Michel Platini the financial controller for Football’s super rich owners like Sheikh Mansour
Football’s super-rich owners, including the likes of Roman Abramovich, Sheikh Mansour, Flavio Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone and co face a radical cut back on their influence under the newly proposed UEFA rules.
Michel Platini, the UEFA President, was the first one who put forward the idea of introducing budget caps in football but it’s the extension of this idea that is a worrying factor for the mega rich football owners of today. The extent of the crackdown on "financial doping", is laid bare in a 60-page document seen by a leading newspaper in the United Kingdom. In it, UEFA sets out its detailed plans to force clubs towards break-even, only allowing them to spend what they earn, which will be an amazing feat if ever achieved.
Owners would be allowed to inject cash to cover losses for a transitional period, but the amounts will be restricted and closely monitored, a fact that would just put the likes of Sheikh Mansur, Florentino Perez and Roman Abrahamovic in a worrisome position.
Over the initial three-year period of regulation up to and including 2015, owners would be allowed to cover losses totalling about £40 million. The acceptable deviation from break-even would then fall to £30 million over three years and then less, with the amount to be determined.
In other words, an owner such as Sheikh Mansour would eventually be permitted to put less than 10 million a year into Manchester City on an average, unless the money is spent on infrastructure or the youth team, which have no limits on investment. That compares with City’s most recent loss of £89.69 million.
While Platini has talked for months about introducing "financial fair play", the working draft has brought those proposals into sharp focus.
The European Club Association continues to haggle with UEFA for concessions. It is arguing for a five-year accounting period, rather than three, and for owners to be allowed to invest extra funds through equity rather than debt.
Platini is determined to bring in regulations that will mark a watershed in the English game.
While the proposals will be phased in over several years, many clubs will have to make significant changes, drastic in the cases of Chelsea and City — if they are not to fall foul of the new regulations and face a possible ban from European competition.
The new club monitoring requirements aim principally to:
• Introduce more discipline and rationality in club football finances;
• Decrease pressure on players’ salaries and transfer fees and limit inflationary effect;
• Encourage clubs to compete with their revenues;
• Encourage investment for the long-term benefit of clubs, such as investment in infrastructure (sports facilities) and in youth;
• Protect the long term viability and sustainability of European club football; and
• Ensure clubs settle their liabilities on a timely basis.
The Prime examples being of this outrageous splurge in recent years will be:
2009 Manchester City’s take over by Sheik Mansour
2009 Florentino Perez returning to Real Madrid with an open cheque policy
2000 when Perez kicked off the first Galacticos era at Real Madrid.
1995 when Massimo Moratti took over Inter.
1988 when Cruyff assembled Barca's dream team.
1986 when Berlusconi began to make the most successful team in Europe out of relegation threatened AC Milan by spending unprecedented amounts of money.
This has been going on for decades. What is likable is the fact that they at least try to do something about it before football turns into Formula 1, even if only recently awoken to the fact that the lack of economic regulations is seriously harming football.
The sugar daddies have been in football for decades now and while some think it’s good for the game seeing all the superstars playing in one team but the honest fact is that it’s creating a vacuum in the foot-balling standards around the world.
Just look at the gap between the top four in England and the rest of the pack, same goes in Spain where Real Madrid and Barcelona play in a league of their own and the rest of the pack fights for the remaining 18 places in the league.
Cause after all its not how rich the top clubs are it’s all about how poor are the clubs at the foot of the table, need an example, just look at the money that the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United (Don’t know if its relevant to mention their glazer take over and their 716 million pound debt) and Manchester city have and then there is Portsmouth, vying for the ultimate cup glory in the FA cup and on the other hand playing their football in the Coca Cola Championship next season.
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