This will be the last blog for the foreseeable future as I concentrate on my new role as CEO of the World Match Racing Tour as of June 28th.
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Jim O'Toole
Chief Executive
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Friday 25 June 2010
Friday 5 February 2010
A solution to spiralling debt in English Football
As the crisis at English Premier League club Portsmouth lurches on and the ownership of a good old fashioned English club passes from one disinterested overseas owner to yet another, the simple cause of their problems and those which will all clubs must face is blatantly obvious......the money all goes on players.
Acquiring,paying, motivating players, and paying their agents to get them in, and sometimes to move them out.....that,reader,is the cause of the problem....The Premier League will soon be announcing the millions of pounds they have generated centrally from overseas television rights. The destination of the money, after it has been divided and allocated...players.
Why? Simple a vicious, nasty and self destructive circle that get a club to the promised land of the Premier League, then suck the life out of it...buy better players, pay big fees to acquire them, pay them top dollar, we must stay up/we must make Europe/we must make the Top 4/we must get to the group stages of the Champions League....All to feed the all consuming monster that is the wage bill.
Here is an alternative plan; The PL collectively say enough is enough. We need to draw a line in the sand that says at the end of season 2013/2014 we will have standard contracts for all our member clubs that offer four tiers of player salaries. (The numbers used are to illustrate the concept)
Tier One Big Star, base salary £2.5m per year.
Tier Two,established player base £1.5m per year
Tier Three younger player base £ 1.0 per year
Tier Four; entry level potential star,base £750k per year.
The club then allocates an agreed and transparent percentage of revenues to a huge incentive scheme in which all tiers are incentivised to deliver on and of the pitch, with each category getting an agreed slice of the money. Everybody knows where they stand, everybody knows what is expected of them.
Challenges: The players won't come to England.....so what, get back to growing home grown players let them try and make the big money in failing Euro economies like Spain.....good luck
This will give the businesses, the clubs, control of their industry, not their employees and the headhunters they use to acquire talent.
All it needs is a collective view and the vision to see it through
Acquiring,paying, motivating players, and paying their agents to get them in, and sometimes to move them out.....that,reader,is the cause of the problem....The Premier League will soon be announcing the millions of pounds they have generated centrally from overseas television rights. The destination of the money, after it has been divided and allocated...players.
Why? Simple a vicious, nasty and self destructive circle that get a club to the promised land of the Premier League, then suck the life out of it...buy better players, pay big fees to acquire them, pay them top dollar, we must stay up/we must make Europe/we must make the Top 4/we must get to the group stages of the Champions League....All to feed the all consuming monster that is the wage bill.
Here is an alternative plan; The PL collectively say enough is enough. We need to draw a line in the sand that says at the end of season 2013/2014 we will have standard contracts for all our member clubs that offer four tiers of player salaries. (The numbers used are to illustrate the concept)
Tier One Big Star, base salary £2.5m per year.
Tier Two,established player base £1.5m per year
Tier Three younger player base £ 1.0 per year
Tier Four; entry level potential star,base £750k per year.
The club then allocates an agreed and transparent percentage of revenues to a huge incentive scheme in which all tiers are incentivised to deliver on and of the pitch, with each category getting an agreed slice of the money. Everybody knows where they stand, everybody knows what is expected of them.
Challenges: The players won't come to England.....so what, get back to growing home grown players let them try and make the big money in failing Euro economies like Spain.....good luck
This will give the businesses, the clubs, control of their industry, not their employees and the headhunters they use to acquire talent.
All it needs is a collective view and the vision to see it through
Wednesday 3 February 2010
A short essay on sports stars as role models
The new rules on sports stars as role models:
They are famous for being good at sport, it doesn't make them role models.
They are people, just like us,enjoy them for what they excel at but don't expect them to provide you or your kids with moral guidance. We have no right to judge them for human failings.
They are famous for being good at sport, it doesn't make them role models.
They are people, just like us,enjoy them for what they excel at but don't expect them to provide you or your kids with moral guidance. We have no right to judge them for human failings.
Tuesday 19 January 2010
Two Frenchmen misusing their hands...slightly different approaches by Football and Rugby
Case One: Gouging in Rugby
Stade Francais prop David Attoub has been banned from rugby for 70 weeks for gouging an opponent's eyes during a Heineken Cup match. His teammate Julien Dupuy had already been banned for 23 weeks for a similar offense in the same match but disciplinary officer Jeff Blackett says Attoub's behavior constituted "the worst act of contact with the eyes that I have had to deal with."
