€2bn Man City take €3k from football minnows
10th-tier club has to pay Prem side’s travel costs
A VOLUNTEER-RUN football club had to fork out €3,500 to mega-rich Manchester City – so the Premier League side’s youth team could travel to a match in luxury.
Cash-strapped Clevedon Town hoped the under-18s FA Youth Cup home draw would bring in much-needed funds to pay for new floodlights.
The visit of the Premier League side – which has a net worth of €2billion – earned €9,200 in gate receipts and sales for the Somerset club.
But, to their dismay, they had to hand over more than €3,500 of that to City – whose annual players’ wage bill is €300million.
Under FA rules, visiting teams receive half the gate receipts for cup matches and have their travel paid for. City, who won the match, asked for €1,227 for their luxury coach travel and €2,528 from ticket sales.
Clevedon Town chairman Brian Rose hoped City would donate the money back to his minnows – but they sent a signed shirt instead. He said: “I pointed out to them [Manchester City] we were trying to raise money for floodlights.
“They enjoyed the evening, they won, but from our point of view, we thought we would make more out of it. But Man City thought otherwise.
“We knew it was probably not going to happen, we just thought they might have wanted to help a little club like ours.
“Obviously the powers that be didn’t think of it that way. That’s football today.”
Mr Rose added: “The tie did generate needed money. I guess we just hoped we could have got a bit more.”
Clevedon Town play in the Toolstation Western League Premier Division. It is nine tiers below the Premier League, which Manchester City won last season.
City are fifth on the Forbes football rich-list. Owner Sheikh Mansour has an individual fortune of €20billion.
City declined to comment.
CHAIR OF CLEVEDON TOWN FC
Clevedon Town FC
We hoped we’d make more. City thought otherwise BRIAN ROSE