The FA in England made upbeat noises yesterday after concluding a two-year TV rights deal with ITV for coverage of the FA Cup and England internationals, despite the £90m contract being a third less than the prevailing annual rate. This is the latest in a deflationary trend after the Football League in England secured a deal from BSkyB from next season at a rate 26% below the current deal.
TV money is still flooding into our nearest neighbours at a rate that would allow all Scottish clubs to pay their tax bills but the downward trend is welcome for those here trying to build and retain football squads. Although English football is awash with cash it is also heavily indebted with a compulsion to spend every penny earned. Downsizing, if necessary, will be a challenge.
The FA Premier League remains a durable TV property but you’ll find it harder to find analysts projecting income growth for the next deal, irrespective of the successful legal challenge to price fixing based on EU areas.
A weak pound has meant earnings from overseas rights have remained high compared to pre-crash times but with euro-area and other world economies so volatile neither exchange rates nor foreign demand can be regarded as stable. Economically speaking, English football has all the facets of a bubble, so far, one that just keeps on inflating…..
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Paul67
Well done to Reiperman last night. Well done to you Paul67 and to Phil.and RTC.
The past 18 months have been momentous. The truth is a breaking wave on the sea wall of the Scottish media and Rangers. Every now and then it breaks over the wall with Dallas and Dougiegate. The tax case will surely breach the wall completely.
Craig Whyte, Jack Irvine and the Laptop Loyals will not be able to hold the breach as the truth is played out in the full view of the worlds press.
The SFA/SPL will have to make decisions in the full light of day. FIFA/Uefa and the worlds media will be watching the biggest football story in Europe.
No more handshakes and winks. I cannot wait. We are almost there.
Ole regular bouncers
ASonOfDan says:
17 January, 2012 at 12:52
Paul67
Thoughts?
Chesterfield are leading the race to land Celtic defender Josh Thompson, Sky Sports understands.
Thompson is currently on loan at Peterborough but he is yet to feature this term for Darren Ferguson’s side.
Now Sky Sports understands that Thompson is set to depart London Road for another club.
A number of Championship and League One clubs are looking at taking on Thompson.
But Sky Sports understands that Chesterfield are favourites to claim his signature.
I really don’t know why this boy was never given a chance under Lennon. I thought he done superb when thrown into the team under Mowbray.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Totally agree,he was 18yo and thrown in,and acquitted himself better than the dross around him.
Neil,much as I love him,seems to decide he disnae like a fella,and that’s it. Other players spring to mind,but what the hell,he certainly knows more than I do.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS says:
17 January, 2012 at 12:52
The fallout will cover both tracks -business/shareholders and sporting. One might be less used than the other but whatever trackis used it is going to be a lot more than a 10 points deduction.
The one thing I have thought for quite some time is that the focus on the implications, were any was made, was too narrowly focussed on just Ranger’s fate.
Ok guys I will be attending a wedding at Kilronan Castle, Ballyfarnon, Co. Roscommon at the end of spring.
Any information on nice towns, tourist attractions, nice pubs & restaurants etc.
Much appreciated
ASonOfDan,
I see Owen Coyle’s club has a Bolton born millionaire. I bet he is wishing they had a Motherwell born billionaire instead …
Or maybe not
Bolton Wanderers won’t get relegated.
Owen Coyle’s granny has said it isn’t going to happen.
Me, I hope they go down with Wigan, and that Blackburn and Wolves stay up.
tomtheleedstim@12:41
I was told before Xmas that Al Jazeera were prepared to outbid Sky for the new EPL contract this summer
Good afternoon to the Celtic Family from a damp
The ole bounce game kicks off.
don’tlookawayCSC
Joe
What or Where?
Martin 42.
You have mail.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS says:
17 January, 2012 at 13:08
ASonOfDan says:
17 January, 2012 at 12:52
Paul67
Thoughts?
Chesterfield are leading the race to land Celtic defender Josh Thompson, Sky Sports understands.
