Arsenal have been invited to sit down with those still in favour of the Super League, to have a discussion to see if any compromises could be made.
It’s a change of tact from those in power of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus, who’s initial reaction towards the English ‘big 6’ withdrawing from the competition, was to threaten legal action, citing they had signed contracts promising to be founding members of the new set up.
Now A22 Sport’s Management have hired Bernd Reichert to be their spokesperson and try to broker a deal.
A video (posted on Real, Barca’s and Juve’s websites) seems harmless enough. He talks about the sport not being able to survive with the current inflation, the benefit of clubs not being governed by anybody, and that it would be harmless to at least have a discussion.
He stresses that communication is healthy and is the first step in finding a solution.
Yet it’s what the Chief executive didn’t say that stood out.
Again, he wants to chat to specific clubs, once again leaving out everyone else out.
Unless those paying him live under a rock, they must know by now what aspects make fans, players and managers uncomfortable with the idea.
He never mentioned relegation/promotion, only going as far as saying all ideas would be listened too.
UEFA are not innocent; they have their own self-interest to protect.
Yet at least they offer a system which rewards success and failure.
Arsenal for years haven’t been good enough to make the top 4 in the Prem, so rightfully have missed out on Champions League nights.
The day we return will be because we earnt it, not based on us as a brand making money.
That’s what the Super League originally would be based on, clubs paid 300 million for just competing. Even if a team lost every week there would be zero jeopardy, essentially because they are marketable around the world.
Arsenal became a club who only cared about top 4 because of the revenue that came with it.
Then the TV contracts became so lucrative that it no longer mattered where we finished in the table, we could make money just off our name.
So, imagine losing every week and being in last place but still making more than lifting the Prem!
Our owners dream….
Zero relegation/promotion is the sport our owners were brought up on in the USA.
It’s zero coincidence then that Stan Kroenke, John Henry and the Glazers were all ready to make themselves chairmen of the competition in a bid to turn our national game into one more familiar to them across the Atlantic
That would mean zero incentive for the Kroenke Family to invest in the squad.
Why build one capable of winning the trophy when you can make a fortune even if you’re at the bottom.?
The plan would have then been to transition our fixtures away from North London and rebrand us with a name change.
Anyone can make a mistake of course but in terms of mis-reading your customers, it was one of the biggest mistakes in our history.
While I have questioned Stan Kroenke’s ambition, you don’t become as wealthy as him without the ability to learn from your mistakes.
To succeed in business you can’t fear failure, you almost have to embrace it.
When you fail, you learn, it makes you better and more likely to succeed in the future.
Plans to change the football pyramid forever didn’t just see backlash from fans, players and pundits.
Critique went as high up as Parliament and Prince William, all promising to use their power to protect their national game. With the Gunners one of several franchises on their portfolio, it was the moment Stan and his son Josh realised just how important the British public found their football.
It was scary how out of touch those running the club could be, in terms of knowing what their essential customers wanted.
Even more frightening was that no one told them what the reaction would be.
While his father focuses on the sports he prefers in his homeland, Josh has been tasked with fixing things in London.
To be fair he couldn’t have done more, realistically, to fix the toxic relationship.
Wanting to be judged purely on when his family officially bought the club, he’s overseen an action plan where there’s an actual idea behind recruitment, willing to invest in youth who in theory will only get better and who’s value will increase.
As witnessed in Amazon’s All Or Nothing Series his ethos is ‘keep faith with a manager’ and give him time to grow.
It’s led to a squad who’s players are likeable and Gooners once again proud to watch their team play.
All of that would be ruined if Arsenal even thought about getting round the table to revise plans of the Super League.
If nothing else, potential punishment would be huge.
The big 6 all paid a collective fine of over 20 million but more importantly signed a Premiership document acknowledging they had flouted rules.
Essentially, they have agreed that any repeat would lead to individual fines but the biggest deterrent …. a 30-point deduction.
So, meeting Mr Reichert could lead to us going from top of the Prem to being bottom on minus 3 points.
It’s a deterrent that therefore works.
If any of the top 6 ever mention the Super League again it will be because they 100 per cent know it will happen. They can’t afford to wait again to see what the reaction is.
Do you want Arsenal to talk to Mr Reichert?
Dan
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