Skip to main content

Did Salford 'buy' the league?

Another club in Greater Manchester has been accused of buying the league: Salford City. Accrington Stanley supremo Andy Holt has even accused them of trying to steal a place in the Football League. Gary Neville has referred to 'a level of ferocity towards us on social media.'

My first comment would be that perhaps it's time to wake up and smell the coffee. Money was important in football before the advent of the Premier League in 1992 which is now portrayed as a kind of football AD (or CE to use modern terminology). The sums have become bigger, and there is more global sourcing of funds, but money has always talked.

The Ammies have won four promotions in just five seasons. They are the first club to bounce straight through the top tier of the non-league pyramid, having won the National League North last season.

The Class of '92 owners (the Neville brothers, Ryan Gigegs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and now David Beckham) have insisted on foundations being put down. Singapore businessman Peter Lim is also involved. There has been a stadium rebuild at Moor Lane with the famous grassy bank disappearing. There is an academy, a women's team and a commitment to working with the city's community.

Just over 8,000 attended the Wembley final, the smallest number yet. Opponents AFC Fylde also lack deep roots as a contender for league status. The Coasters, who have probably benefited from the turmoil at Blackpool, were winners of the FA Vase 11 years ago as Kirkham and Wesham. Local businessman David Haythornthwaite bought them when they were playing in the eighth tier and has pushed them up the non-league pyramid. However, average gates at Salford have risen from 130 five years ago to more than 2,500.

Gary Neville told The Times, ''If you want to get out of the National League, a budget of £700,000 or £800,000 won't get you out and it will cost you three or times as much to get out the longer you are down there. It's cheaper to spend more and go up.' Most players at the club earn nothing like the £4,000 a week reported wage of Adam Rooney, last summer's star signing from Abredeen.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Wolves get raw deal from FFP

  I used to see a lifelong Wolves fan for lunch once a month.   He was approaching ninety, but still went to games.   Sadly he passed away the other week. As football finance guru Kieran Maguire has noted, Wolves continue to be constrained by financial fair play rules.  Radio 4 this morning described them as this year's 'crisis club' and the pessimists have certainly been piling in. Martin Samuel wrote sympathetically in the Sunday Times yesterday, saying that the Premier League drives talent away with regulatory red tape: 'Why could Al-Hilal sign Neves? Because Wolves needed the money. And why did Wolves need the money? Because the club had to comply with an artificial construct known as financial fair play. So Wolves are going skint, yes? No. There is no suggestion that Wolves are in financial trouble, only that they are failing to meet the rigours of FFP. Wolves’ owners appear to have the money to run the club, and invest in the club, and in fact came up with a pow
Post a Comment
Read more

Gold standard ground boosts Tottenham's income

The gold standard in European football grounds is the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in north London, a £1bn construction project completed in 2019. Its impact on the club’s finances has become increasingly clear as the effects of the pandemic have faded. Previously, the average fan would spend less than £2 inside the ground on a typical match day, but now that figure is about £16, thanks to new facilities including the longest bar in Europe and an on-site microbrewery. Capacity has gone up from 36,000 at the club’s previous home of White Hart Lane to 62,000.  The new stadium — built on land adjacent to White Hart Lane — has opened the door to a broad range of other events that have helped to push commercial income up from €117mn in 2018 to €215mn in 2022. Last year, Tottenham hosted US singer Beyoncé for five nights on her global Renaissance tour, two NFL matches, as well as rugby games and heavyweight boxing bouts.  Money brought in from football has gone up too. Match day income is
Post a Comment
Read more

Charlton takeover approved

The long awaited takeover of Charlton Athletic by SE7 Partners from Thomas Sandgaard has been approved:  https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/se7-partners-obtain-efl-approval-for-charlton-athletic-takeover/ Charlton have had unhappy experiences with owners for over a decade, so how this works out will remain to be seen.  There is certainly potential there, but will it be realised? This interview with Charlie Methven gives detail not available elsewhere:  https://thecharltondossier.com/charlie-methven-on-the-record/
Post a Comment
Read more