OT - Newcastle United (soccer) Set to Become Richest Club on the Planet
For those interested, it looks like the drama is finally ending and the takeover is actually going through. This year really is looking to turn things around for this otherwise depressed UM and Newcastle supporter.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:05 PM ^
And I'm sure this is skewed somewhat, but still.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:16 PM ^
Where's AFC Richmond on here?
October 7th, 2021 at 12:44 PM ^
Don't fully understand this; is this because the new owner is ridiculously wealthy compared to the owners of the other teams? Also, does this have much practical impact, or does the Premier League not have spending caps? Because I thought I read that Barcelona couldn't have resigned Messi even if they wanted to (which it seems like they did, but the La Liga rejected it), since they hit their spending cap (which is tied to revenue or something)...
October 7th, 2021 at 12:49 PM ^
I'm guessing it's a comparison of overall wealth. But yes, there are financial fair play rules in effect that will prevent the new owners from just dumping a ton of money into the team. My understanding with the Messi situation was the result of specific La Liga rules.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:06 PM ^
If you believe in Financial fair play you have not been following Man City transfer spending the last few years.
October 7th, 2021 at 2:54 PM ^
Man City haven't really spent that much in the last few years. 100 mil for graelish, but sold 60 mil worth of players this last window. Peps second year they splashed the cash, but what they were in trouble for with FFP was pre 2014 stuff, when they did splash tons and tons of cash into the team. Man United has spent almost as much as City in the last decade, yet they are in debt, like Barcelona and Real Madrid. Barcelona lost 438 mil last year alone, and couldn't even resign Messi. Maybe their dumb asses shouldn't have signed players like Greisman for 140 mil or Coutinho for 140 mil. But hey Man City is the bad guy here. LOL.PSG wage bill is off the freaking charts, yet one of their board is a member of the UEFA governing body so unlikely an investigation would take place. If you believe FFP is anything other than the power clubs trying desperately to hold onto power and putting in rules so that new Man City types can't emerge, then you are fooling yourself. All I ever hear from whiners and complainers is about Man City, when that club has actually reinvested in the City, has bought clubs all over the world, and built a quality football group, and isn't in debt. FFP is bullshit, and I say good for Newcastle and their fans. Spend it if you got it, I say.
October 7th, 2021 at 3:21 PM ^
This is why Manchester United is in debt. No because of negligent transfers.
United were debt-free when the Glazers took over in 2005, but the takeover deal advised on by Woodward reportedly saddled the club with over £500 million ($920m) worth of debt .
Malcolm Glazer financed much of the takeover with loans, using a ‘leveraged buyout plan’ rather than their own money, much to the unhappiness of their fans.
This involves borrowing money against a future asset to buy said asset, in this case incurring interest payments of over £60 million ($110m) per annum.
In the years since, it is widely reported the takeover has cost the club well over £1 billion ($1.3bn) in interest and other fees.
October 7th, 2021 at 3:33 PM ^
I didn't say it was due to negligent transfers, but debt is debt. There transfer history isn't that great either. Look at the players they bought and the return of investment. Lots of wasted money there and very little in the way of silverware. Meanwhile City have spent slightly more, but aren't paying anyone anything close to Alexis Sanchez wages or Ronaldo wages and they are bringing silverware home every campaign, and they've won the most important prize, the premier league, 5 out of the last 10 years, and are on the cusp of the second biggest prize, a champions league. Hell, this year they couldn't buy a striker because they were unwilling to go higher than 100 mil, and they will still be right there at the end of the season. City are a much better run club than United at this point.
October 7th, 2021 at 5:17 PM ^
Man City couldn't sniff the Premiere League for decades until Abu Dhabi group (oil money) bought the club and started spending freely.
Man City is the definition of Fair Play violation.
Hell, the year Abu Dhabi Group bought them they broke the transfer record
October 8th, 2021 at 3:08 PM ^
City wasn't close to the premier league title, but relegation wasn't a frequent thing either. They were middle of the pack team. Of course they splashed the cash when the takeover happened because the BULLSHIT FFP rules weren't in place in 2008. Like I said, any violation that occurred happened before 2014, and City were subsequently punished for it, paid the fine and, end of story. Now they are the best run club in the land. Making tons of revenue and have operated quite efficiently in the last 7 years, to the point where they are one of the top clubs financially, based off revenue. We have 5 out of the last 10 premier leagues and have faced corrupt UEFA and the FA, and won recently. They are the definition of a well run club. Cry some more, they will win the league again this year.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:44 PM ^
Couldn't they pump their own money into advertisements therefore increasing revenue so they can purchase players?
