The Political Economy of Football V2

Paris Saint Germain has been in trouble again with Uefa over its financial arrangements. The investigation into the club, which was dropped in July to the surprise of many has been reopened: Reopened investigation Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball has noted that its Qatari owners have pumped €316m of capital into club. If this is to satisfy financial fair play then the regulators understand even less about finance than previously thought as break even and owner financial support are independent of each other.' Whether this 'financial engineering' will achieve its objective remains to be seen: Capital pumped into club

Without the €200m sale of Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus, which also wiped out his €42m annual wages, Madrid would be posting a €87m loss rather than a €43m profit. His replacement Dominican Republic striker Mariano cost €20m this year, spread over five years, making his book cost this year just €4m. He earns €34 million annually less than Ronaldo, altogether lifting €130m off the costs. The club are in the midst of financing a new stadium extension that will not put an extra standard seat in the Bernabeu, which is a bit odd, given that membership, at about 92,500, has been closed for years. The new Bernabeu with a shopping centre is President Florentino Perez's long-term plan to increase revenues, but it is well behind schedule. But such projects invariably are, as we have seen at Tottenham Hotspur and less dramatically at Brentford. Since it was first announced in 2011, the naming rights backer, Abu Dhabi energy company IPIC, has pulled out. The total cost of the stadium wil...

Bloomberg Businessweek takes an in depth look at the background to the growing possibility that Roman Abramovich will see Chelsea, if he can find a sufficiently wealthy buyer, and the whole phenomenon of Londongrad: Has anyone seen Roman Abramovich?

Bournemouth owner Maxim Demin has resigned as the sole director of his two British companies, while retaining control over Wintel Petrochemicals and Wintel Holdings. Unlike Roman Abramovich, Demin has a British passport and has no visa problems entering Britain. It is unclear why he has stood down. His directorships previously stated that England was his country of residence, but he now spends more time in Switzerland.

Plymouth Argyle have filed their accounts for the year to December 2017 with Companies House, but they have done so (as they are entitled to do) under the small companies rule which limits the amount of available useful information. Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball comments, 'Looks as if Plymouth Argyle made a £32,000 profit in 2017. Can’t tell for sure as club took advantage of a legal loophole to avoid showing the profit and loss account.' To general surprise, the Pilgrims have had a poor start to the season. I saw them at Charlton last Saturday and they didn't look like relegation candidates to me. But then last year they had a much better second half of the season. From being at the foot of the table, they were in contention for the play offs, finishing 7th. Money received in advance from season ticket holders and hospitality was up 23 per cent as fans and sponsors of the club increased in numbers. The club is committed to a £6.5m ground development. After ...

The papers this morning are full of pictures and text about the public spat at the training ground between Manchester United's charm merchant manager Jose Mourinho and Paul Pogba. In the meantime, the share price has been falling. Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball has been taking an in depth look at the club's finances: Made of stone Maguire concludes, 'United are in a strong financial position. Woodward’s recent comment that “playing performance doesn’t really have a meaningful impact on what we can do on the commercial side of the business” won’t have gone down well with the United faithful.' 'This is further evidenced by United’s board’s refusal to accede to Mourinho’s summer transfer requests suggesting that they don’t particular care, or need to care, what the fans think, and whether you’re a Red or ABU, that isn’t good for football.' Some fans of lower league clubs with barmy owners would be happy to have United's problems. It has been sugge...

Roman Abramovich, Chelsea's owner, has been denied Swiss residency after the authorities there responded to unverified police reports. An injunction preventing publication of a leaked police report has only just been lifted. The report alleged that 'Mr Abramovich was known for suspected money laundering and contacts with criminal organisations' [in Russia]. It added, 'We consider his presence in Switzerland to be a threat to public safety and a risk to Switzerland's reputation.' That is saying something given the scandals that have touched the Alpine state in the past, although it has made real efforts to clean up its act. Mr Abramovich applied in 2016 to live in the ski resort of Verbier in the canton of Valais where he was welcomed with open arms by local officials. They negotiated a lump sum tax payment with him. The application was halted after the state secretariat for migration asked for the police report. Mr Abramovich denies any wrongdoing and has ...

