Football's Magic Money Tree

[Chester Perry]

As FFP controls (primarily from UEFA) become of greater concern to the big clubs across Europe (the rewards for Champions League participation especially are very significant as we have seen), clubs have become very careful in meeting these requirements while still being eager to pursue their interests. IT also means that some clubs are more susceptible to approaches for their players because they may be flying close to the FFP limits

The New York Times looks at the growing prevalence of loan-to-buy deals

Play Now, Pay Later: How Loans Became Soccer’s Favored Accounting Tool
Loan-to-buy deals are on the rise, favored because they allow top clubs to comply with Financial Fair Play regulations without losing any of their purchasing power.

By Rory Smith - Published Aug. 24, 2019 - Updated Aug. 25, 2019, 12:28 a.m. ET

On the surface, Paris St.-Germain’s victory against Strasbourg in February 2018 was unremarkable. It was unusual that Strasbourg took an early lead, but it only lasted four minutes. Julian Draxler equalized. Neymar scored, Angel Di Maria scored. P.S.G. led by two goals after 22 minutes and won by 5-2. Strasbourg was just another opponent swatted aside on its parade to the French title.

Yet it was a game of considerable significance: That single victory meant P.S.G. had to pay Monaco — the team that finished second in Ligue 1 that year — $200 million.

The previous summer, not long after it had stunned the world by buying Neymar, P.S.G. had agreed to a deal with Monaco to sign Kylian Mbappé, global soccer’s nascent superstar. The arrangement was not quite as straightforward as the deal for Neymar, in which P.S.G. had just matched the even larger release clause in his contract at Barcelona.

Instead, P.S.G. acquired Mbappé on loan for a season, with a stipulation in the contract that it would pay a set fee — 180 million euros, or roughly $200 million, plus bonuses — the next summer if certain targets were met. One target, in fact: P.S.G. would be compelled to buy Mbappé the moment it was mathematically safe from relegation. It was hardly a tall order. P.S.G. only had to wait until February, and the final whistle against Strasbourg.

P.S.G.’s motivation for structuring the deal in such a way was not difficult to discern: Conscious that buying both Neymar and Mbappé in the same transfer window would, most likely, lead it to breach UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations for a second time, it made the loan deal to allow it spread the total cost of its investment in Mbappé across two assessment periods, and avoid the possibility of a heavy fine or, worse, ejection from the Champions League.

The strategy has caught on. As has been the case for the last several years, this summer’s transfer window produced a slew of deals that seemed tailored to help clubs function within the boundaries of Financial Fair Play without losing any of their purchasing power; more and more clubs are moving away from traditional deals and finding new ways to work. This has been yet another summer of “loans with an obligation to buy.”
“Teams are adapting to the new environment, just as they adapted to the Bosman ruling in 1995,” said Omar Chaudhuri, an executive at the sports intelligence agency 21st Club.

Chaudhuri’s figures indicate a significant rise in the number of loans that subsequently became permanent deals across Europe’s big five leagues in recent years. A decade ago, for example, only 10 players in England, Spain, Germany and France were sold to the club where they had spent the previous season on loan.

This summer, that figure stands at 32. Next year will doubtless be similar: Bayern Munich has an option to buy both Philippe Coutinho and Ivan Perisic, both in Bavaria on loan; Tottenham’s deal to sign Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis was a loan with an obligation to buy (his second in two years), as was Inter Milan’s capture of the Italy midfielder Nicolo Barella from Cagliari, among dozens of others. (Serie A, Chaudhuri noted, is a “different beast,” where loans have always been more prevalent, but if anything the pattern there is even more pronounced: five such deals a decade ago, 35 this year).

Some of those transfers, of course, are simply traditional loans that have worked out well. Others may have been loans with an “option” to buy for a set fee, should the player prove a success. In many cases, though, they follow the Mbappé model: loans which are, in essence, deferred sales. According to one executive, the language is a little misleading: so as not to arouse the suspicions of UEFA’s auditors, the “obligation” has to be dependent on something, but the bar is often set so low that it is impossible not to meet it.

