as the so-called sporting contest settles ever further into the grasping arms of financiers, lawyers and the world of cash stuffed envelopes being pocketed by fat cat administrators. It is after all your cash that is paying for all of this.

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"Carry On" FIFA

As if the dubious back-room dealings in awarding the World Cups of 2018 and 2022 were not an affront to all right minded football supporters, Sepp Blatter then announced unilaterally that the 2022 World Cup may be played in the winter: thus disrupting two seasons in the professional leagues around the world and Europe in particular. Swiftly afterwards, Michel Platini, who now appears to be Sepp Blatter’s ever faithful lap dog, announced that the event may be played out in several other Gulf States. Thus two key elements of the bid process: where and when, don’t appear to have been even considered in the vote process. In RTG’s business experience, the question of timing and location are almost always the most important factors in any bid or pitch.

In Sepp Blatter’s FIFA world, what he wants, he always gets. However, if the Qatari proposal had specifically highlighted a winter timetable, they surely would not have won the bid. At best, this was an amateurish and unprofessional process. At worst, it was yet more devious skulduggery from football’s bete noir. RTG is thinking the worst. Intriguingly, the Qataris themselves have dismissed these two proposals out of hand immediately.

It would appear, though, that the latest shenanigans around the Qatari bid may be the first salvos in a bitter FIFA Presidency election battle between Mohamed Bin Hammam, the Qatari FIFA Exco member, and the present incumbent Sepp Blatter. Given that Bin Hammam has been a shady financier and backer of previous Blatter elections, even if Blatter gets his just desserts in the upcoming election, we should be very wary of someone who has been an integral player in the FIFA “carry on”. The fact that he has mentioned the word “transparency” in his opening gambit for the FIFA Presidency does not bode well.

Those of you who are familiar with Andrew Jennings’ journalistic investigations – both on the Panorama programme and especially in his eye-opening book – will recognise the Sepp Blatter modus operandi:

• say the word FIFA and “transparency” together in the same sentence many times;
• deny vehemently any wrongdoings by him or any of his colleagues;
• when forced by the weight of media pressure, buy some time by announcing a new anti-corruption initiative;
• give the initiative a terms of reference that renders it powerless and unable to do its job properly;
• make sure no significant change happens and if any wrongdoing is found, make sure any sanctions imposed are light – and don’t collect any fines.

Thus, last week, a senior German lawyer, Guenter Hirsch, resigned from the FIFA Ethics Committee citing his belief that the Committee were not interested in sorting out corruption within FIFA.

Recently ex-England manager, Graham Taylor, told the press that, following a visit to FIFA HQ in the 1990’s, he was actively encouraged by a FIFA official to set up a Swiss bank account so that he could defraud his expenses. The official told him that they were all at it and that it was normal. Clearly, the climate of corruption is well established within FIFA’s corporate culture.

It is a climate that also means that genuine supporters find it increasingly hard to attend matches at the World Cup. FIFA officials help themselves to seemingly unlimited amounts of tickets which then make their way onto the black market – and with the proceeds being deposited into secret Swiss bank accounts. When Nigerian FIFA officials were recently investigated for fraud, including tickets for the World Cup, Sepp Blatter played his trump card. He simply suspended Nigeria and all its clubs from all FIFA and African Conference competitions. Hey presto, investigation stopped.

Prior to the recent World Cup bid fiasco, many football supporters had never truly appreciated the levels of corruption that exist within FIFA. This appalling sham of a process revealed to all the atrocious levels to which Blatter and FIFA will go to ensure their lucrative supply of dirty money is maintained. The truth is they have been getting away with this for over 30 years using underhand tactics to sweep allegations under the carpet in the hope that supporters will ignore or forget. For the most part it has worked.

This year Blatter comes up for re-election as President of FIFA. This time, supporters must not forget what happened and join together to bring pressure to bear to get rid of this odious man. However, RTG believes that this on its own is not enough. The culture of corruption is too deeply ingrained within FIFA. As an organisation that runs the game across the world, it must surely be disbanded in its current form and with its current executive members.