Thompson is currently on loan at Peterborough but he is yet to feature this term for Darren Ferguson’s side.
Now Sky Sports understands that Thompson is set to depart London Road for another club.
A number of Championship and League One clubs are looking at taking on Thompson.
But Sky Sports understands that Chesterfield are favourites to claim his signature.
I really don’t know why this boy was never given a chance under Lennon. I thought he done superb when thrown into the team under Mowbray.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Totally agree,he was 18yo and thrown in,and acquitted himself better than the dross around him.
Neil,much as I love him,seems to decide he disnae like a fella,and that’s it. Other players spring to mind,but what the hell,he certainly knows more than I do.
He was very slow though was he not ?
BSR- I knew the ole internet would come in handy for something, some day.
Well done, you ole clever clogs.
Ole Martinez, Coyle and Mowbray – with a shortlist like that, who needs enemies.
Development game
No run out for either of the two trialists?
Therefore……..no go for either?
I rememebr watching the Icelandic boy aginst Scotland and he was tremendous, thought we had won a gold watch there.
Every time I see bolton their stadium is half empty, Wigan’s was about a third full last night, Blackburn looks the same just now.
POP!!! there goes the bubble…
DBBIA
Martinez, Coyle, and Mowbray (Howff down ole at the I remember Burn’s?)
Good afternoon to the Celtic Family from a Damp Central Scotland. Intresting some of the views on young Josh Thomson the young guy was in my opinion to slow and he could be left standing by any nippy forward I honestly never felt he would become a Celtic regular the fact that the only interest is from the likes of Chesterfield tells its own story but best wishes to the young fella where ever he ends up.Reading the Bolton debt situation might give us a chance to sign Kevin Davis if we are really interested in him I also notice he is out of contract in the summer.H.H.
I’m sticking with my original prediction, the internet will eventually burst the EPL bubble the same way it did for the music industry.
Interesting that Google may be in line for the next round of TV rights bidding, by manipulation of their search engines they could be in the best position to slow the impact of illegal feeds on broadcast revenue, simply because most internet users don’t have the wherewithal to use any other search engine.
Also interesting that Google seem to be a major opponent of SOPA, wonder if they would change their tune if they got the EPL rights.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
Aye, back Neil 100% but he does seem to make his mind up about you and refuses to budge.
GOUROCKBHOY 1318
I’ve seen slower than him in our defence,before and since.
I don’t think he was particularly slow,just 18yo,and lost a yard through lack of experience.
Interesting article re darlo
Today the administrators have sacked everyone at Darlington. David Preece remembers the day George Reynolds took over, how he screwed him personally and began to kill the club…
I was there on the exact day that Darlington Football Club began itʼs cruelly slow and painful slide into the black hole of extinction. Over the last thirteen years, the Darlo fans must have felt as if itʼs beloved club had been gradually destroyed, like a live pig being excruciatingly spit roasted to a mere block of black charcoal.
The arrival of convicted safecracker turned multi-millionaire businessman, George Reynolds, was supposed to be the dawn of a bright new era. I was the twenty-one year old goalkeeper for The Quakers and like everyone else, I was initially caught up in the whirlwind of promises to build a spanking new stadium and bring us Premier League football within five years. I say “initially” because for me, the cracks presented themselves rather early in his reign. Of course, I couldnʼt foresee the agonising years the club has since endured but I could sense something just didnʼt add up.
Ultimately, I was proved right. It was all supposed to be so different. The club had been struggling to pay our wages for the previous 5 months and the insecurity of the clubʼs finances had all but put pay to any chance of promotion we had given ourselves earlier in the season.
We were halfway through the 1998/99 season and we were flying high at the top of what is now League Two. An away day at Brentford would see us involved in a first versus second top of the table clash. We were flying. That is until our manager, David Hodgson, came to the back of our bus as we were travelling south and delivered the news that our wages wouldnʼt be in our bank accounts that day as was expected.
