Now the madness of the Super League has died down, maybe we can have a conversation about where we’re heading.
The Super League proposition was an odd one. It wasn’t good versus evil. It was bad vs evil. It was a film where every character is flawed, and you picked the lesser villain to root for.
Think about who you cheered this week.
Boris Johnson, the man that said he’d lie on the runway at Heathrow rather than expand (then expanded). Famous for the biggest lie put on a bus, ever.
Rupert Murdoch, the person that started the pillaging of football in the 90s, currently allowing his opinion presenters to shed doubt on vaccinations in a country that lost 500k to covid, just to own the libs. Climate denial as his own country burns.
Gary Neville, voice of the people… except when he played for the richest club in England that bought success year after year and had some weird thing going on with referees that the referees now admit to. Oh, he’s also financially doping his Salford FC club despite Scholes saying they wouldn’t. Oh, and there are also accusations that he uses his elite celeb powers to land special treatment with the locals. Oh, the man of the people ALSO works for Rupert Murdoch. Oh, guess which dreamboat has a 50% stake in his club? PETER LIM, the man that I wrote about who owned Valencia, who let a super agent run riot, that led fans to oust Nuno after he got them into the Champions League because they believed he was part of the team that destroyed the soul of their club. I wrote a scathing piece about Nuno when Raul was trying to hire him at Arsenal, read it, then PLEASE tell me if that’s who you’d jump into business with if you cared about the beautiful game.
…voice of the people? Fuck off.
We all fell for it in the moment though; when your world is under threat, you’d rather have the voice with you than against, but never forget, many of them were protecting their own piece of a pretty ugly pie.
Where were these voices when working-class fans were priced out of football?
Where are these people NOW on systemic racism?
Where are these people when fans get fucked around with scheduling for the global audiences?
At the trough.
The closest I’ve ever come to losing my life was on Clerkenwell Road after a night out. I had just bought an amazing kebab. I was jogging across a road that was on a red light and I dropped the kebab bag, horrified, I turned back to save the meat box, I snatched it away like a hero, not realising there was a car powering at me… the Ford Focus brushed the top of my head at 30mph. It was a near miss and a lot to put on the line for a £6.99 after-hours feast. That would have been lights out for me. I have never done something so stupid since.
Football is the kebab in the bag. The fans are my head if I’d been hit. We saved the game, we’re dreaming of the feast ahead, but we haven’t seen the car careening at us.
Did that story work? Maybe not.
Point is… what does this near-miss for UEFA mean?
‘PUNISHMENT’
Puuuuurlease. I just don’t believe there can be a punishment from the biggest clubs after this near miss. UEFA needs to have a good Champions League. Punishing mega clubs would be a weird move. They’ll take execs off their committee roles. Strip them of their board seats. But punishing the clubs is punishing the fans and their big sponsors.
Even the stripping of exec roles… Agnelli leaves the ECA Chairman role and is replaced by the guy the lobbied for the Qatar World Cup? Have you read a single thing about the build for that World Cup? Is that what saving the game was about? Fucking hell people… we’ve just let the fox into the hen house.
Back to it. You can’t have a Champions League without the big names.
I think the most likely outcome, which is rumoured to be happening, is a kick-up in revenue for the CL. $4 billion added to the pot.
It’s also rumoured that there will be a backdoor way for big clubs to get into the tournaments via coefficients.
The rumblings are that we’ll end up seeing the same format that was on show for Super League… but with competition at the heart of it.
Florentino Perez came out and added more weight to the story I wrote the other day. He literally said the big clubs don’t make money. That complaint is hilarious, he’s complaining they don’t make money because they waste it all on agents, transfers, and wages. HILARIOUS but important to compute… if big clubs feel like the game is fucking them, they will continue working to change that.
I think the Super League is dead but the drivers underpinning its appeal are not going away.
The big idea is this: How do you put more money in the pockets of clubs that bring the big money?