October 7th, 2021 at 12:49 PM ^
This is misleading. That would only really be the case if the PIF sold all of its other holdings, and dumped all of it's cash into Newcastle United, but that won't be happening. As it stands, the Newcastle deal is worth about £300 million, and certainly $500 billion (which is what the fund is worth) will not be poured in to it.
October 7th, 2021 at 5:44 PM ^
Wonder if "Newcaslte" is the way they spell it in the U.K. Same goes for "Brigthon".
October 7th, 2021 at 12:07 PM ^
They need it. Mike Ashley has been a disgrace there.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:09 PM ^
It's been a long, long 14 years.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:14 PM ^
Absolutely brutal. Was just talking to a buddy the other day reminiscing about Shearer, Asprilla, Gillespie, Hislop etc. those were better days
October 7th, 2021 at 12:43 PM ^
They didn't win anything then, either.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:50 PM ^
Most newcastle fans don't demand championships and trophies. They won a lot of games and they did it playing good, positive soccer.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:19 PM ^
Thoughts on Newcastle Brown Ale? I could go either way.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:23 PM ^
I share that sentiment, but I'm going to have to stop and pick some up to celebrate tonight, and I imagine they'll be the best I've had in some time.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:40 PM ^
It's not bad, had it at Ashley's a few times. Not exactly high end, but I was always partial to JW Dundee's Honey Brown...
October 7th, 2021 at 2:21 PM ^
For the cheaper beers that are not the macro lager crowd, I actually like Newcastle and it's quite easy to put them down quickly. My Dad always bought the Honey Brown when he was trying to impress friends or family. Never really worked but he's still a likeable guy.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:55 PM ^
Americans always complain about it, but that's because they stupidly drink it cold.
Don't drink any English ale cold. Ever
October 7th, 2021 at 2:17 PM ^
Exactly. That's why I always put my British beers in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Nice and toasty.
I mean - that's what they do in England, right?
October 7th, 2021 at 2:14 PM ^
"You know what this is??! This comes from where Venom come from, it's called Newcastle Brown Ale! IT KNOCKS YOU ON YOUR FUCKIN' BACK, LET ME TELL YOU!!"
October 7th, 2021 at 12:24 PM ^
I wouldn't be enthusiastic about Saudis buying up a soccer team I supported.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:35 PM ^
Maybe they just want the takeover so they can use a new stadium for the public beheadings.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:40 PM ^
I get what you're saying, and I don't ask anyone to care about a soccer club I happen to follow. But let me ask just ask this, and be honest, is there anything that you're actually enthusiastic about? Based upon your recent posting history, it certainly isn't Michigan football.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:51 PM ^
Maybe it's just me but I don't put sports success over human rights.
October 7th, 2021 at 2:00 PM ^
Sports success is a human right.
October 7th, 2021 at 2:37 PM ^
Based upon your recent posting history, it certainly isn't Michigan football.
Yes, I've been listening to WTKA on a near-daily basis since 1994, have been visiting MGoBlog multiple times daily since before 2008, and follow Michigan football partisans like Sam Webb, Scott Bell, Jumbo Elliott, and Space Coyote on twitter because I'm unenthusiastic about Michigan football.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:26 PM ^
So how can Newcastle's pocketbook open under Financial Fair Play rules? They'll have lots of cash to spend, but I assume they can't just open the floodgates.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:41 PM ^
The club has actually been profitable in the past couple years, which gives them extra room to operate to the tune of approximately $200M. That won't all go into players, but the investment strategy is long-term and potentially enormous.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:52 PM ^
Got it. Thanks. So they are in a good position to spend some cash on a few players. Are FFP spending rules linked explicitly to the amount of club profit over a rolling period? I'm an EPL newbie (Wolves fan), so I'm very hazy on the financial aspects. I understand that Man City might have used creative accounting to avoid FFP penalties in recent years, but those details were way over my head.
It would be kinda funny if Newcastle get relegated this year before that cash can be put to use.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:03 PM ^
Honestly, I'm not up to snuff on the FFP rules myself since there was never any likelihood that they'd apply to Newcastle until now. I do know that Man City's owners took over and invested heavily before the FFP rules went into effect. I'm not sure about their more recent activities. All I know is that PSG is supposedly subject to FFP, so there has to be a way for Newcastle to benefit from the newly available funds.
