Football News » Editorial » Editorial August 2010
Editorial August 2010
Soccerphile Editorial - August 2010
Rocking the boat
It's not only on the pitch that English Premier League newcomers Blackpool have attempted to rock the establishment in the first few weeks of their top flight return for the first time in half a century.
Headline-makers on the back of the team's 4-0 upset of Wigan Athletic on the opening day, the back office couldn’t wait to get in on the act in midweek.
However, the success of former Blackpool chairman Karl Oyston's attempts to convince his longstanding EPL counterparts to reduce spending on agents' fees wasn't quite in the same category at that historic result at the DW Stadium last Saturday.
Opinion is split on whether Oyston, the millionaire businessman who has transformed the seasider's fortunes during his 11 years as chairman, is best described as a maverick, naïve or simply a penny-pincher.
But the official figures released this week seem to bear out his argument that agents are draining unnecessary and unavoidable millions from football in England.
Some stats. Spending on agents' fees increased by £3.9 million across the whole of the Football League in the 12 months to this June, spiralling to a whopping £12.7 million for the 72 league clubs, a rise of nearly 45%.
In addition, the number of clubs not using agents dropped from 19 a year ago to just 14.
Oyston's long-held view is that using agents to buy players is not a prerequisite for success - and he proved that theory last season.
Blackpool spent just £40,000 of the Championship total of more than £10 million and were still promoted ahead of ambitious Middlesbrough (who accounted for a staggering £1.4 million themselves).
With that moral success in his back pocket, he bravely confronted his fellow Premier League chairmen this week but came away from the meeting so disillusioned he promptly resigned from his post.
Oyston has not been afraid to rock the boat on this topic in the past (he has previously admitted to being offered bungs by agents to sign certain players) and is also refusing to play ball with the Premier League's out-of-control player salaries.
On both points he argues the perhaps outdated view that players should show a desire to play for their employers and that ultimately they will be the ones to miss out through their, or their agents', excessive demands.
Although swimming against the tide (Premier League clubs are still under no obligation to disclose their payments to agents), you have to feel he has a strong case.
Relegated Hull City and Portsmouth spent in the region of £5 million and £10 million respectively on agents' fees in the past year and are both on the brink of financial ruin.
The embattled pair also lavished players with ridiculous wages given their salaries:turnover ratio, something that Blackpool are again keeping in some perspective.
Oyston has slapped a £10,000 per week wage limit on Blackpool manager Ian Holloway, a figure that might have made his summer recruitment campaign a far more challenging task, but will ensure that relegation or otherwise Blackpool will still be in business next season and beyond.
Hull and Portsmouth supporters would love that kind of security - just ask them.
| Editorials 2007 | Editorials 2008 | Editorials 2009 | January 2010 | February 2010 | March 2010 | April 2010 | May 2010 | June 2010 | July 2010
|
|
