"If you want some accessible but informative insight into football then I suggest you couldn't do better than the Political Economy of Football website, which is not only intelligible but comes with the added bonus of being written by Addicks fan Wyn Grant." Ben Hayes - Charlton Athletic programme
The Shropshire border town of Ludlow is known for its mangnificent castle, attractive streets and fine restaurants. Its football club, Ludlow Town, has gone into receivership owing £400,000 which is a lot of money for a club in the lower reaches of the non-league system.
Hamilton Academicals are confident they will survive the demotion of Rangers to the third division of the Scottish Football League. They are concerned that the Scottish Premier League could collapse and this would place in jeopardy their parachute payment and settlement payment. However, they have been cutting costs for some time now.
Leyton Orient have been placed on the short list for a tenancy of the Olympic Stadium. Their preferred outcome would be to share the stadium with West Ham United, but the Hammers have rejected such a deal.
West Ham remain the favourites to secure the tenancy. Also on the short list are Intelligent Transport Services which is teaming up with Formula One to propose hosting Grand Prix races in the park and University College of Football Business, which runs football courses.
Manchester United have retained their title as the world’s most valuable team according to the latest Forbes sports rich list. The club were valued at £1.43bn, up from £1.2bn. That put them 19 per cent ahead of the number two club on the list, Real Madrid, valued at £1.20bn.
The only other two football clubs on the list were Barcelona in 8th place, valued at £838m, and Arsenal in 10th place valued at £825m.
Rangers have been placed in the bottom tier of Scottish football in the name of sporting integrity. But what will the financial cost to the Scottish game be?
The honest answer is that no one really knows. The figure of £16m a year has been bandied around by the Scottish Football Association, but I have never seen a proper explanation of its components.
The Premier League’s cash bonanza continues with the conclusion of a new three year sponsorship deal with Barclays Bank. It will be worth £120m over the three years, £40m a year compared with the current £27.5m.
Portsmouth have been told that they must accept a 10 point deduction if they are to play in League 1 next season. What is more a limited proportion of the secured debt must be transferred to the new company.
All football debts must be paid in full unless alternative arrangements are made and the club faces restrictions on playing budgets for the next five seasons.
Nottingham Forest have been acquired by the Al Hasawi family, reputedly one of the richest in Kuwait. One of their first acts has been to send manager Steve Cotterill packing.
Perhaps not surprisingly, they get a good write up from Kuwaiti sources where they have invested heavily in the Al-Quadisa sports club.
Tony Jimenez has substantially increased his share in CAFC Holdings Ltd, the company which owns Charlton Athletic.
Newly promoted Billericay Town FC have been put up for sale by owner Steve Kent. The double glazing businessman bought it from shipping businessman Rod Moore in 2004. Kent and his wife Sharon have been popular owners at New Lodge. He has brought financial stability to the club and bequeathed it a superb clubhouse.
The club is debt free, but Kent recently said that new investment would be needed if the playing budget is to be increased following last season’s promotion.
Internet speculation suggests a price of around £3.5m, but that seems on the high side.