[Closed] The billion pound footballer

As long as the drones keep buying tickets/subscriptions and merchandise.

My mates got a Huddersfield season ticket, and he's obviously loving it right now.

Drones?

Sometimes I forgot how snobby this place is.

Sometime just after Brexit to buy an European player for 100m Euros.

Sometimes I forgot how snobby this place is.

The only true sports are Boxing, Motorcycle racing, Rugby and Mountaineering - oh and hunting [s]naked working class women[/s] grouse with Fabbri over and unders.

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Football is perhaps the most regressive aspect of modern society. Transferring vast sums from low income sectors to a very narrow and rich few. And it's all done/accepted willingly. How bizarre is that??

Is it much different to TV, film or music industry? Other sports do the same too. Boxing makes vast sums for the elite in the sport from PPV events.

At work at this time every year this topic comes up... you can tell I get interested by my right raised eyebrow. But we always come out with the same conclusion..

The football industry is very top heavy and we all wonder when it'll crash around its training grounds... the same conversations have been taking place as far back as I remember.. and I've been working for 25 years now.

I expect no change and lots of consternation in respect of the vast amounts of money involved and the socioeconomic consequences (or lack thereof)

PSG paid that €222million on €521 million of turnover. Extrapolation would suggest that a club need around 2 - 3 billion in turnover to pay a billion for a player. Crazy money for knocking a ball about for fun.

So silly season has finished and players are going for £100m in Europe.

About the same price as DUP MP then 🙂

Is it much different to TV, film or music industry?

A little different but a similar principle. The sales / ticket money /TV deals are driven by the 'talent' so the more money there is coming into the industry the more players / actors / musicians can demand.

The differences though is there aren't the issues of intellectual property rights - a piece of music or a work of drama can have multiple authors, rights holders, investors and stakeholders. Theres also a difference in production costs - compared to a formula 1 team, or a hollywood movie the production costs for a football match are pretty trivial. So all that money going into the game from TV, sponsorship and tickets has nowhere it can legitimately go other than to the players (via a big chunk for their agent obis).

The only true sports are Boxing...

[url= https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/aug/31/conor-mcgregor-floyd-mayweather-praise-boxing-ufc-fight ]Err yeah right, for sure.[/url]

It's the biggest money-making circus there is.

On another note my step daughter plays for the Chelsea girls team (under 12's). Obviously there is an under 12's boys team too. They both get kits provided, however the boys get football boots and the girls don't. Now don't get me wrong, the amount of Nike dryfit kit they get given is mental and it's not like we're ungrateful, however I can't help but feel that providing boots to the boys and not the girls is....a bit 1970's...

but feel that providing boots to the boys and not the girls is....a bit 1970's...

Surely illegal?!? FFS in this day and age, that's shocking. It's not like Chelsea are strapped for cash, either.

Martin Sorrell (Chief Executive Officer of WPP)

Annual salary - £70 million

We live in an advanced capitalist society. Footballers, as in other field, get paid vast sums of money dependent on the revenue they generate. This is vast! A global audience of billions. So the wages and transfer fees reflect this.

We were discussing transfers/wages last night. The Ox has just gone to Liverpool for £120,000 a week. Which is is a hell of a lot of money. But then he was offered £180,00 a week by Chelski. He didn't go for the money. He went to the club he was a fan of as a kid, where he'll get a game in the position he prefers.

And most of these players come from working class backgrounds. Watch the documentary on Ronaldo (made by the same people who did Senna). He was dragged up in abject poverty. His dad was an alcoholic, and his brother a heroin addict. He got to be the ridiculously rich and superbly skilled through a lifetime of obsessive dedication and commitment. So I don't have a problem paying my Sky subscription to watch him play.

Moaning about the money in football is like throwing your shoes at the sky to protest about clouds

I know that the usual suspcts on here hold up Rugby as a sport of gentlemen and all that bollocks, but at the end of the day its a niche sport watched by a comparatively tiny audience

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I love football me

[url= http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2017/08/29/roy-keane-claims-ryan-giggs-would-worth-2-billion-todays-mind/ ]This made me laugh[/url]

You've got to love Keano! 😆

Hey at least we arent in the realms off American sport just yet (Well when I say American sport I mean NFL... although I'm guessing may well be the same in others)

Where the amount a player makes is publically lauded and seen as a good thing.

