MO’ MONEY MO’ PROBLEMS
“Long-term growth”, “profit and sustainability’, “investment for the future”, “rising costs of goods and services”: the language of modern football has become interchangeable with the halting guff coughed out by UK chancellor Jeremy Hunt in Wednesday’s budget. Indeed, football finance is such big news that recent years have witnessed the growth of a new subset, the “football finance expert”. It can be a broad church, from Gianni Infantino rolling in Saudi money, to Big Sir Jim’s Manchester United revolution, via more parochial stuff like the running costs of Neasden FC since Buffy Cohen flounced out. It can be a vital service, as spreadsheets, balance sheets and profit and loss accounts strain the eyes of those not blessed with accountant-standard numeracy.
