BlueCo have brought private equity strategy to English football's door like nothing before seen. And have made the biggest bet in football history.
Will it work?
@theathleticfc.bsky.social
𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗:
www.nytimes.com/athletic/720...
Very hard to determine (turns out the clue is in the name 😃) but yes, we do know plenty of public bodies have put into Clearlake too, such as these:
Broader point to this, not mentioned in the piece as plenty long enough already, about the money (English) football allows to flow into it
It's easy - and right - to decry sportswashing but nobody seems to have given thought to how a massive PE bet meshes w/competitive balance
BlueCo have brought private equity strategy to English football's door like nothing before seen. And have made the biggest bet in football history.
Will it work?
@theathleticfc.bsky.social
𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗:
www.nytimes.com/athletic/720...
After eight years in the Premier League, Wolves are down. They, like everyone else, have known it was coming for a long time.
If nothing else, it has given them time to prepare for what comes next.
@theathleticfc.bsky.social
w/ @stevemadeley78.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/athletic/720...
Full slate of Premier League player amortisation bills (i.e. annual cost of spreading transfer fees across player contracts) from 2024-25 here
PL/UEFA rules limit amortisation to five years, so can be (and are) differences between accounts and submissions when contracts >5 years
Or do a good enough impression that people think I do 🤔
Imagine how I feel
Excl: 4400 fake football shirts seized by UK Police in biggest raid of new pre-WC crackdown.
Op at one of the largest open markets in the UK on Saturday.
Fans fed up with high prices but police warn of wider criminality.
Free read here @theathleticfc.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/athletic/721...
I think important to note in context of 'bottling' narrative, which can still have element of truth to it
Also we only got full slate on Thursday so it's not *entirely* in response to that!
Full slate of Premier League wage bills from 2024-25 here, and pertinent following yesterday
Arsenal wages up this year but total bill £121m (25%) lower than Man City last season once latter's costs outside #MCFC entity included (note: #MCFC includes lots more admin staff)
Burnley in 132 PL games pre-30 December 2020:
• Won 44, lost 55, 1.25 points per game
Burnley in 132 PL games post-Dec 2020 leveraged takeover by ALK Capital/Velocity Sports:
• Won 22, lost 74, -100 goal diff, 0.77 points per game and (soon) three relegations in 3.5 seasons
Burnley in 132 PL games pre-30 December 2020:
• Won 44, lost 55, 1.25 points per game
Burnley in 132 PL games post-Dec 2020 leveraged takeover by ALK Capital/Velocity Sports:
• Won 22, lost 74, -100 goal diff, 0.77 points per game and (soon) three relegations in 3.5 seasons
Yes, c. £67m
Yeah that's right, Villa have to finish fifth and win EL for sixth to get CL
Yep!
Worth saying this isn't just an "Ah that's unfortunate" thing either. Chelsea's Football Earnings (PSR) loss limit w/UEFA in 2026-27 is zero, plus any headroom they have under €60m max losses this season. Breach any UEFA limit before 2029 by +€20m and they're banned from Europe
Chelsea now seven points shy of fifth and very much hoping Aston Villa win the Europa League and turn sixth into a CL spot too.
Can claim £700m revenue this season (hmm) but contains £145m in TV money which drops £65m anyway and further £40m (at least) if no CL next year
Five years this weekend since the European Super League was announced. Thankfully the perpetrators were properly punished, there's no competition which concentrates huge wealth in a handful of clubs and football is all the better
What
Unsure if you're being nice or nasty
A sentence you'd have been sectioned for uttering eight months ago
Sunderland are mathematically safe from relegation if Spurs lose this game v Brighton, btw
That quintet was bought for £83.5m, sold for £246.1m
Manager is outstanding too, of course
If we wanna talk impressive player trading, in 19 months, from Jul '24 to Jan '26, Bournemouth sold (their best) players for combined £289m, including Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez and Ouattara last summer and Semenyo in January. Only one point worse off than 24-25. Four off top five
Premier League clubs made record operating losses in 2024-25 even as revenues neared £7bn. Owners put in over £1bn, again.
"The land of supposed milk and honey is anything but."
Analysis of all 20 clubs' finances
@theathleticfc.bsky.social
𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗:
www.nytimes.com/athletic/720...
Saudi Arabia's PIF has spent £4.2billion on LIV Golf, and might be about to torpedo it.
#NUFC project funding is six times lower. But what might LIV's fate mean on Tyneside?
@theathleticfc.bsky.social
w/ @chrisdhwaugh.bsky.social & @adamcrafton.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/athletic/720...
Estimated prize money for this season's Champions League semi-finalists:
• Bayern Munich €127m (£111m)
• Arsenal €125m (£108m)
• Paris Saint-Germain €121m (£105m)
• Atletico Madrid €104m (£91m)
Further €18.5m (£16m) for finalists and €6.5m (£6m) on top for winners
With tonight's progress to the Champions League semi-finals, Arsenal's prize money from UEFA so far this season is estimated at £108million. First time club has topped £100m from Europe.
Estimated to hit £130m if they win the competition. English record: Man City 2022-23 (£117m)
PIF funding of LIV Golf since its mid-2021 launch hit $5.3billion (£4.2bn) earlier this year. Or $3m (£2.4m) every day for the past 1,750 days.
Just utterly insane amounts of money for...what?