There’s talk of relaxing FFP so Manchester City and PSG don’t have to fret about their financial doping.
Will the big voices go to war for those unfair practices? No way. We’re baseball fans watching Sosa and McGwire slug it out for the home run record in 1998. Here for the spectacle, not the details. As long as the football is pretty, we don’t see the grimness of what it’s become.
This failed coup will not end ‘innovations for the good of the game’, it’ll just shift the way they are sold.
Financial security for the few won’t sell. But more quality? Maybe that will. Reducing the number of teams from countries that don’t sell eyeballs will happen and that might not see such a vitriolic reaction because it won’t affect the key nations in the mixer, it’ll affect the smaller ones. Is that fair? No. Will there be hashtag campaigns to protect Bate Borisov? No fucking chance.
Having the biggest brands in football in the biggest tournaments is a premise you could sell, just not at the expense of competition. But what if the new Champions League changed how you gain entry to it? What if they created backdoor entries and more wild cards. What if making the semi-finals of Europa landed you into the Champions League? It’s usually BIG teams that make the final 4, it certainly has been of late. What if they brought in a rule that if you qualified for Champions League domestically and made the semi of Europa, that extra spot was given to 5th place in the league the team was from. Would fans protest that? Doubtful.
‘I don’t make the rules’ shoulder shrugs from most.
Case in point: Did anyone protest Champions League teams getting a parachute reward for dropping into the Europa League for finishing 3rd in the group stages? Is that fair? It’s absolutely not. Rich teams fail, then get another crack in a lesser comp with a HUGE reward and fans don’t bat an eyelid. How can anyone tell me it’s fair that United could take our Champions League place if we get to the final of the Europa League.
‘I don’t make the rules’ shoulder shrug. Right?
The problem with all the innovations on the table NOW? They don’t help Stan. If he wants to get back to the top, he has to do it the hard way or short cut it by spending out of his own pocket, which he won’t do. That’s the desperate choice he faces now, does he have the stomach for proper investment?
If he doesn’t, what do Arsenal fans want in its place? The best owners in football tend to come with nasty baggage. Would you take wealth at Arsenal from someone that chops up journos? Newcastle fans were bang up for it, they protested FOR it. This goes back to the original point, there are no ‘we got our club back’ solutions to this mess. Every choice that would affect our future for the better is likely a moral dagger to the soul of the game and our own personal principles.
The Super League failed because it bypassed the competitive nature of the sport we love. The level of unfairness it presented was too obvious. But don’t kid yourself that football isn’t brutally unfair now. Arsenal lost our perch as the top club in Europe because billionaires whitewashed their reps in our league and purchased success at unprecedented levels. That wasn’t fair. We did things the hard way and we got absolutely nothing out of it. Our stadium was pointless. Our love affair with the idea of FFP faltered because UEFA let it slide.
Unfairness, led by the richest, will find its wicked way again, but next time, it’ll be more subtle.
Fans won the battle of the Super League, but the war goes on, the owners learned a key lesson of modern history: You cannot take over the world through brute force. The people will not tolerate it. However, that does not mean the world cannot be taken over with a softer type of raw power.
That’s the next move, keep your eyes peeled.
Right, see you in the comments and tell me how YOU would make football better.
Hi Pedro/everyone – Been enjoying reading Le Grove the last few weeks so thought I’d add my two cents as a veteran blogger too. https://goonerboy.blogspot.com/2021/04/the-esl-goes-down-but-what-now-for.html
Agreed with Pedro earlier this week that I thought the ESL couldn’t fail, and shocked how it fell apart so fast. Argue in my blog that the failure of the ESL is probably better for football than it is for Arsenal specifically.
