2018/19 Europe Thread - It begins again

[Thelonebillsfan]

RIP Domestic European leagues, fitting that they suffer the same fate as SA leagues given what was done to them.

[Oregon Ducks]

It’s more like RIP Champion’s League if this goes through. 
 

i hate it tbh.

[PARROTHEAD]

Surprised at the teams that arnt listed. No PSG or Lyon? And surprised Lazio or Roma isnt in there. Figured theyd have Rome represented. German teams I understand due to the 51/49.

Now I gotta get up at 4am to get some ManU stock before it rockets. 🚀 💲

Edited April 19, 2021 by PARROTHEAD

[persiandud]

As a Chelsea supporter I'm really disappointed in my club, as well as the other "founding clubs" in this new breakaway league. This goes against the spirit of football. There is no relegation/promotion from this league, and the Champions League will be a shell of itself as a result of this 

[Oregon Ducks]

38 minutes ago, PARROTHEAD said:

Surprised at the teams that arnt listed. No PSG or Lyon? And surprised Lazio or Roma isnt in there. Figured theyd have Rome represented. German teams I understand due to the 51/49.

Now I gotta get up at 4am to get some ManU stock before it rockets. 🚀 💲

Man U aren’t doing all that great financially. The Glazers are screwing them.

 

[Thelonebillsfan]

1 hour ago, Oregon Ducks said:

It’s more like RIP Champion’s League if this goes through. 
 

i hate it tbh.

If you have 4-6 teams from the domestic leagues making an extra $500M-1B a year then it's RIP domestic leagues, especially since they'll never play A-side players against their domestic competition because they have a game in the "Super League" 2 days later and why bother. That's not even discussing the stupid "rotating 5". Like say Celtic is one of those 5 spots one year and gets an extra $1B? Their already basically insurmountable competitive edge becomes laughable, they'd never lose a game.

Death knell, it's the beginning of the slow decline of domestic play because at a point there just won't be the ability for the lower tier teams to keep up financially, hell we're already at that point functionally for a lot of the EPL. The US has become a corroding influence on sports the world over thanks to all these rich ***** who buy them as an asset rather than as a sporting team. This ends with some 32-36 team super league intercontinental structure with divisions and a playoff system to maximize as much TV money as possible. Sucks. Whole thing sucks.

Edited April 19, 2021 by Thelonebillsfan

[Thelonebillsfan]

36 minutes ago, Oregon Ducks said:

Man U aren’t doing all that great financially. The Glazers are screwing them.

 

This is what they've turned the sport into, these aren't local clubs anymore they're just another asset for some rich jerk to dump debt into to finance other stuff.

[PARROTHEAD]

55 minutes ago, Thelonebillsfan said:

If you have 4-6 teams from the domestic leagues making an extra $500M-1B a year then it's RIP domestic leagues, especially since they'll never play A-side players against their domestic competition because they have a game in the "Super League" 2 days later and why bother. That's not even discussing the stupid "rotating 5". Like say Celtic is one of those 5 spots one year and gets an extra $1B? Their already basically insurmountable competitive edge becomes laughable, they'd never lose a game.

Death knell, it's the beginning of the slow decline of domestic play because at a point there just won't be the ability for the lower tier teams to keep up financially, hell we're already at that point functionally for a lot of the EPL. The US has become a corroding influence on sports the world over thanks to all these rich ***** who buy them as an asset rather than as a sporting team. This ends with some 32-36 team super league intercontinental structure with divisions and a playoff system to maximize as much TV money as possible. Sucks. Whole thing sucks.

Im not seeing it as that big of a deal. These teams already had separation within their leagues. Top 3 in LaLiga have a salary cap 150 million above the 7th team. Top 2 teams 250 million over 7th. Top 2 (Madrid/Barca) 310 million above the 9th team.

Premier League isnt much different. Top 6 spend 120m or more on their squads. Yet the league avg is under 80. Cause theres 7/8 teams spending in the 50m range or less.

These teams are already killing their own leagues with others trying to be competitive. And there are for example multiple Serie A teams begging for someone to buy them right now. Including Parma, Genoa, Sampdoria, Sassuolo, Hellas and Torino. Cardiff City reported over half of the EFL Champ teams are for sale.

The best thing these leagues can do for themselves is get rid of these power teams. It will draw them less money overall. But those 6 in the Premier were soaking up a major chunk of that anyway. Boot them and that 80m avg to compete drops massively. And filters down through the lower leagues. Problem is they wont be booted because the EPL will want their name brands to help bring in huge tv deals. Even if theyre soaking up a large chunk for themselves anyway. And the continuation of destroying lower level teams will continue.

[Buc Ball]

1 hour ago, Thelonebillsfan said:

If you have 4-6 teams from the domestic leagues making an extra $500M-1B a year then it's RIP domestic leagues, especially since they'll never play A-side players against their domestic competition because they have a game in the "Super League" 2 days later and why bother. That's not even discussing the stupid "rotating 5". Like say Celtic is one of those 5 spots one year and gets an extra $1B? Their already basically insurmountable competitive edge becomes laughable, they'd never lose a game.

