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Articles and reports on financial issues within football – soccer – from The Political Economy of Football.
After reports had suggested that Rangers might be back in the Scottish Premier League in two years rather than three, Scottish Football Association Campbell Ogilvie has denied that there will be any special arrangements for the club enabling it to take a fast track back to the top.
The sale of Luka Modric by Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid for a fee of £27.8m, rising to a potential £33.3m, could kick start the transfer window as it enters what is always an increasingly frenzied last week. Indeed, some commentators have argued that the window should close with the start of the season for the good of both clubs and players.
Farnborough are waiting for a qualified buyer, coming to the end of due diliigence, to decide whether to purchase the club. The club had to be bailed out last season by manager Spencer Day with a six figure sum.
Kevin Heaney has stepped down as Truro City chairman. He bankrolled the club’s rise up the non-league pyramid, but he was declared bankrupt earlier today by Truro County Court. He cited health reasons for his decision to step down.
Salisbury City chairman William Harrison-Allen has said that he is interested in buying the club’s ground.
Billericay Town FC has been sold to former manager Grant Gordon. However, existing owner Steve Kent retains a stake as only 60 per cent of his shares have been sold. He said that there had been other offers, but he was not comfortable with them.
Reports give no indication of the sale price, but it is unlikely to have been the £3m originally mentioned when the club was put up for sale.
After storming off in a huff last week, Balram Chainrai has once again lodged a bid for Portsmouth. Given his financial entanglement with the club this was always likely. He is owed £17m and holds Fratton Park as security.
Reading fans may have disappointed by their defeat at Chelsea last night after going ahead, but their new young Russian owner has promised that he will adopt a prudent attitude to the clubs’ finances, investing wisely.
Anton Zingarevich denied that his father was part-owner of the Royals. He sees Reading as one of the best investment opportunities in football. Their location just outside London meant that they were best placed to attract corporate sponsorship.
This article examines Arsenal’s financial model which ensures the future of the club as a top one but has delivered relatively few trophies. It doesn’t say anything that is particularly new, indeed it is difficult to do that, but it is a comprehensive treatment. Whether the model is flawed or not, nothing is going to change that quickly at the Emirates.
Top footballers’ salaries increased 1,500 per cent from the formation of the English Premier League in 1992 to 2010, according to a report from the High Pay Centre think tank. Over the same period, average UK wages rose 186 per cent. Players’ wages account for up to 70 per cent of a club’s turnover, compared with 48 per cent in 1997.
Famous international financier George Soros has acquired a 8 per cent stake in Manchester United. He is not to known to have any particular interest in football so must regard the shares as a better investment than the markets seem to. The shares closed $13.06 on Monday, down 6.7 per cent since the IPO. Whether the defeat at Everton will register on the New York stock exchange remains to be seen.