Gb
AFC & Bertie Mae.. think we come from the same vintage. Off track abit bit I remember my first match at Highbury circa 67/ 68 my old man took me to see The AFC v utd (including the holy trinity) walking up the slope at the station as soon as you came out and turned left it hit you. Small kiosk to the left, hamburger stalls opposite, scarf seller’s next to them and as you approached the stadium and just got a glimpse of the floodlights there was the blind peanut seller shouting peanuts 10p a bag (old money) then… Read more »
Sorry Bertie Mee
Andy, You can have a Champion’s League without the big name, as long the new entrants plays exciting football. Look at RB Leipzig, Atalanta, and others so called hipster names, people want to be entertained. The issue with the current format is that at the group stage big teams do not have to go past 2nd gear to qualify. Predictable, poor, boring football is what killed the football. Look at what happen during the Europa League. An extremely poor Arsenal team was never put into any danger. The first decent team Arsenal will encounter is in the semi-final. IMHO huge… Read more »
Valentin, purists want entertainment, but sponsors aren’t interested in a final of Leipzig vs Atalanta.
Well, well, well great example supreme leader.
@Rich, it does not need to be binary there are mixed market economics models , that bridge inequality.
The more inequality increases in a society/institution the more volatile it becomes, since the day the British last won a war.
Tony 2 Yep, we had nostalgia on LeGrove around a month ago on the blog, it was good to remember football when it wasn’t a ‘whoever spends the most’ game. There are so many highlights. One that really sticks in my memory is watching the open-top bus parade from Holloway Road, round Highbury Corner and then into Upper Street before reaching the Town Hall, after we had won our first double in 1971. In those days, of course, the Double was an incredible achievement and meant even more because Spurs had done it 10 years previously in ’61. I can… Read more »
Top post Pedro
Smashed it
Rich, Germany did pretty well pre-Euro did it not?
And all the changes I described (selling off utilities, decimating the UK’s industrial base, shifting to a service economy centred on the City of London) also occured before the Euro project.
It was a politically motivated move based on flawed ideological principles with the aim to enrich the already wealthy at the expense of the masses.
Worked pretty well too.
Pedro “Purists want entertainment, but sponsors aren’t interested in a final of Leipzig vs Atalanta” Pretty much where I was yesterday. That is the reality of where we are and whether people like it or not, it is the reason why Arsenal Football Club is such a big attraction. Historically, we have earned the right to be at the top table. You travel around the world and nobody is interested in Atalanta, Leipzig or Slavia Prague, they might as well be boiled sweets for all they cared. Around 2 million Messi shirts are sold worldwide every year and he is… Read more »
Pedro, right on the nail.
But will we fans draw the obvious conclusion from the ESL debacle. Something I’ve been saying over and over…
We fans hold the power.
Use of that power properly, and we can change football. The inequities and injustices can be removed.
Where to begin? For me it would be Qatar. Why there? Because money bought them the WC. Corruption from the top, from FIFA. How? Maybe all it takes is Boris to say, ‘No thanks, we’re not coming’. Or enough top players. Likely most of them would rather not go.
Andy1886
https://janetteheffernan.blogspot.com/2016/06/brexit-list-of-uk-companies-no-longer.html
This might explain some of it
One of your best posts ever Pedro, take a bow.
Josh Kroenke : ‘we asked ourselves, what is worse : ESL, or ESL without Arsenal? Also asked ourselves what do the fans want? The global fan wants AFC v Barca as often as possible. English fans want to see more big matches, but you still want your cold nights in Stoke. We got it wrong.’
Vinai : VV : AFC not the authors of this proposal, despite what many think. On this project ‘the train was leaving the station’, we made the decision to join. We made a bad decision, a terrible one
‘I genuinely believe that there is nobody out there who truly cares about the fans, they are all in it for themselves, utilising whatever tools they have available to win at any cost. ‘ Spot on AFC Forever. You have been top drawer all this week. Really is embarrassing how the common theme of the week and mantra of the anti-ESL movement has been ‘football is all about and for the fans’. As much as we would like to believe this to be true, it isn’t. They are nearly finished an entire football season WITHOUT fans in fact. The owners… Read more »
TR7
“The global fan wants AFC v Barca as often as possible.”
