I was listening to the Real Radio football phone in while making my dinner tonight and every call seemed to be about Kris Boyd's possible departure to Birmingham City for about £3.5 million. Every caller was arguing that Rangers are mad to sell Boyd and that it shows a lack of ambition at Ibrox. I don't know if the decision to sell Boyd is based on his ability or his attitude but the one thing that is certain is that Rangers are not in a position to turn down the money.
This brings me to my point - football is a business and like every business, the economic downturn is going to have an affect. For a long time, players have been earning a lot of money which has been paid for mainly by television money, sponsorship and season ticket sales. The problem is that these sources of money are drying up and football is having to face the same decisions as that faced by everyone else - cost cutting!
I heard on the radio that the problems are likely to get worse as the economic problems increase. Much of the money in football at the moment has been paid in advance. The television contracts will run out in the next couple of years and it is unlikely TV companies will be willing to pay the same amount. Businesses are likely to cut back on their sponsorship money and supporters will think long and hard before renewing season tickets for next year. Few teams will be immune to the economic problems - even Chelsea players now need to pay for their own lunches! - and will have to think twice before offering expensive weekly contracts or whether they can reject an offer for their star player.
Football in recent years has enjoyed the lucrative rewards available to business but now will have to face up to the fact that it will have to suffer just like everyone else!
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