Tournament organizer European Rugby Cup imposed the punishment Tuesday, four days after finding Attoub guilty.
Attoub is banned until April 22, 2011, but can appeal against the sanction any time in the next three days.
Case Two : Deliberate Handball in Football
FRANCE'S captain, Thierry Henry, has escaped punishment for his infamous handball in the 2010 World Cup finals play-off against Ireland, FIFA has announced.
France was losing 1-0 at the Stade de France on November 18, having won the first leg 1-0, when Henry set up William Gallas in extra-time for what proved to be the decisive goal after illegally controlling the ball with his hand.
FIFA's disciplinary committee said it was powerless to punish the striker because the original misdemeanour had not been seen by match officials. ''There is no other legal text that would allow the committee to impose sanctions for any incidents missed by match officials,'' it said.
Ok, handball doesn't hurt anyone,gouging does and is the most disgusting foul in rugby if not in any sport....but the comparison show the difference in how sports are embracing video technology......FIFA, time to catch up with ERC who have shown in several recent cases that they are prepared to take a stand to defend the integrity of their competition and their sport
Stade Francais prop David Attoub has been banned from rugby for 70 weeks for gouging an opponent's eyes during a Heineken Cup match. His teammate Julien Dupuy had already been banned for 23 weeks for a similar offense in the same match but disciplinary officer Jeff Blackett says Attoub's behavior constituted "the worst act of contact with the eyes that I have had to deal with."
Tournament organizer European Rugby Cup imposed the punishment Tuesday, four days after finding Attoub guilty.
Attoub is banned until April 22, 2011, but can appeal against the sanction any time in the next three days.
Case Two : Deliberate Handball in Football
FRANCE'S captain, Thierry Henry, has escaped punishment for his infamous handball in the 2010 World Cup finals play-off against Ireland, FIFA has announced.
France was losing 1-0 at the Stade de France on November 18, having won the first leg 1-0, when Henry set up William Gallas in extra-time for what proved to be the decisive goal after illegally controlling the ball with his hand.
FIFA's disciplinary committee said it was powerless to punish the striker because the original misdemeanour had not been seen by match officials. ''There is no other legal text that would allow the committee to impose sanctions for any incidents missed by match officials,'' it said.
Ok, handball doesn't hurt anyone,gouging does and is the most disgusting foul in rugby if not in any sport....but the comparison show the difference in how sports are embracing video technology......FIFA, time to catch up with ERC who have shown in several recent cases that they are prepared to take a stand to defend the integrity of their competition and their sport
Tuesday 12 January 2010
Hicks Jr , CRM and delicate souls
OK, he was wrong to vent his frustration in an e mail to a persistent fan and Hicks Jr has paid the price, pro tem, with his place on the Liverpool board. He is perfectly entitled to think what he wrote, indeed to type it in a late night giggle to himself, but pressing send was an unfortunate error. Not smart, but 'fess up, who hasn't done it, had a laugh and pressed delete.
Indeed who has done all of the above and then accidentally pressed send or indeed cc'd the subject of e mail vitriol accidentally.
Think for a second of the counter argument, how many fans had access to his e mail address and how much abuse had HE received.
I also smiled at the specific fan group involved, whose delicate soul of a spokesman who " couldn't bring himself to repeat the vile comments" included in said mail, as if he'd never heard swear words at Anfield
Indeed who has done all of the above and then accidentally pressed send or indeed cc'd the subject of e mail vitriol accidentally.
Think for a second of the counter argument, how many fans had access to his e mail address and how much abuse had HE received.