The appeal, in many cases, echoes P.S.G.’s intentions: a deferred purchase enables clubs access to a better quality of player than it might otherwise be able to acquire immediately while complying with F.F.P. It is why, for example, Barcelona’s most recent offer to P.S.G. to reacquire Neymar was not a purchase, but a loan-to-buy deal structured along the lines of Mbappé’s.

There are benefits to these arrangements for the clubs seeking to offload players too, and not only in reducing salary commitments at a time when wages have become so inflated that few clubs outside of Europe’s richest leagues can afford elite salaries. As far as clubs’ accountants are concerned, a guarantee of future income enables teams to forecast more accurately their total revenues for the seasons ahead. “It’s a relatively new concept, but it can be a sign of good practice,” Chaudhuri said.

It is not the only way F.F.P. has started to mould the transfer market, though. “There are so many types of creativity available to the clubs,” said Esteve Calzada, the chief executive of the agency and marketing firm Prime Time Sport, and a former chief marketing officer at Barcelona.
Long-term loans have grown in popularity — Chelsea has sent three strikers to Atlético Madrid on such terms in recent years — while the recompra, a contract clause that has long been a feature of transfers in Spain, in which the selling club has the right to buy back a player for a set fee, has spread across Europe.

Increasingly, teams do not simply consider their own financial projections, but those of their rivals, too. Several Premier League teams, for instance, keep track of the budgets of clubs across the continent, to see which ones might be at risk of running afoul of F.F.P. rules, and therefore might offer less resistance when it comes to cherry-picking their surplus players. The same summer P.S.G. was signing Neymar and Mbappé, for example, Tottenham was taking the fullback Serge Aurier from Paris. A few months later, Lucas Moura followed the same route to Spurs.

A more extreme example is the case of the goalkeepers Jasper Cillessen and Neto. In June, Cillessen moved to Valencia from Barcelona for 35 million euros. The next day, Neto moved from Valencia to Barcelona, for 26 million euros, and 9 million euros in various add-ons. In Calzada’s eyes, there was a “sporting” justification for the moves: Cillessen wanted to play regularly, after two years as Marc Andre Ter Stegen’s backup at Camp Nou; Neto’s relationship with his coach at Valencia had deteriorated, and he relished the chance to play at Barcelona.

The nature of the deals, though — not a straight swap, but two separate sales to make the numbers match — and particularly the curious timing of them, at the end of last season’s F.F.P. accounting period, raised eyebrows. It looked to be a way for both clubs to ensure their books were in order, while not weakening their squads.

To those who monitor soccer’s transfer market, it was inevitable that UEFA’s regulations — and the threat of punishment for not complying — would change the way clubs operated.

“There is now a far more dynamic, proactive regulatory framework,” said Mark Goddard, a former head of FIFA’s Transfer Matching System, the global body that oversees the transfer market. “You have an active F.F.P., and you have an active T.M.S. The clubs then move and shake within that framework.”

This summer — like the last few summers — has been the consequence of that moving and shaking. The clubs are changing to suit their new environment, finding new and innovative ways to spend money, but making sure that, whatever the rules are, they can still get what they want, and who they need, even if they have to wait a little longer than they would like.

[Chester Perry]

@AndyhHolt highlights just why the EFL cannot intervene when they know a club is a bout to head into a financial crises - no matter how much they, the fans, the media and general public would like or expect them to. The members of the EFL (it is a members association) effectively blocked them from doing so

https://twitter.com/AndyhHolt/status/11 ... 8662459392" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

so while Shaun Harvey and Debbie Jevans are the subject of much ire (much of it probably deserved in Harvey's case) it is the owners ( a substantial majority of them, not the rogue few) that should be questioned by fans up and down the country. This reminds me of the FA blazers debacle than ran on for a few decades, the public figures get the blame for the decisions made by the invisible (in public perception) powers that make the decisions.

