It's not just the revenue they lost but also the staggering levels of debt they're in. Most notably Barca and Real ...
Say Uefa and Fifa managed to implement a ban on all ESL players playing in all their competitions, would this trigger a mass exodus from the ESL to big clubs that aren't involved? Where would that leave the new league?
That in a nutshell encapsulates the major flaw with the super league. Matches for the top 4 places become meaningless. Why bother about a premiership match if win or lose the European place is guaranteed? If we finish in 7th we are still fine. Where is the excitement or fear or anxiety or passion? It becomes soulless and artificial. Like we want to beat MU or City this year because we lost to them last year etc?
Do you mean this season (assuming they could get the ESL off the ground that quickly) or every year? If the latter, then that indifference would only apply to the ESL teams. Presumably the CL would continue with the next set of teams down. It's a debacle, of course, and I'm not even attempting to defend it - just pointing that out.
Players would opt for the ESL over international football. The former would pay them millions, the latter doesn't. Money from the ESL would filter down to non-ESL clubs though, where else are the players being bought from?
Anyone, including myself, who could still see good in FSG have abandoned them now. How our owners could be so completely tone deaf in all of this is staggering. There's no way back for them.
A Board member of one of the English Super League clubs says the clubs were expecting a backlash and are 'not that worried' about bad PR. “Our primary job is to maximise our revenues. The wider good of the game is a secondary concern." Truly disgusting. [Via Sky Sports]
getting kicked out the CL as well is Uefa have their way leaving psg to win that and villa real Roma in the final of the EL
We have no idea how the players and managers will react to this. The owners are banking on them being as greedy as themselves. I hope there's a player backlash that shuts this project down once and for all. It's looking more likely that it isn't designed to get their own way in the PL or CL but a real attempt at destroying the game in the name of making money.
I gave up on people making ther right decision years ago. Majority of players and managers will just follow the money.
I was thinking of the threat to ban them from all other competitions, though I don't even know if that's legally feasible. But yeah, you're probably right, if players will go and ply their trade in the US or China then they'll probably just follow the money. Though there does seem to be a fair few who take pride in playing for their country they'll probably manage to talk themselves out of it.
Giving players a decision of... A) having credibility, integrity, honour, playing for their country whilst still making a more than wealthy living versus B) getting paid more than they can spend ...they'll go with the latter. Greedy ****s! Edit; and A is still making more than they can spend btw!
but what is the sanction. It has to come back to the sanction for doing it The Premier league could simply scheduled matches for the same date midweek and **** the clubs over for example.
The more I read this, the more pissed off I'm getting. Since before the PL was formed, there's been concerns about too much money in the game and it'll eventually ruin it. It's taken longer than any of us expected but I think it's finally upon us. Can it really be considered a sport if there is nothing to play for? As many have already pointed out, if this starts from next season then this season is already dead for the majority of teams. Only a relegation issue to resolve.
This would apply every season as the founding club members are guaranteed their places in the super league. They simply cannot be relegated or removed. The CL will want to continue and this means that non super league teams will go into the CL if they finish high enough. So the likes of Leicester West Ham Everton will go into the CL. The CL will be diminished without the dirty dozen and won’t have the current monetary value (these dirty 12 hope). The whole pyramidal structure of football will just be destroyed I.e progress according to merit irrespective of power and wealth.
I was thinking the same thing. If I was the PL I would purposefully schedule games at the same time as ESL games and tell them to **** off
