Football in England has come through the recession relatively unscathed. There have been some spectacular collapses, not least at Portsmouth, but these are arguably more the result of poor management than the condition of the game as a whole. There have been some losses of corporate hospitality revenue and season ticket sales have fallen. The transfer market this summer was more subdued, although still quiet resilient. On the whole, football, particularly at the highest level, has been remarkably recession proof.
Football in England has come through the recession relatively unscathed. There have been some spectacular collapses, not least at Portsmouth, but these are arguably more the result of poor management than the condition of the game as a whole. There have been some losses of corporate hospitality revenue and season ticket sales have fallen. The transfer market this summer was more subdued, although still quiet resilient. On the whole, football, particularly at the highest level, has been remarkably recession proof.
Ireland has suffered more severely with major problems of bank debt in relation to the size of its economy, reflecting an unsustainable property boom. Although it has been gaining in popularity, football in Ireland has always faced competition from the traditional and highly popular sports of hurling and Gaelic football, not to mention rugby.
The Aviva stadium was supposed to be the flagship of the future of football in Ireland, but may turn out to be an albatross around the Football Association of Ireland’s neck. This article suggests that the FAI has been piling on debt with no clear strategy for paying it off.