Matt Stafford, QB for the Detroit Lions, last week became the highest paid player... in a $135m, 5 year deal.... £400k a week... and the Official NFL FB/web page could not have been happier.

Last night "DeAndre Hopkins is about to get PAID" read the FB post ... £240k a week.

He got to be the ridiculously rich and superbly skilled through a lifetime of obsessive dedication and commitment

Agreed and should apply to anyone whatever their job - but rarely does!

He got to be the ridiculously rich and superbly skilled through a lifetime of obsessive dedication and commitment
Agreed and should apply to anyone whatever their job - but rarely does!

Forget all of that..... it's talent that is the key, everything else is details!

Football is perhaps the most regressive aspect of modern society. Transferring vast sums from low income sectors to a very narrow and rich few. And it's all done/accepted willingly. How bizarre is that??

+1...

Quite objectionable really, but hey you pays your money & takes your choice.

Personally, I find the £££ in football very repellent.

Top Pop singers/ bands, top Actors, top TV stars, top Racing Drivers, Boxers etc etc

They all derive their income from the masses!

Football is perhaps the most regressive aspect of modern society. Transferring vast sums from low income sectors to a very narrow and rich few.

Accumulation of capital by the rich is usually something you applaud. I guess the problem is that in this case, the people making the money are working class.

binners - Member

And most of these players come from working class backgrounds. Watch the documentary on Ronaldo (made by the same people who did Senna). He was dragged up in abject poverty. His dad was an alcoholic, and his brother a heroin addict. He got to be the ridiculously rich and superbly skilled through a lifetime of obsessive dedication and commitment. So I don't have a problem paying my Sky subscription to watch him play.

So he dedicated a huge amount of time and effort at becoming good at something so he could get rich. Kim Kardashian dedicated a huge amount of time and effort into posting pictures of her ass on instagram and fellating rappers to make herself incredibly rich and famous. I guess she should be applauded too.

I know that the usual suspcts on here hold up Rugby as a sport of gentlemen and all that bollocks, but at the end of the day its a niche sport watched by a comparatively tiny audience

Popularity and legitimacy aren't the same thing. Sometimes they're inverse. What annoys me and presumably a lot of people about football is the all pervading and inescapable nature of it, and the attitude among fans that it is somehow important in general because it's important to them.

Anyone who doesn't follow the sport will know the awkwardness associated with trying to tell a stranger that you did not see "the match". In most instances the taxi driver or random stranger at the bar or dad at the school gate will actually persist and try to tell you about "the match" anyway.

In order to avoid people telling you about soccer you have to tell them straight out - I do not watch soccer. This is usually accompanied by a puzzled or insulted expression on the face of the soccer bore. Occasionally a guessing game will ensue, "ah so you're a rugby man" or over here "you follow the gaelic?". At this point I tell them about the most obscure sport I'm interested in just to shut the conversation down.

I often wonder what it would be like to go around asking random strangers if they'd seen a recent downhill race or bjj tournament.

As long as the drones keep buying tickets/subscriptions and merchandise.

people are drones because they pay to watch something they enjoy? I'm not a football fan myself but certainly don't think I'm superior to people who do.

So he dedicated a huge amount of time and effort at becoming good at something so he could get rich.

I'm sure that was his primary motivation. 🙄

Kim Kardashian dedicated a huge amount of time and effort into posting pictures of her ass on instagram and fellating rappers to make herself incredibly rich and famous. I guess she should be applauded too.

Yes, definitely the same thing. Though I can't say her being rich bothers me in the slightest.

What annoys me and presumably a lot of people about football is the all pervading and inescapable nature of it,

Quite right. Just look at how you were forced to click on this thread and type a comment.

It's not like Chelsea are strapped for cash, either.

Recently signed a £900m deal with Nike apparently.

On Reddit you can tag users with traits/keywords.

