Der Spiegel Football Leaks revelations

[spursfan77]

Fans of all clubs are having the exact same conversation as we are about this I suspect.

 

[wrd]

I won't lie this has really shit in my weetabix this morning, I know it's just football but I'm so pissed off with the corruption, I'm fucked off Sky and BBC are burying it. I don't see me being a football fan if a super-league is created.

 

[branchie]

Well, the proposed league is clearly anti-semitic

 

[VegasII]

It's an absolute anus of an idea, but every time they bring it up it gets closer to happening. The Vuitton handbag clubs e.g. City, PSG will want this to happen as it's about the big brand being the best and the exclusivity that comes with it. The rest of the other top clubs pile in not wanting to be left out. Domestic competition devalued, European competitions devalued, domestic trophies devalued. I doubt the top clubs care about the fans when they have TV revenues, international markets etc etc.

I don't think it will happen just yet, but eventually it probably will.

I remember reading this piece on the BBC about club revenues:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44850888

 

[Saoirse]

Since they don't care about fans, and we don't provide them enough money for our lack of support to mean much, I think the only way we could have any influence over this mess if they tried it is through protest. Even just 1,000 people before every match standing/sitting to block the entrance to the posh part of the ground would cause absolute chaos, damage their brand and perhaps make the bigwigs trying to go in think twice about the whole project. And if that's going to happen I think it will be in England, where compared to somewhere like Spain the fans are much more commited to the traditional game and the police are far less likely to do anything brutal in response.

 

[Wsussexspur]

Terrible idea. If this happened think this would alienate a lot of football fans.

Can’t see the average fan travelling around Europe every other week to watch games, The grounds will be full of the tourist fans particully from Far East and Middle East. Maybe that Is the market these clubs are trying to appeal to now a days rather than the domestic fan base. I guess Looking at the clubs on the list to set this league up it won’t really bother them though if the hardcore domestic fans don’t like the idea or won’t be able to travel to many away games. You just have watch many of these teams games to see that already there grounds are already packed every other week with the tourist fans.

 

[Seafordian Spurs]

The logical end point is just a 'league' wherein Bayern 'invite' who they deem wealthy enough to play once a week. The game is played in quarters and features 'sin bins' (not as sordid as it sounds).

 

[kr1978]

Terrible idea. If this happened think this would alienate a lot of football fans.

Can’t see the average fan travelling around Europe every other week to watch games, The grounds will be full of the tourist fans particully from Far East and Middle East. Maybe that Is the market these clubs are trying to appeal to now a days rather than the domestic fan base. I guess Looking at the clubs on the list to set this league up it won’t really bother them though if the hardcore domestic fans don’t like the idea or won’t be able to travel to many away games. You just have watch many of these teams games to see that already there grounds are already packed every other week with the tourist fans.

Exactly, it’s actually the tourist fans they want-the likes of us who go regularly aren’t that profitable to them as we buy a ticket and maybe a beer or a coffee. You see the tourist fans with their bags full of merchandise from the club shop and you know full well who the clubs prefer coming in the gate

 

[Tucker]

It’s the English clubs that I don’t get being involved. The Premier League is the goose that laid the golden egg. Are they really going to risk killing it?

 

[RichieS]

Wouldn't work on it's own. The teams are just too unbalanced now. No fun in watching Man City destroy Dinamo Tblisi, Anderlecht etc until they finally get some competition in the semi finals. You'd need to get the league back on a more equal financial footing too.

I don't think there was any seeding in the European Cup, so you could get big matches at any stage.

 

[Saoirse]

I don't think there was any seeding in the European Cup, so you could get big matches at any stage.

But if you had it these days there'd probably only be four actual contenders in any given year. Nobody outside England, Spain, Germany, Italy or France is going to win it, and in an average year one of those five will have an odd league winner who's not likely to contend either. A tournament with four contendors and fifty teams making up the numbers isn't going to be fun no matter how you organise it. It used to work as the champions of different leagues were far more equal. Red Star could win the European Cup. Those days are gone for now sadly.

 

[LexingtonSpurs]

Can’t see the average fan travelling around Europe every other week to watch games, The grounds will be full of the tourist fans particully from Far East and Middle East.

Match-day revenue will pale in comparison to TV broadcast revenue. Teams won't care who is in the stands, as long as they are buying TV packages to watch the matches.

I think its a far riskier move, long-term than these teams realize - despite the global popularity of the sport right now.

If I were in charge of one of the big leagues - I would kick out any club that wanted to join the Super League - i.e I would not allow them to be in both competitions. And, if they wanted back in, they can start 2 levels back, and work their way back up - subject to the same FFP rules in place today in terms of profits/losses.

 

[LexingtonSpurs]

It’s the English clubs that I don’t get being involved. The Premier League is the goose that laid the golden egg. Are they really going to risk killing it?

They look at it from this perspective:

1. If a big-money league is formed - they don't want to miss out.

2. If Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man City, and Man United all left the PL - the broadcast revenue both domestically and globally would drop significantly - and the teams that remained would see a large drop in revenue, while the teams that left would see a short-term boost in revenue.

The money will follow the big teams initially, but I just think long-term, that is a risky move to take.

 

[Gb160]

It’s the English clubs that I don’t get being involved. The Premier League is the goose that laid the golden egg. Are they really going to risk killing it?

Out of the 5 English clubs proposed to be part of it, 3 are American owned, 1 Russian and 1 Abu Dhabi...we know how the Yanks love the relegation free franchise system, and I doubt Chelsea and City's owners would be against it.
It boils down to the fact that the owners of these clubs couldn't give a flying fuck about the English league....they'll just follow the money if given the chance.
It seems the fans are largely against it, but that's going from the perspective of English match going fans....I bet your average American/Asian/African Liverpool/United/Arsenal fan would rather see them playing super clubs than half the teams in the prem, and these fans make up most of the fanbase.

These are worrying times.

 

[Stamford]

Funny how its not the top story anywhere

 

[jurgen]

Oh well, we'll always have our NFL franchise I suppose.

Would be a terrible thing for football which means there's probably a fair chance of it going through. Wasn't there one mooted years ago, and we were in the 'second wave' for inclusion and that was when we were crap.

 

[fluffybunnyuk]

It depends I suppose on whether someone is daft enough to cough up the money needed to make the piggy fly. Amazon maybe have the money. Remember you'd need to be able to screen games to a worldwide audience, and I dont see anyone else with that kind of reach.
Initially I'm sure the rewards will be high, but when people turn off in droves, it could all end in tears with Arsenal having to start back in tier 10 when it fails.
2 things that occur to me 1) This is premier league 2.0 - predicted when the greedy gits destroyed the existing structure. 2) Its not a reality, just a stick to beat UEFA with for more money, and club owned TV-rights etc etc.
Worst case scenario is we sit in a pub, and create AFC Tottenham.

 

[VegasII]

If it ever happens, Premier League fans should go and watch their nearest league 2 or non-league team. Give those clubs the money instead.

 

[Doctor Dinkey]

This is disgusting and I wish for any English club that participates in it to drown in a swamp of their own bottomless cupidity.
I can't believe it will be successful though. Over here, we will moan about it a bit but England is basically a conservative country with little sense of social cohesion and football's part in it so we'd probably let it happen.
In Spain and Germany though, with much more mature awareness of issues of social justice, there would probably be riots.
On top of the screaming injustice of a locked in league, however, the whole thing would be so insufferably boring that it would eventually collapse, unless, as some have suggested, it's propped up by interest from the far East and corrupt oil money. But it won't be football.

 

[Wsussexspur]

Funny how its not the top story anywhere

Been featuring quite promently on bbc website for most of the day