PL charge City for alleged breaches of financial rules

[jockblue]

I think there is a difference between match-going fans who I often meet on away trips and the social media fanboys who seem more gullible and believe everything they see online. I have met lots of away fans who are supportive of what is happening at City. A lot of them despise MUFC and LFC and like to see them being taken down a peg or two.

Agree with this, but City have a huge reputational damage issue to deal with if we're cleared of the PL charges. Many internet scribes and so-called proper journalists have written scathing articles or comments about the level of financial cheating, the intentions and politics of our owners and the impact of our ownership and success on the future of football, whilst steadfastly adopting different tones on other owners, clubs and situations.

Would be great if the club came out fighting if we win, but suspect we won't no matter what happens.

 

[burning blue soul]

Correct.

A wage cap is fair. But would it work. They tried in Rugby League with limited success.

would you accept a wage cap in your profession?

its easy to say it, but in practice how do you do it?

does it mean actors should have a wage cap?
drs on wage caps?
politicians would vote for a wage cap on themselves?
landlords have a rent cap?

seems professional footballers are held up to some financial handbrake that other (establishment?) industries are not. probably because most of them are from poor backgrounds, and one does get vexed seeing a commoner making good for oneself...

 

[bobbyowenquiff]

Agree with this, but City have a huge reputational damage issue to deal with if we're cleared of the PL charges. Many internet scribes and so-called proper journalists have written scathing articles or comments about the level of financial cheating, the intentions and politics of our owners and the impact of our ownership and success on the future of football, whilst steadfastly adopting different tones on other owners, clubs and situations.

Would be great if the club came out fighting if we win, but suspect we won't no matter what happens.

You will never get through to the racists and haters including those in the mainstream media. They will continue to publish lies without any evidence. But this false "sportswashing" narrative has already started to fade away. The whole idea that every investment made by a wealthy arab is purely political (and not for profit) is absurd. Sheikh Mansour has invested billions in science, tech, education, football, property and, most of all the banking sector. The looneys like Delooney claim his motive for all this is to deflect away concerns about his nation's civil rights abuses (as if Abu Dhabi was unique in this respect). This is a crackpot conspiracy theory with no evidence. Most people can see through these crackpot stories. Is Dubai interested in generating wealth or is is just "tourismwashing."

 

[Chippy_boy]

would you accept a wage cap in your profession?

its easy to say it, but in practice how do you do it?

does it mean actors should have a wage cap?
drs on wage caps?
politicians would vote for a wage cap on themselves?
landlords have a rent cap?

seems professional footballers are held up to some financial handbrake that other (establishment?) industries are not. probably because most of them are from poor backgrounds, an one does get vexed seeing a commoner making good for oneself...

I agree with all of that. And whilst implementing it in an isolated national league would be hard enough, how on earth would you implement such a system in a global market where players can move from country to country?

You'd have exchange rates and exchange rate volatility to worry about, and what about differing tax systems and different cost of living in different countries and regions? 100K Euros in Paris might not be very attractive to a player compared to 100K Euros in Croatia. And that's before you start thinking about what a sensible cap in Hungarian Forints might be, and what happens when the Forint collapses.

It's fraught with problems and i just don't see it as any kind of workable solution.

 

[Norman kneejerk]

You will never get through to the racists and haters including those in the mainstream media. They will continue to publish lies without any evidence. But this false "sportswashing" narrative has already started to fade away. The whole idea that every investment made by a wealthy arab is purely political (and not for profit) is absurd. Sheikh Mansour has invested billions in science, tech, education, football, property and, most of all the banking sector. The looneys like Delooney claim his motive for all this is to deflect away concerns about his nation's civil rights abuses (as if Abu Dhabi was unique in this respect). This is a crackpot conspiracy theory with no evidence. Most people can see through these crackpot stories. Is Dubai interested in generating wealth or is is just "tourismwashing."

Well yes this is something I have been thinking about who is it they need to impress with their sportswashing., and in what way are they trying to impress, the only publicity for their ownership comes from the press, they seem quite low profile.Are they trying to say the UAE desperately needs this to impress the UK or world att large? Do they need to? Surely its just an investment.

 

[JGL07]

I agree with all of that. And whilst implementing it in an isolated national league would be hard enough, how on earth would you implement such a system in a global market where players can move from country to country?