Manchester United have reported record annual revenues of £559m, but still have debts of nearly half a billion pounds: Financial results The club claimed revenue this season would rise to £615m - £630m. This will be mainly driven by broadcasting and commercial rights deals. However, adjusted earnings and profits fell amid mixed results on the pitch. Operating profits fell 45 per cent to £44m. They paid dividends of 18c per share on 164 million shares, giving a total dividend payment of £29.5 million. When one adds to this to the net interest cost of £18 million it gives a total expense to bankers, hedge funds and the Glazers of £47.5 million. Net player spend was £106m for 2017/18 and the club predicts £124m for 2018/19. According to the authoritative Swiss Ramble, 'Manchester United have reported profits for three years in a row, averaging £44m in that period. In fact, £57m in 2017 and £49m in 2016 are among the highest profits in the entire history of the Premier League (...

There is considerable uncertainty about how far the Tottenham Hotspur stadium project is over its financial budget as well as its time budget: Final stadium bill inaccurate When it is finished, it will certainly be a splendid stadium. However, there is now some speculation about whether the club might be put up for sale. The club is still in talks over a naming rights deal with a number of companies and a sum of £200m would certainly help to offset any additional costs. However, there seems to be less commercial enthusiasm for such deals than was once the case. West Ham have been unable to secure one for the London Stadium, although, of course, they do not own the stadium.

It's often said you couldn't have football without the fans. For the atmosphere, yes, but not for the money, in the Premier League anyway. Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball has revealed, 'Matchday income as a percentage of wages fell from 27% in 2016 to 24% in 2017. At seven clubs (Bournemouth, Swansea, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace, Burnley and Watford fans paid 10 pence or less for every £1 paid in wages. Only Arsenal fans paid half the wage bill through buying tickets.' Manchester United was not far behind at 47 per cent while Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur derived over a third of their income in this way.

If a disciplinary commission backs up the EFL's view that Birmingham City should be docked 15 points, it is likely to have implications for Aston Villa who are also likely to be charged with breaching the spending cap. The EFL thinks that sanctions have not been tough enough to deter clubs breaking the rules, although the disciplinary commission may not share that view. Villa have made an aggregate loss of £37.1m during their two seasons in the Championship, giving them very little room for manoeuvre to comply with rules that permit losses of £39m over a three year period. Their campaign has hardly been a success so far, so the escape route of promotion to the Premier League does not seem to be within their grasp, and their parachute payments this year have dropped from £33m to £17m. If they lose £17m this season, then they could expect to be deducted 12 points next season. The broader issue here is that Birmingham football has been punching under its weight for some time. Th...

Tottenham Hotspur will have to pay the FA rent for the entire season if they want to stage matches at Wembley beyond their home game against Burnley on December 15th. The FA are in principle ready to be accommodating: after all, it is extra money for them. Until now the FA has been willing to adopt a piecemeal approach to Tottenham's tenancy at the national stadium. However, with the pitch due to be relaid and work on demolition of the external pedestrian walkway scheduled for early next year, it needs to know how the stadium is going to be used. If the Tottenham Hotspur stadium is not ready for the Boxing Day game against Bournemouth, as seems more than likely, they would have to pay the FA for using Wembley at a rate of £350,000 per game, even if they had already moved. Spending the season at Wembley risks further annoying fans who are already angry about paying for season tickets at a stadium that is not yet open. Big construction projects often overrun, but Spurs would ha...

Championship clubs have been warned that they face deductions of 21 points for breaching financial fair play regulations. For most clubs that would certainly prevent promotion and could result in relegation: Enhanced penalties Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball has commented:'My concern is that promotion and relegation could be determined by which side has the smartest accountants & lawyers rather than what happens on the pitch.' Birmingham City appear to be reasonably confident that a points deduction will not be applied to them and are hopeful of reaching an accommodation with the Football League.

There is no firm news about when Tottenham Hotspur's new stadium will be completed. It could be 2019, but there has been speculation that it might not happen until next season. A report by Construction News suggests that site chaos, confusion and ill-discipline lies behind the delays: I've never in my life worked like that The allegations include drink and substance abuse and fights between workers. In some cases the same electrical work has been done three times, staff felt they did not have the right tools for the job and materials were not available. Much of the blame is placed on the club's decision not to appoint an overall contractor which has led to poor communication and mistakes. The contractor Mace emphatically denied the claims, pointing out they carry out regular random alcohol and drugs testing.

Protests by Blackpool and Charlton fans last week were 'a fight for the whole of football' according to the Football Supporters' Federation: Protests The article focuses mainly on the protests at the EFL offices at Preston and hence on the case of Blackpool, although some Charlton fans from the north-west turned up there. There is no doubt that the EFL falls short as a regulator of the game, but the question is whether it is well equipped to do this and whether the task should be one for an independent regulatory body. However, there is little hope of achieving that in the current climate.

