http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36189779 Bournemouth have been fined £7.6m for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, following losses of £28m and £38.3m for the 13/14 and 14/15 seasons respectively. What do people make of this? Has FFP created an environment whereby clubs are encouraged to operate within their means, or has it simply increased the risk involved for those clubs that gamble on winning promotion to the promised land that is the Premier League? It's interesting that the other sides that have been penalised (Nottingham Forest, Fulham and Bolton) have all suffered poor seasons, whereas Bournemouth are sitting pretty and set to cash in on their share of the biggest TV deal in Football history. I have mixed feelings. For fans of the club, it must be incredible to see their side competing with (and sometimes beating) some of the top teams in the country and who would begrudge them, following years languishing in the lower divisions and nearly going out of business altogether in 2008. However, does this lavish over-spending (for 14/15, wages of £30.4m more than doubled their turnover of £12.9m) make a mockery of the rules that were designed to curb the spate of clubs risking their very existence through financial mismanagement? They were also intended to reduce the advantage of 'financial doping' of teams, so is Bournemouth's success, in a way, a slap in the face of teams that didn't bet all they had on red? I personally take some issue with FFP, as it does help sustain the status quo, i.e. the clubs that have the biggest marketing power and subsequent turnover have an unbelievable advantage (thanks Leicester for giving them a metaphorical slap in the face!). However, it does seem to me that they were brought in to protect clubs. When a club goes into liquidation, it's a tragedy for the local community and they're the victims of owners who treated their teams as playthings, with dreams of reaching the top flight, but got bored and/or out of their depth when their gambles didn't pay out. For the sake of the fans, I hope Bournemouth don't suffer a similar fate to Portsmouth or Blackpool, but I also think that their success sets a potentially dangerous example. It could be that a castle has been built on sand and it's only a matter of time before the tide comes in...
I don't see the point in fining someone because they're spending too much money. It's a bit like forcing an alcoholic to drink because he's drunk too much.
it is difficult to say how to penalise these teams .. Bournemouth have gates of less than City .. bit like Burnley decades ago survived by selling their talented players ... maybe a point deduction for every 20% they go over the fine being £= 20% .. ie.. £13,000,000 turn over = fine = £2.6m points deducted = 20% = £ 2.6m x ( £25m / 2.6 = 9pts rounded down ) HOWEVER they may well be out of the division when figures are published .. like now if applied they would need to win their last games .... if relegated would start on -9!
Bournemouth knew they were breaking the FFP rules but were intent on reaching the Premiership and paying big salaries to get them there. The money they are sharing with the big boys now far outweighs the fine they've been given. I also think they are run a hell of a lot better than the likes of Portsmouth or Blackpool who are frankly where they deserve to be.
£7.6m cost, versus the £150+m reward for getting to the Prem - sounds like a good bit of business to me!
they are prime candidates to be on the relegation list next season with at least of those going up and who will be the third? should they come back down then I suspect that they will be down for a long time ...this season and next are their " 5 mins of fame "
Got to be honest, I dont understand how FFP works but the fine does seem like small change in comparison to the benefits
It's like everything in the Premier league it's designed to benefit the bigwigs. The fines are just enough to hurt the little to middle teams, certainly enough to impact their budgets to ensure they don't challenge the big boys, yet these fines are a drop in the ocean to the big boys. I have always thought a points deduction will hurt them far more than a fine, losing (as an example) 9 points would devastate one of the major sides in their title/CL challenge, which is why it will never happen!!!!
Agree. It would be better if the big teams who knowingly break these rules were barred from competing in Europe should they qualify. That would hurt the most. But of course it will never happen.
