Uefa spending cap!

[BANGKOK RED]

Uefa to consider cap on spending

Michel Platini says Uefa is considering the possibility of capping spending by clubs because football could "financially implode".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/7896994.stm

I know that is not in effect (yet), but about bloody time I reckon. Reading through this it seems as though what is happening at Man City could well be the catalyst for this.

[flammableBen]

I think it's too late. The big current European clubs have become more powerful than the governing body that's supposed to control them. The only way I can see this happen would be a way which further protects the big clubs and cuts down potential competition (both footballing and financial) from new big clubs on their way up.

I'd prefer to see football financially implode.

[nevillew]

Sounds like something Fred might wear.

[Dazzza]

Old Platini on those garlic & herb snouts again?

Why do both him and Blatter permanently make antagonistic comments to the press and at the end of it don’t actually ever follow through on a single idea/policy or  have any sort of job role other than to fill column inches.

The likes of the Premiership are far to powerful to ever accept this sort of shenanigans and most this guff is the sort of stuff you’d expect to hear spoken about football in the 60’s not 40 years on! 

[A Gent Orange]

The big clubs would vote for it. Check Platinti's quote again.

"That limit would be salary and transfer fees combined - to an as yet undecided percentage of its direct and indirect sporting revenue."

It's all about protecting the big clubs who have the big turnovers - Juve, Madrid, Barca,, Bayern Munich, Man United etc and protecting them from the likes of Man City, Chelsea, Hoffenheim. If it is designed to stop big mnoney being injected into clubs from outside rather than limiting the wages.

So the big clubs can carry on paying top wages because they have big turnovers. The smaller clubs with sugar daddies can't put the money in because they don't have the shirt sales...

 

[SwindonTartanArmy]

quite right too. Then a club will have to earn the right to be able to fork out x amount of money. Would seriously put an end to all these plastic football clubs like Franchise, Reading, Middlesborough, etc etc.

[Dazzza]

The big clubs would vote for it. Check Platinti's quote again.

"That limit would be salary and transfer fees combined - to an as yet undecided percentage of its direct and indirect sporting revenue."

It's all about protecting the big clubs who have the big turnovers - Juve, Madrid, Barca,, Bayern Munich, Man United etc and protecting them from the likes of Man City, Chelsea, Hoffenheim. If it is designed to stop big mnoney being injected into clubs from outside rather than limiting the wages.

So the big clubs can carry on paying top wages because they have big turnovers. The smaller clubs with sugar daddies can't put the money in because they don't have the shirt sales...

I agree a structure like that would definitely benefit some of the ‘cream’ at the top of the big leagues but by the same token it places the majority of sides at a serious disadvantage and how on earth could it ever be practically implemented, audited or even enforced?

Even when you look at the big sides like United it could have a ‘detrimental’ effect.  United may not be the greatest example due their huge turnover although even they will go out and spend an colossal amount on transfer fees in one summer and then offset that spending by remaining relatively quiet the following 2-3 seasons.  Madrid up until recently were up to their bottom’s in a couple of hundred million of debt and Juventus have been running at a loss (according to official figures) for years. 

Football won’t accept or work to structure that’s going to limit them in such a way.  Any policy and attempts to enforce it is simply a countdown to the first inevitable legal challenge that will blow any such shenanigans out of the water.

Even when you get past the cobwebs and principle of it all '% turnover' is a very subjective parameter that even a smoking chimp can dress up in the right way to ensure they comply to any “rules”.

I’d like to se the league sanction transfers in more detail and ensure that if you’re going to spend 100 million on a Kaka that the green stuff is there to pay for it in the bank and that it’s underwritten in a way that it’s not going to tear a club like City apart.

[herthab]

quite right too. Then a club will have to earn the right to be able to fork out x amount of money. Would seriously put an end to all these plastic football clubs like Franchise, Reading, Middlesborough, etc etc.

The only plastic club is dongs, all the others have history and a place in their communities. None of us would mind if Fitton rebuilt the CG and started to increase our revenue by non footballing means. If that led to an improvement on the pitch and promotion, it would also lead to increased gates and more revenue.

Would that make us plastic? The problem with this wanky idea, as GO has said, is that it's designed to keep us all in our place, so smaller clubs would have no chance of growing, or establishing themselves in a higher league.

[RobertT]

The only wage cap that would work would be one setting an overall standard wage budget for every club at the same level, and that will simply never happen unless the current financial mess threatens to bring down a couple of big names.

It startles me that the US, a nation made for free spending and free will, somehow manages a concept of fairness in it's sports to some degree.  I suppose as they are so TV focussed, it makes sense to keep every game as competitive as possible in such a large and diverse country.

If you could enforce it, you'd allow teams to spend what they like per player, and what they like on transfers, but a maximum total budget which is not too far out of reach for the lowest turnover club (doesn't have to be within reach but close enough to ensure you don't end up with a couple of teams too far out on their own).  The thing that annoys me most about the Premiership now is the constant use of one off games to justify how competitive it is.  Lets get one thing clear, in any given season about 2 teams have a chance of winning the league and in most seasons they will be the same ones as the year before.  Yes there have always been big teams who have periods where they do well, but you'd always have a sense that somene could challenge them and it could be someone completely different every year.

[Simon Pieman]

It depends what the cap is trying to achieve. If it's simply providing clubs with financial stability, I think a luxury tax approach (like in MLB) would serve this best.

Other than the MLB, the other salary caps which operate in the American sports leagues are designed to bring parity between teams, which I suppose works in a play off system. However, it's a bit contradictory with the divisional structure of European football.

[Spencer_White]

Bring on the implosion!

Bring on free pirate internet TV and bring on the collapse of value of TV sporting rights.

Bring on the end of mugs paying £55 for a ticket.

[DMR]

Surely if Uefa try and implement it the big boys- Chelsea, Man Utd, Juve, Barca, Real, etc etc - will simply go and play in their own super league instead or something?

Will never happen.

[Simon Pieman]

And which footballing body would sanction that?