The return of Newcastle United to the Premier League helped to boost television viewing figures, reflecting the size and loyalty of their support base and the extent to which they interest those of us whose teams are not in the top flight. Whenever Newcastle are involved in a match, particularly away from St. James's Park, this is reflected in high viewing figures. The other factor that has boosted viewing figures are better performances by Liverpool and, to an extent, Manchester United. I have great respect and affection for Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp has increased the sense of excitement surrounding the club. A year ago figures from the Broadcasters Audience Research Bureau (Barb) showed a seven year low. Sky's average number of viewers fell 14 per cent for 2016/17 compared with the previous year while BT Sport were down 2 per cent (from a smaller base). One has to be cautious about Barb figures as they do not reflect the new ways in which content is being accessed. It...

There is no doubt that Accrington Stanley are punching above their weight. The pundits were convinced they would straight back down to League Two in the last place in Leage One, but they are showing a capacity for survival. Kieran Maguire takes an in depth look at their finances: The milkman of human kindness Accrington is a small town with Premier League Burnley up the road (a Burnley fan tells me that some treat Accrington as their second team). Maguire notes, 'Total wage bill for all 84 employees of ASFC was £2.1 million. Club dependent on owner support, sale of players and an occasional good cup draw to be able to pay the bills. Wages worked out as £83 for every £100 of income last season due to so many win bonuses.' Maguire concludes, 'Stanley’s wage budget will be the lowest in League One this season, Good management and a close-knit dressing room can overcome that financial deficit on the park. It’s unlikely that the club will stand in the way of any player who...

Most of us would be happy with a £1m salary boost plus a stake in the equity of the company we were joining, but Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis claims he faced 'the hardest decision of his life' when that offer was made to him by Inter Milan. His salary in Italy will be £3.6m. He will be leaving the Emirates on 31st October, notwithstanding a twelve month notice period on his contract. He has been there for nearly ten years. Gazidis has been behind a radical overhaul of the structure of the club in recent years. He sought to shift away from Arsene Wenger's autonomy as manager to a more continental structure. He wanted a framework where the manager confined himself to coaching. He appointed nine new department heads and several long-serving backroom staff were shown the door. Gazidis had a somewhat frosty relationship with Wenger towards the end of the manager's 22-year reign. Indeed, he pretty much eased him out of the club. Gazidis oversaw Arsenal's ...

The group stage of the Champions League starts tonight and it's been organised so that the rich clubs can get richer. The threat of them breaking away is always at the back of Uefa's mind why is why it gives into their demands. The value of the rights for the present three year cycle has increased by 50 per cent and clubs will share some £1.7 billion. Half of the teams come from only four countries. They happen to be home to the top four leagues and the biggest TV markets. The prize money is being allocated in part (about one third) on the basis of a weighted historical coefficient. Although it is primarily based on the last ten years, it means that Tottenham Hotspur will get some extra for their 1963 victory in the Cup Winners' Cup (remember that: it was discontinued because the cup means much less elsewhere in Europe). The new 5.55pm kick off slot means that you can gorge on four hours of football if you want (I would rather watch a live non-league game). It means ...

The authoritative Swiss Ramble has carried out his usual forensic examination of the accounts of a club, this time Premier League champions Manchester City. Although City have become self-sufficient in the last few years, an additional £58m of share capital was issued in 2017/18, possibly to fund the transfer of Aymeric Laporte. To date, the owners have provided more than £1.3bn of funding via new shares or loans. They also have relatively low annual interest payments of £3.5m, far below Manchester United at £19.5m and Arsenal at £12.3m, as Mansour’s funding via additional share capital provides some competitive advantage. Their £66m gross debt is much smaller than United's £503m (Glazers’ leveraged buy-out) and Arsenal £227m (Emirates stadium loan). It is worth noting that Chelsea have around £1.2bn debt in their holding company. The wages to turnover ratio reduced from 56% to 52%, which is one of the lowest (best) in Premier League, though not as low as Spurs 41%, United 45%...