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World’s Football Supporters Hung, Drawn and Qatared

Ten days ago, FIFA announced that Russia was to host the 2018 World Cup and Qatar was to host the 2022 tournament. FIFA President, Sepp Blatter wanted Russia as 2018 hosts and, what Blatter wants, Blatter gets. The strange choice of Qatar is more easily understood when one considers the facts that journalist, Andrew Jennings, has unearthed about the machinations of the FIFA gravy train. Qatari FA President, Mohammed Bin Hammam, has been a long time Blatter supporter, dubiously funding Blatter’s re-election to the FIFA Presidency, as well as providing material support in the form of private jets for his election campaigning, against FIFA’s own rules.

Both of the winning bids were widely thought to be the weakest technical bids and both will require the most amounts of stadia and infrastructure building projects. Whilst the choice of Russia could easily be explained away, in typical FIFA smokescreen bull manure speak, by the old ‘spreading the game throughout the world’ adage, the choice of Qatar is just an affront to the world’s football supporters, and even more importantly, an affront to the world’s environment. Outdoor air conditioned stadia, with outdoor temperatures at 40-50 degrees centigrade, powered by solar energy – all to be dismantled after the hoopla and re-located elsewhere. Carbon footprint? Who cares? Legacy - to a population of native Qataris, who number in six figures? Ridiculous. And once again, Blatter has got away with his subterfuge.

It seems that every move by the current FIFA President is designed as yet another ruse to not only get his way, but also to provide scope for the powerful members of FIFA’s ExCo to do more deals. This time around it was the double bid process which gave more deal mileage to be claimed. It has reached the stage where RTG views FIFA so cynically, that maybe even footballing decisions, such as FIFA’s reluctance to consider technology is motivated by their own desire to have referee control of matches – and referees can be lent on.

It can’t be a coincidence that the two big oil and gas rich states amidst the bidding countries, won their bids. Equally so, bigger game politics – especially France’s courting of Qatar’s resources - played a huge part. How much, we’ll probably never know. But yet more allegations of bribery have subsequently been made, which if true, makes RTG wonder why England and others bothered in the first place. After all, England had its Prime Minister, next but one King and… wait for it… a moderately good footballer who is the darling of OK magazine, as our “three lions”. Actually, maybe our bid wasn’t so good after all.

Irrespective of the technical bid, its praised presentation and the quality of the people who represented England in schmoozing with the FIFA crooks, England were never going to win their bid. Andy Anson, Chief Executive of the England bid, admitted as much afterwards. However, the process that the bid went through legitimised FIFA and its corrupt methods by allowing us to believe that England had a chance of winning, thereby forcing our bid members to kiss the proverbial FIFA arse and criticise our own nasty free press for pointing out what a bunch of crooks they are!

It’s clear that FIFA needs to be completely done away with in its current form. FIFA was set up in the days when football was trying to fend off commercial interests and remain true to a more idealistic amateur spirit. That all changed in 1974, with the election of Joao Havelenge and his subsequent handover to his heir alter ego, Sepp Blatter. Since then, it’s been run like a mafia, involving ever increasing amounts of money and dubious goings on, protected by Swiss financial laws and with no-one daring enough to take on the corruption from within or outside of the game – with notable noble media exceptions.

It is highly unlikely that we will see a World Cup in England in the next two to three decades. England gave the world football. It might be time for England to think again how best it could lead the world in football again. As RTG has long argued before, the organisation of football in this country needs to be totally revamped to deliver a winning football team and a contribution to the nation’s health. The game in this country needs to be in a better place and yes, free from the corrupting influence of commercialism, before it could counter FIFA’s hegemony.

If we can do this, then maybe England will be in a position to challenge finally FIFA’s strangle on the game, get rid of the Blatters and Warners and deliver to the world a game which truly transcends political, secret Swiss bank accounts and commercial interests, for the whole world to enjoy.

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The Keeper

...Riyals or Roubles anyone?

The Keeper, of course, had to focus on the disappointing result to England’s 2018 World Cup bid. England, sadly, only got two votes, one of which was our own (although we’re not even sure about that). But not to worry we can leave Zurich with our heads held high. The England bid centred on football as a sport that crosses boundaries of culture and class. A sport for all. That’s why, for the pivotal part of the presentation, we sent out the future King of England, our Old Etonian Prime Minister and a multi-million pound footballer. Three chaps who can really speak for the common man.

