The economic impact of football is determined by the distribution of television rights, which follows different patterns. Betting shops are on 20% of the top 50 most valuable teams’ shirts according to Brand Finances, although most teams are qualitatively less important. However, neither the car industry nor airlines are the dominant sectors in the economics of football. Commercial brands know this and, like Chevrolet with Manchester United, they no longer look to increase sales in their own countries, but to boost consumers in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. In 2015, 38% of the 2.7bn spectators of the Premier League were Chinese, a situation that is repeated in the other European leagues. Fly Emirates is the brand with the most teams sponsored among the top 50 in Europe, followed by Etihad and Qatar Airways, who have put their money on the European football giants (Real Madrid, Milan, Roma, Arsenal…) On the one hand, the influence of the Abu Dhabi United Group, owner of Manchester City and New York City among others, all sponsored by Etihad. Experts agree that the intention behind these moves is to weave commercial networks in the west in preparation for a modern, post-gas economy, making enough noise to overcome the shadow of threat represented by Saudi Arabia. Tamin bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Emir of Qatar, bought Paris Saint Germain in 2011. The Qatar Foundation, former sponsor of Barcelona, paid the Catalan club €150m in 2011. If we look at the Middle East, the tactic of diversifying their economy from oil (United Arab Emirates) or gas (Qatar) to tourism and leisure is combined with other interests. These are two examples of the tourism promotion strategy initiated by countries with few economic resources. Chad (number 122 in the ranking of countries by GDP according to the IMF) signed an agreement with French club Metz. Paul Kagame, president of Rwanda, has invested €30m in sponsoring Arsenal. The influence of countries is replacing the top commercial brands, but their investments show different traits. The football economy is undergoing change. The Premier, with a more balanced share-out of television rights, has generated a more even competition that arouses greater interest among fans and, therefore, larger crowds in stadiums. Clubs owned by members comply with German legislation that forces them to keep a majority stake in their brand, preventing the entry of oligarch owners and reinforcing how Germans identify with their teams. German clubs have not raised ticket prices despite the increase in demand from the public and they keep prices affordable. The Germans and English fill their stadiums, but their success is based on different models. The Italian Serie A is fifth in the rankings with 60%. The gateĪccording to Internet portal, the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga top the gate rankings year after year among the top five European leagues (over 90% of capacity this season), ahead of the Spanish and French leagues (70%). We know that the revenues come from ticket sales, sponsors and television rights, but it is not always easy to decipher the logic and interests hidden behind them. Football too was forced to sell assets, make internal devaluations and rely on exports. As a financial business, the football economy has also been affected by global economic conditions, especially its middle class, the average clubs. The parallels between economics, finances and football are clear. But, beyond this cultural dimension, recent decades have been dominated by the importance of the financial and media dimensions of the sport. They can be considered another national symbol. Teams continue to form part of the cultural and sentimental heritage of cities and national teams, which continue to arouse passions. How are these rights shared out? Are we facing a football economic bubble?įootball has changed. The football business cannot be understood without taking a deep dive into the television rights that it generates.What is behind football economics, the logos and brands that appear on shirts? European team sponsors are constantly renewing. Ticket revenues is one of them, why do more people go to German and English grounds than to Spanish grounds?
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