Now that Oldham Athletic have submitted their accounts final totals for League One in 2016/17 are available, reports Kieran Maguire of the PriceofFootball. It looks as if the division made an overall loss of £22.2 million, although it was encouraging to see 12 clubs make a profit. Sheffield United and Millwall made the biggest losses, Swindon and Rochdale the most profits. Total player signings in League One in 2016/17 were £8.6 million. Sheffield United spent by far the most. Oxford United were the only other club to spend more than a million. Five clubs spent nothing on signings. (League One clubs often rely on loans from the Premier League or Championship). Total debts of League One clubs were £258 million. Most of these are to owners, or companies controlled by owners. The highest sum due is that by Charlton to a company controlled by unpopular Charlton owner Roland Duchatelet at £65m.

Cardiff City and Newcastle United are considering launching their own cryptocurrencies. Both clubs are involved in talks with SportyCo, a micro-financing and crowdfunding company about holding an Initial Coin Offering (ICO). This would enable fans or investors to buy the new currency in the form of tokens in the hope of securing a future return, as well as providing an additional revenue stream. The Brazilian Serie B team Avia last week became the first club to launch their own cryptocurrency: SportyCo ICO The club aim to raise around £15m through a sale of tokens which can be used to buy tickets and club merchandise. Paris Saint-Germain have announced similar plans. Cryptocurrencies are all the rage and fans may want to take part as a way of supporting their club and facilitating club-related spending. If viewed as an investment, they are high risk and independent financial advice should be sought.

Dagenham and Redbridge are currently struggling in the National League but this has not deterred an American consortium that also involves former Manchester United and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard from taking them over: Purchase Victoria Road LLC, a group jointly owned by the businessmen Peter B Freund and Craig Unger, have purchased a majority of shares in the club. Freund is the principal owner of Trinity Sports Holdings, which holds interests in Major League Baseball's New York Yankees and the recently formed Memphis 901 football club. What interests me is the thinking behind this takeover. Smaller clubs in London can have a struggle. Leyton Orient are now playing in the National League, admittedly after a disastrous period of ownership. Barnet have yo-yoed backwards and forwards between the Football League and the top tier of the non-league pyramid. Last season they were relegated to the National League once again. Barnet were first promoted to the Football League in ...

This week Fifa released figures on the amount clubs spent in the 2018 transfer window: Big 5 leagues spending The numbers show that clubs in the Premier League spent $1.44bn on transfer fees, a slight decrease from last year's figure of $1.46bn. This is the first fall in the summer window when most of the spending takes place. The winter window often involves discarding disgruntled or failing players and some panic buying by under performing clubs. In contrast, clubs in Germany, Italy and Spain increased their spending. English side recouped almost $560m in player sales, more than in any other season since the start of the decade. The shorter transfer window and the absence of many players at the World Cup affected the time available to do deals. The fall in the value of the pound against the dollar and the euro also affected the spending power of English clubs, although some of them have income in euros from European competitions. However, there may have also been a Brexit...

Coca-Cola has agreed its biggest sponsorship deal in Britain by becoming the Premier League's seventh and last commercial partner. The company will become the official soft drink partner of the league, joining Barclays, Carling. Cadbury, Nike, Tag Heuer and EA Sports as sponsors. Just how much Coca-Cola are paying has not been disclosed, but it is likely to be millions of pounds. The league ended a title sponsorship deal with Barclays in 2016 to focus on seven partners. Coca-Cola is the biggest selling soft drink brand in Britain. The company has 20 brands including Schweppes, Fanta and Sprite. It has been criticised for the high sugar content of its drinks, but Jon Woods, general manager of Coca-Cola Great Britain claimed that 'the sponsorship will help to raise awareness of our no-sugar drinks.'

Manchester City have become the second English club to just break the £500m revenue barrier, up six per cent in 2017-18 from last season (Manchester United are on £581m): Financial results. In all five clubs in Europe have gone through the £500m barrier, the others being Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid along with Bayern Munich. It is a 44 per cent rise in five years and a near six fold increase in the 10 seasons since Arab billionaire Sheikh Mansour bought the club. Impressive though it is, it is still quite modest by the standards of most companies in other sectors of the economy. The club made a profit for the fourth successive year (£10.4m). It's not a big profit, but it's up from £1m last year. The wages to turnover ratio was a healthy 52 per cent, down from 56 per cent. There is a virtuous circle between success on the pitch and success off it. Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said last season’s strong financial performance was 'the result...

