It's a fair bet that not everyone will be a fan of the government's proposed English football revolution, which will create an independent regulator and push for a more equitable sharing of the revenues generated by the world's most popular soccer league. When the idea was floated in 2021, the chief executive officer of Premier League club Leeds United decried redistribution as "Maoist collective agriculturalism". That's a little rich. If you want to see an example of a sporting industry that truly embraces egalitarian principles, try starting in that well-known socialist country, the United States of America.
The most popular US professional sports -- including football (the US version), baseball and basketball -- are far more interventionist in their pursuit of a level playing field. Salary caps, player drafts that give the weakest teams first pick of emerging talent, and revenue splits to all clubs, regardless of size or on-field success, are common features. These all aim to prevent excessive dominance by one or several franchises and preserve the element of uncertainty that is so fundamental to the appeal of sporting contest.