But, to be fair, the lads really pulled out all the stops, working into the long hours to try and rally support for Team England’s challenge. They apologised for the BBC Panorama allegations and refused to accept that it could possibly have damaged our chances, or that FIFA would take any notice of anything other than the quality of the bid on offer. They were dubbed in the press “The Three Lions”. Perhaps “Three Monkeys” might have been more appropriate. See No Evil. Hear No Evil. Speak No Evil!

But sadly England came up short. FIFA assessed each bid on merit (not oil reserves and available cash), what they could do for developing the game of football throughout the world (definitely not oil reserves and available cash) the suitability of the facilities on offer (absolutely not oil reserves and available cash), the summer temperatures (most certainly not oil reserves and available cash) and the transport infrastructure in place (without doubt not oil reserves and available cash).

The end result of course was that Russia won the bid to host 2018 and Qatar, a desert state the size of East Anglia with one stadium holding over 50,000, and summer temperatures of 50°C plus, won the bid to host 2022. The Keeper would like to pose a question of his own at this point. How much money might it take for the 2018 Winter Olympics to be held at the Milton Keynes Snow Dome, Alaska to hold the 2015 Cricket World Cup and China to host the next Tour De France?

Enjoy your sporting memories everyone.

FIFA Vote Unlikely To Be Based On Merit

Next week sees FIFA voting on the hosting of the World Cups of 2018 and 2022. Just a few days before that, BBC’s Panorama programme will be aired, which follows on from the Sunday Times expose of “cash for votes” being available from FIFA voting executives. On top of these recent allegations, new ones in the Italian press about the UEFA voting process in awarding the European Championships of 2012 to Poland/Ukraine, have now surfaced.

It could be that the Italian press is exhibiting a bit of belated ‘sour grapes’ - Italy having been originally the bid-to-beat favourite for that tournament. Now the English press could be similarly preparing the ground for the disappointment of losing out in the 2018 bid. But if you, like RTG, were aware that some impropriety had been taking place in FIFA circles for some time, but really weren’t sure of the extent and impact of them, then a little research can reveal some very disturbing facts about FIFA that threaten the very existence of football in the world.

Basically FIFA is a corrupt organisation, above the law, supportive of despots and tyrants, and totally unsuitable to be the guardians of the world’s most popular sport.

“Trust us and you will see confidence will be restored".

Sepp Blatter, FIFA President, October 2010


In RTG’s research, the best and most reliable source of information and facts can be obtained from the investigative journalist, Andrew Jennings. He is the person who is best remembered as being the target of Jack Warner’s, FIFA CONCACAF president, four letter, racist splattered invective in a BBC Panorama programme investigating the 2010 World Cup and Jack Warner’s behaviour in particular. RTG would strongly urge you to check out Mr Jennings’ work. His excellent writing and thoroughly convincing cases were amongst a whole wealth of information available on the web about FIFA and corruption, and it left RTG seething with rage.

This is the summary of the main points that RTG has learnt, but again, we would strongly urge you to do your own research and visit Andrew Jennings’ work in particular.

• Ever since the election of Joao Havelange in 1974 to the FIFA presidency, who bought the       votes of delegates funded by the Adidas corporation, almost every election and many               business decisions have been tainted by improper financial arrangements. 

• FIFA has been effectively run by commercial interests. Adidas in particular, but a host of other so called “partners” eg Coca Cola.

• The public ownership of football has been privatised via the back door and unbeknown to supporters worldwide.

• No surprise that FIFA and other sporting bodies have made their homes in Switzerland. FIFA uses Swiss law to hide salaries, bonuses, perks and expenses paid to FIFA employees. Because FIFA is a ‘non-profit sporting entity’, it is exempt from Swiss anti-corruption laws. However, any employee who finds evidence of corruption, a so called ‘whistle-blower’, can and has been prosecuted by Swiss authorities. No wonder then that Switzerland has long been such a popular haven for Nazis’ and other dictators’ lootings.