Do you like Josh speaking for you?
Had to highlight Moray’s post @ 14:12 too as it is on the money and something I flagged up earlier in the week albeit not as eloquently: ”There is a fundamental flaw in all of this. There seems to be a belief that there is a never ending line of new consumers for football content, in markets like N America, China and India. ” And presumably also consumers who are willing to put cash down on cable tv packages, shirts, club johnnies and the like. This is patently bullshit. Football is an elitist sport in the US and China, and… Read more »
‘You still want your cold nights in Stoke’
LOL. Is that a real quote?
You see how Josh uses the deragotary term “cold night in Stoke”
The English based fans are now a hindrance and headache to the Kroenke’s.
Good.
They would love no English legacy fans. They are an obstacle.
Pieces of shit.
They so-call apologise but leaves us in no doubt that they are about global.
And they will still dump in the bin this club’s history and past identity in the blink of an eye.
Ishola
You know my thoughts on this. Safe to say Kroenke and co have no clue about football or football fans.
Ishola
At least the cat is out of the bag now and they aren’t just perceived as being soulless corporate termites anymore, very small victory I know.
Rich “The German model is based on creating a single European currency that is 40-45% undervalued for the German economy and massively overvalued for the rest of the Mediterranean. They’ve crippled half a continent, just so they can sell within the single market tariff-free, use the customs union to lock out the competition ” As you know, I hate politics, with a passion. However, I have to comment. I am a regular visitor to the Naples region of Italy. The bay of Naples around to the Amalfi Coast is spectacular and should be on everyone’s holiday list, when this pandemic… Read more »
A victory for the Little Englanders.
Best to savour it as much as you can now in the present this “victory” as defeat in the end game looks inevitable.
They so-call apologise but pander to the global at the same time.
Pieces of shit.
not that I want to see this bastards face, but i do hope that Josh too a grilling today
AFC… last post today or posters will start talking. Lol. Rattles Jeez i had 1. I wish some of the younger fans on here (No disrespect to any of you) could go back in time to 60’s/70’s and feel what ARSENAL meant. Not always pretty on the eye but My God it was just feeling a part of something that you knew was different.
Wenger Eagle “Spot on AFC Forever. You have been top drawer all this week”. Thanks for that, It’s been really something to get so much good feedback from some of you on here. Perhaps it’s because we are all very like-minded. It is really nice to see Arsenal Fans getting along, it is a shame that we argue about the small things really, while ultimately all we want is the best for the club. We just have different ideas of how to achieve that. It just shows our passions. Content the last week has been really good, Pedro’s piece above… Read more »
Josh is basically blaming the global fans.
We got it wrong because we were only reading the global fans.
The global fans misled us into this decision.
They want glory and glory fixtures every week says Josh.
What do you say to that “global” fans?
The only reason Chelsea and Man City compete in the Champions league is because of money, foreign money which kills off Premier league competition.