Andrea Agnelli is chairman of Juventus and chairman of the powerful European Clubs' Association. He is a member of the famous Agnelli family and a board member at Fiat. So when he speaks he needs to be listened to. He has called for the Premier League to be 'streamlined'. England's top flight clubs can play up to 53 games in the Premier League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup (although the cup competitions provide a rare outing for fringe players). Their equivalents in Germany play a maximum of 43. Agnelli wants a general reduction in domestic games with more international club games. This is very much the agenda of the top European clubs. The top six in the Premier League would also support a reduction in its size, although it would require smaller clubs to agree to be turkeys voting for an early Christmas. Reducing the size of the Premier League could, however, lead to a reduction in the number of clubs relegated to two or even one. This would, of course, not go down...

Hull City lost £90,000 a week in 2017/18 but sales of Clucas, Maguire and Robertson helped generate profit on player disposals of £31 million. Hull had a negative net player spend for the third year running in 2017/18 Overall income was down £60 million, most of which due to the fall in TV income after relegation. Parachute payments are a staggering eighty per cent of total income. Ticket sale income fell by one-third with many fans staying away because they were alienated by the owners. Matchday hospitality etc was down 75 per cent. The wage bill halved due to relegation clauses and player sales. Leaving aside parachute payments, there has been a heavy reliance on broadcast income despite three of the last six years being spent in the Championship. The club repaid a bank loan of £21 million during 2017/18, setting the club up for sale. It owes £63 million, presumably to Allamhouse. These debt burdens can be a tricky issue when a club is sold. Since gambling on getting promoted ...

One day soon all this will be mine? Former Nottingham Forest owner Fawaz Al-Hasawi was shown round Charlton Athletic's ground at The Valley yesterday by a representative of current owner Roland Duchatelet. The visitor seemed to like what he saw. Duchatelet has been the subject of fan protests and is keen to sell the club located in South-East London. However, a deal with an Australian consortium has not progressed with rumours about a failure to agree on the price. The Belgian owner has built up debts of about £60m owed by the club to one of his companies. Al-Hasawi was a controversial owner at Nottingham Forest. He has been involved in a legal battle with the club: Dispute He was chairman of Forest from 2012 to 2017. There were frequent changes of manager as a formula for success was sought: Time as chairman He does claim to have learnt from the mistakes he made at Forest and would take a back seat at a new club appointing a chairman and a chief executive and taking a b...

A move from Goodison Park to a new stadium in Bramley Moore dock is key if Everton are to reclaim their former status as a top six club. An increase in Farhad Moshiri's stake in the club to 77.2 per cent by 2019 should help to attract the required finance. Liverpool City Council are prepared to loan Everton £280m towards the plan, leaving the club to find the remaining £220m. The Iranian billionaire bought 49.9 per cent of the club in 2016 but acquired another 18.7 per cent in accordance with an existing agreement. It is understood that he bought out the 8.9 per cent stake of John Woods and the around 3 per cent of Arthur Abercromby. Bill Kenwright, the chairman, has cut his stake from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. Lord Grantchester is likely to be the club's second largest shareholder with 8 per cent. He is one of 92 remaining hereditary peers in the House of Lords, having won a by-election to represent Labour by two votes to one.

Staging Premier League matches abroad was an unfulfilled ambition of outgoing Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore. However, La Liga is seeking permission from the Spanish Football Federation to move the January 26th fixture between Girona and FC Barcelona to Miami's Hard Rock stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins NFL team. They has thus got ahead of the Premier League in taking a further symbolic step along the road towards the globalisation of football. The plan to play La Liga games overseas forms part of a joint venture between La Liga and Relevent Sports, a US promoter backed by Stephen Ross, the billionaire owner of the Dolphins. The objective is to increase La Liga's revenue from sponsorship and media rights in North America. The presence of a large population of Hispanic origin in Miami makes it a particularly suitable venue for the first game in the US. Qatar-based beIN Sports is paying $60m dollars a season for the US broadcast rights to La Liga. Howe...

It is no great surprise to learn that published attendances do not reflect those in the ground. Many clubs report attendances on a 'tickets sold' basis which includes season ticket holders which is perfectly legitimate. However, the figures for different clubs are certainly interesting Attendances Football finance expert Rob Wilson believes publicising 'tickets sold' attendance figures is done for commercial reasons. He says publishing higher attendance figures could 'potentially bring in better sponsors' and generate more interest in season ticket sales by making them appear a 'scarce resource'. Historic attendance figures are rarely reliable. There were ways of sneaking into grounds that were far less secure than today. It was alleged that some gatemen were involved in fiddles to benefit themselves or friends. Clubs often depressed attendances to reduce their 'entertainment tax' liability which was easy enough to do when almost all tra...