• FIFA has consistently given backing to dubious regimes. A dubious regime will quite often install a relative or other favoured courtier as head of their football association. FIFA will support that regime, both morally and fiscally, allowing further looting of that country’s coffers. In return, FIFA’s President gets that country’s vote in future for whatever he needs it for. The notorious Charles Taylor, currently on trial at the Hague for war crimes, installed his son-in-law as Liberian FA chief and he received funds from FIFA. FIFA were particularly busy in the period during the Soviet Union’s break up, when many new associations were created.

• ISL, a company formed from a spin off of Adidas, handled the marketing rights of world cups for many years (amongst other sporting tournaments). ISL collapsed which led to £100 million in losses to FIFA. A previous investigation by Panorama interviewed employees of ISL, who confirmed that the company had paid bribes to FIFA over a period of 20 years.

• The allegations led to some FIFA officials returning money. Others refused and FIFA repaid some money in a secret deal.

• Swiss authorities did investigate ISL between 2005 and 2010. They uncovered $143 million in kick-backs, some connected to FIFA. Proceedings were settled with compensation payments from accused parties without any admission of guilt.

• The company that took over the marketing rights from ISL, Infront, is run by…the nephew of Sepp Blatter!

• Anybody within FIFA who identifies any wrong doing is ostracised and subsequently ousted. In 2002, for example, Michel Zen-Ruffinen, ex-FIFA General Secretary, completed a dossier into financial mismanagement within FIFA. He was immediately sacked. An internal investigation committee by FIFA was stopped by Sepp Blatter, because members broke “confidentiality agreements”.

• When a financial impropriety is identified and highlighted, FIFA’s own Ethics Committee, which has no real authority, is usually given a very limited brief and scope for investigation. Indeed, the UK’s own Sebastian Coe resigned from it, presumably because he realised that it was a vehicle for ‘white washing’ misdemeanours.

• When FIFA’s own auditors revealed that Jack Warner profited by nearly £1 million from ticket re-sales for the 2006 World Cup, they bowed to media pressure and announced that he was to be fined and banned from dealing in tickets in future. Sepp Blatter, a close ally, defended Warner by saying that he wasn’t really responsible because the sales were done through Warner’s son Daryan. Apparently, FIFA insiders claim that the fine, like many others imposed on FIFA officials, will never be paid. Because of Swiss secrecy laws, we’ll never know.

“It could not be evidenced that Mr. Jack Warner had knowledge of the resale of these tickets at a higher price. The resale is certainly forbidden, but the person who did the re-selling is not subject to the FIFA jurisdiction, because it is the son of Jack Warner." 

Sepp Blatter, FIFA President, December 2006


• If any FIFA official is investigated by their own country’s authorities, FIFA quickly threatens to ban that country from international competition. This is exactly what happened to Nigeria following the last World Cup. This makes FIFA officials above the law in individual countries – after all, which politician is going to risk the wrath of his/her own people by getting their country isolated from competition?

• You can see the effect of FIFA’s influence here in England where many media commentators have accused the BBC of being unpatriotic because it continues to highlight the stench of corruption within FIFA – supposedly to the detriment of England’s 2018 bid.

• You can also draw inferences of the type of organisation that FIFA is through their employment of a PR agency to cloud issues and help sweep them under the carpet. This agency includes Union Carbide (of Bhopal disaster infamy) and sanction busting oil companies from the apartheid era amongst its clients.

The above are just some of the highlights of what RTG has learnt. As stated earlier, we ask you to do your own research for evidence, with particular reference to Andrew Jennings. But what can be done about it?

Originally, RTG felt that it would take a US senate style political investigation, perhaps by the UN: after all, it was a Senate Investigation Committee which pursued the IOC over the voting scandal involved in awarding the winter Olympics to Salt Lake City. However, following a lot of good words and angered sentiment being expressed, and some good senatorial suggestions, nothing has really changed.

And that’s the thing: politicians appear reluctant to push through reforms at the risk of alienating their own constituents. They have other pressing issues at the moment and, in the UK’s case (and indeed other countries), wouldn’t that be the pot calling the kettle black?

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Now for a bit of humour from The Keeper

The Keeper

....always plays to the whistle

The Keeper wishes to express his full support for Harry Redknapp and his stance against the FA. Harry said he would refuse to do any post-match interviews for the TV if they fined him for his comments regarding Mark Clattenburg following the Spurs v Man United game. The Keeper was all for it if not only because it would have made a welcome change on Match of the Day not to see shifty old Harry twitching away and looking sideways rather than at the interviewer. His more dignified number two, Joe Jordan, would have made a welcome alternative….

