Shift pay goalposts to save soccer

European football has survived its greatest crisis: not the coronavirus, but commerce. The attempt last month by 12 of the continent’s biggest clubs to create a US-style Super League quickly collapsed, to hoots of derision from fans and much relief from administrators. But short-lived as it was, the proposal brought attention to the dysfunction at the heart of European football and suggested a reform that could save the sport in the long term.

Because Europe’s leagues impose minimal restraints on spending, clubs must in effect spend larger sums each year to acquire and retain top talent and win trophies. That forces them to pursue every avenue of profit, even at the risk of undermining the sport’s traditions and institutions. In addition to inducing bankruptcies and encouraging corruption, the system all but ensures a small handful of wealthy clubs dominates year after year.

Elsewhere, sports leagues have solved this problem by simply restricting how much franchises can spend. Salary caps are the norm in cricket (the Indian Premier League), Rugby Union (Premiership Rugby) and most American team sports (the NFL, NBA and so on). In most instances, teams have the additional protection of assured participation, regardless of their sporting achievements.

This arrangement benefits both owners and fans. It creates a level playing field for franchises in a given league, but allows the marquee names to maximise their commercial potential.

A Europe-wide salary cap would be in the best interests of clubs and fans. The ceiling imposed on American clubs set at $182.5m for 2021 hasn’t prevented the NFL from becoming the world’s most profitable sports league or the Dallas Cowboys from remaining the most valuable franchise for five years running. It also helps ensure that most teams have a fighting chance at the beginning of each season.