Last Saturday during the international break League One and League Two fans were able to watch their matches live through iFollow. Normally the live screening of matches kicking off on a Saturday afternoon is permitted, although sites overseas may offer this service illegally. The concern is that if this became a regular practice away fans might be deterred from travelling as would some home fans who have a long journey (two and a half hours each way for me). It has also been claimed that the EFL misled fans about their intentions. Andy Holt, the chairman of Accrington Stanley, has claimed that the decision to allow the 3pm streaming was never made clear at the annual meeting of clubs in June. Darragh MacAnthony, the outspoken chairman of Peterborough United, took a different view: 'I'm OK with it to be honest. I think it is the way of the modern world whereby all and every sports match and event will be available online.' Streaming could potentially occur again on O...

The Scottish Football Association had decided to stay at Hampden Park and will buy the stadium in 2020 from historic amateur club Queens Park when the current lease expires. The decision to stay at Hampden rather than move to Murrayfield was incredibly close: Hampden Park A strong case was made for Murrayfield by the rugby authorities. It is a more modern stadium that Hampden, which needs some work, and has a bigger capacity. It is also in Scotland's capital city. However, others feel that the historic home of Scottish football is in Glasgow which is Scotland's most populous city, particularly if you count in the surrounding towns. There were also those who were uneasy about key matches being played in a stadium built for rugby.

It's being an unhappy start to the season for Notts County who are bottom of League Two rather than challenging for promotion. Now there is talk of the naming rights to the ground being sold, although to whom is unclear at this stage. Alan Hardy is yet another owner who has found that running a football club is not as simple as you think. He has said, 'If I could rewind the clock back 18 months, I would not have bought the club.' 'People who are removed from football see this beautiful industry that's immense fun and excitement. It's not. It's selfish. It's cut-throat and incredibly demanding. It's emotionally challenging and pulls at your own personal values.' New manager Harry Kewell said, 'What's the average crowd here, maybe 5000? 6000? On a good maybe 8,000. It holds 20,000. Don't be afraid to dream big. Dream big and see what happens.' Of course, there was a recent attempt to 'dream big' there which end...

Bolton Wanderers could go into administration today after difficulties with a loan from mysterious Essex firm Blumarble Capital: Administration threat Before this loan was transferred from Sports Shield (sole director Dean Holdsworth) interest was being charged at 24 per cent a year. There was also a dispute about the 'quantum' of the loan. I was talking to some Charlton fans yesterday and we were saying what a great job Phil Parkinson has done at Bolton. He had to deal with some rather dodgy owners at Charlton. Kieran Maguire of the Price of Football has pointed that we are now facing a situation where two Championship clubs could face a 12 points deduction, effectively leaving just one relegation place. However, he has also argued that Birmingham City could negotiate to reduce their points deduction, just as QPR reduced their fine. Nevertheless, he thinks that the financial position at Blues is unsustainable. Maguire recently tweeted, 'Would be interesting to k...

Uefa is arguing that financial fair play has brought financial stability to European football: Financial fair play New figures analysing the finances of 718 first-division clubs in Europe, compiled by UEFA’s financial sustainability and research division and which cover the period up to and including December 2017, show that in 2017, for the first time on record, European top-division club football was profitable. UEFA's President stated: 'Thanks to Financial Fair Play, European football is healthier than ever. The €600 million combined profits of the clubs in 2017 is a remarkable improvement on the €1,700 million combined losses in 2011 when UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations were introduced. This clearly demonstrates that Financial Fair Play works.' The figures also reveal that club balance sheets are stronger than ever before, with assets €7,700 million higher than debts and liabilities, compared to €1,900 million at the start of 2011.

The war of words between West Ham and the owners of the London Stadium (E20/London Legacy Development Corporation) has stepped up a notch. E20's chief executive Lyn Garner told the London Assembly that West Ham's annual rent of £2.5m did not come close to covering operating costs. The club has issued a rebuttal saying that 'this is deliberately misleading the public and, more importantly, taxpayers.' West Ham now pay £3m in rent due to additional annual fees and a further £6m was received by the stadium owner from food and drink sold at their matches. With additional fees, the total revenue from the club is calculated at £10m a year. The club commented, 'The current strategy to point the finger at West Ham United is simply not the solution to the long-term viability and commercial success of the venture. We are running a football club, not the stadium, and for Ms Garner to lay the blame for any financial struggles at our door is wrong and misleading.'