…hmm…then again the Keeper was always a big Harry fan.

Far more pleasing on the eye than either Jordan or Redknapp is Linda Pizzuti (31), the new darling of the Kop, and wife of new owner John Henry (61). She has endeared herself to the Liverpool faithful by learning to tweet their songs. When Liverpool came back from the brink against Napoli last week she was seen to tweet, “You’re not singing anymore”. Delighted to see her embracing English football culture in this way, and keen to know more about their new advocate, the Kop faithful were straight back on the tweet with a host of questions. “Hi Linda, who’s your favourite player?” “Linda, great song. What others do you know?” “Linda, you seem like a great girl. What first attracted you to ageing billionaire John Henry?”

Talking of events over the pond, LA Galaxy reached their conference’s play-off final. Or rather, according to the media over here, they were “led” to the final by David Beckham. What Becks actually did was to simply take a corner that led to a goal and some might say that Galaxy skipper, Landon Donovan, could be more accurately described as having led them to victory. But in the world that is the Beckhams and the media in England, that doesn’t necessarily apply. All he has to do is fart and the English media would bottle it up as Eau de Beckham and sell it.

Perhaps most shocking of all last week were revelations about Arsène Wenger having an affair with a blonde French singer over 20 years his junior. The Keeper was hoping that this shocking exposé would lay to rest once and for all those disgusting paedophile songs that some opposing fans sing at The Emirates. That was until it turned out he’d been seeing her for the last 25 years!

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.

39th Game: Premiership Plot or Pawn in World Game?

Just when you thought it was safe to file the ‘39th game’ proposal into the metaphoric dustbin, then FIFA issue a statement which has given encouragement, in some quarters at least, to the proposers of the so called 39th game. Basically, despite FIFA President Sepp Blatter’s initial deep scepticism, FIFA welcomed the postponement of a meeting specifically to address the issue, in favour of a future date – thus allowing the Premiership to put more detail to the proposal. Note that it was the Premiership who made the postponement.

Whilst RTG remains completely against the 39th game, it got us thinking as to why the proposal has become an issue again, having met such resistance not only from supporters, managers, foreign national FA’s, and FIFA regions, but also principally by our own English FA. Putting RTG’s cynical ‘hat on’, and knowing little, but just enough, about FIFA’s and Sepp Blatter’s modus operandi, the only conclusion is that this proposal will become a bargaining chip, to be traded or bartered with the English FA at some future stage. At this precise moment, the big issue for English football is the World Cup 2018. Anything that jeopardises that is a complete no-no for the FA and, rightly so. It is the one matter that supporters agree with their own FA about.

It’s hard to see any additional benefit that the Premiership can promote in adding more detail to the proposal. Certainly, the absolute incredible, lack of prior consultation, a point that Sir Alex Ferguson was considerably vexed about, and the insurmountable problems highlighted in the English FA’s review of the proposal will not be addressed, so why the postponement? The only thing that the Premiership can do is signal their intent in expanding the revenue earning streams from abroad. Is there a way to do this and minimise the impact on distorting the league competition?

Any proposal that adds to the fixture congestion, RTG believes, should be rejected out of hand. You would need to play a home and away fixture against the same team in the same world time zone, preferably in the same week. There would need to be fixed rules for which teams end up playing these games abroad. For example, Premier Champions against Championship play-off winner, second place against Championship runner-up, third place against Championship champions etc. No, RTG doesn’t like it much either and we’ve not even started talking about the disruption to local national FA’s, a point that we have huge reservations over. But at least it’s fair and equitable for all teams.

Maybe though, this is exactly what the Premiership has in mind. Maybe, as is the modern PR way, the initial plans were to draw out the nay sayers and doom merchants before the ‘let’s get everybody so confused that resistance becomes fragmented and we win phase’ is implemented. But maybe, just maybe, they are really incompetent and they don’t know how to handle these matters, as shown time and again. As Groucho Marx once might have observed about the English Premiership: “those guys might look like idiots and they might act like idiots, but don’t let that fool you… they really are idiots!”.

