The Owners - FSG

Yeh, I understand it is, I think. And it’s just wrong. The point I was trying to make, maybe not very well, is that the Premier League was formed for the same reason. The big clubs wanting a bigger slice of the pie.

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They win the (easier to win once the big five plus Spurs leave) domestic league and qualify that way.

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to be fair, the history of the club was factored into the purchase price.

Carras done himself no favors there.

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As an expat living in the US, I can confirm that all American sports are totally shit and part of the reason for that is that they are all about money. Fans have no real passion, with maybe the exception of baseball and that pales in comparison to football (or soccer over here). Baseball is pretty shit also to be honest. They are trying to do the same to football because all they care about is making money. This could seriously backfire on them though as they don’t understand the importance of club’s history, of its roots or they don’t care about this. Anyway, everyone else has said enough about it. I hate this move. I really hope it isn’t going to happen.

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I seriously second this - with the only exception being that Ice Hockey is a great sport (it’s Canadian really - but the $$ is in the U.S.) with great fans - the rest are crap - especially Baseball

Good post Kopstar. Always found it incongruent when you would talk up the conservative party back on TIA. Anyway don’t want to take this off track - I’m also cynical that we can expect genuine postive reforms to come from a Super league cabal and feel that ultimately it’s regulation that we’d need. Not sure if the current government are really outraged and suspect it’s just political virtue signalling and they’ll wave their arms and ultimately let it happen.

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Ok I have to be upfront and say, I am neither pro nor against this new ESL simply because it is just announced and plenty more details are not out yet.

But commenting on greed in football. Are we trying to say that this ESL greed is not ok, but the current greed is ok? Where is the line on greed in football now? Is the way top clubs are earning top money now ok but with the ESL it becomes not ok? Granted, 2 wrongs do not make one right. But football has already gone down a no return route many years ago. Its either they continue this make more money route or lets go back to pure sporting route where players are paid normal wages as per the rest of society, there is no such thing as commercial activities etc. In between, its all greed, ESL is no better neither is it worse.

As for the ESL itself…yes its gonna be so boring watching the same teams over and over again and sounds more like a series of exhibition matches albeit now with potential serious money. Think about it, why do Liverpool go halfway round the world say Asia and Australia for tours? Just to say thank you to the fans here? Its money. So is that greed or is that ok? In short, I don’t know much about the ESL cos of minimal details. Maybe I will feel more strongly pro or against once I understand more about the implications but for now, I find it strange that money grabbers UEFA and FIFA are calling these clubs greedy. The Irony. And maybe like I always said what happens to ‘its all about the fans’? It has never been for many years now.

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Maybe to understand what level of greed we are talking about you need to know that each club starting in the ESL will earn £3 billion before even kicking a ball.

I’m not sure but can’t imagine LFC earning combined £1 billion for all competitions they start in at the moment.

This is the level of greed we are talking about now.

If the players of the ESL are banned, as FIFA is suggesting, from competing for their country, the whole issue then takes on international implications. Firminho could not be selected for Brazil, for instance, Salah could not play for Egypt, Suarez could not play for Uraguay, and so on. This proposal impacts football on a global scale and would weaken all local, national and international competitions. Are the national football bodies outside of Europe going to put up with that?

This current proposal for football is a very similar scenario to that presented to the governing bodies of cricket by Kerry Packer in the 1970s. National bodies banned any player taking part in the “Packer Circus” from playing for their national teams. In the short term, it was a disaster for international cricket. But in the long term, it did bring about much-needed change and progress to the game.

That was cricket though, which at that time was shackled to the starched collar and stiff upper lip traditions that were holding the sport back. Packer delivered the game to the average man in the street - this proposal for football does the exact opposite.

It looks to me like a doomed project. There is too much opposition, which will only grow… These 15 “founding members” may find that they have shot themselves in the foot.

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Ok its ridiculous amount of money. And that is greed I definitely agree. So my question remains, is the current level of greed ok and better than the ESL level of greed? Where was this similar level of outrage with the current level of greed when players are demanding ridiculous wages compared to what a normal on the street earns? When the merchandise gets more and more expensive? ANd many more. Look, as I said, 2 wrongs do not make one right. I am just coming from the perspective that football has gone down this route a long time ago. Should be surprised that our club can earn 1 billion without kicking a single ball? I am not. This is the decadent state of football now as far as a sporting perspective is concerned. So we can either tell them, suck it, lets go back to just purely a sporting club. But football as a business and LFC as a sporting business will never stand still. They will just want to generate more money as long they do not break the law. Ethics have long gone in football. When racism is so prevalent, bloody FIFA and UEFA tells us they are doing their best and with paltry fines. Now just because their income is threatened, they are telling people they gonna kick the clubs out, ban the players from national teams blah blah blah…we see where football’s priorities are.

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Not quite correct. The windfall payment is €3.5 billion to be spread between the fifteen founder members.

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Sorry you’re right.

But that’s still over £200m before even playing a match.

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Look I’m not saying the Super League is good, its not what I would choose to do, but for fuck sake can people bin the sensationalism?

This is not going to destroy teams and football etc. it is only a change to the very elite.

The move MIGHT (I repeat MIGHT) make UEFA end their Champions League but probably not, just devalue it and make it easier to win, therefore making Europa League easier to win etc.!

Clubs will still be in their domestic leagues playing their national rivals. These domestic rivals can still progress in the league and cups having cinderella moments against the big clubs from their own country, can still qualify for and compete in UEFA European competition. Which they’ll stand more chance of winning.

So West Ham won’t get a dream tie coming up against Real Madrid or something, they’ll have to settle for Roma or Ajax instead, I don’t see the end of the world here!

They do well in season 1 and qualify for a UEFA competition for season 2. They do well in the UEFA competition in season 2 and qualify for the Super League in season 3. All that’s different is to meet the biggest foreign teams they need to have two good seasons not 1. At least they’ll have more chance to do well in Europe the second year. And if they do they are guaranteed to face 9 of the biggest sides in the sport as a reward. As it stands they could qualify for the Champions League and through a quirk in the draw end up with a rubbish group with no glamorous teams in it and fail to get out the group. Some fairy tale.

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When is this super league due to start (if it does)

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August 2021

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Shock horror. Businessmen invested in multi million pound industry contrive unsavoury method of making more money.

People who use their “product” are up in arms and vow to boycott them and talk about the good old days, when those businessmen were more ethical and homely with their greed.

Businessmen, who technically own the “product” listen to their consumers, sagely agree an alternative which still yields them way more money anyway.

Consumers march off smiling in the belief that they have changed the world, and that “the product” is really theirs.

Everybody experiences their own happiness.

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Also
Liverpool were set up as the PL scapegoat club in this. Super Cunt Neville with his frothing rant aimed at Liverpool? Would he say the same about Arsenal? Spurs?
Veneer job holding his own club to task.
If Liverpool had not won a few trophies in the last two years they wouldn’t be relevant in his eyes.
SKY stooge, sadly Carra us nearly as bad

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And being lauded as some great spokesmen for football fans! Gary fcking Neville, our saviour :nauseated_face: :face_vomiting:

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Financial doper of the lower leagues and “jobs for mates” with unscrupulous businessmen.

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