“Ayr f****** United?” I thought. “What happened to Charlton and Bolton?”
Suddenly, talk of promotion was sharply replaced by worried conversations of missed mortgage repayments and our focus was shifted from the game. We might as well just have turned the bus round and headed back home. We lost 3-0. Luckily for me I was a young lad still living at home and my mother had gratefully deferred my monthly board I gave her for my upkeep. But for those with families it was unsettling to say the least. We slid down to the mediocrity of a mid-table finish but towards the end of the season, the financial situation at the club worsened. The club was in trouble and with no new investors forthcoming. The state affairs was such that unless we could sell a player or perhaps two, the club was going under and nobody would get paid.
Thatʼs when I was summoned to the managerʼs office. Iʼd had a pretty good year and with me being a young keeper with potential, there was interest in me from two championship clubs. David Hodgson explained the extremity of the clubʼs plight and an offer of £75,000 plus add ons was accepted from Ayr Utd, whoʼd had an injection of funds from somewhere.
“Ayr f****** United?” I thought. “What happened to Charlton and Bolton?” I asked. He explained the Ayr United bid was the biggest bid with the cash up front and if I didnʼt go, the club had no idea where they would find the money to dish out salaries. What could I do? Without showing any disrespect to Ayr United, I had no desire to join them whatsoever. None at all. But there would be serious repercussions for the club if I didnʼt and I knew by the tone of the gafferʼs voice I didnʼt really have much of a choice. I either stay and possibly not get paid along with everyone else or agree to be transferred against my will. I was screwed both ways.
Rumours rumbled on of unpaid bills but George was always there to rebuff them as nonsense.
The manager was right though, I didnʼt have any choice and without the perspective of a more mature man, I drove back home with the resignation of a death row prisoner running through me. Later that night, the phone rang. I hadnʼt changed my mind, I still didnʼt want to go. The Scooby Doo-like coward in me thought about hiding in a wardrobe and ignoring the call but I decided against it and picked up the phone. As expected it was my manager but the words coming from the phone werenʼt the daggers of disappointment I thought theyʼd be. A saviour had come forward in the Donald Trump-haired form of George Reynolds. He driving to meet Reynolds at his Witton Hall mansion and my departure was now put on ice, at least for the time being, anyway. So, in he swept and we were saved. Iʼd been saved too, from a move I didnʼt care for. And now, the club were going places and I wanted to be part of it. I thought the offers that the club were receiving for me mustʼve meant I was doing well so I went to see the new owner and asked if the club didnʼt have to sell now, and more importantly, didnʼt want to, then perhaps they should offer me a contract that would eward me for my performances. I was greeted with a curt “No” and sent packing. David Hodgson, my manager, a man I trust implicitly, consoled me fact that nobody would be getting “unnecessary” new contracts. It seemed George wanted success but wasnʼt prepared to pay what it takes to get it. To me or anyone else for that matter. If we were going places, it was on the Mega Bus not British Airways First Class. Rumours rumbled on of unpaid bills but George was always there to rebuff them as nonsense.
Fast forward three months and I was again summoned to the managerʼs office with news that bids had come in for me. Three bids of around £300,000 each, in fact. The choice put to me was that two clubs wanted me as a young number two and the other, Aberdeen, were looking for a number one. My initial reaction was to ask if the chairman would offer me an improved contract to try and keep me but again, he wouldnʼt. It seemed they wanted, or more appropriately, needed the cash. The manager gave me his honest opinion and advised me to accept the offer from Aberdeen. This was despite the fact I could have expected to earn double the amount in salary from the other two clubs. Aberdeen were giving me the best chance of playing every week and thatʼs the only thing that mattered to me, not the money. So, off I went on the next flight to the oil capital of Britain and the deal was done.