Alisher Usmanov has ruled out any investment in Charlton Athletic, but may yet invest in Everton: Everton Usmanov has worked with Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri for over a decade. Everton would clearly benefit from further investment both in the team and for their new stadium plans. With a bid from an Australian consortium failing to progress, the outlook for Charlton is bleak. The club is losing substantial sums of money and has big debts. Unpopular Belgian owner Roland Duchatelet has embarked on a cost cutting campaign that has gone to absurd lengths, failing to realise that the size of the stadium and the training ground means that the club cannot be run on a shoestring.

The owners of the London Stadium, the London Legacy Development Corporation aka E20, have built up a legal war chest of nearly £2m to pursue their disputes with West Ham United. I think it would be better for everyone if they stopped throwing their toys out of the pram and tried to work constructively with the club. Chief executive Lyn Garner told a London Assembly hearing that the costs of staging West Ham matches are not covered by the £2.5m rent it pays (which would go down should the club be relegated). LLDC says that this helps to explain why it recorded a £22m loss. West Ham said in response: 'As LLDC acknowledged today the losses are due to a number of factors, including the cost of moving the retractable seating, inefficient operating costs and the absence of a naming rights partner. There are other commercial opportunities that they have ignored.' It is noticeable that the stadium empties out towards the end of games, not just because of what has been happening o...

Alisher Usmanov is considering using some of the money he made from selling his Arsenal shares to Stan Kroenke to made a bid for Charlton: Charlton bid Usmanov has already pledged to put more money into Everton, but is said to want a club of his own and to see potential in the South-East London club. It is currently owned by controversial Belgian Roland Duchatelet who has been the subject of a campaign of protest by Charlton fans. Rumours about Usmanov having an interest in Charlton first surfaced a few months ago, so one must be cautious about them.

David Beckham has branded his MLS franchise in Miami in a way that is designed to reflect the city's Hispanic heritage Internacional de fútbol Miami It is expected that the club, which will play in the MLS, will be known as Inter Miami. Finding a site for the club's stadium has been a long drawn out saga and it will play at a temporary venue during its inaugural season in 2020, before its own venue is fully constructed.

Hull City could be sold by Christmas, news that would be welcomed by the club's fans: Discussions with buyers Club vice-chairman Ehab Allam said, 'We are looking to sell the club, so we have become emotionally detached because of the situation with the fans.' A whole series of decisions, such as attempting to change the club's name, and controversies over ticket pricing, has alienated fans. In an analogy appropriate to Hull's history as a fishing port, the local paper compared the club to a fish rotting from the head down. The Allams are determined to recoup what they have outlaid (roughly £50m) and have cut their investment as they look to sell for what they consider to be a fair price. But will a buyer see the price as fair? There are buyers willing to purchase a Championship club that could get to the top flight again with the right guidance, but they would want and need to have plenty of money left to invest in the team.

Manchester United supporters have now been affected by the consequences of the delays in opening the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium at White Hart Lane. Because Spurs have moved their match against Manchester City to October 29th, United's televised game with Everton that weekend has been switched from Saturday lunchtime to Sunday afternoon. United supporters' trust, MUST, claim thousands of fans are now out of pocket after making travel arrangements and booking hotels (evidently they must live some way from Manchester). They are demanding compensation from Sky and the Premier League. They have accused them of 'naked commercial opportunism at the expense of match-going fans.' Well, yes, but everyone knows that the Premier League and their broadcasting partners are more interested in the global television audience than domestic fans. Spurs could have been more realistic about the time it takes to complete a complex building project. The construction industry is uniq...

Former Barcelona and Real Madrid striker Ronaldo Nazario has concluded his purchase of Spanish La Liga football club Real Valladolid for €30 million (US$35 million). The deal sees the former Brazil international become the newly promoted club’s majority owner, taking a 51 per cent stake and replacing Carlos Suarez – who will remain on the club’s board after seeing his 66 per cent holding reduced. The club was out of the Spanish top flight for five years. The club has been the subject of complicated negotiations: Disputes The Brazilian had previously owned a stake in now defunct North American Soccer League (NASL) outfit Fort Lauderdale Strikers. He said, 'I've gone through many stages in my football career to prepare for this. Football is all about passion. We want to build the best team possible to compete while also giving information about our management with transparency.'

