How long before the EPL bubble bursts?

[SMEE]

Just going over some figures regarding the English Premiership.

Man U are near ?800M in debt

Chelsea are near ?700M

Liverpool ?400M

Arsenal ?380M

Fulham near ?200M

Wages last season were near ?1.5Bn, thats near double of the next highest League (Spain)

How long can this continue. There has to be an argument for a wage cap surely?

Lets be honest, Even ?10 000 per week for a top player is MORE than enuff for any person to live off.

Discuss

[KingBeastie]

Eventually a large club (I'd hazzard a guess at Man City but it could be anyone) will go the way of the dodo but until then things will carry on getting worse.

Personally I'm enjoying watching the greed in the english league slowly damage it like a cancer. Something will eventually have to give. Self proclaimed best league in the world? I'd rather watch ICT in any division in Scotland.

[FortressICT]

Where did you get these figures?

[cairngorm]

Where did you get these figures?

Sky sports news its been on all afternoon

[MrAsterisk]

As you say these clubs are in debt but they also have assets that are greater than their debts. I tend to agree that the wages & transfer fees are ridiculous but as long as a team is willing to pay then there is a team willing to sell. I guess with the new influx of money to Man City that things could increase in the short term as each of them try and secure a champions league position by the cheque book.

Edited October 8, 2008 by MrAsterisk

[Alex MacLeod]

It all depends how you define debt as to what will happen. As Mr C***y above says the assets of the clubs are more than enough to cover the money they owe. They are able to make the repayments. Man U, I believe, actually reported profit in recent times.

If those clubs were unable to make the repayments on the loans etc then I doubt they'd be in business now.

[Scotty]

the assets of the clubs are more than enough to cover the money they owe. They are able to make the repayments.

Although I tend to agree with the statement above, how many banks or businesses said something similar in the last few months ....... prior to their employees packing everything into cardboard boxes.

[Kingsmills]

We certainly live in very uncertain times. A lot of Premiership clubs borrowed on the strength of the next TV rights deal being even more lucrative than the last. That's surely optimistic, to say the least, in the current climate.

[dead_ball_specialist]

The best thing to happen to scottish football in recent times was when our bubble burst. It wasn't so long ago that teams like Dundee Utd, Hibs, Motherwell etc would field an entire team of foriegn mercenaries.

[Kingsmills]

and mediocre foreign mercenaries at that !

[Drochit Blue]

Eventually a large club (I'd hazzard a guess at Man City but it could be anyone) will go the way of the dodo but until then things will carry on getting worse.

Why City? The most minted club in the world! More likely a team like Pompey or Wigan (whose income doesn't begin to pay their way).

Utd are ?660m in hock, or Liverpool who have to renegotiate their debt soon could have problems.

[admission: I have a vested interest in City, having watched them for years, but I honestly think they will be ok. Whatever the Press say the new owners are doing sensible things - talking to ex-players, fans, youth academy coach etc. They aren't as gung ho as our papers make out. If I'm honest I'd love to see the Caley Board doing that!]