This guy determined we will fail FFPR

[samharris]

This thread is like an episode of Only Fools & Horses in which some stranger is giving it the big 'un in the Nag's Head when suddenly the Driscoll brothers walk in.

And now that stranger finds himself stuck behind the curtain with the driscoll brothers poking a pool cue at his bollocks..

 

[jrb]

Swiss Ramble. Welcome.

Like many others around the World I have visited your website and read your articles. In a nutshell, fantastic stuff. Not that I can get my head around FFPR fully. Perhaps you should do a FFPR website for Dummies. ;-)

I'm assuming City's figures are due out soon, and PB has stated City shouldn't have a problem meeting UEFA's FFPR target. Even if City just miss it there shouldn't be a problem as they can show the club is heading in the right direction financially.

2 things.

Would you have a figure by any chance off the top of your head where you think City will be at before the figures are officially released?

And when can we expect to see another update on City's financial figures on your website?

Many thanks.

jrb.

 

[I'm no cynic but...]

Would I be alone in thinking that a high spending club like City is actually good for the game in general? As long as City, and other high spending clubs, can pay their bills in full and on time, and to do it without going into debt to do so, then the game will not suffer.

The game attracts media attention well beyond whatever was dreamt of only 25 years ago, and TV companies fall over themselves to get broadcasting rights for each game. We have games broadcast thought the world, such is the interest in star-studded teams like ours, and many of our players are now household names in countries such as the USA, a country where football was once a minor sporting activity. The interest in the game is growing rapidly, hence the scramble for broadcasting rights, and advertising companies also fall in with this too, whether this is by team or completion sponsorship, or by 'man' advertising that goes with the business in it's entirety. Contrast this with our days under the stewardship of Peter Swales whereby our lack of prominence in the game meant he was happy to sell off the club's merchandising rights for around £100k per annum.

The point I am making is that the growing interest in the game, coming partly as a result of my observations above, can only result in a rising ambition amongst kids who now see their idols performing their skills on the box, and this gives them the ambition to chase the dream for themselves, and as clubs such as City sign the biggest names in the game, thus attracting huge attention, the growth cycle perpetuates itself.

 

[Kazzydeyna]

Firstly, as someone said a few pages back, this thread is BM at its finest, with some fantastic contributions from quite a few posters.

My dream for the future of football finance is really simple.

City to pass FFP (this bit isn't so much a dream as I believe it will happen as illustrated by the various posters in this thread), then:

- City to put together and announce a plan for the future of the game whereby we ask UEFA and FIFA to bring in rules that severely curtail those clubs around the world that run on a "debt model".
- This plan would be properly put together by the relevant financial and sporting world experts, who would each be shown to be independant of our club, and presented professionally to the worlds media.
- It would be something like (in its simplest form) club "x" is only allowed to operate with a debt to turnover ration of something like "y" %. Anything above the agreed percentage would be met with various sanctions (à la current FFP sanctions etc).
- We could successfully and presumably persuasively put the point forward that such legislation would truly protect the game and the clubs by preventing any one club from mortgaging its future.

I believe if presented and developed properly (much better than I have here obviously) it would either I) show UEFA up if they disagreed with it (how could they argue against protecting clubs from too high a debt) or II) actually be taken on board and really move the game towards true financial long term stability.

It won't happen of course but it would be lovely if it did.

 

[SwissRamble]

Thank you for taking the time to come on here SR. I wondered if you'd be good enough to answer a question I've been struggling to elicit a response from others on, as I'm genuinely interested on your take on this, given your knowledge of FFP.

Given the new financial landscape imposed by UEFA, where do you see City sitting as a footballing force in five years time?

I personally believe that , if anything, FFP will assist City - the drawbridge effect - and that we will continue to grow as a club to the point where we are one of the top six clubs in Europe. I say this in light of the "FFP-Free" areas of committed expenditure in and around the stadium, the resources and commercial nouse of our owners, the continuing rise of English club football as a global brand and the fact that we are approaching compliance in any event.

I would really value your thoughts on the effects on my football club over the next few years of the subject that you write about with such authority. The "bigger picture" if you will.

I've not looked at City for a while, but the big picture is substantial revenue growth, due to a number of factors:

a. Commercial deals - not just Etihad, but a raft of additional sponsors.
b. TV money - the new PL deal (from this season) and Champions league deal (from 2015/16 season) will substantially boost revenue - though City will have to continue to be successful on the pitch to benefit. Note that only a small amount of the new PL TV deal can go on increasing player wages.
c. Match day income - City have announced plans to increase the capacity of the Etihad stadium to 62,000.