Well, almost. Just as I was walking out for my first training session, the secretary of Aberdeenʼs chairmen, Stewart Milne, approached me with a mobile phone and handed it to me. A female voice said, “Itʼs George. Heʼd like to talk to you.”. There wasnʼt even a “Hello.” or any other kind of greeting. He simply said this: “Have you ever heard the story about the monkey who saw a peanut at the bottom of the milk bottle and put his hand in to grab hold of it? What he didnʼt realise was that he couldnʼt get his hand out of the bottle unless he let go of the nut.”
If you don’t waive your right to that money I’ll pull the plug on the whole deal and let you rot in the reserves…
I was confused. My head was already swirling with the prospect of facing Celtic live on TV the next day. What on earth was he going on about? “You have a clause in your contract that states you receive 15% of any transfer fee the club receives for you ( about £45,000 in this case ). If you don’t waive your right to that money Iʼll pull the plug on the whole deal and bring you back here and let you rot in the reserves.
Youʼre under twenty four years old so if anyone tried to sign you, itʼd go to a tribunal. Letʼs see who wants you then!”. One minute I was stood there, feeling a million dollars decked out in my spanking new training kit my new club had just given me, chomping at the bit to get started, the next I felt like a punctured balloon.
As I saw it, this was my big break. A chance to take the step up to the next level. Itʼs not like my contract with Aberdeen was of the sort that might set me up for life but I really thought it was the start of something big for me. I tried to explain that I wasnʼt some jumped up little footballer who had demanded to leave his club and that this money would have been a Godsend to someone who had come from the same area in Sunderland that he did. But nothing. Not even a word of negotiation came from his side. Heʼd even made the Aberdeen chairman swear he wouldnʼt try and compensate me in any way by adjusting the figures in my contract. I just couldnʼt understand it. I was earning peanuts at Darlington. They had signed me on a free transfer and the club was making a good profit but he was adamant that he wasnʼt giving me a penny of the deal.
The way he put it, that clause in my contract wasnʼt worth the paper it was written on. He had predicted exactly what Iʼd do though, thatʼs how the power lay with him. He knew how much the move meant to me and took total advantage. As a blackmailer he held all of the cards but the whole situation barely registered with me.
I signed a form, waiving my right to any of the transfer fee and signed my contract with Aberdeen
Until my daughter came along, football was the be all and end all of my life. Quite literally, nothing else mattered. I was going to play in front of a near full house against the mighty Celtic that Sunday instead of Halifax Town in front of two thousand people and not even the prospect of losing any amount of money was going to stop me.
“George” I said. “I donʼt care about money as much as you obviously do, you can f******* keep the money. I just want to play football and in any case, I wouldnʼt want to come back and f****** work for you again.” I signed a form, waiving my right to any of the transfer fee and signed my contract with Aberdeen.
I was surprisingly calm until after training when I got back to my hotel when I realised my monthʼs wages owed from Darlington hadnʼt been put in my account and I was penniless. I had to go cap in hand to Aberdeen and ask for an advance on my wages, which they kindly obliged. I find it funny now that my first big move was in the bag but I was making my debut against Celtic whilst actually being overdrawn by £200. It wasnʼt exactly the kind of financial situation Iʼd had in mind when Iʼd imagined that big move coming.
There’s still the odd time when I sit and contemplate how that money might have helped me back then. It would’ve been more satisfying if I thought the money had gone someway towards the survival of the club that gave me the kind of help money can’t buy. Instead, I can’t help thinking it probably ended up in the same place that the £500,000 cash in the boot of his car was heading for, before he was collared by the police.
In retrospect, my suspicions and feeling of ill-ease proved to be right and I made the right decision to leave. Regretfully, the whole saga totally soured my time at Darlington which is a huge disappointment in my life. For if it wasnʼt for Darlington Football Club, I wouldnʼt have had a career at all. And for that, I will always be indebted to the club and all itʼs fans.
Ten Men Won The League says:
17 January, 2012 at 13:13
Really, Al Jazeera!! Either way it looks like the gravy train has a few more stations to go yet.
