We already knew that football was not a question of love and fresh water. In this sport where money has become king, England and its Premier League are an almost unhealthy representation. If Manchester City, Chelsea or Liverpool were already all-powerful, even the most modest can send big checks without regret the next day. While the whole world is experiencing inflation and the crisis, the English championship is far from all these concerns.
If some clubs like Leicester, or Brighton more recently, have worked well and can afford some excesses, others have not necessarily justified this rich status like Croesus. It’s hard not to mention the promoted Nottingham Forest, certainly a former Champions League winner, but who was able to afford no less than 26 players during the last two transfer windows, in the space of six months. Thus, the team from the English second division has already spent 182 million euros. For comparison, AJ Auxerre is at 3.75 million euros…
Which clubs have spent the most on the transfer window since last summer? Unsurprisingly Chelsea far ahead, with twice as much investment as the second. 11 PL clubs in the first 14 places including promoted Nottingham, with more than €230m. Via @CIES_Football pic.twitter.com/i9D8I5aOpN
Even the little ones no longer play in the same court and in this sense, we no longer even know who David is and who represents Goliath. And if we take an individual case, that of Nicolo Zaniolo, the promoted Bournemouth was in the fight with AC Milan, reigning Italian champions, to secure his services. The Milanese club, helpless in this shallot race, ended up dropping the case. We may soon see the great Real Madrid and its 14 victories in the Champions League unable to compete with Fulham or Crystal Palace…
But the best example of this financial madness remains Chelsea. After a very poor first half of the season, the new American owners of the Blues have decided to move up a gear. In the blink of an eye, the London club exceeded 200 million euros in January. Unheard of for a winter transfer window. If money does not bring happiness, it nevertheless makes it possible to make up for the mistakes made at the start of the season.
UEFA intended to combat this type of unequal practice at one time with its famous financial fair play, but the measure has completely disappeared from the debates. Clubs like Chelsea have found a fairly easy way around it, by offering longer contracts to its players. In another sense, Brexit should also give more constraints to English clubs to sign players, with quotas and criteria to be respected. However, it is difficult for those responsible to shoot themselves in the foot and refuse these talents, which bring in a significant amount of money over time.
There was a time when this elitism with millions was not well seen on the side of our neighbors across the Channel. In April 2021, the big club caste decided to come together in a Super League which sparked outrage from all sides. The supporters, especially in England, had not failed to rise up and the project had been nipped in the bud, in the space of 48 hours. But today, no one seems to be bothered anymore to see a championship crushing so much competition on the transfer market. The Premier League has unfortunately become what it was fighting for in the past.