On the cost side, City's hope would be that the investment in the academy will bear fruit, enabling the club to spend less on signing players or, more specifically, use the transfer budget primarily on world class players, as the squad would be bolstered by homegrown youngsters. Easier said than done, of course, but that's pretty much the strategy of Barcelona.

 

[TCIB]

Welcome to the site swiss ramble, i shall now leave you financial fellas to it.

 

[SwissRamble]

Swiss Ramble. Welcome.

Like many others around the World I have visited your website and read your articles. In a nutshell, fantastic stuff. Not that I can get my head around FFPR fully. Perhaps you should do a FFPR website for Dummies. ;-)

I'm assuming City's figures are due out soon, and PB has stated City shouldn't have a problem meeting UEFA's FFPR target. Even if City just miss it there shouldn't be a problem as they can show the club is heading in the right direction financially.

2 things.

Would you have a figure by any chance off the top of your head where you think City will be at before the figures are officially released?

And when can we expect to see another update on City's financial figures on your website?

Many thanks.

jrb.

I've not looked at City's figures in detail for a while, so it wouldn't really be fair to hazard a guess.

I'm hideously busy with my day job, so I've not had any time to update the blog since August and am not sure when I will be able to do so. If I write an article, I spend a lot of time researching the background, so I either write a detailed analysis or nothing at all. Sorry.

 

[jrb]

Swiss Ramble. Welcome.

Like many others around the World I have visited your website and read your articles. In a nutshell, fantastic stuff. Not that I can get my head around FFPR fully. Perhaps you should do a FFPR website for Dummies. ;-)

I'm assuming City's figures are due out soon, and PB has stated City shouldn't have a problem meeting UEFA's FFPR target. Even if City just miss it there shouldn't be a problem as they can show the club is heading in the right direction financially.

2 things.

Would you have a figure by any chance off the top of your head where you think City will be at before the figures are officially released?

And when can we expect to see another update on City's financial figures on your website?

Many thanks.

jrb.

I've not looked at City's figures in detail for a while, so it wouldn't really be fair to hazard a guess.

I'm hideously busy with my day job, so I've not had any time to update the blog since August and am not sure when I will be able to do so. If I write an article, I spend a lot of time researching the background, so I either write a detailed analysis or nothing at all. Sorry.

No probs. Appreciate the reply.

Thanks anyway.

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

Swiss Ramble on Bluemoon? It's like having the Queen drop in to your house for a cuppa. Welcome Kieron. Milk and sugar?

Interesting news about the pre-June 2010 wages and explains why the £80m claimed by City was way above either if our estimates (I had it in the £55-60m range on my figures). Which goes to show you can read FFP till you get a migraine but little things like that always pop up and surprise you.

Like you, I can't see anything in FFP that would allow UEFA or the licensor to add back impairment taken in prior years. So if we keep the bottom line loss to around £55m, then I think we'll just shade it. However, I should point out we'll either pass or fail by a considerable amount, as you can only use the £80m if it's the only reason you failed FFP and you would have passed if taken into account.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Thank you for taking the time to come on here SR. I wondered if you'd be good enough to answer a question I've been struggling to elicit a response from others on, as I'm genuinely interested on your take on this, given your knowledge of FFP.

Given the new financial landscape imposed by UEFA, where do you see City sitting as a footballing force in five years time?

I personally believe that , if anything, FFP will assist City - the drawbridge effect - and that we will continue to grow as a club to the point where we are one of the top six clubs in Europe. I say this in light of the "FFP-Free" areas of committed expenditure in and around the stadium, the resources and commercial nouse of our owners, the continuing rise of English club football as a global brand and the fact that we are approaching compliance in any event.

I would really value your thoughts on the effects on my football club over the next few years of the subject that you write about with such authority. The "bigger picture" if you will.

I've not looked at City for a while, but the big picture is substantial revenue growth, due to a number of factors:

a. Commercial deals - not just Etihad, but a raft of additional sponsors.
b. TV money - the new PL deal (from this season) and Champions league deal (from 2015/16 season) will substantially boost revenue - though City will have to continue to be successful on the pitch to benefit. Note that only a small amount of the new PL TV deal can go on increasing player wages.
c. Match day income - City have announced plans to increase the capacity of the Etihad stadium to 62,000.

On the cost side, City's hope would be that the investment in the academy will bear fruit, enabling the club to spend less on signing players or, more specifically, use the transfer budget primarily on world class players, as the squad would be bolstered by homegrown youngsters. Easier said than done, of course, but that's pretty much the strategy of Barcelona.

Thanks and I really appreciate you taking the time to reply.