You have to despair at the state of the game and how quickly it is spinning out of control as it goes down the gurgler.
The football authorities know no overarching body that stops them from competing with each other to offer more, for which they are richly rewarded by the scourge of modern times, the media, and TV empires.
These rapacious parasites will feed and feed on this sport until it dies and as it weakens, they will morph (mutate) it into something that can stay alive to continue to generate revenue, whilst they devour the carcass of what it once was.
The public will be told how good everything is, and dissent lost by the fact that the major platforms for the game are owned by those who are the beneficiaries of its exploitation. As players struggle to remain upright, “two legs good, four legs better” will be the new mantra.
More Champions League, “Yeah!”, World Cups every two years, “Yeah!”, additional domestic and international Euro competitions, “Yeah!”… where will it end?
As things stand with these proposals, the top flight of European football clubs (and I’ve no doubt if/as other continents/genders can be exploited they will be) will play two or three times a week with the top players going on to play numerous International eliminations and finals tournaments every year against opponents whose whole populations would not fill the stadiums their teams play in.
The Media Barons and the football authorities they bribe, will just count the snouts and the subscriptions, but how much football can reasonably be played?
The player’s union will do nothing. Much like our own Supporters Trust, they embody all the embarrassment of seeing a wet spot on your hush puppies as you leave the bathroom. But surely someone will lead the charge to change the dynamic to appearance-based contracts with a maximum number of games or game-time played. The alternative will be an inevitable rise in injuries and a drop in performance… …who are the paying beneficiaries of that performance?
Levy will be licking his lips alright, more opportunity to sell merchandise, beer, and cold stale pies. Justification to put up the season ticket prices and of course clip the media ticket with a much bigger hole punch.
As an aside, I hear that Alan Brazil has posted that Levy was “summoned” by the great Oz in Barbados… the sheep-dip hacks report this as if Uncle Joe was going to admonish Levy for recent failings. In 20 years that has never been an issue, I can’t see it suddenly becoming one now. I wonder if the summons was discussing the business as a whole and the options going forward.
As it stands, across the entertainment and property portfolios, ENIC is ripe for picking. With the positioning of the club coming out of COVID, the opportunity for growth is staggering… jam tomorrow anyone?
Offloading the management/ownership (or controlling ownership) building in a performance-based profit share over say the next 5 -10 years might be seen as a sharp way to keep making the money, reducing personal risk and well, doing less work providing working capital and allowing focus into other money-making escapades.
Might just be Levy was summoned to work through an end-game scenario. OK, so I have days when I’m an optimist!