Manchester City are unhappy that their Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur has been moved to Wembley and put back a day to October 29th. The club is concerned that fans will have to make new travel arrangements for the match. To help, City will provide free coaches to and from the stadium for every ticket holder. City want Tottenham to contribute to the additional cost. City are also concerned about the playing surface at Wembley. The stadium is hosting a NFL match between Philadelphia Eagles and Jacksonville Jaguars on the evening before the rearranged fixture. Tottenham say they hope to announce the opening fixture at the new 62,062 capacity ground before long. However, there are concerns that Spurs are still not being completely open about the challenges they face with the testing of their safety systems. The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters' Trust has commented: 'The way events were communicated didn’t go down well with fans, especially as the original stateme...

The opening portion of last night's 'Monday Night Club' on Radio Five was spent debating the 'plight' of West Ham United. They are the only team in the Premier and Football Leagues to have no points, albeit their opening away games were at Liverpool and Arsenal. However, they did spend £98m in the transfer window, although £42m was on one player. Comparisons are already being made with what happened at Crystal Palace last season, although the pundits on Radio Five agreed that Manuel Pellegrini needed to get a grip rather than being sacked. If West Ham did go down that route, it could be very expensive. The compensation bill would be almost £15m as the club failed to insert a termination clause when they recruited him. He would be entitled to have his contract paid up in full unless there was agreement on a severance package. Pellegrini is one of the highest paid managers in the Premier League with a salary of £5m that could reach £7m if performance targets ar...

Talks on the sale of Wembley Stadium hinge on government demands for limits on sponsorship deals and naming rights. Pakistani-American billionaire Shahid Khan made a £600m offer for the stadium in April, although other groups have emerged. Those involved in the talks include groups that helped to fund the past redevelopment of the stadium or have the right to veto the sale, such as Sport England, the mayor of London's office and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. They are insisting that no sponsor can gain title rights such as renaming the stadium or adding a corporate brand name alongside 'Wembley Stadium'. These conditions are largely a continuation of current restrictions. Another demand is that Wembley cannot be sponsored by a gambling company.

The transfer window has now closed in most European leagues. Net spend continues to increase across the big five leagues, doubling in the last five years from £464m to just over a billion. However, this year most of the big spending was done by English clubs outside the top six. More than half the 32 clubs in last week's Champions League draw broke even or spent less than they took in on transfers. The single most profitable club in terms of player trading were Bayern Munich who made £70m. Barcelona's net spend of £40m was less than half that of West Ham. 13 of the 20 biggest net spenders in Europe are Premier League clubs. No surprise there, but what is surprising is the clubs in the list. Fulham are third and West Ham United fourth, not that it has done them much good so far. Brighton and Hove Albion are 11th and Wolves 12th with Southampton, Huddersfield Town and Burnley also in the top twenty. Of course, Premier League clubs have a load of money because of broadca...

In 2008 Manchester City was owned by Thaksin Shinawatra. The Thai authorities froze the former prime minister's asses and then chairman John Wardle had to provide a series of loans to keep the club afloat. He lost £12.5m, about half his fortune. Shinawatra was bought out by the Abu Dhabi United Group owned by Sheikh Mansour for £210m. For the first time since Roman Abramovich's takeover in 2003, Chelsea were outgunned in the transfer market. United's hegemony in Manchester was finally under threat. Early spending included £900,000 on a new pitch. £600,000 worth of pitch lights were installed to keep the new turf in good condition. There is now a £200m training ground across the road, another boost to East Manchester. There are plans for an institute of sport next to the Etihad run by Manchester Metropolitan University. The number of supporters groups has gone from 30 to 250. The transfer outlay has been about £1.3 billion.

Watford owner Guy Pozzo has rejected an offer from a New York-based media company which wants to buy a third of the club. Prolific Media Holdings values Watford at £350m and offered £125m for a 37.5 per cent stake, but talks broke down at the due diligence stage. It is interesting to contrast the valuation of Watford, a surprise package so far this season, with the price tag of over £2bn put on Chelsea and Liverpool, while Arsenal is valued at £1.8-£1.9bn. If the sale had gone ahead it would have meant a huge profit for Pozzo who paid £500,000 to buy the club from Laurence Bassini six years ago, as well as committing £10m to clear existing debts. The negotiations stalled this summer because of the EFL's investigation into the forgery case involving Raffaele Riva, the former Watford chairman. The club eventually pulled out of the deal due to doubts about Prolific's funding. The majority of Prolific's investments are in the film and music industries: Prolific