October 7th, 2021 at 3:03 PM ^
PSG is supposedly subject to FFP, but give me a break if you think anyone is adhearing to it in that French farmers league. Hell, one their board sits on UEFA governing board, so even though their wage bill for Messi, Mbappe and Neymar alone is probably higher than most teams, they will never be investigated. Man City, has nobody on a governing board and has had to settle with UEFA in 2014 and then re-tried based off "new info" and cleared by the CAS last year. No team has had to put up with more bullshit over the last ten years than Man City. I say Newcastle, spend away, and compete. If you aren't in debt, you should be able to pour into your team whatever you want in my opinion. FFP has always been away for the traditional big clubs to keep clubs like City and now Newcastle out of the game. Look at Barcelona and Real Madrid. Both those clubs should be thoroughly investigated. Real Madrid gets bailed out by the Spanish government for crying out loud, and Barca have made some truly bad buys, and are in mountains of debt because of it.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:35 PM ^
Newcastle has been going downhill ever since they sold Santiago Munez at the start of Goal II
October 7th, 2021 at 12:36 PM ^
Another reason to not watch the Premier League.
I support Forest Green Rovers, a fourth-tier club in a community, with a commitment to the environment.
And I feel good doing it. You all should as well.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:45 PM ^
You absolutely should. Locally, I follow DCFC and a more local non-professional team. In fact, I started following Newcastle well before any of this precisely because the club had a blue-collar history and was exciting to watch at the time.
Like you seem to be, I was turned off by new American followers flocking to ManU, ManCity, and Chelsea. If I were interested in it today, I'd probably choose to follow Everton, Leeds, Wolves, or West Ham.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:01 PM ^
I get your sentiment, but in reality if people aren't connected to a team due to its geographic proximity in relation to where they live, then they will connect to a team that is a winner.
I'm one of those Americans that flocked to Man United in the 90s, but this was because they were one of the few teams whose games were actually on TV in the US at the time, and I grew to like the players and the way Man U played the game. I don't see why anyone without a local connection would want to root for a Middlesbrough or Nottingham Forrest, or Barnsley or something, and it would be just as disingenuous if they did.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:22 PM ^
I really got engaged in EPL last year for the first time. It was probably a pandemic thing combined with the fact that I was totally disinterested in college football. I decided that I needed to pick a squad to follow so I had some rooting skin in the game, but I definitely didn't want to select any of the big clubs. I wanted a plucky underdog. So Wolves it was, based largely on Wolverhampton's linguistic similarity to Wolverines. As soon as I declared my allegiance in a hat selection ceremony aired on YouTube, Jimenez suffered his horrible injury. But I did get to watch many minutes filled with Traore's arms and legs glistening in the sun and rain. And then Nuno left for Spurs. So much drama. My one year fandom has been sorely tested, but I'm firmly committed to Wolves' future success.
October 7th, 2021 at 1:42 PM ^
This is the way.
October 7th, 2021 at 2:38 PM ^
I predict Wolves get relegated this year. Enjoy the process.
October 7th, 2021 at 6:01 PM ^
If that happens, I'll follow them in Championship. But I'll probably adopt another EPL team so I can watch mucho football on the weekends (my wandering eye is checking out Brighton, Brentford, and Leeds this season!).
October 8th, 2021 at 10:38 AM ^
You already are turning into a fair weather fan when you specifically chose a team due to fair weather fans haha.
October 7th, 2021 at 3:07 PM ^
I've been a Man City fan since 2000 when we were fighting relegation and genuinely were pretty bad. So thankful for the takeover in 2008, and it's been a lovely last 12 years. Playing the best brand of soccer in the land for quite a while also. No shame in my fandom.
October 7th, 2021 at 6:07 PM ^
Everton: The Peoples' Club.
Go Toffees.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:45 PM ^
They still have to get elite players to move to Newcastle.......which....yeah.
October 7th, 2021 at 12:52 PM ^
I mean elite players move to Manchester which is a pretty depressing place
October 7th, 2021 at 2:14 PM ^
Normally I would mock soccer. But if one perused the depths of my posting history, one would find an admission of my being a Newcastle fan.
I will not mock soccer today. Onward to purchased glory!!!