I also smiled at the specific fan group involved, whose delicate soul of a spokesman who " couldn't bring himself to repeat the vile comments" included in said mail, as if he'd never heard swear words at Anfield
Monday 11 January 2010
Togo & the Cup Of Nations in Angola
Much furore this weekend about the sad events in Angola which saw three people die and several injured in a gun attack on the Togolese national Team coach en route to Cabinda City for the African Cup of Nations and whether the event should be allowed to continue. Emmanuel Adebayor's incredibly lucid and descriptive interview with the BBC just hours after the event convey some sense of the horror. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/8449611.stm
I am struck by the unfortunate approach of many British and European media and the willingness to involve South Africa as hosts to this year's FIFA World Cup in the same argument about security. Yes it's the same sport, same continent but totally different geographies .Cabinda to Cape Town is approximately the same distance as London to Tunis. Nobody cancelled the Ashes Tour
I also feel for the organisers CAF and the national federation of Angola but the question remains, why on earth was a high profile National sports steam allowed to drive through a region that was so obviously dangerous?, cost,convenience or rank carelessness? . The decision making process that allowed that trip to take place is where the questions should focus not on a small African state's ability to host a major event.
My view is that the event should continue and the decision on Togo's involvement should rest entirely with the players and team management, they are the ones who have suffered, it is their call. We often hear and use the expression , "It's only a game and nobody dies", in this case someone did die and the group responsible have achieved their goal, cancelling the tournament would only serve to amplify their message a hundredfold. Play the tournament and give Togo all the support they need either way.
I am struck by the unfortunate approach of many British and European media and the willingness to involve South Africa as hosts to this year's FIFA World Cup in the same argument about security. Yes it's the same sport, same continent but totally different geographies .Cabinda to Cape Town is approximately the same distance as London to Tunis. Nobody cancelled the Ashes Tour
I also feel for the organisers CAF and the national federation of Angola but the question remains, why on earth was a high profile National sports steam allowed to drive through a region that was so obviously dangerous?, cost,convenience or rank carelessness? . The decision making process that allowed that trip to take place is where the questions should focus not on a small African state's ability to host a major event.
My view is that the event should continue and the decision on Togo's involvement should rest entirely with the players and team management, they are the ones who have suffered, it is their call. We often hear and use the expression , "It's only a game and nobody dies", in this case someone did die and the group responsible have achieved their goal, cancelling the tournament would only serve to amplify their message a hundredfold. Play the tournament and give Togo all the support they need either way.
Saturday 12 December 2009
A refreshing little antidote to cheating in pro sports
I stepped in to referee my son's Under 10 team's big match today, Holy Trinity Hawks v St James Harriers, two teams first and second in their league.
It was a great match played in the right spirit with two well drilled, enthusiastic kids and the hardest decisions the rookie ref had to make was a handball (against us)that lead to the first goal and a couple of over enthusiastic tackles.
Fast forward to the second half, we are 2-1 down and crawling all over them looking for an equaliser that would set us up nicely for the second half of the season after Christmas.
3 minutes to go we get a corner, our midfielder hits it and it ends up in the back of the net without another player touching it....a George Best moment, wild celebrations all round... but wait, the goalie and the away coach who was on the goal line said it had gone in through a gap in the side netting.....drama.... what the hell to do???, looked like a goal to me, easy to look like a cheating "homer" so I did the simple thing and asked the kid who took the corner.....answer : "It did go in through the side netting", no goal.... peep, goal kick and despite a couple of good chances Holy Trinity Hawks lose 2-1.
Well done Master B, Mum and Dad should be proud of you.
The great news is that the Thierry Henry Factor hasn't filtered down yet and kids understand the difference between right and wrong and that drawing or winning by a lie or cheating doesn't feel anywhere near as good as doing it the right way, long may it continue !
It was a great match played in the right spirit with two well drilled, enthusiastic kids and the hardest decisions the rookie ref had to make was a handball (against us)that lead to the first goal and a couple of over enthusiastic tackles.
Fast forward to the second half, we are 2-1 down and crawling all over them looking for an equaliser that would set us up nicely for the second half of the season after Christmas.
3 minutes to go we get a corner, our midfielder hits it and it ends up in the back of the net without another player touching it....a George Best moment, wild celebrations all round... but wait, the goalie and the away coach who was on the goal line said it had gone in through a gap in the side netting.....drama.... what the hell to do???, looked like a goal to me, easy to look like a cheating "homer" so I did the simple thing and asked the kid who took the corner.....answer : "It did go in through the side netting", no goal.... peep, goal kick and despite a couple of good chances Holy Trinity Hawks lose 2-1.
Well done Master B, Mum and Dad should be proud of you.
The great news is that the Thierry Henry Factor hasn't filtered down yet and kids understand the difference between right and wrong and that drawing or winning by a lie or cheating doesn't feel anywhere near as good as doing it the right way, long may it continue !
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