AFC I agree. I’m a ‘younger fan’ in that I’m 26 but I’ve been following us and the game itself obsessively for over 20 years so although I’m not old school, I caught the end of the old school generation feel and I do miss it and find it harder to really identify with and root for some of the players today. The money pumped into the game has completely changed it not to mention the culture of how the game is played with simulation and cheating more rampant than ever with VAR being an antidote that is being administered… Read more »
Here is a short breakdown of the Q and A:- 1. Josh Kroenke has confirmed that KSE will pay the fees incurred for their withdrawal from the ESL, not Arsenal. 2. Vinai Venkatesham: ‘Arsenal were not the authors of this proposal, despite what many think. On this project “the train was leaving the station”, we made the decision to join. We made a bad decision, a terrible one.’ 3. Josh Kroenke has echoed Vinai’s words apologising to fans and saying that the ESL was going to launch whether or not Arsenal joined. 4. When asked if they are fit to… Read more »
Great Post Pedro… Your right.. it’s always about the lesser of 2 evils anymore…. banking, business, politics,etc… It’s hard to really tell who the good guys are anymore… And it’s certainly not Uefa. Also, Josh Kroenke.. really once again shows how clueless, they are.. it’s not about freakin rainy nights in Stoke you dipshit.. Its about creating a situation that makes where you finish irrelevant and destroys the domestic Leagues because they are then rendered pointless. They don’t understand the purpose of relegation clearly. And giving the small Clubs a Cinderella’s chance every season. Along with earning your spot to… Read more »
Thanks for the summary AFC
I don’t really believe that anybody that truly loves the game and grew up watching it wouldn’t prefer a Atalanta vs Borussia Dortmund CL Final over a Barcelona vs PSG one but maybe that’s naive on my part. Or be rooting for Sporting Lisbon this season to win what would be their first league title in nearly 20 years at the expense of the talent-thieving fat cats Porto and Benfica that have all of the built-in advantages to succeed over there. Or weren’t pulling for Internacional to edge out Flamengo and Sao Paulo to win their 1st Brazilian Serie A… Read more »
Pedro Bravo sir a superb post entailing all my thoughts and wrote it better than I could . Didn’t like the super cup at all because of its closed shop and they were idiots to think it would’ve gone through but if everyone hadn’t got on their period and allowed those who panicked at the thought of falling off the gravy train to whip them into a frenzy I’m sure there was more than enough room than to sit down , communicate and have a level entry into it . By my what got me was the sheer amount of… Read more »
Thanks AFC for that breakdown. It would take nothing less than a mass fan strike for the Kroenkes to pack up.
“Many of the remaining 14 clubs’ executives have already called for points deductions, including Everton owner Farhad Moshiri,”
————————————————————————————————
It is highly unlikely. Imagine if 10 points were to be deducted from each of the 6 teams, Fulham may still have a chance to catch us.
Chelsea and Man City have bought there way out of ever being relegated.
Competition in the Premier league and Champions league sucks and is not any less biased towards wealthy clubs than the proposed Super league.
Yes, very good post, Pedro. The business of football is pretty much rotten to the core. The only thing that keeps us engaged is the beauty of the game itself and loyalty to our clubs despite our owners.
Wenger eagle “All of our views will never align due to generational differences but yes, ultimately we both [and everyone on here] love the club and want what is best for it. We all would do well to remember that at times we’re going at each other’s throat” Absolutely. Nicely put. Never lose the passion, it’s great to be passionate about something. You are the same age as one of my Sons, we often have similar discussions. The real challenge is to remain respectful and dignified, however much you disagree or object to something that has been said. Obviously, that… Read more »
Shit! Didn’t know that I was classified as an international fan. I am actually in the majority.
Guns & Bacary
Cheers, you are welcome.
Easier reading a breakdown summary than the journalists spin.
Josh K does not want to sell the club. Did he elaborate any more, other than saying he wants to build a bridge and stupid shit like that
A points reduction would be unfair in itself. Let’s say the Big 6 all got 20 point deductions then we would be on the verge of relegation partly because we haven’t financially doped to the levels that Chelsea and Man City have. Just look at Abramovich’s outlay in just the last year..
The flip side is if the punishment was a European ban, we would be the least affected along with Spurs.
Tony2 / AFC
Lovely to hear from you.
We are going to commemorate the double and all those memories on Goonerholics Forever for the Willow Foundation
AFC
what is the fine that KSE will pay ? what is that about?
ADC-would be interesting to know what Josh’s facial expression was during this. He couldn’t pull off the mournful gaze of John W Henry but I’m sure he had been practicing his serious apology look on the flight over.