Death knell, it's the beginning of the slow decline of domestic play because at a point there just won't be the ability for the lower tier teams to keep up financially, hell we're already at that point functionally for a lot of the EPL. The US has become a corroding influence on sports the world over thanks to all these rich ***** who buy them as an asset rather than as a sporting team. This ends with some 32-36 team super league intercontinental structure with divisions and a playoff system to maximize as much TV money as possible. Sucks. Whole thing sucks.

Insurmountable competitive edge?
 

I’ve got some very troubling news for you...

[Buc Ball]

I can’t see a European Super League ever happening. It will kill football and that’s no exaggeration.

Hopefully the FA and the EPL tell the clubs involved to either back down or they’re out the domestic league. They’ve already breached the FA’s rules by signing up to this new Super League and should be held accountable. 

English football without those six clubs has a much better chance of surviving in its current form than if it had those six clubs in a different financial galaxy to the rest of the league. Part of the motivation for this is that they “don’t want another Leicester City”, which says it all really. 

Illustrious clubs (plus Man City, Spurs and Chelsea) scared of competition. Laughable.

[PARROTHEAD]

26 minutes ago, Buc Ball said:

I can’t see a European Super League ever happening. It will kill football and that’s no exaggeration.

Hopefully the FA and the EPL tell the clubs involved to either back down or they’re out the domestic league. They’ve already breached the FA’s rules by signing up to this new Super League and should be held accountable. 

English football without those six clubs has a much better chance of surviving in its current form than if it had those six clubs in a different financial galaxy to the rest of the league. Part of the motivation for this is that they “don’t want another Leicester City”, which says it all really. 

Illustrious clubs (plus Man City, Spurs and Chelsea) scared of competition. Laughable.

https://metro.co.uk/2021/04/18/premier-league-threatens-to-ban-big-six-over-european-super-league-plans-14430887/?ito=newsnow-feed

Seems like theyre ready to go there.

 

[Hunter2_1]

14 hours ago, Oregon Ducks said:

Also I find it hypocritical that a West Ham supporter is screaming about how someone else made their money. Y’all have been garbage for the better part of 30 years but still are one of the top 20 most valuable teams in the world. Certainly it doesn’t have anything to do with performance.

How do you think your country obtained their riches? Certainly wasn’t ethical...

Anyways, off my soapbox.

I'm not saying we are clean, in-fact I hate our ownership and most of the fans do too. 

You are comparing apples to oranges though. City and PSG are pretty much in their own scummy category when it comes to money injection.

 

"According to the German magazine, City have spent much of the past decade trying to get around European football’s financial fair play rules with inflated sponsorship deals, an elaborate image rights scheme and hidden contracts. The rules are supposed to help level the playing field and stop rich clubs buying success.

“As a growing number of Manchester City fans will be aware, the success of the club has involved a close relationship with a country that relies on exploited migrant labour and locks up peaceful critics and human rights defenders.”

https://www.theguardian.com/law/2018/nov/11/manchester-city-owners-accused-sportswashing-gulf-image

 

from the same group of people that brought you...

"Children who spoke to Anti-Slavery International said that they were underfed to keep their weight down, forced to work long hours with either minimal or no pay, and beaten. UNICEF reported that some children were also sexually abused. Save the Children described harrowing stories of children stung by scorpions while they tried to sleep, children bitten in the face by camels as they posed for photos with victorious sheikhs, children given electric shocks for stealing dates intended for the camels, and child jockeys trampled and left untreated in the backs of vans.

Information submitted to the UN Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery in 2001 included details of the death of a seven-year-old Bangladeshi as the result of kidney damage sustained during a camel race in Dubai, and described how the ‘smashing of genitals is common and indescribably painful.’ In Qatar, the injuries suffered during races were so severe that a group of doctors published an article in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine. The article revealed that out of the 275 children aged between five and fifteen, who were admitted to hospital for injuries sustained in camel racing or training between 1992 and 2003, nearly a quarter had head injuries with a high number of skull fractures and brain injuries. Of 18 children with neck injuries, five ended up with permanent spinal cord disabilities. In a BBC article from 2005, a child tells of the punishment meted out to a disobedient jockey: “There was a child in the camp, and because he wanted to leave the camp and go to Dubai, one of the racetrack owners ran over the child in a truck and killed him.”

The description of the jockeys as children doesn’t do justice to the horror of this situation. An award-winning documentary, “Sport of Sheikhs”, first aired on HBO in 2004 (and now available on YouTube) contains footage of children as young as 3 years old being strapped onto camels for training runs. The jockeys were infants. Once a child reached 20 kg he was deemed too heavy and surplus to requirements. One of many former camel jockeys I spoke to in Bangladesh in 2011 said that he was injected with anti-growth hormones to keep his weight down."

https://www.josimar.no/artikler/the-men-behind-manchester-city-the-dark-side/5040/

 

Manchester City fans who feel their club has been unfairly singled out for scrutiny, but the football fans who can step back from their narrow tribal loyalties will realise that the story of the Gulf’s child slaves should serve as a cautionary tale for anyone who cares about the long-term health of the game and not just the short-term success of one club

 

So yeah, you can talk about 'old money and new money' and every business' shady practices - but show me all the clubs that are funded by literally a nation and its sheikhs who abuse humans, children etc. That's without the financial doping that is clearly against FFP, but ya know...money. At least they play good football though, right? @PARROTHEAD 

I'm not excusing my club (or my country). Like I said, I hate our ownership. But it's cool knowing I can cheer for a team that isn't associated with torture.