You'd have exchange rates and exchange rate volatility to worry about, and what about differing tax systems and different cost of living in different countries and regions? 100K Euros in Paris might not be very attractive to a player compared to 100K Euros in Croatia. And that's before you start thinking about what a sensible cap in Hungarian Forints might be, and what happens when the Forint collapses.

It's fraught with problems and i just don't see it as any kind of workable solution.

I'll give an example. In the 1980s the £Sterling/$US exchange rate moved all over the place. It went from $2.34/£ in January 1981 down to $1.05/£ four years later. Three years later it was back up to $1.90/£. There are similar fluctuations between the Pound and the Euro. That's going to be fun with players on four to five year contracts.

That is before you try and get around issues like image rights.

 

[burning blue soul]

I'll give an example. In the 1980s the £Sterling/$US exchange rate moved all over the place. It went from $2.34/£ in January 1981 down to $1.05/£ four years later. Three years later it was back up to $1.90/£. There are similar fluctuations between the Pound and the Euro. That's going to be fun with players on four to five year contracts.

That is before you try and get around issues like image rights.

you are right, it cannot work. it is a crackpot plan.

however, capping a football club on a percentage of income/turnover/whatever is more workable to safeguard the stability of the club. without some kind of safety net the club could be run into the ground e.g. Leeds and Barca, and many others.
but as a previous poster so astutely said "It’s simply amazing how fair is interpreted by the wealthy".

 

[bobbyowenquiff]

Well yes this is something I have been thinking about who is it they need to impress with their sportswashing., and in what way are they trying to impress, the only publicity for their ownership comes from the press, they seem quite low profile.Are they trying to say the UAE desperately needs this to impress the UK or world att large? Do they need to? Surely its just an investment.

The other myth is that somehow the UAE needs to enhance its "soft power" with the UK. That's nonsense because the UAE is one of the wealthiest places in the world and wields considerable influence across the globe compared to the declining UK. It has the 7th highest GDP per Capita in the world while our country comes in at number 26 for GDP per Capita. It is the UK which needs to attract investment from the Gulf region not the other way round. The idea of "sportswashing" stems fron an outdated colonial attitude ie that somehow they need to impress us. It is total bollocks. None of these crackpot conspiracy theories stand up to any scrutiny.

 

[JGL07]

you are right, it cannot work. it is a crackpot plan.

however, capping a football club on a percentage of income/turnover/whatever is more workable to safeguard the stability of the club. without some kind of safety net the club could be run into the ground e.g. Leeds and Barca, and many others.
but as a previous poster so astutely said "It’s simply amazing how fair is interpreted by the wealthy".

The problem with that is that it reinforces the status quo and makes it more likely that the same small cartel could continue to dominate.

It was bad enough 15 years back when United, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Chelsea took the top four places year after year and were constantly able to outspend everyone else. Spurs and then City came along and stirred things up, just as Newcastle are doing now.

FFP seems to have killed competition in Germany and France, while Spain is not far off. Italy was there before Juventus screwed up. It could have happened in the PL if United had not been so incompetent in the Glazer period.

I don't know what the answer is. Rangers drove themselves to insolvency by mortgaging their future income. Barcelona seem to be going in the same direction. United have run down their infrastructure and the global fan base and income stream will surely dwindle unless they can deliver more than the odd League Cup or Europa Cup.

 

[LeonardoDaVnci]

The other myth is that somehow the UAE needs to enhance its "soft power" with the UK. That's nonsense because the UAE is one of the wealthiest places in the world and wields considerable influence across the globe compared to the declining UK. It has the 7th highest GDP per Capita in the world while our country comes in at number 26 for GDP per Capita. It is the UK which needs to attract investment from the Gulf region not the other way round. The idea of "sportswashing" stems fron an outdated colonial attitude ie that somehow they need to impress us. It is total bollocks. None of these crackpot conspiracy theories stand up to any scrutiny.

And in 2008 when the UKGOV didn't have a pot to piss in, who was it that saved Barclays from bankruptcy?, it was Sheik Mansour. Of course there were no complaints then re petro-dollars, or state owned/funded bank bail outs by undesirable middle East types,
Barclays have always been the main sponsors of the Premier League, so the hyprocosy of the PL charges defies belief.