JUDAS SCUDAMORE & CO

Greedy and money grabbing Premier League chief executive and his band of cronies should be hung out - minus their bulging wallets - and left to rot following the revelation that the way forward for the Premier League is to play an extra game per season at a venue and country TBC!

Football has undoubtedly become a commercial success in how it has sold itself globally. You can’t deny that the millions Sky pumped into football and the launching of the Premier League has been good for the clubs and have given many fans the opportunity to watch players from all over the world grace their premiership grounds. But it goes without saying that as football has succumbed to the TV paymasters they have also had to concede fixture control to the paymasters as well. In fairness, you can’t expect, Sky, BBC or Setanta to plough millions of pounds into a product without having some say in how it is promoted.

Whilst some club chairman may be rubbing their grubby hands at the prospect of an extra £5m in revenue. What about the real money people? - the fans. Fans old and new who have supported their respective clubs through thick and thin. People who have spent hundreds even thousands of pounds following the club they love, home and away. Loyal fans whose hard earned cash has allowed their clubs to survive pre mega TV deals and so on. Those very people who are the life blood of their clubs irrespective of whether they be from the local community or from further a field. For all the money the TV moguls plough into football they are not the ones who buy the replica shirts. Or buy the pre match snacks or beverages. Or buy the match day programme. Pay out monies for coach, rail travel or fuel. What about the fans who board a plane in Ireland or one of the Scandinavian countries to follow their team. Does Rupert Murdoch dash down to the City of Manchester Stadium to buy his half time draw ticket? I doubt it. But we do. Irrespective of who you support, as football fans we are all of a similar ilk - we love our clubs - not the money, not the live t v games, OUR clubs. And how do the Premier League see fit to reward those loyal fans - they want to organise a 39^th fixture, thousands of miles away, in January. How bloody stupid can you get?

OK, a very small minority of fans from every club may have the financial clout to afford such a luxury. Best of luck to those who will be able to take their seats alongside the likes of Scudamore and his gang. Who incidentally will not be paying for their travel, accommodation, seats and other legitimate expenses - but for the rest of us it’s a no goer. I appreciate that the Premier League has TV followers from all corners of the globe but if these niches are to be exploited then let the individual clubs organise close or pre season tours. There is no need to extend the league to the likes of the USA, South Africa, Malaya, Singapore, Australia or Japan etc. etc. If any residents of the aforementioned countries want to watch live Premier League football, then feel free to pay hundreds of pounds to jump on a plane, come to dear old blighty then board a train to reach your nearest station. You then have a choice of public transport or black cab to take you to your destination. On arrival you can purchase your replica shirt -(sorry no NFL or MLS merchandise - but there again that could be another money spinning idea) - programme, beer, pie etc then take up your £30 + seat. With luck you may sit next to some over weight, beer swilling yob, who yells obscenities to all and sundry and secretes spittle and half eaten chicken balti pie from his foul mouth on the unfortunate soul sat in front.

If going global is the way forward then I’ll show my a**e in Burton’s window. It is hair brained and built on greed. So club chairman may be in a position to appease the accountants and balance the books with an extra £5m in the coffers and I’m pretty sure that Mr ‘Judas’ Scudamore as chief exec of the Premier League will have a profit related bonus as part of his contract. Maybe, just maybe he might have over looked that fact when mulling over this idiotic insane brain wave!

Ask the Premier League fans what they want and I’m sure a resounding no will resonate from each and every one. I’m reasonably confident that if you polled each one of the Premiership managers whose club are currently under threat of relegation if they want to be the club who are selected to play an Arsenal, Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool or even our own City 3 times, would say no, no, no. Any chairman (or club) that is willing to risk sacrificing £30m plus of Premiership money for £5m, should be locked in a padded room and have the key thrown away.

If Johnny foreigner thinks were that shallow, then maybe he should be in the padded room and be discouraged from having sharp objects in his possession!

There are seven deadly sins - Wrath, Envy, Avarice, Gluttony, Sloth, Extravagance and Pride. How many of these apply to Scudamore, Richards and co?

And finally as they say in the dear old US of A, ‘HAVE A NICE BIG FAT DAY’!!

 

Geoff Stevenson

 

Disclaimer for Hazel Grove Blues web site:

Users of this web site do so at their own risk. To the full extent permissible by law Hazel Grove Blues shall have no liability for any damage or loss however it arises resulting from the use of or inability to use this website or any material appearing on it or from any action or decision taken as a result of using the website or any such material.

This website contains links to other sites. If users view such sites they do so at their own risk as Hazel Grove Blues has no control over the content of such sites.

The content of and any views expressed in the personal pages of this Web site are those of the person named and not necessarily those of the Hazel Grove Branch of the Manchester City Supporters Club or of The Manchester City Football Club Official Supporters Club.