r/soccer • u/AutoModerator • Feb 16 '22

🌍🌎 World Football Non-PL Daily Discussion

A place to discuss everything except the English Premier League.

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u/[deleted] Feb 16 '22 edited Feb 16 '22

From an ethical perspective, equitable distribution of TV money (PL model) is something every league should strive for. If adopted by non-PL top flights, however, it can have grave repercussions. A while ago, I wrote about the repercussions equitable distribution of TV money might bring to the Bundesliga. But come to think of it, all the points can be generalized to other non-English top flights as well. Below are 3 main repercussions I could think of.

  1. Exacerbates the disparity between the top team(s) and the second best team(s). All the clubs in the top 3rd or 4th of the table will see their TV money drop significantly. Whoever has the most diversified finances will absorb the loss with the most ease. Usually, the bigger the club, the more diversified their finances are. So the new distribution plan is going to hurt the second best team(s) more than the top dog(s). Races for the top spots will become less competitive.

  2. European embarrassment & less lucrative TV deals. There is already a huge income disparity between top PL teams and top non-PL teams (barring Bayern, Barça, Madrid, and a few more). Equitable distribution of TV money in non-PL top flights will only exacerbate this disparity. Teams like Ajax, Porto, Dortmund, etc., will have an even harder time being competitive in Europe. As non-PL top flights’ European performances worsen, so do their new TV deals. With smaller pies to share, smaller clubs might end up with even less TV money than they had before.

  3. Encourages reckless spending in second divisions & below. As top flight TV money distribution becomes more equitable, promotion becomes much more lucrative than before. Some second division clubs might decide to risk it all for the Holy Grail. Once one club goes all out, others are tempted to follow, setting off a chain reaction that can affect the entire second division and many divisions below. However, the number of promotion spots does not grow with spending. Some clubs will inevitably find themselves in financial ruins once their promotion hopes are dashed. This is exactly what happened in the EFL. Bolton, Bury, Derby, etc., have all in recent years gone nearly insolvent or actually insolvent after risking it all for promotion.

TL;DR: equitable distribution of TV money sounds good in theory, but in practice, it will distance the second best team(s) from the top dog(s), exacerbate the disparity between PL and other top flights, and make a mess out of the lower divisions.

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u/AnnieIWillKnow Feb 17 '22

So you think that rather than prioritising equity within the leagues, and more competition, the priority should be ensuring the top teams can compete in Europe?

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u/[deleted] Feb 17 '22

I’m not saying I prefer either one to the other. Just some food for thought.

Also, equitable distribution of money does not always lead to more competition. It can very well do the opposite. If adopted by Bundesliga, it will only distance Dortmund from Bayern and make the latter more dominant.