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When Premier League executives meet for their emergency shareholders meeting on Wednesday, the division in the room will be as wide as ever.
Radical proposals to revolutionize the structure of the English game have seen a spike of tension between the clubs, after the Daily telegraph revealed the groundbreaking story of Manchester United and Liverpool’s ‘Project Big Picture’ on Sunday. The 18-page document outlined its plan for the Premier League’s top clubs to take control of the league’s decision-making and receive a larger share of streaming revenue, while in return, shelling out a Covid bailout of £ 250 million to championship clubs. and ensure a more equitable distribution of income across the football pyramid.
However, the pyramid, the structure woven into the fabric of the English game, would not be as we know it. Of course, there would be four levels left, as they were always defined. But a new league would also be created, not officially, but with a concrete inevitability. That league is known as the ‘Big Six’: Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, United and Liverpool.
By being able to determine the distribution of income, veto proposed acquisitions, and even decide the rules of competition, the power they would accumulate by controlling the voting system would seem to leave them invincible, untouchable. And that’s without taking into account their biggest slice of the broadcast pie, which would make them earn around four times more than the clubs at the bottom of the Premier League.
But they are not the only ones who can win. It appears that an agreement has been reached with EFL President Rick Parry, who has supported the plans since the discussions began many years ago. Parry described the proposals as “the right way to go,” with the EFL set to receive the £ 250 million ransom sum that he claims is required to meet the fixtures and prevent massive bankruptcies.
Should it go into effect, Project Big Picture would also mark the end of parachute payments in favor of a boosted, but more equitable, distribution of Premier League revenue across the EFL, with an additional 17% of the money. of the upper division to share. Per club, that would see a revenue increase of around £ 15 million in the Championship, £ 3 million in League One and £ 2.5 million in League Two. To say that the EFL has been incentivized is an understatement.
The £ 250 million to EFL clubs is an “advance payment” to EFL clubs “in advance of substantially future EFL income”. Therefore, £ 250 million will be subtracted from future EFL clubs’ participation in PL TV’s offerings. Remember that EFL clubs will not be entitled to a portion of the PL rights sold by individual clubs pic.twitter.com/mua5FTLi9A
– PriceOfFootball (@KieranMaguire) October 14, 2020
The FA, perhaps a more important cog than many may have initially guessed, will also be included in generosity. As part of an agreement between them and the Premier League when football was restructured in 1992, the FA received the ‘golden share’, giving it the power to reject any fundamental changes in the first division. So you can see the thinking behind a proposed £ 100 million donation, greasing the wheels for any potential roadblock scenarios.
Given that the Women’s Super League will also be funded, the other 14 Premier League clubs could be forgiven for thinking, “Well, what do we gain from this?” The answer, to be honest, is nothing. Nothing if you are not West Ham, Southampton or Everton, of course. These clubs, along with the Big Six, are the ones that have been in the Premier League the longest, so they would be considered “long-term shareholders”, guaranteeing them voting rights under the new system.
However, even they were not aware of the secret discussions before the story came out, and it is this impoliteness, having to know new visions for their clubs in a national newspaper, that is at the root of the anger of many clubs. of the Premier League. That, coupled with the fact that financially it is only going downhill for most clubs under the new proposals.
With the Big Six enriched with up to four times more streaming revenue than the bottom of the league, the competition would be seriously distorted. A league of 18 teams would also greatly increase the threat of relegation for many clubs, leaving them more vulnerable to the revenue shortfall posed by relegation.
A statement from the Premier League read: ‘Several of the individual proposals in the plan could have a damaging impact on the entire game and we are disappointed to see that Rick Parry has provided his official support. The Premier League has been working in good faith with its clubs and the EFL to seek a resolution to the Covid-19 bailout funding requirement. This work will continue. ‘
Another setback for clubs outside the Big Six would be compliance with the new cost control measures. Currently, Premier League clubs can make losses of £ 105 million over a continuous three-year period, and money spent on stadiums, youth development and community projects is exempt from the calculations. However, the rules have long been considered somewhat lenient, especially when compared to UEFA’s stricter measures, which allow for losses of just € 30 million over the same time frame.
It is this disparity that Liverpool and United want to end and, at least from their perspective, you can understand why.
FFP maintains the status quo; gives heavyweights a significant advantage. By restricting the amount of capital that can be injected to cover losses, fledgling clubs with ambitious owners simply cannot flex their wealth in the transfer market. The Champions League income is reduced, the status of the elite is consolidated and the big clubs remain happy.
So it should come as no surprise that Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, have been advocates of regulations for a long time, and as soon as the opportunity came to accentuate that divide, they and United took a leap. It provides additional protection to its sustainable business model, preventing a Wolverhampton Wanderers or Everton from going through the Big Six bubble.
And yet the context of those two examples, Wolves and Everton, two clubs with European soccer aspirations and a willingness to spend whatever it takes to get there, begs the big question: why the hell would the other 14 vote? in favor?
A 14/20 majority is required for Project Big Picture to materialize, but how United and Liverpool hope to find eight other clubs willing to cooperate when proposals go so blatantly against their interests remains a puzzling mystery. Even players like Tottenham, Arsenal and City have reservations, while West Ham, despite the voting privileges that would be granted to them, is “very much against” according to the BBC.
As for the other clubs, it goes without saying that they are not overly impressed with the plans. In fact, not a single club has come out and expressed their support. Their stance is understood to be similar to that of the government, which sees this as an opportunistic takeover by United and Liverpool. A spokesperson for the Department of Culture, Media, Digital Media and Sport said: “We are surprised and disappointed that, in a time of crisis, we have urged the highest levels of professional football to come together and finalize an agreement to help lower- clubs in the league, it appears that secret deals are being prepared that would create a closed shop at the top of the game. “
That view was shared by Simon Jordan, the former owner of Crystal Palace, who is scathing about the motives behind the plan, describing it as “a deal with the devil” in his radio debate with Rick Parry on talkSPORT; one that “doesn’t stack, doesn’t work, and won’t happen.” Parry responded by reiterating the virtues of the plan, citing the EFL’s support, which is broadly in favor given the talk of the £ 250 million offer.
However, in the grand scheme of things, the EFL’s opinion doesn’t matter. What matters is the support of the other 14 clubs in the Premier League, the only parties with the power to ratify the proposals.
At Wednesday’s shareholders’ meeting, United and Liverpool will test the waters and collect their first formal comments. The last few days have been dominated by visions of a new game, of the rewriting of the DNA of English football, and these plans have not been taken lightly by the football community. It’s crunch time for Project Big Picture.
Toby Bowles – you can follow him on twitter
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