Football and the Free Market

[AucklandRover]

As many of you know, my political views are quite far to the Left, but you surely don't have to agree with my overall position to be horrified by the road football is going down. 100 million pounds for Pogba, including 20 million to his agent?!!? A salary of 220,000 pounds a week?
Football is a sport that is followed by some of the poorest people in the world. I accept that it is valuable to them as an escape from their often awful lives, but how can we justify this?
New Zealand is a relatively prosperous country, but we have families living in vans, garages and sheds. I know the UK is the same.
I recognise that Capitalism is the economic system that suits human nature best, but football now seems to be at the forefront of the unrestrained, free-market movement. I know some of you on the Right don't like regulation, but, come on...should we have no sense of shame and show no concern for the fact that the whole world of sport, celebrity and show-business is being so grossly over-funded?
I wonder if there's a single footballer who ever experiences the slightest twinge of doubt or guilt.

[robinrover]

Obscene television deals are to blame
before team sky came along English football was a level playing field and huge wages and transfer fees were unheard of
sadly this is something we have to get used to as the team's at the top spend stupidly and the money gets less and less the further down the divisions
Overspending is to blame for clubs like ours but sky/bt are the root of the problem
capping or restricting the money will never happen as that potentially could effect viewing figures
it's very sad that there are so many are in need of money to survive yet teams justify spending ridiculous amounts on one player.

[Despair]

Gentlemen, do I really need to comment ??? ������
Read an article a little while back re Italy's current plight and in reflection Pogbas 'good fortune'.
It was something like: he is worth / earns as much as 190,000 southern Italians collectively, and even in Rome he's 'worth' about 135,000 of them. Makes you think doesn't it.

The beautiful game ???

Not to mention Mr and Mrs Shifty.

[Bobcrompton1896]

Im on the opposite end of politics to you Aucks,although I received low wages all my working life.

Curiously enough,this economic debate sounds like a ringing endorsement of Venkys and/or Burnleys transfer policy i.e.the figures are so ridiculous,live within your means and spend zero pence!!!