FOOTBALL’s polarisation over the past decade has prompted league administrators and business people to discuss solutions that can prevent their clubs from being marginalised. The game has become corporatized, meaning money talks louder than ever before in football. Size really does matter, both for a club and a league. The top five leagues in Europe […]
JIMMY HILL was a character who divided opinion, but nobody can deny he was an ideas man. Not everybody agreed with some of his schemes, but Mr Hill had the good of the game at heart and was often concerned about football’s future. In 1981, the Football League introduced a new points system with the […]
FIFA HANDING the 2022 World Cup to Qatar was never going to be an easy fit, but the football community has had a decade to get used to the idea and to formulate its complaints, actions and spirit of disapproval. Nothing has changed, Qatar is still an uncomfortable gig but the first point of angst […]
MALCOLM ALLISON, the wayward, some might say eccentric, Manchester City coach, said the period between 1967 and 1972 was the last golden age of English football. Allison, whose team was one of the leading lights during those years, was talking about the post-1966 era when the game received a boost as the nation celebrated England […]
WOLVERHAMPTON Wanderers took a £ 40 million hit on revenues and turned a £ 22 million profit in 2018-19 to a £ 36.7 million loss in 2019-20. Unlike some clubs who reported a fall in matchday income, Wolves saw this revenue stream rise by 10% to £ 12.7 million. The club’s revenues for the season […]
THE STATISTICS suggest that Liverpool 2018-19 are the best-ever nearly men in English football history. Certainly, 97 points is a phenomenal record, but the figures only tell part of the story. Liverpool’s performances, the charisma of Jürgen Klopp and the attacking power of the team will forever be remembered, and not just by Reds’ fans. […]
IT HAS been a year now since big crowds were allowed inside football stadiums. A whole 12 months and the likelihood is that 2020-21 will be a complete “behind closed doors” campaign. The world’s most popular pastime had been consigned to a TV experience lacking in atmosphere. We’ve actually got used to a game played […]
LEICESTER City may reach their first FA Cup final since 1969 and could well meet the club they faced back in the days of David Nish, Allan Clarke and Peter Shilton. Unlike in 1969, when Leicester were relegated to the old second division, the current side, under Brendan Rodgers, is also in a good position […]
THE LEEDS UNITED team of the club’s golden era under Don Revie has lost another of its shining stars with the passing of Peter Lorimer. He was an integral part of Leeds’ classic side, a group of highly-skilled and highly-motivated internationals that probably won less than they deserved during a marvellously consistent period. Lorimer was […]
