Man Utd’s position is less clear cut, with mixed messages coming from manager Sir Alex Ferguson and Chief Executive David Gill. Ferguson decried last month that: “When you shake hands with the devil you have to pay the price. Television is God at the moment” before later tacitly agreeing with something similar to Ayre’s proposal with “There is a negotiation to be had there next time around. [Individual rights] is the big issue in Spain at the moment but I’ve no great feelings about that. We’d love to have our own but I don’t think it should happen that way. It’s quite fair to have all equal shares.”
David Gill told a parliamentary inquiry last season that: “The collective selling of the television rights has clearly been a success and it has made things more competitive.”
The temptation to give in must be great. The current domestic TV rights deal is worth £2.1bn over three years, but when both sets of deals are next up for renewal in 2013, the overseas deals have the potential to dwarf the domestic rights package. While Liverpool would undoubtedly benefit, no-one would more so than Man Utd.
And therein lies the real worry – could the likes of Man Utd, Liverpool and Chelsea potentially breakaway and form their own Super League?
If they’ve negotiated their own TV rights deal, what is to stop them negotiating their own individual league deal in the future. It could include the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrird and Bayern Munich too. All the best clubs in the world in one terribly boring league getting richer and richer by the second.
The Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules mean that clubs are now looking for other ways to maximise their profits. The age of the mega-rich owners is coming to an end; Man City and PSG managed to sneak in there just in time.
It does seem somewhat strange that Ayre has been hung out to dry quite as much as he has been, though. He surely, in private, must have canvassed opinion around other clubs before publicly expressing his owns intentions. However, the likelihood of such a proposal coming to fruition is slim to none. But still, the warning signs do set a precedent of what the future holds for the game further down the line.
Whereas once upon a time the idea of a European Super League would be laughed out of the halls of power, there is a creeping suspicion that it would now be welcomed with open arms in a manoeuvre that would be mutually financially beneficial. Michel Platini’s FFP rules are entirely admirable in their aims, but in practice, they could simply force clubs to find other ways to make their money.
The Frenchman’s influence at UEFA would quash any idea at present, but Rome wasn’t built in a day, and with the dollar signs flashing in every big club’s eyes at the prospect, they’ll patiently bide their time for now, even if Ayre’s move does seem a tad premature side.
The article was written by James McManus for FootballFancast.com. Make sure to check out the latest news, blogs and podcasts at FFC – ed.
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“Liverpool’s Managing Director Ian Ayre has attracted widespread criticism for his outlandish proposal for each club to sell their foreign TV rights individually”. Right, but, this is not what Ian was saying. The press seems to like the story however, so they refuse to report what Ian is saying! Business as usual…