[Chester Perry]

I have posted about an over populated football calendar before - here TIFO Football picks up on an article from TheAthletic and looks at it's implications

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoChoq96Lns" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

An informative article on how European Football clubs are increasingly owned by companies that are based in tax havens - initially focussed on Italian clubs bit then widens it's scope - some of the translation may be strange but the information is good

https://translate.google.com/translate? ... le-AC27pue" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

the above article links to this report - The Offshore Game - by the Tax Justice Network which was published in April 2015 with it's primary focus being Man City, Bolton, Bournemouth and Spurs - though it looks at 29 other clubs as well

https://www.taxjustice.net/wp-content/u ... Report.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The same organisation did a thorough investigation and report into Rangers - Doing SFA for Fairplay!

https://www.taxjustice.net/wp-content/u ... pdated.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

that report eventually led to charges on Rangers by the SFA in May 2018 - the SFA has still to commence an independent investigation into the matter - which is how Rangers can still compete in the Europa League

[Chester Perry]

With all the financial turmoil in the English game currently, some wonder how the authorities would react if it was one of the big six with such problems - In Germany it is only 15 years since Dortmund went through these problems overstretching themselves in the pursuit of glory. Their recovery has come founded on a set of principles that @AndthHolt would find very familiar to what he has at Accrington and had been urging clubs in the English pyramid to utilise.

https://www.firstpost.com/sports/bundes ... 22171.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Spoken a number of times about the potential new investment at Sunderland - the some of the prospective investors were at the game this weekend - they have serious wealth all four are billionaires and their combined wealth would make them the 2nd wealthiest owners in the English pyramid behind Man City. The last time they were owned by a billionaire it proved to be a bit of a rollercoaster ride. One thing for sure the current owners seem to have done well from the club that was once known as the Bank of England

https://www.cityam.com/league-one-side- ... hael-dell/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

A recent decision by the MLS to adopt FIFA standards allows us to gain insight into the FIFA training and solidarity payments process - it is somewhat convoluted

https://globalsportmatters.com/business ... -payments/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

I can confirm that Gary Neville does not read this thread - he is suggesting that Man Utd - sell naming rights to Old Trafford for between £60m-£80m and drop ticket prices to ordinary fans to £10 to balance

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footb ... rices.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

if he had read post# 1201 (http://uptheclarets.com/messageboard/vi ... start=1200" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) he would have know the rights fall for Old Trafford is worth less than £27m a season - and this from a football club owner and property developer

[Chester Perry]

An Interview with the head of Sport Integrity Global Alliance have have a partnership agreement with UEFA - he he takes abou the European football body and the challenges it faces

https://www.soccerex.com/insight/articl ... no-punches" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

The I looks at the sneeky changes football clubs are making to get ever more money out of their supporters trying to buy tickets

https://inews.co.uk/sport/football/prem ... helsea-fc/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

This was obvious the moment the rest of Europe decided not to follow the Premier Leagues example - top clubs want to return to the standard summer transfer window as fears of poaching of their talent from European clubs mount


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/20 ... ow-system/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

@KieranMAguire compares FFP rules on asset sales between UEFA and the 2 iterations from the EFL

https://twitter.com/KieranMaguire/statu ... 5937165312" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

look at that then consider the implications for Derby, Aston Villa, Sheffield Wednesday and Reading who have all sold their grounds to their owners for significant profit to originally book value in their accounts in the last 12 months.

Then look at what Stewart Day did at Bury (as outlined by @AndyhHolt this morning) and understand the risks involved when a clubs gambles with it's primary asset (ground not players who come and go)

https://twitter.com/AndyhHolt/status/11 ... 9290824709" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This could have been put on a number of threads today - particularly "Bury : No Wages" and "Bolton" but I am putting it here as a placeholder as I want to look at FFP it's failings and strengths in the future and also this issue of ground sales that I have talked about before, particularly with Royboy, it also feeds into my long running point that football cannot and should not be treated like any other business when it comes to leverage of finance

[Chester Perry]

as a follow on - consider this thread from @W_F_Magee

https://twitter.com/W_F_Magee/status/11 ... 0629724168" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is on us all to be vigilant, to speak out when wrongs are seen and more importantly to understand the many nuances and issues so that we can clearly understand what we are seeing when we see it - NOT in hindsight, for then it is often too late - if anything this has in all probablity to become the de facto purpose of this thread. #SaveOurGame

