Own-goal a victory for the people
They think it’s all over — it is now as six teams pull out of Euro Super League
The collapse of football’s proposed Super League is a victory for the people. More than that, it’s a win for pure, old-fashioned tribalism. Just a few days after it was announced, with a grand sweeping statement, it has gone, with the formal withdrawal of all six English teams yesterday.
The clubs issued carefully worded statements, often referring to feedback they had received from “internal and external” stakeholders.
The various billionaire owners thought they knew about the level of passion and parochialism of the fans, but they really didn’t understand it.
English supporters feel a level of attachment and ownership to their clubs probably unmatched in the world. There are many reasons, from the working-class traditions of clubs, to rivalries spanning more than a century, to the escape valve that the sport offers from difficult lives.
The American and Middle East based owners could never comprehend that.
In the NFL, and other American sports, teams can move cities at the behest of an owner, who gets a better stadium deal elsewhere.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t passion and pride — look at the intense local support for the Green Bay Packers — but these relocations can be forced through, something that would be impossible in England.
British football fans don’t just support their club, going along on a Saturday afternoon to be entertained. They see themselves as part of the team, at the stadium to “help the boys get home”.
It’s the kind of tribalism that’s hard to contemplate here, because it doesn’t really exist.
Most New Zealand fans could never contemplate an eight-hour train journey, then a police escort to the stadium, with taunts from home fans, just to watch a sporting contest.
If the Blues relocated to Tauranga tomorrow there would be a reaction, but it would soon pass.
At provincial level the tribalism that was strong in the 1980s (remember those classic rugby battles between Auckland and Canterbury) has faded and the closest association many people feel is to their club or their high school.
It’s slightly different in Australia, with the history of the NRL and AFL, best encapsulated by the fight to get the South Sydney Rabbitohs restored to the NRL.
As well as the supporters, players can take credit for the Super League backdown, with the likes of Liverpool co-captain James Milner having the fortitude to speak out in defiance of his club owners.
That’s laudable, but the players now need to be part of the solution.
The Covid-19 pandemic has crippled the game at all levels, from the elite to grassroots and accelerated the Super League plans, which have been fermenting for years, due to the loss of match-day revenues.
Another issue is the out of control transfer fees and wages.
Owners may be unpopular, but there is a reason why they are mostly overseas billionaires, because the average British entrepreneur or industrialist that used to run clubs couldn’t front the massive bills.
Manchester City spend around $580 million annually on salaries. They are the outliers, but plenty of other clubs, from the “big six” down, are spending way beyond their means to keep up.
There are some benefits to transfer fees, as a mechanism for shifting money downstream, to lesser clubs and smaller countries.
Wage demands are another matter.
It’s been estimated agents for indemand Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland are pushing for an annual salary of $60m, which would mean any future club would need to sell around 200,000 shirts to cover a week’s wages.
Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne banked around $750,000 a week last season, while United midfielder Paul Pogba collected an estimated $560,000 for every seven days’ work.
That’s why ticket prices remain exorbitant, making it increasingly difficult for the very people that have rallied in the last few days to support their heroes in the flesh.
Aside from broadcasting deals and sponsorships, club revenue needs to be generated from the punter in the street. And that means selling an awful lot of merchandise.