UEFA, Governance, and the Control of Club Competition in ...

questioned 10 (Conn, 2005a), the changes in structure have added to the increasingly commercialideology evident in the football industry. The conversion in many countries of sporting clubs intocorporate structures has transformed the raison d’être of many football clubs (Walsh, 2000).Football clubs in the 1970s and 1980s clubs were considered to be ‘utility maximisers’ whichsought playing success whilst endeavouring to remaining solvent, rather than seeking profit (Sloane1971, 1980). Football clubs structured as PLCs, on the other hand, have a legal obligation tomaximise profit for the shareholder, thus creating a dual purpose to what might previously havebeen considered an entirely sporting operation. Manchester United have always argued that thestructure of a PLC assists its pursuit of sporting success, and that only by winning on the field canthe company deliver financial success to its shareholders, creating a virtuous circle. That the clubconsistently delivered trophies through the 1990s has meant that it has been difficult to questionwhere its greatest priority lies. Should the company enter a trophy-less period, with substantialinvestment in the team required, it will be interesting to see how the company balances the need todeliver both prizes and profits.The inflation resulting from the growth in television revenue has also led to consequentinflation in the sums required to deliver footballing success. Remarkably, the era in which JackWalker, a multi-millionaire steel trader, could buy a football club, and use part of his £300 millionfortune in Blackburn Rovers to purchase the Premiership title is now over. The purchase of Chelseaby Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, and his investment of over £400 million in the pursuitof success (Hamilton et al, 2004: 28), demonstrates the new reality of football finance. Other clubshave also been pursuing wealthy backers in an effort to keep pace, for example Liverpool. 11 Theconsequence has been to distance the elite clubs from both less successful clubs within their ownleagues, and clubs further down the pyramid. Moreover, greater pressure will be placed on thedemocratic structures of governance that have helped shaped the game, by an altogether differentbeast. Judging the motivations of individual owners may be a complex task, but it is unquestionablythe case that the stewardship of clubs is changing with the times, and that the influence of thecorporate wealth embodied in the likes of Berlusconi, Malcolm Glazer, and Roman Abramovichmay continue to grow disproportionately.Similarly, increasing revenues from television have impacted on other areas of the game.Developments in broadcasting also go beyond the indisputable economic facts. In line with broaderglobalising trends and in the context of European integration, television has opened up areas ofEuropean football that were previously considered exotic and distant. Not only is the viewer largelyspoilt for choice with regard to domestic football, he or she can access a multitude of leagues acrossEurope and beyond, further eroding the emphasis traditionally placed on the domestic game in allbut a few countries. According to Wagg, ‘we are seeing, via the merging of television and footballand the advent of satellite TV, the internationalisation of football culture at the level of consumption(1995b: 121)’. Such a trend can be seen in the growing popularity of the Spanish Primera Ligashown on BSkyB. The globalising effect of television has eroded rigid national boundaries, and theimportance of locality. Overstating the case, Wagg observes, ‘One thing is certain though: at topleague level, truly national football in Europe, if it ever existed, has disappeared and nationalleagues, in any event, have different publics (via satellite) in different countries. Belgians cansupport Fiorentina, Swedes can follow Manchester United, Dutch can support Barcelona, and therewill of course, be no going back’ (1995b: 122). Nevertheless, the growth of European competitionthrough the Champions League make the results of Arsenal relevant to supporters of Valencia, andthe result of Barcelona relevant to the supporters of Chelsea. Similarly, the multi-nationalmovement of players leads to interest in leagues in which potential transfer targets play, and theprogress of compatriots abroad. The media and public interest in Michael Owen and David10 Conn for example has argued that since the flotation of Manchester United in 1991, the clubs has raised a total of£23 million from the Stock Market but that the total paid out in dividends was £61.74m. See Conn, D. (2005) ‘United’santi-Glazer campaigners seek return to the spirit of the railway’ in The Independent, 19 th February.11 Liverpool appointed Hawkpoint to flush out options for new investment. It was reported that there was interest fromthe Prime Minister of Thailand and American businessman Robert Kraft.29