[Chester Perry]

I have posted a few times about the EFL trophy boycott as it includes "B" teams (Grade 1 Academy under 21's) - @uglygame has dug up some remarkable detail about the EFL rules and regs around the competition from a financial perspective

https://twitter.com/uglygame/status/1166518397561167875" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Oldham the next club in the northwest to look out for in all probability - posted on them a few times and none of their issues are close to being resolved - fan's starting a protest this weekend

https://twitter.com/dan_taylor12/status ... 9640953856" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Highlighted a few positives about the American sports model on this thread as others have on this board particularly the ability to remove a bad owner and take control of a failing club (franchise) by the league. This comes as a direct result of paying to join a league, rather than promotion relegation to a members club, by paying you are agreeing to a set of rules that are designed to ensure standards of practice and ensure competition.

Once a league becomes established that franchise can cost rather a lot of money - if anything it helps to focus minds adhering to the rules - here @Football_BM looks at the cost of the current MLS expansion slots - don't forget about the infrastructure costs as well - all new teams must have a dedicated "soccer" stadium.

https://twitter.com/Football_BM/status/ ... 8473327616" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- I am not advocating a Franchise approach (it would see the end of our club)
- Incredible how quickly the MLS has developed into such a financial beast

[Chester Perry]

Following on from the sad demise of Bury there has been a very vocal element on social media calling for fan ownership - a model that has had some success in this country

https://twitter.com/NicSFC/status/1166672731271815170" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

what this thread doesn't mention is the current financial fiasco at Northampton or those clubs that gave up their supporter owned models as they effectively failed to meet ambiton (and/or operate on a sustainable basis) - i.e. Portsmouth and Swansea

[Chester Perry]

FourFourTwo with the help of @KieranMaguirre look at whether a salary cap could work in the EFL - apparently ignoring the fact that there is one in both Leagues 1 and 2 or did they?

https://www.fourfourtwo.com/features/ho ... ked-expert" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[GodIsADeeJay81]

Capping agents fees would probably be a good idea too.

[Chester Perry]

Ostensibly about Bury's expulsion this is a good piece on the critical issue in football unfortunately it offers no solution

https://www.90min.com/posts/6442684-bur ... -what-next" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

This is Moneyball podcast - Sports stars and social media: a financial goldmine or recipe for disaster? Interview with a leading social media account manager

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mon ... nager.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

This is interesting given the number of Chinese named betting sponsorships/partnerships in the Premier League

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... hina-rages" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

could it be the Chinese Authorities that remove the prominence of gambling sponsorship in our Premier League?

[Chester Perry]

Aston Villa issue another bunch of shares - £22m worth, not yet known if it is a cash injection or conversion of debt to equity

https://twitter.com/KieranMaguire/statu ... 5709494272" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

that is £74m in the last 5 months

see posts
#962 http://uptheclarets.com/messageboard/vi ... &start=961" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
#1616 http://uptheclarets.com/messageboard/vi ... start=1615" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Well this is a surprise - following the demise of Bury a number of Premier League clubs are willing to increase the solidarity payment - From the Telegraph

Premier League clubs open to increasing solidarity payments to EFL clubs after demise of Bury - Tom Morgan, Sports News Correspondent
29 August 2019 • 10:30pm

A number of Premier League clubs have opened the door to increasing solidarity payments for the lower leagues in the wake of League One Bury's collapse.

Top-tier teams including Manchester United are understood to be supportive of a review of the current support package after it was reduced for the first time this season.

Currently, £675,000 is handed out by England's top tier to League One clubs, down from £690,000, and £450,000 to League Two clubs, down from £460,000.

The 72 EFL clubs - now down to 71 after Bury's termination - are getting two per cent less every year because Premier League's domestic TV rights fell by 7.5 per cent for the 2019-2022 period from £5.4 billion to £5 billion.