*AFC
By the way, this is an interesting comment from Kroenke that leaves a bit if a smell, that maybe they have been led on:- “The global fan wants AFC v Barca as often as possible. English fans want to see more big matches, but you still want your cold nights in Stoke. We got it wrong.’ When did we last have a cold night in Stoke? This isn’t the sort of thing an American would say, it comes from somewhere. It’s the sort of thing a clickbait journalist would say. Was this the sales pitch from the Kingmakers, the Americans… Read more »
Guns,
Early withdrawal from ESL penalty. Perez was right that it was a binding agreement in the sense that pulling out would result in a financial penalty.
The chelsea fans had a banner that said that ” We want our cold nights in stoke”
this asshole was just reading the news online etc and copied that sign… thinking thats what we want?@?!!!!
Deluded and distant
Guns
I assume they were referring to any exit fees for leaving the ESL or any possible fines imposed. There are rumours that the equity stakes paid were around £8 million.
AFC-I saw a protester with those exact words on a sign about wanting cold nights in Stoke. Either Josh saw it on TV or one of his PR guys fed it to him.
Beat me to it Guns!
Guns & Bacary
If that’s true, it makes sense now!
AFC Forever
Sorry for your loss mate. Not easy no matter what age.
It’s what keeps us coming back here, the vast array of opinions and world-views all laced with the commonality and bond of love for the game and of this great club.
Honestly do hope that there’s eventually a Le-Grove beer-up at some point in the future. Would be some laugh, be a sight!
I don’t want to play Barca every week or even every season. That’s what makes it special when we do … is that we don’t get to play them very often. This reminds me of inter-league play in baseball..something Josh Kroenke might know about. Everyone was so excited when they got to play the Yankees for the first time… Now that it has been going on for some time… it barely registers at all, now. Not even news worthy. I know a Super League is inevitable though. Anyhow… Apologies mean very little… want to apologize… open up our transfer spending… Read more »
When Josh says global fans he meant ‘future fans’, the term used in the ESL declaration as opposed to all of us ‘legacy fans’ wherever we may come from.
Chelsea fans would do well to remember that Oligarch money is precisely why they are not playing cold nights in Stoke.
Great post Pedro very good read
If what they saying is true, it suggests that the ESL had been well advanced before we were asked to join. I can understand about ‘not wanting to be left behind” but you would have thought they would have done some due diligence and looked into whether or not fans would want it? These are very, very successful businessmen, you don’t start making decisions and investments like this without proper investigation, surely? Are our football clubs so devoid of real football people that there is nobody to guide these novices? Imagine asking David Dein or Arsene Wenger if it was… Read more »
Andy 1886 I’d like your thoughts on this if you have the time. Pedro mentioned yesterday or Tuesday perhaps that you were an historian. With regards to the punishment of the 6 clubs, the treaty of Versailles gives us historical precedent that excessive punishment can have the opposite effect it was intended to have(many of us have studied this, sid it seems experienced it first hand). Yet similar historical precedent can be taken from Chamberlain’s disastrous policy of appeasement. My instinct is that regardless of the type of punishment these clubs receive, history has taught us that they must be… Read more »
“English fans want to see more big matches, but you still want your cold nights in Stoke”
———————————————————————————————————–
Obviously, this reply was prepared by Vinai. Even Arteta should know that Stoke has not been in EPL for awhile now. Also what is wrong with the British weather?
WE
Thanks.
AFC Forever
Calling fans fake because they don’t agree with the current management set up shows ignorance and a lack of respect.
Oh so whatever Josh or Vinai tells us we are meant to believe them are we?
I mean they are so trustworthy aren’t they.
Middy Same way as the NBA suffers from having an 82 game Regular Season and a Best of 7 Playoff format compared to the 16 game NFL season with one-off play off deciders. Every NFL game matters and is like going to war whereas so many NBA games are meaningless which seems to impact ratings too. Barcelona vs Arsenal is only tantalising because it happens so rarely and is such a special occasion. You can vividly remember each of the fixtures we played against them whereas if we played them four or five times a season, games would blend into… Read more »
gunnerman
“When Josh says global fans he meant ‘future fans’, the term used in the ESL declaration as opposed to all of us ‘legacy fans’ wherever we may come from.”
