A monthly compilation of interesting business news related to soccer. September 2012.

Transfer spending rises in England, France and Germany – September 3rd

Spending in the summer transfer window has increased year-on-year in England’s Premier League, France’s Ligue 1 and Germany’s 1.Bundesliga, but has reduced in Italy’s Serie A and Spain’s Primera Division, according to analysis by Deloitte.

The business advisory firm said that player transfer spending by Premier League clubs was around £490 million in the 2012 summer window, marginally up from the £485 million spent in summer 2011 but just short of the £500 million record of 2008. Transfer fees to overseas clubs were around £300 million, almost 50% up on the level seen in 2011.

Full Article >> Soccerex

Manchester United chief executive David Gill will put club allegiances to one side if successful in bid to represent England on Uefa board – September 4th

Manchester United chief executive David Gill will put his club allegiances to one side in his bid to represent England on the board of UEFA.Gill will stand for election as the Football Association’s nominee to the influential 16-strong body that decides on the European football governing body’s policies.

An election will be held at the UEFA Congress in London next May when all the 53 member nations will each have a vote.

Full Article >> The Independent

Barcelona seeks consultation on future of Nou Camp – September 6th

FC Barcelona has announced that it will stage a meeting with its senior delegates on September 22 in order to request a referendum to decide on the future of its Nou Camp home, reports SportBusiness.

The future of Barcelona’s iconic stadium has been the cause of much debate in recent months. Speaking at his end-of-year address in June, Barcelona president Sandro Rosell announced that planned renovations at the Nou Camp had been put on hold despite the revelation of record financial results.

Full Article >> TribalFootball

Majority of Premier League Teams in Favor of Fiscal Controls – September 6th

As many as 17 Premier League teams are in favor of introducing financial control measures in an effort to prevent soccer’s richest league from operating with losses, West Ham co-owner David Gold said in an interview.
Representatives of the English top division’s 20 teams met today in London to discuss the possibility of adding rules requiring fiscal restraint. A briefing document outlining a range of potential proposals, including limits to wage bill raises or a break-even clause, was handed out.

Full Article >> BusinessWeek

UEFA May Start Company to Meet Sales Promise to National Teams – September 7th

UEFA took control of national team matches involving its 53 member nations for the first time after striking a deal with each federation that ensured higher revenue than under previous agreements. The Nyon, Switzerland-based organization is exploring the option of creating its own company to sell the rights rather than strike a deal with established sports rights agencies, UEFA’s marketing director Guy-Laurent Epstein said.

Full Article >> BusinessWeek

Rangers studying stock market listing – September 10th

Full Article >> Soccerex

FFP: UEFA ‘could suspend players’ – September 11th

UEFA will impose Financial Fair Play (FFP) sanctions including withholding TV money and suspending players from clubs failing to comply with the regulations, a source has told ESPN.

The news came as UEFA announced that 23 clubs involved in its 2012-13 competitions have had prize money withheld as financial investigations are carried out.

The source said the developments showed that the UEFA president Michel Platini was “doing exactly what he told us all he would do”.

Full Article >> ESPN

PSG to expand into other sports like Real and Barca – September 11th

PSG, owned by the Qatar Sports Investments wing of the small but wealthy Middle Eastern state, have spent big on players and coaches in the past two seasons and are looking at rebuilding or replacing their current stadium.

But their ambition does not just extend to football, with long-term plans in place to create an all-round sports brand , the likes of which have achieved success with Spain’s Clasico clubs, with similar models also in effect in Russia, Turkey and Greece with the likes of CSKA Moscow and Lokomotiv Moscow, Galatasaray and Fenerbache, and Olympiakos and Panathinaikos.

Full Article >> Eurosport

Celtic announce losses of £7m in their annual results – September 18th

Celtic have announced losses of £7m for the year up to the end of June in their annual results.

The figure means that the club’s debt has increased by more than £2m, despite the club recording a pre-tax profit of £180,000 for the second half of 2011.

But chief executive Peter Lawwell insisted that the losses were not concerning.

“The club’s in a decent place and we have built up over the past few years,” Lawwell told http://www.celticfc.net.

Full Article >> BBC

Man United’s loss widens in Q4 – September 18th

Manchester United PLC said Tuesday that its net loss widened in its fiscal fourth quarter after the celebrated soccer club was knocked out of lucrative competitions early in the season.

The team, which went public on the New York Stock Exchange last month, said it lost 14.9 million pounds ($24.2 million), or 10 pence per share. That’s compared to a loss of 351,000 pounds ($570,000) in the year-ago period.

Full Article >> Bloomberg Businessweek

Hamburg launches fan bond to aid HSV Campus project – September 21st

Hamburg SV has launched a fan bond scheme which aims to raise Eur12.5 million towards the cost of developing the 1.Bundesliga club’s vast ‘HSV Campus’ project.

HSV Campus will be located across a 4,000 square metre site adjacent to Hamburg’s Imtech Arena and will mainly serve as the club’s new youth training centre. However, it has also been designed as a major point of contact for Hamburg fans and will also include 20 apartments, conference rooms, a club shop, a travel agency, fitness facilities, a sports bar and volleyball and tennis courts, along with football pitches.

Full Article >> SoccerexLe

FA have Wembley as 2020 vision – September 24th

The Football Association have put forward Wembley to UEFA as the venue for the Euro 2020 final.

UEFA president Michel Platini is considering a change to the format of the tournament so that it would be played in cities across Europe rather than just one or two countries.

It is understood FA chairman David Bernstein met Platini last week and registered the association’s interest in Wembley holding the final of the European Championships. If successful, it could also mean one or both Euro 2020 semi-finals also being held in London – Platini’s idea is that one city should host the climax of the tournament.

Wembley’s chances are linked to Turkey’s bid for Euro 2020 – if Istanbul wins the right to host the Olympics in that year then UEFA will not countenance Turkey hosting the Euros.

Full Article >> EuroSport Yahoo!

Bahrain Bank Reaches Agreement on Takeover of Leeds Soccer Club – September 27th

Three-time English soccer champion Leeds United moved closer to being sold after Bahrain-based bank Gulf Finance House EC said one of its units has signed an accord to lead a takeover.

GFH Capital Ltd. has an agreement to lead and arrange the acquisition of Leeds City Holdings, the parent company of the team, according to a filing made with the Bahrain bourse.

Leeds attempted to challenge Manchester United and Arsenal for England’s Premier League title in the early 2000s with a spending spree for top talent. The team’s failure to match its expenditure with success led it to fall into financial difficulties and in 2004 it was demoted from the top flight. After a spell in the third division and entering bankruptcy protection, Leeds now plays in the Championship, one level below the Premier League.

Full Article >> Bloomberg