4.2.6. Institutions
Football is an entertainment for people, and institutions are
aware of that. Institutions' expectations are far higher than football
entertaining people. Institutions expect football clubs to be part of the
community support. Institutions expect that football remains accessible to
everyone in the community, especially to poor people. Institutions want
football clubs and their players to be example for the youth; they want clubs
to train some locals and to help them to become professional players / coaches,
to help amateur football clubs. To become concrete examples for everyone,
institutions wish that football clubs help the local charities. Institutions
control that football clubs take decision agreeing with their stakeholders.
Morality apart, institutions hope that football clubs help to develop the local
economy by working with local suppliers, by developing tourism... Everton and
Liverpool F.C. are considered as major economic actors in the City of
Liverpool, according to Johnstone (2002). The most important economic benefit
for the community is employment and institutions expect that football clubs
hire as numerous staff as possible.
How stakeholders influence football clubs' strategy ? September
2003
Institutions also hope that football clubs' performance will
increase the region's notoriety. Maillard (2003) explains that it is the case
at Lens where eighty-three percent of people associate the city with its
football club, according to a study.
Public institutions have direct influence on football clubs'
strategy. First, although a French law limits these subventions to £2.5
million-a-year; they often give some money to local football clubs. Public
institutions represent sixteen percent of Amiens S.C. total income, as much as
the club's fans! Even if they do not give this money, they can help the club
buy buying some advertising around the stadium. It is what the city of Lens
does: it buys advertising for £155,812 every year, according to Maillard
(2003). Another delicate chapter of relations between institutions and football
clubs is the exploitation of the stadium. Stadiums usually belong to cities and
football clubs exploits it. In the case of Amiens S.C., Amiens rents it for
free to the club. In Lens, the city council ask for £190,090 per year; it
is more than what this institution gives to the club... Football clubs are kept
apart from political questions. Mayors from any political party support
football clubs because of their popularity. So, political changes do not have
much influence on the clubs. Institutions also have an indirect power on
football clubs: they can prevent clubs from some actions. As institutions rule
their region, in case of conflict with the club (it may happen), institution
can disturb it. For example, the R.C. Lens organises annually a carnival with
its fans in the city and it requires agreement from the institutions, which is
not always easy to obtain.
4.2.7. Organizations
First, it is essential to define which organizations deal with
football clubs. At a worldwide level, the FIFA set up the rules of the game,
control transfers and judge conflicts between clubs. Then, the UEFA is the
represent of the FIFA at the European level; it manages the European
competitions. At a national level, the LFP manages all the professional French
football clubs (Ligue 1 and Ligue 2). For the same function we have two
organizations in England: the Premier League cares about League 1 clubs, when
the Football Association manages the professional football clubs of Divisions
1, 2, 3 and 4.
How stakeholders influence football clubs' strategy ? September
2003
These organizations' expectation is that football clubs become
popular ambassadors of this sport so that it becomes attractive to ever more
people. They expect clubs to respect the rules set up to avoid any conflict,
negative for football's image.
Theses organizations have power and influence on every club. They
set up the rules of the game clubs have to admit. They also impose football
clubs to have certain structures to welcome spectators; otherwise clubs are not
able to enter competitions. Most of these structure improvements deal with
fans' security. Football clubs can also be reprimanded at a sportive level by
those organizations: they can affect their rank by withdrawing some points the
clubs won. In England the Premier League also imposes some commercial rules.
For example, clubs are not allowed to change their replica shirt every year,
but only every two years for fans to be able to buy their favourite club shirt.
According to Scudamore (2002), even the price fixing of replica shirts respects
rules enacted by the Premier League. In France, the LFP created an independent
commission to analyse the clubs' financial accounts, the DNCG. Clubs must have
a guarantee for any of their debt; otherwise they will be relegated to the
inferior division. As football clubs often have `weak' finances, this
commission aims at improving football clubs' situation. But this commission is
unique in France and other European clubs do not have to follow such strict
rules. In a close future, the UEFA may set up the same type of commission at a
European level. But who would prevent Real Madrid, the best team in the world,
from playing the Champions League because it has about £100 million debt?
The last, and not the least, element of national football organizations' power
is money. They are in charge to negotiate and reallocate the television rights
paid by media. As explained in part 4.2.5., this income is a need for football
clubs' survival.
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