However, the demise of Bury this week, and protracted takeover of Bolton Wanderers, has prompted some of Europe's biggest clubs to consider a rethink.

There is an acceptance among certain officials that the revenues around the Premier League should be enough to ensure the safety of those at the other end of the spectrum.

Parachute payments for the three clubs relegated last season from the Premier League are £41.8 million, also down two per cent, but the overall amount that the Premier League is paying in parachute payments has gone up this season, from £105 million to £107 million, because of differences in the number of clubs receiving second-year compared with third-year payments.

There is a growing feeling among the clubs that the growing profits gap between divisions is forcing clubs - particularly in the Championship - to employ dangerous boom or bust tactics to get promoted.

The poverty gap has been brought into focus this week as the EFL terminated Bury's League One status after months of mismanagement by owner Steve Dale.

Damian Collins, chairman of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, will now lead MPs in reviewing the crisis. The inquiry may consider whether the Premier League is doing its bit to help the EFL.

Vysyble, the data firm which claims it warned the EFL of a potential crisis two years ago, said Bury's expulsion could be just the start, despite Bolton's reprieve.

On Thursday night, Bury launched a blistering attack on the EFL, expressing “astonishment and dismay” at the apparent decision to ignore “a credible bidder”.

The club said in a statement: “Everyone connected with Bury were shocked and disappointed with the EFL’s decision to expel this wonderful, historic, community-driven club from the Football League. This decision was taken despite a credible new bidder being made aware to them before Tuesday’s 5pm deadline.

“Given this, all staff, players and no doubt fans of Bury are utterly devastated that, despite the new bid to buy the club, the EFL have informed us that they will not be rescinding their decision.

“This is something we are struggling to comprehend as the new bidder has proven significant funds to the EFL, funds to allow them to take over, run and secure the long-term future of Bury. Everyone at the club believed that such were the capabilities of the potential new owner, this would have started a brand new era for the club, seeing it go from strength to strength.

“The extreme lack of communication from the EFL has left all involved with Bury astonished and in dismay.”

[Chester Perry]

"Football isn’t just a game, it’s embedded in our culture."

An elegy for Bury from some well respected football academics

https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/poli ... ball-elegy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

This suggested revamp for the Champions League is so ludicrous it just may come to pass

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footb ... clubs.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

John Nicholson has a book out - "Can We Have Our Football Back? How the Premier League Is Ruining Football And What We Can Do About It" - I suspect the articles he wrote for Football365.com will form a large part of it - The Telegraph have this to say about it

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/20 ... oycotting/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

meanwhile here is his latest column - https://www.football365.com/news/forget ... revolution" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Royboyclaret]

John Nicholson has a book out - "Can We Have Our Football Back? How the Premier League Is Ruining Football And What We Can Do About It" - I suspect the articles he wrote for Football365.com will form a large part of it - The Telegraph have this to say about it

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/20 ... oycotting/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

meanwhile here is his latest column - https://www.football365.com/news/forget ... revolution" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have a lot of time for John Nicholson and he talks more sense than most. Look forward to reading the new book.

[Chester Perry]

A powerful piece by Carlisle United reporter Jon Colman on the problems in the pyramid from a lower league perspective

https://www.newsandstar.co.uk/sport/foo ... -care-die/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

it partners well with this from Jonathon Wilson in the Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/football/bl ... are_btn_tw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

The 4 year ban on Michel Platini is almost up - @BarneyRonay looks at his enduring influence

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... a-downfall" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

I have a lot of time for John Nicholson and he talks more sense than most. Look forward to reading the new book.

I find him an important and reasoned voice though I cannot agree with everything he says, very much worth listening too though and worthy of much respect. On the subject of his latest column I am less inclined to view fan owned clubs as the be-all and end-all, Wycombe have had 2 goes at it now but have again agreed to selling the club to a majority owned shareholder - the numbers of fan owned clubs that fail and/or sell is increasing

http://www.wycombewandererstrust.com/20 ... rob-couhig" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

The Price of Football looks at the next clubs that are in danger of collapse - A shortened version of this appeared in the Mail yesterday

http://priceoffootball.com/football-fin ... ents-kiss/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

apparently Oldham are the next club on the list

[Chester Perry]

Interesting Investigation piece from the Times on Gambling partnerships with 1xBet

Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham face huge fines over 1xBet deal - Jon Ungoed-Thomas - September 1 2019, 12:01am - The Sunday Time's
The gambling regulator has warned the elite football teams they risk prosecution unless they ditch a Russian sponsor

Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham football clubs are being warned by Britain’s gambling regulator that they risk prosecution and millions of pounds in fines if they continue to promote their global betting partner 1xBet.