Regards my post at 12:59
Why would an Official Receiver not be appointed in respect of rangers to sell all their assets?
Cheers
A SON OF DAN 1321
Problem is that ticket income is irrelevant to their turnover,it is dependent on TV revenue.
If 5,000 turn up then that’s fine when they pick up circa 50m a year.
Everton have a fair-sizwd regular attendance,but I doubt their ticket sales breach £25m.
They have a turnover of £85m a year.
That’s a lot of pies,unless the money comes from elsewhere,and it’s not dependent on happy customers,or even ANY customers.
It’s dependent on TV money,which won’t last forever.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
True, but you can’t run a club purely on a TV audience, if no-one attends the stadium why would you use their facilities or advertise there. This must have an impact on the club.
Aston Villa have sent out a begging letter this week asking that fans return, as their attendances have plummeted.
Gordon J
The SNP government has no mandate for a referendum over Scotland’s independence. The “policy” did not appear in the SNP manifesto for the Scottish Parliamentary elections last May, and even if it had, any referendum held under the auspices of Edinburgh would have no constitutional bearing at all. The so called devomax option has more or less been addressed by the Calman Commission, and can be achieved by amending the Scotland Act itself, without any need for a referendum at all. If, hypothetically speaking, the SNP achieved 50 seats in a General Election (Sinn Fein achieved a clear majority of seats in 1918) and a clear majority in Holyrood then a case could be made for a referendum but not before. In the meantime, with the Labour Party ceasing to be the opposition under Ed Milliband and the likes of Tom Harris leading the Unionist cause in Scotland it is difficult to see anybody argue the case above.
I think we should show some support to a lad that was sacked by ranger’s fc this week, Jamie McGinness was sent home from the club’s training ground when pictures of him beside a mural at the garden of remembrance in ireland appeared on his profile page
Steven Smith of the Rangers Supporters’ Trust told the Record: “I have seen the pictures and find them abhorrent. It raises questions about how someone who follows that kind of terrorist agenda can work for Rangers
The silly Billy’s every year bring up the poppy and demand all Celtic fans should where the poppy to respect the war dead but obviously the rangers fans and rangers fc have no respect for Irelands fallen
I take it then that the queen has bn band from ibrox as she visited the very same garden of remembrance live on TV
Curtain up!
STRINGER BELL 1330
That is a truly shocking story.
It’s easy to forget that for the occasional multi-millionaire footballer screwing his club for a contract,there are many who are essentially indentured.
Where was the fit and proper person legislation when this eejit took over a cash-cow football club?
On that subject,I see Hearts haven’t paid their players again.
Is Romanov trying to force the SFA/SPL hand re the currants?
shaunbhoy29
I thought that story was a wind-up when I heard it and then found out the boy had been sacked.
One Nation unless you are ANYTHING to do with Eire…
shaunbhoy29 – We should all cook Eggs Benedict in protest. (thumbsup)
“@huddleboard: @Daily_Record Lucky you it’s “Point-Out-Double-Standards-in-Shit-Newspapers” Day today!! http://t.co/LYVnJclw #dontbuythisrag”
Stringer Bell says:
17 January, 2012 at 13:30
Thanks for sharing that article. Very revealing how con-men operate in football and the consequences for young footballers.
Árd Macha
A SON OF DAN 1341
Possibly because because their executive can see the writing on the wall.
Anyway-living not too far from Brum-I lost sympathy for AV fans when they got p-d off with MON.
What was it,3 out of three top six finishes after a few years of fighting relegation,bunch of ingrates.
I thought they got their just reward with Houllier,but keeping McLeish in the back pocket for an ultimate-see what you could have won,see what you threw away-is priceless.
BMCUWP / Ard Macha
I was astonished when I read it, smacks of the 70’s and the bad old days, but really only a shirt time ago.
Fit and proper person indeed!
Spurs 4 Celtic 1
Should have played ole Mo the bounce