The End of the Football Dictatorship?
Author: AntoniodaSilva Total views: 12 Word Count: 649
The power held by the richest clubs in club football in deciding how to run the game has been reduced has fallen in recent years. This has taken place due to the stand taken by important bodies especially UEFA and FIFA which has meant that many of football's traditional values have made a comeback. 2 of these big changes are mentioned here, however, there is still a lot that can be done.
The first big change occurred in 2003, when UEFA eliminated for once, and for all, the second group stage of the UEFA Champions League. Put simply, the second group stage had been created to maximise the amount of revenue that participating clubs could get. More games meant more money. But more games also meant more player burnouts. It was an exercise in which the main losers were the players themselves.
Apart from the players, the fans were almost big losers in this situation. The 6 games played during this stage never reached great heights of tension and rivalry, contrary to the history and prestige of the tournament. Fans were made to pay and/or watch games which ultimately did not have the excitement that the tournament was supposed to have. One group stage was enough. We must thank UEFA for listening to the fans and players for bringing back some common sense to football.
The second big change that has taken place in the last couple of years is the disbandment of the G14 group of clubs. G14 was created in 2000 by the biggest, richest and hence most powerful clubs in Europe Its intention was to promote the interests of its members in the face of political bodies such as FIFA and UEFA.
However, the interests of G14 rarely, if ever, were in accordance with what was best for the game. The one proposal that was always a talking point was the possible formation of the European league which would have been exclusively for G14 members. In hindsight, it's a blessing that they didn't go through with it, and a lot of it was due to the strong opposition voiced by UEFA and FIFA. It's also no wonder that throughout G14's existence, the gulf between the richest clubs and poorest clubs increased significantly. Clearly, G14 was not an organisation promoting football's interests, and its disbandment in January 2008 means that these rich clubs have lost an influential, or not scary, vehicle in their quest for world domination.
The abolition of the second group stage and the G14 group of clubs have been largely positive for the way football is run in that football's interests, rather than club's self-interests have come back to the forefront. FIFA has lived up to its slogan of "For The Good of the Game" and the signs are that it will continue to wrestle control from clubs. The proposed '6+5 rule' will be another positive development for football if it comes through and gets implemented in Europe. My next article will closely analyse the pros and cons of such a rule if it comes to fruition.
However, despite the advances made in the last couple of years, there is still much left to be desired. The difference between rich and poor does not seem to be closing, meaning that even small clubs that consistently get full houses are struggling to break even. This is the sad reality of those that have got it all and those that have barely anything. The solution to this problem is not easy, however I will outline some potential solutions in future articles.
Club loyalty is one aspect of football that seems to be extinct. These days, money talks louder than ever before, probably because there's more of it going around. The new generation of players are also more arrogant than before and as a result club loyalty has taken a beating. If this continues, who knows where football will end up in future years?
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About the Author
Author Antonio da Silva is one of the chief writers of SportsNewsFootball.com, a leading sports news football website renowned for its daring and acute analysis of the major issues affecting the beloved game of football.
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