Television rights - individual overseas rights deals.

[nick harper]

It's the first step towards a European League, no question. All these foreign owners, including Lerner I guess, have invested in this, in the hope of getting on the gravy train. It's not about the fans, the clubs, the history of the game in this country - it's about making money.

Let them go and watch the fall out from Liverpool, ManU fans when they're not playing agains teams in this country.

I don't think that its about making money, I think that its about owners looking for ways to stop losing so much money.

Are there any owners who are actually making enough of a profit to make owning a football team worth all the time and effort.

I don't believe that there are many owners, regardless of their nationality, who are only in this for the money. Ego and prestige definitely, but not money.

These owners are not in this for philanthropic reasons or to re-create the glory days for fans although that may be a by product. They invested because of the cash cow that is the Premier League and the worldwide thirst for seeing live football (for the big clubs), and the potential revenue that is out there.

[Dante Lavelli]

Where's that Liverpool fan that used to post on here when you need an alternative view?

It's ironic that Liverpool bring this up now, just after the players in Spain have been on strike.  In less earth shattering events I recall that people of this parish were discussing how the spanish tv deal was essentially wrong and had destroyed their league (I think it was when talking about the German league).  It's fair to say we're a pretty unbiased audience there so the idea must be massively flawed.

[Dante Lavelli]

As a slightly worrying aside, do you think Randy would vote in favour of such a move?
If he is looking to better his investment then this could be a good way of doing it....

Although thinking of the numbers I'd guess that we would receive less than we do now, so possibly not.

[bertlambshank]

Funny how this comes out the week the commons are talking about 96 Liverpool fans losing their life's.
That club has turned into the worst in Britain.
I hate them more than Chelsea.
If I was a Liverpool fan I would letting the board know how I feel.Disgusting.

[Mister E]

Maybe this is how a euro Superleague gets started.  If everybody who thinks they have a global following gets individual TV deals then they will have cut themselves off from the rest, effectively because they can.

I agree.
Just for perspective, ManUre earned £42-ish mill from Premiership / FAC TV rights in the 2009-10 season and were able to top that up with £60-ish mill from Chumps Lge TV rights. So, they already earn more from TV £££ than we do from our three main income streams.

The question in my mind is: "is this Liverpool stirring things up aherad of the next TV deal negotiations or are they serious about breaking away?" Either way, teams like us lose out, 'cos those clubs with the biggest interest from Asia have the whip hand.

This outcomes - breakaway TV deals and Euro-Chumps schisms - are pretty inevitable and the roots for their emergence come from the merchandising strategies of the 1990's / 2000's as much as from on-field successes. Our venerable Ol' President Emeritus missed the trends way back in the day ... it was pointed out by some people at the time that the volume and £££ was eastwards-focussed.

We - not being in the top six (both footballing and fan-wise) - will have to await the collapse / maturity / implosion of the TV-£££ driven global growth of the Pree-e-e-e-emiership; if we can survive that long.

Happy days!

[oldtimernow]

and it came to pass that there were only 4 clubs in the Super premier league playing each other over and over and over again.............

not interesting to me so I wouldn't pay for that........bring it on

[Risso]

As a slightly worrying aside, do you think Randy would vote in favour of such a move?
If he is looking to better his investment then this could be a good way of doing it....

That depends entirely on whether he thinks he could get more for Villa's rights than he does under the present deal.  I can't see that we'd be that big a draw, so I suspect our deal wouldn't be as good.

[oldtimernow]

actually I think this is just an early negotiating ploy so that Lplop can claim their 'rightful' unequal share of the filthy lucre that is destroying the game.

Should we expect anything less from them?

[fbriai]

It's not even the thin end of the wedge. The thin end was about twenty years ago and the wedge is apparently stilling widening healthily.

It's all about the rich getting richer.

[steffo]

Just say the top 4/5 teams managed to secure the overseas rights. How much do you think the Red Scouse v Red Manc game on Saturday would nett, bearing in mind it's prime time in the far east?

This one game will bring in a lot more than the current agreement. I see their point, even though i don't agree with it.

[Damo70]

I can't see them getting fourteen votes for something which suits five clubs and shafts fifteen. How nice of Mr Ayre to concede they need the likes of Bolton in one respect because they need opposition to play to make the money. I reckon they really need the likes of Bolton because I've checked the fixture list and I couldn't see any dates when they are due to play Barcelona or Real Madrid.

[Reformation]

Good. Let them all. Which no doubt Spuds will join in and consist of the 5 other clubs.

Then we and the rest can organise a break away league, a true top tier, part of the actual football league based on a more equal model. Their crappy 6 club league would stand alone and will be pretty boring without relegations thus reducing the overall appeal. A 6 club competition, wow how exciting(!). We can even let them have the shitty name 'premiership' just for Sky's good measure.

Eventually they'll start playing more games abroad and forget their true identity loosing their core fan base whilst we, Everton and other clubs who stayed true to what football is grow in strength nationally and profit from their decline for being corporate whores.

[Risso]

I wouldn't be too upset if the likes of United and Chelsea pissed off to a European league and left a decent, competitive league in its place.  There needs to be a seismic change in English football, because it's crap at the top.

[Mr Diggles]

I wouldn't be too upset if the likes of United and Chelsea pissed off to a European league and left a decent, competitive league in its place.  There needs to be a seismic change in English football, because it's crap at the top.

I dare say it feels pretty crap further down the league too when the (limited) money starts running out and you can't compete, like Plymouth Argyle for example.

[NeilH]

I wouldn't be too upset if the likes of United and Chelsea pissed off to a European league and left a decent, competitive league in its place.  There needs to be a seismic change in English football, because it's crap at the top.

I’ve been saying for years that I’d shed absolutely no tears if these clubs buggered off to the Euro Super League that they so clearly crave. I’ve heard all the arguments about it killing the English game, but as it currently stands the game is being killed in any case, because the playing field is so utterly unequal before a ball has even been kicked.