the corona v . and sport

[bigmart]

It is not a good look for sure BBTC. Mind you there are a lot of other very well paid people who are keeping their heads well and truly down!

There are over 2.5k millionaires in this country.

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

There are over 2.5k millionaires in this country.

Yes, but it's the excuse the PFA are using that's particularly crass.

 

[Boz]

What I find particularly crass is the Premiership Clubs using the government furlough scheme to lay off non-playing staff. This might be understandable for some of the poorer clubs, though in this context poorer is relative, but you are looking at the extremely wealthy sides like Red Scouse over the water doing it. Not much of a family club really and rightly called out by ex-players like Carragher.

I agree that the tax explanation for not taking a pay cut, does not read particularly well. However, given the above, there is some need to guarantee any money raised by the pay-cut gets to the right places and some players may want to make direct donations themselves. Disagree that Premier League players should be singled out by the Health Secretary though, as bigmart points out, there are plenty of other millionaires around.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

There has been a suggestion that any EPL clubs that use the furlough scheme should be hit subsequently with a windfall tax, which I would support. The bigger issue extends beyond football and concerns whether after ten years of Tory austerity we were in a position to deal with a crisis on this scale, compared to a country like Germany which has historically had much higher levels of public investment.

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

Disagree that Premier League players should be singled out by the Health Secretary though, as bigmart points out, there are plenty of other millionaires around.

I agree that top footballers are easy targets and agree that they are not the only ones who could afford to take a financial sacrifice. However, unlike sportsmen who are now on full pay for doing sweet FA, a lot of millionaires are company directors who are working flat out to keep their companies afloat and their employees in a job.

I still can’t believe the PFA’s argument. Even Donald Trump on a bad day wouldn’t buy that. Following their logic, we should all ask our employers for a pay rise so that the NHS would get even more money in income tax .

 

[ONIGP]

The problem with any EPL player taking a pay cut is that it just saves what may be a very wealthy club, or a club with very wealthy owners, money. The income tax argument does hold water; do we really believe that the impact of these clubs benefitting from this saving has any more chance of reaching the Exchequer?

As mentioned there are plenty of other well paid individuals in sport and many other walks of life and I do have some sympathy with the players here. I'm sure that the majority are willing to do what they can to assist the nation at this time but, understandably, it makes sense for this to be a co-ordinated response if at all possible. The perceived greed of top level football in general has prioritised this area before such a response can be co-ordinated, which is not surprising at all.

If the players can agree a response which is targeted towards contributions to specifically support local communities, homeless, the vulnerable, NHS, carers, key workers etc. etc., I think it would be a far better outcome.

 

[drwhoman]

I agree with your last part ONIGP. If a cut is agreed who knows where the money will go? It might get ‘ lost’ if it is convenient for a club to pay down its large bank debt? The problem is that when a lot of parties are involved any agreement will be complex and in normal times would take a fair amount of time. Here we are talking about quick decisions in the glare of publicity not helped by a Health Secretary wanting to deflect from the inadequacy on the government’s response.
As regards Liverpool we have the conflict between what many would think is a community ‘asset’ and business. Like it or not, clubs are businesses who do what is best for the bottom line. They would argue that they pay their taxes and are entitled to use a govt scheme when they are losing revenue. I am not supporting the decision but merely observing on the ‘conflict’ between two perceptions of the club.

 

[Boz]

I agree that top footballers are easy targets and agree that they are not the only ones who could afford to take a financial sacrifice. However, unlike sportsmen who are now on full pay for doing sweet FA, a lot of millionaires are company directors who are working flat out to keep their companies afloat and their employees in a job.

I still can’t believe the PFA’s argument. Even Donald Trump on a bad day wouldn’t buy that. Following their logic, we should all ask our employers for a pay rise so that the NHS would get even more money in income tax .

But you look at the likes of Richard Branson and Philip Green who've made vast amounts due to the efforts of their employees and the former in particular would be well placed to do this and haven't.

 

[bigmart]

The German teams in the bundesliga have returned to training today.

 

[Ian]

Liverpool apologise & reverse furlough

Liverpool reverse their decision to place some non-playing staff on temporary leave and apologise to fans.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[drwhoman]

A decision taken because of the club’s emotional ties to the community but all clubs will be battling lack of income and the PL clubs will take a massive hit if the season is not completed and they have to pay back 750m to the TV companies.

 

[bigmart]

A decision taken because of the club’s emotional ties to the community but all clubs will be battling lack of income and the PL clubs will take a massive hit if the season is not completed and they have to pay back 750m to the TV companies.

The season will almost certainly be completed behind closed doors

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

The season will almost certainly be completed behind closed doors

I think that may be the only way to complete it for the foreseeable future. They could play the matches on separate days and times, so all could be televised live. That would more than satisfy the TV companies and the clubs. But would having to buy Sky or BT to see your club's home games be popular with the fans? I doubt it, but when have the fans had a say? What I've said might be what is decided for the EPL, but I'm not sure what the lower leagues will do.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

I think it will be some time before any matches can be played, behind closed doors or otherwise.

 

[bring back the cowshed!]

I think it will be some time before any matches can be played, behind closed doors or otherwise.

I agree, but playing in empty stadiums would be the quickest way to get restarted. It could work at the higher levels but possibly not lower down.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

But even for matches to be played behind closed doors, all the participants would have to be tested, including backroom staff, TV crews etc. Given that we don't have sufficient tests to cover NHS workers, I don't see them being made available to footballers any time soon, certainly not before they are available to the general public.

 

[Rockford's Love Child]

Plus, there would still be players who were carrying the disease and would not be able to participate, which would bring the integrity of the competition into question. That was actually the reason the league was postponed in the first place, not the wider public health concerns, which were not considered as great initially.

 

[Ian]

I agree. Until this starts slowing down and is somewhat under control I don’t think it’s wise for any groups to get together. Although I did read somewhere that the Bundesliga were back training but with strict measures such as doing drills in pairs.

 

[bigmart]

I agree. Until this starts slowing down and is somewhat under control I don’t think it’s wise for any groups to get together. Although I did read somewhere that the Bundesliga were back training but with strict measures such as doing drills in pairs.

They went back to training yesterday in germany, it is.likely to be june/July that games can be played behind closed doors

 

[drwhoman]

In the meantime, clubs are struggling with no income and bills to pay. I hope Rovers are using the govt scheme. Even with the PL. there is now a new normal financially. I read somewhere that Burnley, who do not pay big wages by PL standards, could lose 50m this year.