The Russian firm is no longer licensed to operate in Britain after an investigation last month by The Sunday Times. Harry Kane, the Tottenham striker, the Liverpool star defender Virgil van Dijk and the Chelsea striker Willian are among players who have helped plug the firm.

The Gambling Commission confirmed that it has written to the three clubs to say any promotion of 1xBet in this country may be unlawful, risking unlimited fines and up to 51 weeks’ imprisonment. Tottenham said this weekend that it had ditched 1xBet as its sponsor.

It is the first significant intervention by the regulator in a growing backlash over the bankrolling of football by the gambling industry. Premier League clubs have sponsorship deals with betting companies worth more than £80m a year.

It comes after this newspaper revealed 1xBet’s websites had been blacklisted by regulators around the world. Its brand had been used to promote betting on children’s sports, cockfighting and a “pornhub” casino with topless women dealing the cards. The firm is also one of the biggest advertisers on sites that stream Premier League matches illegally.

Matt Zarb-Cousin, of the Campaign for Fairer Gambling, said: “It is shocking that these football clubs failed to do the most basic due diligence checks on 1xBet before signing up for these multimillion-pound deals. It’s an absolute debacle.”

Founded in Russia in 2007, 1xBet is one of the fastest-growing gambling firms. Tottenham made 1xBet its global betting partner in Africa a year ago. In July this newspaper exposed the company for fuelling a youth gambling epidemic in Kenya.

Liverpool announced that month that 1xBet would be its official global betting partner in a four-year deal, with advertising at Anfield and on the club website. Chelsea made 1xBet its official betting partner for the next three seasons. Ten of the Premier League’s 20 teams have deals to promote a betting firm on their strip.

White Bullet Solutions, a London monitoring firm, has found that in the six months to July 31, 1xBet was the biggest advertiser on a list of nearly 4,000 websites with illegal content.

1xBet operated in the UK on a platform provided by FSB Technology (UK). This firm is now being investigated by the Gambling Commission, and 1xBet’s UK website is suspended. The commission said licensed betting firms were not permitted to advertise on sites with illegal material.
It added: “We recently wrote to Liverpool FC, Chelsea FC and Tottenham Hotspur FC to remind them that organisations engaging in sponsorship, and associated advertising arrangements, with an unlicensed operator may be liable to prosecution . . . for the offence of advertising unlawful gambling.”

Tottenham said all its 1xBet rights had been “terminated”. Liverpool said it had no comment and Chelsea is understood to be “monitoring the situation”.

1xBet said: “We take very seriously the allegation that 1xBet’s brand has been promoted on prohibited sites, which is strictly against our policies, and we have launched an investigation. Pending the outcome . . . we believe it is responsible to temporarily suspend our advertising activity in the UK.”

The charity Samaritans was criticised yesterday over a tie-up with Paddy Power Betfair. The deal involves fundraising, corporate donation and volunteering. Both organisations said the charity would help the betting company improve how it helps vulnerable customers.

