On the 15th December 1995 Jean-Marc Bosman changed the face of football for the worse. The Belgian footballer fought for and eventually won the right to move from one club to another for nothing once their contracts had expired. Labelled the ‘Bosman Ruling’ it effectively shifted the power that football clubs once held over players putting them in the driving seat when it came to transfer dealings and contract negotiations. Player power has grown exponentially over the last 15 years and is continuing on a rapid incline towards an absurd level. But will this increase ruin the game we all know and love?
Looking at the transfer window that has just passed there were a number of cases that caught the eye and gave weight to the notion that player power is actually ruining the game. A couple of examples spring to mind with Samir Nasri, Jose Enrique and Charles N’Zogbia the obvious ones that come to the fore. Last season Wayne Rooney demanded to leave his club, leveraging his position to see his demands for a salary increase granted by Manchester United to prevent him from leaving Old Trafford. Quite frankly it’s disgusting that players now have the mind-set that they are bigger than the club, the owner and the fans. What makes them think they can bully the club into a corner and demand more money or dictate what they will do after their contract has expired?
The Rooney fiasco really did make my blood boil considering he is already paid handsomely by the club, is worshipped by those in the stands and is the poster boy of English football that many a young child look up to in awe of his footballing ability. If only they knew the truth about how greedy and conniving footballers are becoming. Rooney knew Man Utd would do everything in their power to keep him at the club and used that to grind them into submission. How can he accuse the most successful side in English football of lacking ambition? It was a paper-thin ruse that didn’t fool fans or the media alike. But it worked and he eventually got his pay rise because Man Utd were simply too afraid that they would lose him to a rival team.
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This trend is becoming all the more common in football with players in the final years of their contracts now more aware of the fact that they can hold a club to ransom by saying they’ll leave the following year for nothing unless they get an improved deal. This will either lead to a club selling the player on for a reduced fee (although on deadline day fees can soar) or giving into their demands and bumping their wage up to meet their requirements. Enrique left Newcastle for £6 million this summer despite being worth more than double that fee. But with the Spaniard refusing to sign a new deal and hankering for a move to Liverpool the Magpies had to sell otherwise they’d have an unhappy player on their hands that would be free to leave in 12 months time for absolutely nothing. It’s a dirty tactic but it works. Nasri is another example, refusing to sign a new contract and forcing Arsenal to sell him to Man City.
But who are real losers in all of this? The fans! They are the ones who are hit hard in the pocket when these players decide they want a pay rise or a move elsewhere. Whether a player pockets more zeroes on their weekly wage or decide to leave on a free causing their club to shell out money on a replacement, fans will be the ones left covering the cost. Ticket prices, merchandise and food has slowly risen in tandem with transfer fees and wages that players are now commanding and it’s having a serious effect on attendances. With the economy in the perilous position the clamour for players to earn the highest wage possible is sucking money out of clubs and the pockets of fans.
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These players are simply tearing the heart right out of football forcing more and more fans away from stadiums and into their armchairs or local pubs. Their selfish approach to earning money is killing football slowly but surely and ruining a game that was once built on respect and principles. If this problem isn’t nipped in the bud and rectified quickly, football will eventually cease to be as these players will become too powerful and too expensive to maintain.