If we had this function here I would tag jimjam with 'Mr Devil's Advocate'

8)

Football is perhaps the most regressive aspect of modern society. Transferring vast sums from low income sectors to a very narrow and rich few. And it's all done/accepted willingly. How bizarre is that??

That is the very definition of hegemony.

Kim Kardashian dedicated a huge amount of time and effort into posting pictures of her ass on instagram and fellating rappers to make herself incredibly rich and famous.

Arguably she was already rich, so she did it for the fame. And tuned a huge profit along the way.

plyphon - Member

Kim Kardashian dedicated a huge amount of time and effort into posting pictures of her ass on instagram and fellating rappers to make herself incredibly rich and famous.

Arguably she was already rich, so she did it for the fame. And tuned a huge profit along the way.

Yeah but you have to admire her drive. Rich is only a relative term. A millionaire in beverly hills is basically dole scum. Gotta make them millions.

Anyone who doesn't follow the sport will know the awkwardness associated with trying to tell a stranger that you did not see "the match".

U OK HUN? XX

I would guess another 15-20 years.

Football is a free market, players get sold for/ earn what they are worth. More transparent than most businesses.

At least in football (most sports for that matter) to get the big money you have to be very good at your job. The same cannot be said for Chief executives, pop stars or actors.

It is our National Sport BTW, so people chatting to others about it, is hardly like mentioning some obscure sport that has little national interest.

Football damages other sports, talented kids get a one track mind and then when the majority wash out of football they just drop sport altogether and just become that bloke in the pub who everyone knows who used to play for QPR (other teams available) U21's.

At best they get back into it when they have their own kids and start coaching, only to reinforce the cycle.

I know nothing about football but butted in on a work conversation about players wages, it must have had some truth, at least one person agreed with me citing a couple of lads he knew.

Football is perhaps the most regressive aspect of modern society. Transferring vast sums from low income sectors to a very narrow and rich few.

Accumulation of capital by the rich is usually something you applaud. I guess the problem is that in this case, the people making the money are working class.

🙂

binners - Member

U OK HUN? XX

I'm not saying the stereotype of soccer fans as boorish misogynists is accurate or anything but it seems a strangely regressive debating tactic to patronise and/or demasculinize someone by inferring female characteristics, just because they've been critical of soccer fans.

I think your over-analysing things. Its a familiar American trait. I'm presuming you're American as absolutely nobody outside the good 'ol US of A calls it 'soccer'

[b]"IT'S A HEADSTRIKE IN THE SCOREZONE!!!!!!"[/b]

😀

Ah okay. No traction by insinuating gender based weakness so you'll switch and go ad hominem on someone's culture?

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Mate, you are on fire today.

"IT'S A HEADSTRIKE IN THE SCOREZONE!!!!!!"

OVERTIME WILL BE AFTER THESE MESSAGES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FIRST PERIOD ANALYSIS WITH BARRY SPINIKER

I know that the usual suspcts on here hold up Rugby as a sport of gentlemen and all that bollocks, but at the end of the day its a niche sport watched by a comparatively tiny audience

The comparison with Rugby is interesting in that theres very little distinguishes the two sports bar a few nuances in the rules - A pitch, one ball, two sets of gaol posts, some players, some people watching.

But the people watching are very different. I did some work are part of the marketing of a major international rugby event and it was interesting how fickle the crowd is. Very few people buy tickets in advance which makes the production and financing of large tournaments really diffiucult- there might be lots of fans of rugby but a lot of them will wait til the morning of the match, even if they've travelled to the tournament, and only go and support their team from stands rather than the pub if its not raining.

Accumulation of capital by the rich is usually something you applaud. I guess the problem is that in this case, the people making the money are working class

I have no problem with anyone earning money in the basis of hard work and superior skill etc. I am puzzled however about:

The willingness of people to pay so much to watch people play football either in situ or via TV
The acceptance of blatant financial malpractice
And the preference for watching sport rather than playing it
The selectivity in deciding which high earners deserve their rewards and which dont

I have no problem with anyone earning money in the basis of hard work and superior skill etc. I am puzzled however about:

The willingness of people to pay so much to watch people play football either in situ or via TV
The acceptance of blatant financial malpractice
And the preference for watching sport rather than playing it
The selectivity in deciding which high earners deserve their rewards and which dont

1. You're puzzled why people pay to watch something they enjoy watching?
2. Who accepts financial malpractice?
3. I've watched F1 on occasion.
4. What selectivity?