[Chester Perry]

Unfortunate sponsorship but Danny Kelly's and Simon Jordan's podcast is actually quite good and they are currently in a series of the Seven Deadly sins in Football

1 - Wrath (or anger)
https://audioboom.com/posts/7347970-wrath" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

2 - Greed
https://audioboom.com/posts/7353841-greed" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

all their other efforts can be found here

https://audioboom.com/channels/4993308" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

@AndyhHolt has a proposal for football's problem of getting reasonable commercial loan rates

https://twitter.com/AndyhHolt/status/11 ... 6468483072" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

he then put this out to supplement it

https://twitter.com/AndyhHolt/status/11 ... 5675054080" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

he actually proposed this to Sean Harvey at an EFL meeting - whose response was interesting idea and then moved straight on to the next agenda item of changing the transfer window

https://twitter.com/AndyhHolt/status/11 ... 2065002497" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Bolton's new owners begin their reign with loans amounting to £40m from two of their number at 4% interest p.a.

https://twitter.com/KieranMaguire/statu ... 8374417408" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

now then - does that strike you as a good idea?

[claptrappers_union]

How are Bolton Wanderers going to pay back over £40 in League 1 & 2... are they going to sell the stadium and move to Gigg Lane?

[Chester Perry]

How are Bolton Wanderers going to pay back over £40 in League 1 & 2... are they going to sell the stadium and move to Gigg Lane?

You would think they would start by issuing share capital rather than loans, there are the debts to clear and while this will no doubt consolidate them at a very good rate to what the commercial market would offer I think it is a dangerous weight on the club at this stage with a team and confidence to build

[Chester Perry]

Many of us have though that SkySports putting highlights of Premier League games on youtube for free shortly after the games have finished as a bit of an own goal - this article looks at the possible benefits for them doing so

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2019/08/28 ... ee-youtube" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Last week saw the release of 2019 edition of the BDO Annual Survey of Football Club Finance Directors

Offthepitch.com had this to say about it https://offthepitch.com/a/rising-number ... ash?wv_id=" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The BDO released this statement https://www.bdo.co.uk/en-gb/insights/in ... ors-report" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; there is also the ability to download the report from that link

grim reading in those 2 pieces even at Premier League level - yet we have still had people moaning at the perceived lack of spend at our stable (currently sustainable) club on this very board in the last couple of days

[Chester Perry]

A look at how Arsenal are seeking to keep the Emirates up to scratch with Tottenham's new ground seen as the new guiding light (Arsenal fed into the development process for that ground quite significantly)

http://www.sportspromedia.com/interview ... LI.twitter" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Not sure how I missed this a few weeks ago - a complete commercial overview of the Premier League and it's constituent clubs for the start of the 2019/20 season - from TV deals to sponsorships and commercial partners

http://www.sportspromedia.com/analysis/ ... ghts-deals" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Real Madrid have posted their headline financial results for 2018/19 season (don't expect ours before late March 2020 at the earliest)

http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/real ... -19-season" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

the clubs own statement

https://www.realmadrid.com/en/news/2019 ... -transfers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

love how this does not include transfers

[Chester Perry]

Once again Simon Chadwick shows us the delicate (sometimes impossible) balance between European football's desire to gain traction outside of it's home territory and the politics of the region it is targeting #ModernColonialism

https://twitter.com/Prof_Chadwick/statu ... 3496300544" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Here is another China related thread from Simon Chadwick - showing how football sponsorship is being used for Diplomatic purposes - like we did not already know with this specific case. They play Africa like the US do South America, supporting anyone who is compliant with their needs.

https://twitter.com/Prof_Chadwick/statu ... 7720868866" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Much has been made of the exploitation of workers in Qatar as it prepares for a series of Global sporting event, but what about Japan - Simon Chadwick once again on the case

https://twitter.com/Prof_Chadwick/statu ... 3097407489" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

The New York Times had an article about the pre-dominance of loan-to-buy deals last week (see post #1996 http://uptheclarets.com/messageboard/vi ... start=1995" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) today the FT have done the same following an analysis of 26000 deals - unfortunately I cannot access that, however John Burn-Murdoch who did much of the research has released this very detailed thread of his findings - thanks John

https://twitter.com/jburnmurdoch/status ... 7676068864" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

Cardiff's apparent refusal to pay the transfer fee for late Emiliano Sala continues, even though FIFA have given them until Friday to make the initial payment

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/49517124" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Chester Perry]

you take a few days away from your screen - the result - an absolute torrent of posts to bring a thread back up to date - my apologies to you all if you are feeling a bit overwhelmed with it all