Multi-club ownership concerns Uefa

Uefa has published its in depth annual report on the European football landscape: https://editorial.uefa.com/resources/027e-174740f39cc6-d205dd2e86bf-1000/ecfl_bm_report_2022_high_resolution_.pdf

It notes, 'A combination of macroeconomic factors and global investment trends has led to a sharp increase in multi-club investment and ownership in the last few years. At the end of 2022, the UEFA Intelligence Centre identified more than 180 clubs worldwide that were part of a multi-club investment structure, compared with less than 100 clubs four years ago and less than 40 in 2012.

After a slight weakening of growth in 2020 on account of the pandemic, multi-club investment has increased strongly further in the last couple of years, making it one of the most notable trends in football investment

The rise of multi-club investment has the potential to pose a material threat to the integrity of European club competitions, with a growing risk of seeing two clubs with the same owner or investor facing each other on the pitch.

This trend is being fuelled predominantly by US-based investors, with 27 multi-club investment groups (a third of the total number) originating in the United States. The pace at which US investors have taken over clubs using multi-club structures has accelerated strongly in the last two years, increasing from less than five investments per year before 2019 to more than 15 in 2021 and 2022.

This surge in private capital investment can be seen in the growing number of investment funds involved in football transactions. This has the potential to accelerate further in the coming months, with many investors racing to invest in clubs that are perceived to be undervalued assets with strong and steady growth prospects. These groups and funds are likely to invest in multiple teams across several different leagues.

The growth in multi-club investment has the potential to distort transfer activity, with an increasing percentage of transfers being executed within multi-club investment groups at prices that suit investors, rather than at fair values, to the detriment of trainer clubs (which receive less compensation in the form of solidarity payments).

Transfers within multi-club structures consist mostly of loans and ‘free transfers’, so they represent a very small share of the overall transfer market by value. With the growth of cross-investment structures, some football investors may now exert control over clubs spanning a cumulative total of a few hundred registered players. The UEFA Intelligence Centre estimates that more than 6,500 players worldwide are registered with clubs belonging to a cross-investment structure.'

US businessman John Textor’s Eagle Football Holdings acquired French team Olympique Lyonnais in December for €800mn but also owns Brazil’s Botafogo, Belgian tier-two side Molenbeek and a 40 per cent stake in English Premier League team Crystal Palace. Miami-based 777 Partners, meanwhile, owns Genoa, Standard Liège, Red Star FC in Paris and the Rio club Vasco da Gama, as well as minority stakes in teams including Spain’s Sevilla.

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

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

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/

The Political Economy of Football V2

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