GLF 59: GB looks into their finances.
HOW BIG ARE THE BIG TWO??
The table above is the annual table of the “ richest clubs in the world ” as published by Deloitte based upon income.
For me it blows away one of the major myths that the Old Firm Directors keep spouting when it comes to their repeated failure in Europe.This is usually put down to the fact that they can't compete with the big boys as they all earn much more than them from TV in their countries.
Looking at the table,without tapping into that TV market,there are only fifteen teams in the WORLD with a larger turnover than CELTIC.Yes, that's the Celtic Football Club that can't compete with the big clubs in the Premiership as they are denied access to so much money.
In this table there are only FIVE Premierhsip teams who generate more income than Celtic.I know money isn't the guarantee of success but surely this says that Celtic should be doing better in Europe than Bolton and Middlesbrough who are in the last 32 of the UEFA Cup.
Maybe this should also focus the minds of the Celtic fans that maybe rather than quibble about missing opportunities, they should once again be looking closer to home.Why is it that with a turnover of over £60m they can't compete in the transfer market with Spurs,Aston Villa,Everton etc.
They could possibly ask their Directors where the £60m goes,particularly when there seems to be a shares issue every two years to top this up ?? Sounds like the great unwashed are being taken for mugs once again.
Meanwhile Rangers fans probably need to ask Mr Murray why his team has dropped out of the table altogether.Does this mean that they are not maximising their opportunities to the same extent as their great rivals are ??
Sadly we are a bit off making the table with out turnover of £4 million barely making an impression on the big boys of the world,and probably seeing us struggle into the top 10 in Scotland never mind the world!
It also begs the question,if Celtic are one of the richest clubs in the World and Rangers just outside the top twenty,why aren't they running away with the Championship this season ?And why are Rangers looking as though they are likely to win hee-haw ?
The Rangers question is easy to answer,they have had Alex McLeish in charge for four years !Look at the mess he has left everybody else in when he has left them after four years !Surely Mr Murray must have seen that one coming last summer.
Celtic's is a bit more difficult to answer,with some of the responsibility lying with the board and also the God that is Martin O'Neill.There is no doubt they had the basis of a good side when they made the UEFA Cup final, but they failed to improve when they were ahead and have therefore been playing catch up ever since.
It also shows how far Hearts have to travel to be able to compete with Celtic and Rangers in financial terms.Will Mr Romanov be prepared to back them to the tune of £60m,given that Hearts will never have a fan base to generate that on their own ??
Or will someday a team be able to repeat the feat of Jim McLean's Dundee Utd side in the 1980's when what he described as a corner shop side took on the mighty super markets and won the League.Could Hibs,Aberdeen,Kilmarnock or ourselves ever mount a challenge again in the future ??
I sincerely hope so,as to have the same two forever fighting for the League title will make life extremely boring for all concerned.This is what has made the Hearts “ reviva l” this season a “ breath of fresh air ”,even if it is going to run out of steam ( sorry for the mixed metaphor there…… ).
To answer my original question,the Old Firm are by a long way the biggest clubs in Scotland ( no surprise there then !! ) and in financial terms they are also pretty big players in Europe.Sadly ( or is thankfully ) on the field they fall way short of their financial stature,while teams not in the list like Monaco and Porto make it to European finals ( and win them ) on a regular basis.
Graham Barnstaple
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