OT Administration and Sport

[Geoff Parkstone]

So this week a second premiership rugby team is heading towards administration. Wasps, former winners of the top European cup are about to follow Worcester that way.

That's akin to Southampton and Arsenal imploding, in football terms.

When will professional sports wake up and smell the coffee? Overspending on wages - albeit top rugby players are "only" on 400-500k a year.

Will premier league football look at this, and our recent plight, and wonder how revenues are going to be impacted in the looming economic difficulties. Will TV deals of the future continue to pay for it all to carry on? In reality it's Joe public that pays via "high street" sales driven by adverts which underpin the TV contracts.

Sustainability is one of the words that defines business today. Will professional sports wake up in time?

[ramAnag]

I never understood London based Wasps’ move to Coventry, GP. I think their average ‘home’ attendance is about 9000 (helped upwards by a guaranteed capacity crowd against nearby Leicester) and in a stadium the size of Pride Park that is a recipe for disaster. In addition to that, as well as owing HMRC about £2m they also owe their backers around £35m for the purchase of the Ricoh/Coventry BS Arena so, despite the relative wealth of traditional Wasps’ supporters I think we all know it will end in tears.

You and I will remember a time when professional sportsmen were members of the community, GP...they may sometimes have been on a pedestal because of their achievements, but they were relatively ordinary...they walked down the same streets and drank in the same pubs.

I’m not saying that’s how it should be...they deserve more, it’s a relatively short lived career and one with the risk of injury which can become quite debilitating in later life...from mobility issues caused by knackered joints to Alzheimer’s...but I agree with you...things have gone too far and the amount paid to top sportsmen today seems not only immoral but a factor which will eventually destroy clubs via, as you say, lack of sustainability. Hopefully we’ll be one to have learned the (painful) lesson.

[Geoff Parkstone]

There is still a bit of a community feel rA, but not much. The son and grandson of a friend of my Dad both play(ed) for Gloucester RFC but the grandson comes back to wrestle sheep in his day job and seems quite grounded. Hope his sports career takes him further but he hasn't lost sight of his roots (yet?)

[Andy_Faber]

So this week a second premiership rugby team is heading towards administration. Wasps, former winners of the top European cup are about to follow Worcester that way.

That's akin to Southampton and Arsenal imploding, in football terms.

When will professional sports wake up and smell the coffee? Overspending on wages - albeit top rugby players are "only" on 400-500k a year.

Will premier league football look at this, and our recent plight, and wonder how revenues are going to be impacted in the looming economic difficulties. Will TV deals of the future continue to pay for it all to carry on? In reality it's Joe public that pays via "high street" sales driven by adverts which underpin the TV contracts.

Sustainability is one of the words that defines business today. Will professional sports wake up in time?

I fear that as in many walks of life, the rich will continue to get richer and the poor will continue to get poorer, and in some cases those who aspire to take a step or two up the ladder by gambling on future success will crash and burn (or in our case, thanks AGAIN Mr Clowes, crash and almost burn)

Personally, without any particular data to back this up, I think TV revenue for the 'true' elite sports (Premier League, F1, NFL) will sustain, I don't know anyone who has or who intends to change their viewing habits on any of these three, but revenues tail off rapidly when moving away from these and a few others, and the lure of sporting success IMO blinds people to their ability to sustain a business, be it a team or even a series, especially if it's contrived (A1GP, USFL, Formula W, who knows how LIV, The Hundred and women's football will turn out long term)

Lessons should be learned but I doubt they will be

[ramAnag]

Declan Rice said to be set to turn down a £200k per week contract at West Ham. Sums up the current absurdity perfectly.

[SithHappens]

While ever the likes of man City and Red Bull break the rules but go unpunished it just forces everyone else to push the boundaries to try and compete causing inevitable financial difficulties