At least in football (most sports for that matter) to get the big money you have to be very good at your job. The same cannot be said for Chief executives, pop stars or actors.

Is that right? In music, successful musicians have been dumped by their record company after many years and millions of records sold, just because the new boss of the drinks company who's just taken over the record company doesn't think his/her music fits into their new marketing strategy; Rod Stewart was one, IIRC the Rolling Stones had it happen at one point.
And an artist is quite likely to be dumped because their second album only sold fifteen million instead of the seventeen million the first one sold.
Aimee Mann had a successful solo album released, then her label was taken over and the new people told her they wouldn't promote her new album, "because they couldn't hear a hit single on it", so she asked to be let go. They wouldn't, because they thought it would be embarrassing if she was successful somewhere else.
She was stuck for five years, with an album her label refused to promote, and unable to record a new one, although she did by scrounging studio time from friends in the business.
Eventually she got out, and has had a very successful career on her own label and own terms. The film [i]Magnolia[/i] was based entirely on an album she was writing at the time, but the music business had no hand in it; all they see is "The Next Big Thing", and the one after that, they don't give a shit about longevity any more.
And there have been a great many actors who are frankly pretty rubbish who've kept careers going regardless.
Chief executives, on the other hand...

I think my point about pop artists was in reference to artists that have little or no talent but have the look the record company are after so they sign them up.
You've kind of made my point about actors. You don’t actually need to be any good at acting to make money from it.

FWIW, I don't have any interest in football and don't have any problems avoiding it. Frankly it's easy to avoid as it is (from my perspective only) such a crock of *****.

Also, who feels awkward that they "didn't see the game"? What a bizarre scenario.

And most of these players come from working class backgrounds

There's a good bit in '[url= https://www.amazon.co.uk/Why-England-Lose-phenomena-explained/dp/0007354088 ]Why England Lose'[/url] about that.

Certainly, knowing a couple of kids who play for youth academies there's no way we'd be able to ferry our two to the amount of training (often fairly far away) required with our jobs,

Certainly, knowing a couple of kids who play for youth academies there's no way we'd be able to ferry our two to the amount of training (often fairly far away) required with our jobs,

Agreed.

And the academies suck up and discard thousands of children, looking for the one and ruining the childhoods of others in the process.

I know children who fall asleep in the car coming back from training at the local academy, and who travel for hours at a time to get to a "tournament". They should be living a childhood and spending time with the ball at their feet.

Even 99% of those that "make it" still have to get a real job in their 30s.

I know children who fall asleep in the car coming back from training at the local academy, and who travel for hours at a time to get to a "tournament". They should be living a childhood and spending time with the ball at their feet.

Meh, I don't agree. These same kids do spend hour after hour playing with the ball, it's why they're so good actually. But there are only so many clubs nearby and often the scouts come from far and wide to see skilled kids. My lad is decent but had a year off to do MTB racing, but he's back playing again, his mate has been offered academy with places as far as Plymouth, QPR etc but lives near Newbury. He ended up signing for Southampton.

He'll do training, the rest, get home and go out playing again.

1. You're puzzled why people pay to watch something they enjoy watching?

No.

2. Who accepts financial malpractice?

😀

3. I've watched F1 on occasion.

So do I but today will be riding instead

4. What selectivity?

😀

TL:DR, it's just another reflection of how twisted modern society has become. Whereby the unit of measure is the £, the €, the $, the ¥ and that we are willing to value some far higher than others.

Why do we not value those who provide essential social care and compassion in the same way as those who supposedly entertain?

mattyfez - Member
As long as the drones keep buying [s]tickets/subscriptions[/s] the next MTB standards and merchandise.

Nothing to bring the snobs out of the woodwork like a football thread.
🙂

The level of vanity displayed on here about who has the best toys, the fashion induced paranoia displayed when a new model year ticks round, the rush to spend....
Not very edifying is it?

A nice chat about football is often a pleasant alternative.