Is Football heading for a meltdown?

[Mr Blobby]

How many people moan that MFIS and AMF etc but subscribe to Sky or BT Sport?

I bet I am in a small minority that refuses to subscribe to either as IMHO "The Premiership" and the cash in it has destroyed the game I loved. Yes I still have a season ticket at the Amex but I no longer do every away game. I am rapidly falling out of love with the game. I have stopped doing England home games and only do the away ones as usually a great trip with mates and meet up with people I only see at these away games.

I used to love the Champions Leage , when it was just for the Champions not the top 4 of the rich European countries. Even the cup winners cup was entertaining. The European Championships used to be superb, when it was hard to qualify for, and there was a good limited number in the finals.

Now every game/tournament is just to keep the rich clubs rich and pander to the broadcasters and the armchair fans. Yes football may be richer in terms of cash but in all other aspects its now a poor comparison to the good old days! Yes I just had to mention the good old days.

Hopefully the latest scandals may have an impact, safe standing may come in, then maybe the game can start to head back to belonging to the supporters again.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

Sorry but I cant agree with that, in fact I would say the opposite. Go back and look at the top league football back in the 70s and 80s it was far worse.

....just gone back and looked at English football in the 70's and 80's and believe it or not......just found out the following.......

1 ) Liverpool.......won the European Cup ( now the Champions League ) in 1977 and 1978 and 1981 and 1983.
2) Nottm Forest...won the European Cup in 1979 and 1980.
3) Aston Villa won the European Cup in 1982.

...apart from that....I agree....football was far worse then.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

I guess this is tongue in cheek given what Leicester did last season having recently being in the championship? Bournemouth managing to stay up and the Leeds United great fall

Not all. I should have made it clearer that I was referring to a financial gap not a playing gap.

 

[Mo Gosfield]

How many people moan that MFIS and AMF etc but subscribe to Sky or BT Sport?

I bet I am in a small minority that refuses to subscribe to either as IMHO "The Premiership" and the cash in it has destroyed the game I loved. Yes I still have a season ticket at the Amex but I no longer do every away game. I am rapidly falling out of love with the game. I have stopped doing England home games and only do the away ones as usually a great trip with mates and meet up with people I only see at these away games.

I used to love the Champions Leage , when it was just for the Champions not the top 4 of the rich European countries. Even the cup winners cup was entertaining. The European Championships used to be superb, when it was hard to qualify for, and there was a good limited number in the finals.

Now every game/tournament is just to keep the rich clubs rich and pander to the broadcasters and the armchair fans. Yes football may be richer in terms of cash but in all other aspects its now a poor comparison to the good old days! Yes I just had to mention the good old days.

Hopefully the latest scandals may have an impact, safe standing may come in, then maybe the game can start to head back to belonging to the supporters again.

Ah...the good old days....pre 1992....before real football started. Eventually the sporting history books will be re-written and reflect how Neanderthal it all was. Aimless hoofball, aimless scurrying about, no tactics, no formations and no skill anywhere. I guess there will be a general burning of all football books pre 1992, akin to Nazi Germany. No one will want to be associated with that rubbish. They will only want to know about the new pure football. The brilliance and genius there is in the new game. Grandparents will be reported to the authorities for daring to mention the words...' George Best '

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

Football is merely reflecting society attitudes. There seems to be general acceptance and enthusiasm for inequality as a way of encouraging excellence. Take a look at the Joe Root thread lower down the page. Most people take the view that he is a great player so therefore deserves a million pounds a year of the game's money. This is what has happened to football and all I see is vast numbers of sky subscribers and sold out premier league grounds. Like it or not premier league greed is popular.

 

[Surrey_Albion]

I'm really starting to dislike football tbh,I can see a future where I can't be bothered to go anymore,the passion has gone for me

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Yep, England did a Leicester in '66. Football was so shite then.

 

[loz]

....just gone back and looked at English football in the 70's and 80's and believe it or not......just found out the following.......

1 ) Liverpool.......won the European Cup ( now the Champions League ) in 1977 and 1978 and 1981 and 1983.
2) Nottm Forest...won the European Cup in 1979 and 1980.
3) Aston Villa won the European Cup in 1982.

...apart from that....I agree....football was far worse then.

I wasn't really talking about what was won, more the athleticism speed and skill of the game. IMHO is better now than it was, throughout all levels of football.

 

[wakeytom]

Not all. I should have made it clearer that I was referring to a financial gap not a playing gap.

Again I refer to my post as Leicester won on a much smaller budget than most in the league. Funnily enough I dont suspect this post would be written had Brighton been in the prem

 

[Mr Blobby]

Ah...the good old days....pre 1992....before real football started. Eventually the sporting history books will be re-written and reflect how Neanderthal it all was. Aimless hoofball, aimless scurrying about, no tactics, no formations and no skill anywhere. I guess there will be a general burning of all football books pre 1992, akin to Nazi Germany. No one will want to be associated with that rubbish. They will only want to know about the new pure football. The brilliance and genius there is in the new game. Grandparents will be reported to the authorities for daring to mention the words...' George Best '

One of my biggest hates is when they make quotes about records and its all since the start of the Premiership. Anything done before that has just disappeared from the "new" record books. Brighton have never been in the Premier League, well yes we have as spent 4 years in that very competition from 1979-1983, it was just called something diferent. Right I am off to look at pictures of the Goldstone and the league tables from our glory years before they get officially removed from the pre Sky football days

 

[wakeytom]

One of my biggest hates is when they make quotes about records and its all since the start of the Premiership. Anything done before that has just disappeared from the "new" record books. Brighton have never been in the Premier League, well yes we have as spent 4 years in that very competition from 1979-1983, it was just called something diferent. Right I am off to look at pictures of the Goldstone and the league tables from our glory years

I didnt think you had, although possibly in the old first division. The difference in quality from say football in the 80s to say of that even in the late 90s and definitely now is chalk and cheese - football from the 70s looks worse than non league now

 

[Hastings gull]

Like or not, and there plenty of aspects not to like, football is in a far healthier state than it was in the 80s before the creation of the Premier League.

