Despite Rosell’s clear dislike on ownership of clubs in the Premier League, Spain are also getting in on the act, with Malaga being the latest club to be purchased. Of course, if Rosell wants to get into a conversation over how foreign money ruins the Premier League, he should probably asses his own league’s competitiveness first.
In La Liga, you have Real and Barca, then the best of the rest. The way in which TV money is split in Spain is nothing short of extraordinary, with around 65% going to Real and Barca, thus is a major contributor in the division between the top two and the rest. Clubs like Valencia who are forced to sell their best payers would accept a takeover bid in a heartbeat in order to fully be able to compete with Barca and Real financially.
Not to mention the fact that despite his protests, both Barca and Real have agreed to kick off times on a Sunday midday in order to tap into the Asian market – something that they have so far failed to do – at a massive loss to both clubs. An estimated 60 million people in China watched the Real v Osasuna game – double the population of Spain.
Another thing Rosell seemingly has an issue with is the fact that clubs sell their sponsorship rights on shirts and stadiums. Barcelona, of course, sold their rights to the Qatar Foundation – Middle Eastern money – and are £142 million richer for it. For a man who claims to have a problem with Middle Eastern money in the Premier League, he seems comfortable taking enough of it through sponsorship and TV deals.
In short, Rosell and Barcelona, whilst they may have us believe they are Mes Que Un Club, are exactly the same as all other clubs, and are more than willing to sell out in order to have that extra bit of financial muscle.
The difference is that whilst English clubs and Perez are upfront about this, Rosell says the only reason he will obey 12 pm kick-off times is due to legal obligations.
Yes, ownership, TV deals and Sponsorship rights in the Premier League are not everyone’s cup of tea, and there can be no denying that when clubs are spending more than they make, slowly slipping further in to debt, not to mention the wages constantly rising do need addressing. Sadly, these things are now a fact of life in football, and if it allows a club to compete with the teams around them, or raise their game to the next level, who can blame them for accepting the money either for a TV package or a bid for the club? Rosell’s comments would be very admirable if they weren’t so hypocritical.
The article was written by Rebecca Knight for FootballFancast.com. Make sure to check out the latest news, blogs and podcasts at FFC – ed.
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it’s ‘Prima Donna’ not Pre-Madonna. Lifestyles were not that much more decadent before Madonna arrived on the scene.
Nice….Too Funny
There is very little talent, if any, amongst the British footballers. The little that comes close to being a talent has got a ridiculous price tag on it. So, to make the league more interesting and add skill to it, up came the foreign ownership with their cash. Thank you foreign owners. Can you imagine watching the EPL composed of British players only, no skill, no tactic, no technique just football wrestling and kick and run. i would rather watch paint dry than watch the so called British talent. The foreign owners have been a blessing!!!!
I would have thought you would be – like ole king ken obviously is – far more concerned about the appalling fixture pile up ‘pool face and all the referees the are out to get ‘pool rather than the fact ‘pool are owned by a septic!
This has what to do with the topic? FSG are a septic?? They’ve done nothing but bring hope back to LFC fans worldwide, something a Spurs fan would have no concept of.
*false hope
Perhaps it was a pre Maradonna lifestyle the author was thinking of.
HOW ANYBODY CAN SAY THE BRITISH LEAGUE IS THE BEST SURPRISES ME.I THINK THE SPANISH IS BETTER.THE GERMANS ARE NOT FAR BEHIND.THE BRITISH LEAGUE IN THE MAIN IS FAR MORE PHYSICAL.ALSO FASTER.THE SKILL IN THE MAIN COMES FROM THE FOREIGN PLAYERS.WHO CAN MATCH MODRIC AND TORRES WHEN BOTH ARE PLAYING WELL?THE ANSWER IS NOBODY.