RTG – The Week’s Events

• Liverpool’s Jamie Carragher has joined the list of professional players to get acquainted with Her Majesty’s Police when he received a formal caution over a violent incident this week in Liverpool.
• Alisher Usmanov, the Arsenal share holding Russian billionaire, has increased his stake in Arsenal by a few decimal percentage points, but by doing so is now the single biggest shareholder in the Gunners. He’s only a few decimal percentage points away from the magical 25% level, which would allow him to block any board resolutions. A place on the Arsenal board cannot be far away. Interestingly, he has also announced a year’s sponsorship of Dynamo Moscow, citing, according to reports, that Dynamo is his ‘first love’ and that he fell in love with them the first time he entered the stadium in the early sixties. Sounds a bit familiar to his pronouncements on acquiring his Arsenal shareholding ie he fell in love with English football the first time he encountered it in 1966….

Supporters Lose Out as Fat Cats Eat the Pie

Recent events have brought many of football’s various power blocs, and their differing agendas, to the fore. For the English game, the big issue right now is its bid for the 2018 World Cup, over which, for once, the government, FA, Premier League and supporters seem to be in agreement. We all want it! And things, from that angle, started to look up this week when FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, gave tentative support for the English bid by suggesting that it was England’s 'turn' to host it - 'maybe'. Hardly drawing a breath, he then poured cold water on the 39th game proposal by the English Premier League. No surprise then that Jack Warner, head of CONCACAF and long-term ally (or is it conspiritor?) of Blatter, came out in support of England’s 2018 bid – although that might have been ‘bought’ from Warner already by England in agreeing to hold a friendly in Trinidad and Tobago, Mr Warner’s native land, this summer.

Add to this, Blatter’s recent 6+5 proposal, regarding the rules governing the make up of club sides’ nationalities – a proposal that will most likely affect the English league far more than any other in the world today, given the high number of foreign players at all levels of the game here. It’s clear that there are a number of far-reaching proposals that will impact on all genuine supporters. It’s clear also that these issues are being addressed by people who have their own agendas and that ‘horse trading’ by national associations and confederations is being conducted without the interests of supporters at heart. Or, for that matter, any supporter involvement or voice.

Frankly, RTG does not trust these bodies at all. There are already a number of current investigations by both governmental financial ombudsman and by the serious investigative side of the media into their financial affairs which has already destroyed their credibility. Supposedly, these organisations are run democratically and, on the surface, they would appear to be so. But one only has to look at Sepp Blatter’s last re-election, where he ruthlessly overrode all opposition and, indeed, managed to get one of his main detractors kicked out of his FIFA job. His crime? He brought to the attention of FIFA and the world press, Blatter’s financial improprieties. Policy gleaned straight from the pages of ‘Dictatorship for Dummies’!

That’s how we ended up with the final of the ‘World Game’ in 2006 being played out in front of £500 seats stuffed full of bums of over-fed dignitaries, corporate hangers-on, real and tenth rate celebrities and, oh yes, as an afterthought, a handful of genuine supporters so that the TV cameras can bring the colour and excitement of the spectacle into your living room. Needless to say, this last group was forced to buy travel and accommodation through companies run by FIFA officials’ families and friends. Oh, and if you wanted a black market ticket, they probably came via a FIFA official also.

These ’90 minuters’, as RTG likes to call them, because they only turn up to big finals at the expense of real supporters, are not the lifeblood of the game. They may ensure that a few people get rich from the game, they may also ensure that an average professional footballer can upgrade his Bentley to a Lamborghini, but they do nothing to nurture the long-term future of the game.

The day football falls out of fashion, as it has done before and surely will again, they will be disappearing in their droves leaving us, the genuine supporters, to pick up the pieces – if there are any left.

The football financial ‘pie’ grows ever larger, as does the voracious appetite of the administrators of the game looking to secure their own slice of it. At the moment, genuine supporters are increasingly being left the crumbs of that pie. RTG is not under any illusion that to change this situation will take time. Unfortunately, it will have to be done through elected officials, i.e. politicians, and we all know that is a long process. Just as in the same way as we have needed government legislation to protect our environment, so we need legislation to protect the soul of the game of football.

