The argument over whether the current financial flow in football works is now over says FairGame.
In the space of three days, two hard-hitting reports
exploded any semblance of doubt.Seven days ago, a new study from BDO,
the fifth largest accountancy and business advisory firm in the world,
revealed that half of English football league clubs admit their finances
"need attention".Then 72 hours later, the UK Innovation published their 25-page report, Counting the Cost of COVID-19 on Professional Football Clubs and Their Communities.
The report was written by acclaimed financial experts Dr Daniel
Plumley, Robbie Millar, Adam Davis, Richard Coleman & Dr Rob Wilson
from Sheffield Hallam University.The
conclusion was simple and brutal: “The time for self-interest is over.
Football clubs need to come together now more than ever to safeguard the
finances of the game for the future.”You can read our reaction to the Sheffield Hallam report here.In between the release of those two reports, Nick Harris of the Mail on Sunday revealed in a Tweet that the clubs of the English Premier League had set a new record on spending in transfers – a massive £1.465bn.
That
figure is THIRTY times more than the Premier League gives in funding to
the 140 clubs of League One, League Two, the National League, the
National League North, the National League South and the Women’s Game
PUT TOGETHER.In short, the current financial flow of football does not work.