By Paul Nicholson
July 12 – English football has never had it so good as Deloitte’s Annual Review of Football Finance shows total revenue for the 92 league clubs hitting a record £4.4bn for the 2015/16 season.
July 11 – Everton’s transfer spend already guarantees them a top six Premier League finish according to stats research. On average top 6 clubs spend £65.1 million per year. Everton have already spent £85 million on five new players.
July 10 – English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur have denied they are in takeover talks following British media reports of a potential £1 billion deal backed by Facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg.
July 7 – This week’s Supreme Court ruling against Rangers football club could have a damaging knock-on effect, say experts, with scores of other clubs and players – Scottish and English – potentially forced to hand over millions of pounds of unpaid tax.
July 5 – How are the once mighty fallen. In one of the biggest club upsets of recent European seasons, Scotland’s Rangers were knocked out of the Europa League qualifying competition on Tuesday by part-time Luxembourg minnows Progres Niederkorn.
July 5 – La Liga club Deportivo La Coruña has restructured its crippling debt mountain with a €45 million loan-cum-sponsorship with financial institution Abanca.
July 5 – Rumours of Lionel Messi’s possible departure from Barcelona have been well and truly crushed after the Argentine superstar agreed a contract extension which will keep him at his boyhood club until 2021.
July 5 – Mergers and acquisitions specialists Blackbridge Cross Borders form the UK and Whitecap Sports from the US have formed a strategic partnership to open up the US market to European/Asian investors and vice versa.
July 4 – The Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) has ruled against Italian club Fiorentina,in their €32 million claim against Chelsea over the loan transfer of Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah.
July 3 – The Scottish Premier Football League (SPFL) has boosted total prize to £1.6 million and TV payments to almost £500,000 for the 2017 Betfred Cup. The 15% increase includes a record £250,000 for the competition winners.
June 30 – Sunderland owner Ellis Short (pictured) has taken the club off the market after sales talks with potential new German owners broke down.
June 29 – West Bromwich Albion’s Chinese owner Guochuan Lai (pictured) and landscaping company Palm plan to construct up to six ‘soccer towns’ across China as part of Lai’s expansion of the West Brom brand across China.
By Mark Baber
Junne 29 – Leeds United have confirmed that their parent company has completed the purchase of the Elland Road Stadium, as had been promised by new Chairman Andrea Radrizzani.
June 27 – TV revenues have revolutionised club football finances in Europe. But it is how those revenues are distributed that is crucial to the competitive integrity of leagues, the sustainability of clubs and the competitive balance between the rich and poor.
By Paul Nicholson
June 26 – The messy divorce of English businessman Mike Ashley from his involvement in Scottish giants Rangers now looks to be complete with Ashley having sold his remaining 8.9% shareholding in Rangers International Football Club for £2 million.