That sounds correct.
As we know just from this blog the overseas fans know as much about the nuances and traditions of English football as the English fans do and that is to do with a cerertain age rather than location.
Isn’t the traditional punishment usually a transfer ban of some sort? Could see that being applied, here. Not that I’m asking for one.. we seem to do ok by punishing ourselves by making shit transfers.
Eagle-
Yep.. I think the media drive to get ratings all the time has had a negative impact on wanting the marquee matchups all the time. And therefore Leagues adjust to appease them so they can get the network money.
AFC-nice words about your mum. I lost mine in the last year too and of course Arsenal was a thread throughout our lives as it is with many families. She bought me my first Arsenal shirt when I was five because all the Liverpool ones were sold out (my gran fancied Steve Heighway and wanted me to be a Liverpool supporter). That first shirt turned me into a lifelong fan. I remember mum watching the 1979 final with me and when we brought Steve Walford on as sub at 2-0 she said ‘that’s a terrible idea, we’ll lose our rhythm’.… Read more »
If only workers opposed the super league of employers, if only consumers opposed the super league of corporations, if only voters woke the f up!.
Vinai was in the process along with others to take this club away from us overnight like a thief in the night but he tells us we weren’t really the bad guys.
Thanks for that Vinai.
You have really assured me now.
Fans of every football club should be hitting the streets with just one slogan
FFP FFP FFP.
Force them to put a true FFP in place. 90% of issues will disappear.
Those of you who keep saying Kroenke out – he is not the problem. The Emiratis and the Russian are.
You can’t condemn them and at the same time condemn Kroenke for not doing what they are doing. Decide who is killing football.
These guys keep telling us what a grave terrible error they have made. Dreadful error they keep saying.
So where are the in-house repercussions for this?
Why isn’t Vinai’s head on a stick already? Like a sacrificial lamb.
Instead we have posters believing his every word.
Interesting that Woodward is apparently leaking that he resigned due to the Glazer’s actions over ESL. Is it possible that they kept him in the dark while he was approving the UEFA expanded Champions League format? If so, that’s breathtaking arrogance envelope for them because they would have really thrown him under the bus. Maybe he’s just trying to rehabilitate his image but this feels like a story that’s going to run for a whileZ
The moment you put true FFP in place and enforce it, most billionaires will go away in any case.
If they can’t use their billions to buy titles and trophies, they don’t want to play.
Didn’t see Chelsea fans complaining when billionaire Putin puppet Abramovich bought Chelsea.
I dont believe a word any Kroenke says. Fucking donkeys
Wenger was laughed at for saying 4th place is a trophy.
Think of it. With the Russian, The Arabs and the bent United, who was the true league winner?
Right, the 4th place team. Now go and count how many titles we have.
A fan and smart and fair playing Billionaire is fine…. actually that would be nice
Almunia “On how it is the Kroenkes and not arsenal that need to be punished, the game simply isn’t played like that, however much you would will it so” I agree but it’s pretty obvious any PL or UEFA sanction is likely to be by way of a fine. If that is the case, KSE should pay it not Arsenal. Kroenke has inferred they will pay up via KSE. Why should the fans be punished, as I said we were the ones that stopped our clubs from going into the ESL. Premier League:-: We hear that the PL clubs are… Read more »
I would find the reference to English fans to be deeply disturbing. It’s a glimpse into the mindset of these owners. His language is betraying that they do not view the fanbase as a single entity but are dividing it on the basis of nationality revealing their intentions to identify, exploit,sacrifice the sections of the fanbase that they find it most beneficial to. I’m not so naive not to realise that fanbases are being exploited ,nor am I unaware of the cynical marketing strategies employed including divide and conquer,eg sorry legacy fans but you are not as valuable to us… Read more »
Guns – then don’t complain football is broken.
As I said, if that is fine then be happy for Chelsea and City and PSG. What are we complaining about?