I know what you mean -the stadia are clearly better and facilities for fans are too, so in this sense the injection of cash has helped. Whilst I am not sure about this totally, and criticisms are often levelled at the PL for their greed, I am assuming that more money has tricked down the ladder to other clubs and causes that would have been the case without Sky dosh.
But it is the sheer scale of the money which as ever is corrupting individuals, and football is no different to other walks of life when greed takes over. I do feel that slowly but surely fans have lost interest in the PL, as I have. I rarely watch MOTD and tonight it is Everton v Palace. Years ago I would have been glued hoping Palace lose, but I really can't be bothered now. I think the use of the word "meltdown" is rather strong, but in time, when enough fans say "that is it" and a boycott is organised, then things might change. It is very hard to turn your back on the team you have supported all your life, but if pushed, and feelings run high enough, then I could see it happening in the future.

 

[Guinness Boy]

I football from the 70s looks worse than non league now

 

[wakeytom]

OK maybe one or two players - but we are talking about domestic football, archives I have seen of older games from around then including the top teams are atrocious, fitness levels poor, pitches with slopes or just mud baths and the like

 

[dejavuatbtn]

I didnt think you had, although possibly in the old first division. The difference in quality from say football in the 80s to say of that even in the late 90s and definitely now is chalk and cheese - football from the 70s looks worse than non league now

Having experienced the whole of the 1960s to date I can honestly say you don't have a clue what you're talking about. It's all relative and I quite liked seeing UK players playing English football and achieving good results - we won the world cup in 66, did well in 1970 and OK in Italy in 1990. I don't see any improvement since then, unless paying a load of imports bucket loads of money at the expense of a decent national team is what you are after.

 

[wakeytom]

Having experienced the whole of the 1960s to date I can honestly say you don't have a clue what you're talking about. It's all relative and I quite liked seeing UK players playing English football and achieving good results - we won the world cup in 66, did well in 1970 and OK in Italy in 1990. I don't see any improvement since then, unless paying a load of imports bucket loads of money at the expense of a decent national team is what you are after.

Actually yes it is, I was never talking about club football and would take that any day of the week over a handful of international games a year.

Would much rather watch the best football possible week in week out and some of the best players in the world playing in the same league

 

[Guinness Boy]

How many people moan that MFIS and AMF etc but subscribe to Sky or BT Sport?

Sadly, me. BT Sports came as part of our combined TV and broadband deal with Virgin. Did without Sky for years but also have it now as they have the rights to literally every sport I like. No Sky? No cricket and no NFL. I hardly ever watch football at home despite having the access but my son watches the whole lot. He can't remember anything before a couple of years ago and thinks that Sky and Sunday football are perfectly normal. This is the battle us oldies are fighting. You and I remember standing on the terraces at some Northern grief hole having had 6 pints with our mates beforehand but every kid I've told about the old days has just looked at me blankly, like I'm an alien. I'm part of the problem, I recognise that, but you'll never put the genie back in the bottle. I'd like to see realistic changes now. No more Monday or Thursday football (who watches THAT?). TV games scheduled at least three months ahead to fit in with train timetables. Some sort of compensation fund for fans to claim against if a game gets moved suddenly. I'm in no way a fan of modern football but I don't see anyway back. Even if you just get a firestick and kodi streams it means someone somewhere has moved a kick off time or someone somewhere isn't going to the game. It's shit, but the alternative for me is no sport in the house at all.

I used to love the Champions Leage , when it was just for the Champions not the top 4 of the rich European countries. Even the cup winners cup was entertaining. The European Championships used to be superb, when it was hard to qualify for, and there was a good limited number in the finals.

Agree it was way better.

Hopefully the latest scandals may have an impact, safe standing may come in, then maybe the game can start to head back to belonging to the supporters again.

Safe standing should be a thing now. it's baffling that you can in Germany but not here. As for the rest of it, sadly another shark will be along five minutes after the current one's been killed. Read the latest Secret Footballer book, it's totally depressing.

 

[GT49er]

Having experienced the whole of the 1960s to date I can honestly say you don't have a clue what you're talking about.

Fully endorsed and seconded!

 

[wakeytom]

Fully endorsed and seconded!

So the quality of top flight football has been better than it is today (or over the past 24 years) prior to 92? I think to start with the proof is in the sports science, but we wont worry about that fact.

 

[Guinness Boy]

So the quality of top flight football has been better than it is today (or over the past 24 years) prior to 92? I think to start with the proof is in the sports science, but we wont worry about that fact.

Pele, Cruyff, Best, Zico, Gascoigne (who straddled both eras) Maradona would piss all over any current Premier League player. Messi, Bale and Renaldo are arguably as good / better and they play in....well, you know where they play. The difference is that the first list seemingly did it whilst variously pissed, smoking or on the devil's dandruff. Imagine if they's had sports gels and a decent diet.

Or rather don't. All that diet and sqawka nonsense just churns out extremely average footballers with no creativity at all who can run 12k in a game or complete 80% of their passes as per coach's instruction.

I haven't even touched on Stan Bowles, Liam Brady,, Ossie Ardiles....