So, if you want to support your team through the opening rounds of competitions, and through the bread and butter of the league, only to end up seeing your final or semi-final seat being occupied by a Big Brother runner up, whose only contribution to life was to flash her moist minge to the nation, then ignore what RTG says. If you don’t, join us by signing up!

Reclaim the Game – The Weekend’s

• Proof, if you ever needed it, that the bookies always come out on top, sad news emerges that Angus ‘Statto’ Loughran has been declared insolvent. He apparently has large debts owed to a number of unnamed creditors.


• More hysteria ensued at the weekend over the state of the FA Cup. This season’s competition looks likely to result in a Manchester United v Chelsea final again or, due to probability, a very one-sided final: either United or Chelsea against a Championship opposition. This will once again raise issues about giving a Champions League place to the winners and other such ‘solutions to the FA Cup problem’. The trouble with the image of the competition and the place that it occupies in genuine supporters’ hearts is “you’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t”. Four years have passed since Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal have had a sniff of the Premier League title and they have current holders AC Milan in the Champions League this Wednesday. Can you really blame Wenger for resting a few players even if their performance was woeful to say the least? A practice, incidentally, replicated by both Sir Alex Ferguson and every single team across Europe playing this week in the Champions League. Arsenal supporters would not be pleased had Wenger played a full strength team to continue in the competition at the expense of the league title or further progress in the Champions League.
  

Hat’s Off, Take a Bow (Or Not)!

Player of the Week – David James. Kept Portsmouth in the FA Cup, including a penalty save, and deserves great credit for his recent England comeback. However, if Pompey get to the final, look out for that one gaff a game moment that is his trademark.

Hero of the Week – Luke Steele. Man of the Match, by popular acclaim, in a game that proves ‘the romance of the FA cup’ still exists.

Villain of the Week – Arsenal. RTG has spent many column inches defending the Big Four and their team selections for the FA Cup. However, the Arsenal players showed complete indifference and total lack of regard for the competition and their 9,000 travelling supporters in their performance on Saturday.

Shock of the Week – Liverpool 1 Barnsley 2. Though perhaps not as big a shock as you might think when you look at Liverpool’s FA Cup performances this season. While RTG supports Liverpool supporters in their fight against Hicks and Gillet, they seem to be venting their spleen entirely in that direction without looking at the performance of the manager and team anymore.

Cliche of the Week: Motty and Lawro's side splitting humour. If RTG doesn't hear another shit 'wise crack' from these two, it'll be a better world. Motty clearly needs to be put out to pasture. What's Lawro's excuse?

Blatter's Proposal Only Scratches the Surface of Change

Our favourite 'champion of the game' and esteemed President of FIFA, Sepp Blatter, has actually done England a favour for once and cleared the way toward us making a bid to host the World Cup in 2018. He is suggesting an end to the current rotational policy between the various global football associations that currently dictates where the tournament is staged. This has naturally been opposed by executive committee member of Concacaf (and who could only be American with this name), Chuck Blazer, as rotation should decree that it be held in North or Central America. In other words, being totally realistic, the USA. And, of course, Chuck is not going to give up the chance to attract all that sponsorship revenue and the boost to the MLS.

For once RTG is in agreement with Sepp Blatter, if only because it is farcical for the competitive nature of the bidding process when only one nation in three of the major football associations can even hope to host it - namely, Brazil in South America, the USA in North America and South Africa in Africa (and they, reportedly, are struggling). As you'd expect from RTG, we fear also that a US bid will regurgitate some of the issues that concern us greatly such as: extended half-times, four quarters, larger goals and, of course, rampant commercialisation.

But this highlights one area only where the World Cup is falling short as the most popular sporting spectacle on the planet. Currently you have a situation where, in Europe, (where new countries are being created at a rate that will keep cartographers in gainful employment well into the next century) you have 62 nations fighting for 13 places (in 2006). This despite having 21 of the top 32 teams in the FIFA World Rankings. The USA and Mexico effectively get a bye straight into the finals, as do Argentina and Brazil though they have to play 18 games to achieve it. Plus, they can end up with five places from just 10 teams. Europe is clearly the strongest continent in World football, and looks to remain so for the foreseeable future and yet, because of the archaic and political machinations of FIFA, the quality of the tournament is being compromised. Whereas, of course, it should be the highest quality of football anywhere. Nowadays, the Champions League is easily of a much higher standard.