Bacary is god
“AFC-nice words about your mum. I lost mine in the last year too and of course Arsenal was a thread throughout our lives as it is with many families”
I’m sorry to hear that mate. It’s not easy, especially trying to navigate a loss during the pandemic.
I have to give Arsenal some credit for being somewhat open about how they reached the decision to join the ESL. Arsenal have also been more apologetic than any of the other 6 clubs that joined the ESL
People will rightly say it’s all contrived but sometimes we have to start the healing process somewhere.
We will continue to be exploited by Kroenkes – now they are playing dumb, like they didnt know. Of course they knew of the backlash – its been stated that these clubs were ready for the fall out and prepared to go to war.
Its a lie and ingenuous … more head filler for the easily duped.
AFC fans dont drink this kool aid please
Almuniasaynomore
“But what I cannot fucking believe is that in an attempt to apologise for this type of behaviour he is still using this divisive language as if to say ‘and we would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for you stubborn traditionalists and your need to play Stoke’.”
Exactly.
We’ll be back! We’ll be back! We’ll be back!
Thanks AFC.
“Socialism for the rich, rugged individualism for the poor.”
Arsenal and the other six clubs should refuse to pay a penny back in fines as punishment. The idea of punishment is ridiculous particularly when the vast majority of the other 14 clubs in the premier league are free loading on the league. Apologies have been provided to the league, that should be enough. For the league and UEFA, it’s just business. With the fans, that’s another issue all together. Fans will process their apologies with their own discretion. Who will they be really punishing? The owners or the fans? If someone forces Arsenal to pay 25 million as punishment,… Read more »
Midwest I hope you’ll indulge me after you were talking about baseball. Going to take a guess here. Your favourite MLB team is in the NL central. The Pirates are too Eastern and while Chicago is technically a midwest city I’m going to rule out the Cuba. The brew crew are just that little bit north and no one follows Cincinatti any more. Wild guess – you’re a Cards fan. You can legitimately go nuts if I’m wrong. I love baseball although the Mets seldom have success despite being fairly well heeled (sounds familiar…) I got into it in Bogota… Read more »
*Arsenal and the other five clubs should refuse to pay a penny back in fines as punishment.
Dela mere – Red comes up with a new moniker 🙂
Dissenter,
These owners should be fined. So money does not come our of the team budget.
Like a personal fine or something… there needs to be some consequence or these billinaires will attempt something like this again… trust me.
Afc forever Firstly,in writing my previous posts I missed the one where you referenced your mother’s passing. My condolences, no one plays a greater role in our lives( if we’re lucky). When I think of my mother I take comfort in my children,I’m glad that you can do likewise. In terms of punishment, I deliberately didnt ask Andy what would be a fair punishment as I think that’s a separate argument. Do Arsenal deserve punishment is the first question. I spent a lot of time attempting to empathise with supporters of prem clubs outside of the 6, and I imagined… Read more »
TR7
“Dela mere – Red comes up with a new moniker ”
Oh he’s no longer a wrestler now.
Nagasaki no more.
Wengaball “Wenger was laughed at for saying 4th place is a trophy” I mentioned this earlier. A soon as he left, all everybody obsesses on is finishing 4th!! Ridiculed when Arsenal finished third or fourth back then and ridiculed now because we can’t make 4th anymore! You couldn’t make it up. Never ceases to amaze me how ignorantly fans will follow the biased sports media. Wenger was right about the spiralling wages and transfer fees that financial doping would bring, along with the huge debt to keep up, the sponsorship ‘fiddling’ and the potential for a European Super League. Every… Read more »
Fans are just puppets to UEFA and FIFA’s plan. Thanks to the fans we now have a UEFA Super Champions league, well done.
Quite funny from James Richardson on Totally Football podcast.
‘It was a bit like the end of War of the Worlds when the tripods were all defeated by the homespun bacteria, in this case played by a thousand Chelsea fans blocking the Fulham Road’