Financial Fair Play rules are designed to stop ultra-rich clubs from consistently ‘buying’ the Premiership title but they have an unintended consequence, bunching in the middle of the table. The top division is now divided into four sections; those which can spend £20millionish on a key player (relegation area) clubs like Fulham which can go to £40millionish (usually mid-table) then the £60millionish group (threatening top four) and finally the £100millionish toffs (consistently top five). For Fulham the only way to improve income is to qualify for Europe which means taking a huge financial risk with the FFP rules and plunging into the £60 millionish bracket on a couple of players. The figures are a rough guide and there can be brief exceptions but I think this demonstrates how money shapes the Premier League, which should be called a ‘division’ incidentally. Regards, Baz.
There is nothing "Fair" about these rules as the naming tries to suggest. If qualified for Europe numbers get even tougher to protect European teams. Europa League win gets you around 20m, which barely moves the dial.... and the PSR rules will hurt us even more. You can no longer fund the wages by making smart, low value signings and offset with higher wages as these are capped by revenue now ... hope I am wrong, but bleak times are ahead...
Financial Fair Play rules are designed to stop ultra-rich clubs from consistently ‘buying’ the Premiership title but they have an unintended consequence, bunching in the middle of the table. The top division is now divided into four sections; those which can spend £20millionish on a key player (relegation area) clubs like Fulham which can go to £40millionish (usually mid-table) then the £60millionish group (threatening top four) and finally the £100millionish toffs (consistently top five). For Fulham the only way to improve income is to qualify for Europe which means taking a huge financial risk with the FFP rules and plunging into the £60 millionish bracket on a couple of players. The figures are a rough guide and there can be brief exceptions but I think this demonstrates how money shapes the Premier League, which should be called a ‘division’ incidentally. Regards, Baz.
There is nothing "Fair" about these rules as the naming tries to suggest. If qualified for Europe numbers get even tougher to protect European teams. Europa League win gets you around 20m, which barely moves the dial.... and the PSR rules will hurt us even more. You can no longer fund the wages by making smart, low value signings and offset with higher wages as these are capped by revenue now ... hope I am wrong, but bleak times are ahead...