 

 

Edited April 19, 2021 by Hunter2_1

[Hunter2_1]

 

Well, not surprised. 

Our government are apparently stepping in;

“Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, is to make a statement to the Commons on Monday afternoon, probably at about 5pm. It is understood that officials in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are examining what powers the government might have to stop the plan, and what action it could take.” - we'll see. Probably just all for show.

 

I love Gaz Nev haha

Edited April 19, 2021 by Hunter2_1

[PARROTHEAD]

4 hours ago, Hunter2_1 said:

I'm not saying we are clean, in-fact I hate our ownership and most of the fans do too. 

You are comparing apples to oranges though. City and PSG are pretty much in their own scummy category when it comes to money injection.

 

"According to the German magazine, City have spent much of the past decade trying to get around European football’s financial fair play rules with inflated sponsorship deals, an elaborate image rights scheme and hidden contracts. The rules are supposed to help level the playing field and stop rich clubs buying success.

“As a growing number of Manchester City fans will be aware, the success of the club has involved a close relationship with a country that relies on exploited migrant labour and locks up peaceful critics and human rights defenders.”

https://www.theguardian.com/law/2018/nov/11/manchester-city-owners-accused-sportswashing-gulf-image

 

from the same group of people that brought you...

"Children who spoke to Anti-Slavery International said that they were underfed to keep their weight down, forced to work long hours with either minimal or no pay, and beaten. UNICEF reported that some children were also sexually abused. Save the Children described harrowing stories of children stung by scorpions while they tried to sleep, children bitten in the face by camels as they posed for photos with victorious sheikhs, children given electric shocks for stealing dates intended for the camels, and child jockeys trampled and left untreated in the backs of vans.

Information submitted to the UN Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery in 2001 included details of the death of a seven-year-old Bangladeshi as the result of kidney damage sustained during a camel race in Dubai, and described how the ‘smashing of genitals is common and indescribably painful.’ In Qatar, the injuries suffered during races were so severe that a group of doctors published an article in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine. The article revealed that out of the 275 children aged between five and fifteen, who were admitted to hospital for injuries sustained in camel racing or training between 1992 and 2003, nearly a quarter had head injuries with a high number of skull fractures and brain injuries. Of 18 children with neck injuries, five ended up with permanent spinal cord disabilities. In a BBC article from 2005, a child tells of the punishment meted out to a disobedient jockey: “There was a child in the camp, and because he wanted to leave the camp and go to Dubai, one of the racetrack owners ran over the child in a truck and killed him.”

The description of the jockeys as children doesn’t do justice to the horror of this situation. An award-winning documentary, “Sport of Sheikhs”, first aired on HBO in 2004 (and now available on YouTube) contains footage of children as young as 3 years old being strapped onto camels for training runs. The jockeys were infants. Once a child reached 20 kg he was deemed too heavy and surplus to requirements. One of many former camel jockeys I spoke to in Bangladesh in 2011 said that he was injected with anti-growth hormones to keep his weight down."

https://www.josimar.no/artikler/the-men-behind-manchester-city-the-dark-side/5040/

 

Manchester City fans who feel their club has been unfairly singled out for scrutiny, but the football fans who can step back from their narrow tribal loyalties will realise that the story of the Gulf’s child slaves should serve as a cautionary tale for anyone who cares about the long-term health of the game and not just the short-term success of one club

 

So yeah, you can talk about 'old money and new money' and every business' shady practices - but show me all the clubs that are funded by literally a nation and its sheikhs who abuse humans, children etc. That's without the financial doping that is clearly against FFP, but ya know...money. At least they play good football though, right? @PARROTHEAD 

I'm not excusing my club (or my country). Like I said, I hate our ownership. But it's cool knowing I can cheer for a team that isn't associated with torture.

 

 

Quote

As a growing number of Manchester City fans will be aware, the success of the club has involved a close relationship

"A close relationship".  Everyone using an Iphone, wearing Nikes, using Amazon, watching the NBA and all else have just as close a relationship with such.

And want to talk close. How bout your Karen Bradys direct involvement with these very people?

So Zayed with no proven involvement with such activities is guilty of something. While Karen who willfully associated and wanted to be so embedded with these people she resorted to pimping her own daughter to them somehow makes her team worthy enough to cheer.

[Kip Smithers]

I can’t be the only who isnt nearly as outraged, if at all, at this news. Saw this coming. Tell me one thing in this world that isn’t monetised? Monetisation leads to greed. Football will survive. Just like premier league did when it broke off from the football league. Now am I for this? Not really. I don’t believe that teams should have indefinite stay. Merit needs matter. Though same time the top teams were always gonna remain the top teams largely. There was already a substantial gap between the top teams and the rest which seemed insurmountable, this just basically doubles down on that.