With so many nationalities now playing football all over the globe, the time has surely come for a rationalisation and reorganisation of international football tournaments and fixtures - removing the geographical element of qualiying groups. That is, pick qualifying groups based on seedings and world rankings.

We have to now be looking at reorganising groups in order that we get the 32 best nations in what is the World Championship of football. We should have some form of pre-qualifying for the smaller nations. It seems ludicrous that qualifying for the major football tournament in the World could come down to having to beat Lichtenstein by 8 goals. OK, we admit we're still bitter about losing out to Italy in 1978 because we didn't beat Luxembourg by enough goals. But the point is very valid.

In 1974, England failed to reach West Germany after losing out to Poland in a group that contained just three teams. Contrast that with the current Euro 2008 qualifying groups of seven to eight countries. Which means we played four games in 1974 to qualify and now we have to play a minimum of 12. Surely we should be looking to play less games not more (from a sporting not commercial point of view). This might mean Wembley has to host a few more NFL matches or Giant Wheel Monster Truck racing events but so be it.

In addition, with groups that are based on ability and not specific geographic areas, and playing less games, we should be able to co-ordinate national and international schedules more effectively. South Americans based in Europe have to be away 18 times during qualification. With the Club versus Country issue brewing, surely this would be an excellent compromise in addressing the needs of both national and club interests. Watch out for more of this come the African Nations Cup in the new year (ridiculously, still played every two years). If our aim is to improve African football, why are we giving top clubs every reason not to recruit African players? A point already made by Sir Alex Ferguson by not having any in his current squad.

We're sure people will find many reasons for dismissing these ideas - not least because it will involve fewer qualifying matches and less revenue. We're not saying we have all the answers but the point is that currently they're not even being debated. If there is only one thing we should do with immediate effect it is to get rid of these pointless, mickey mouse confederations cups in between tournament years that just heap more unnecessary matches on tired players and a fatigued supporter base - or as the new football oligarchy would like us to be known, "GUESTS".

RTG - The Weekend's Events

• Despite being in Third Division, sorry the LDV Windscreen, sorry League 1 whatever, Leeds United recorded the fourth highest attendance in England this weekend. Admirable indeed. An entertaining game against Millwall, featured in virtually all the Sunday papers, took Leeds into the play off spots despite their 15 point penalty deduction at the beginning of the season. Strangely, no mention of the pitched battles involving riot police charging Leeds fans and Millwall fans being held back inside the ground for hours. A Leeds source close to us says it was worse than anything he'd seen in the 1970s/1980s. While the Yorkshire Post reported that there were minor skirmishes in the ground with the 800 or so Millwall fans trying to break through police lines to taunt Leeds fans during the game, no mention was made of any other incident that we can find in local or national press or the media.
• For all those supporters turning up at Old Trafford on Saturday at 3:00pm.....congratulations. You got to watch a game at last! Don't worry. 'Normality' is resumed next weekend at 12:45pm on Saturday at The Emirates. Don't forget to set your alarms!

Hats Off. Take a Bow (or not)!

Player of the Week - Cesc Fabregas. Top scorer in the Premiership from midfield and rescued a point for Arsenal. Frankie. You know what you've got to do.

Hero of the Week - Martin Jol's nephew. The only person who appeared to have the balls to tell him what was going on. i.e. that he'd been sacked (in a crowd of 36,000).

Villain of the Week - Daniel Levy. In amongst news of his inevitable dismissal, we hear that 'his recruits' for this season's assault on fourth place were actually not his choice at all. Spurs put their money where their mouth was. But whose mouth? Certainly not the manager's who has paid the ultimate price. Levy's pathetic attempts to justify his and his board's conduct during this period is incredible and cannot possibly instil confidence in the board from the supporters. RTG says, "sack the board". Oh! Unfortunately they can't!

Shock of the Week - Besiktas beating Liverpool. Leaving aside the comedy defending, they were the only English club to lose in the Champions League this week.

Cliche of the Week - I'm totally committed to continuing to help and seeing out the remainder of my contract.