The English Premier League has broken all records and smashed all January transfer window records. Chelsea broke the British transfer record by signing Torres for £50m and Andy Carroll became the most expensive British player signing for Liverpool from Newcastle.
In sharp comparison, the biggest fee paid in Spain was only £6m and £12m in Germany.
Tottenham look at a prospective move to east London at the Olympic Stadium site and while financially appealing; reportedly it is £200m cheaper to demolish the Olympic Stadium and rebuild a new stadium on the site (£250m) compared to redeveloping White Hart Lane (£450m).
Aside from the waste of building a stadium only to tear it down, fans are dismayed at leaving their corner of North London. However Spurs fans should take heart, London clubs have been moving since the formation of the league:
View London’s nomadic football clubs in a larger map
[Source:Londonist]
Chief Executive David Gill announced a new seven figure sponsorship deal with Epson. The computer peripheral and office equipment supplier have a long history of partnering with sport. This history stretches as far back as 1964 when Epson provided the timing devices for the Tokyo Olympics.
”This partnership with help Manchester United stay at the top of English and world football,” said David Gill.
Chelsea FC have been looking at Asian companies to provide much needed funds for their proposed stadium. Head of marketing, Ben Wells, said in an interview “There are a lot of brands in these markets who eventually are going to outstrip their domestic demand and look to launch internationally. What better platform than the global footprint the Premier League provides?”
“The Asian market is colossal,” Wells said. “If you look at the AFC [Asian Football Confederation], they represent two-thirds of the world’s population.”
Clubs in the English top flight hold enviable sway in Asia and combined with the sheer size of the Asian market, brands such as Standard Chartered, Aon Corp and Hublot have been eager to take.
Further reading
English Soccer Champion Chelsea Taps Asia for Stadium Sponsor, Bloomberg
A recent article in Business Week has shown English clubs now secure the most lucrative shirt deals where previously their Bundesliga cousins held the title.
The article is a result of a recent SPORT + MARKT report which shows England’s top 20 clubs are generating $178 million in revenue this season from endorsement deals, an increase of $62 million.
The GSK brand Lucozade has struck a deal with Liverpool and Arsenal to become their official “Sports Nutrition Partner”. The three seasons deal, gives the clubs access to Lucozade’s 26 nutritional products, and means that Lucozade is now the official sports drink supplier to 19 of the 20 Premier League teams.
Vinai Venkatesham, Head of Global Partnerships at Arsenal said: “Working with Lucozade Sport means that Arsenal players have access to trusted sports nutrition that’s proven to make a difference. We are delighted to be working together for the next three years”.
While Nike has been dominant in soccer advertising in past years, this tournament saw Adidas become the World Champions. Adidas began to overtake its rival through the success of a Star Wars themed advert featuring Beckham, Snoop Dogg et al.
With the huge furore over the Jabulani match ball, a NM Incite survey showed Adidas overtook Nike in terms of buzz on blogs and social media networks. Adidas landed the final blow by its shirt sponsorship of the Soccer World Cup winners Spain.
The NM Incite survey has also revealed that during the first two weeks of the World Cup, FIFA Partners and World Cup Sponsors dominated online buzz. In fact out of the 10 most talked about brands 8 had World Cup affiliations (only Pepsi and Carlsberg did not have ties).
This World Cup halo effect spread to other markets as Budweiser, Hyundai and McDonald’s all saw a surge in internet buzz.
Plans are afoot to become the first Premier League team to split their shirt sponsors.
A deal has been struck with the software infrastructure company Autonomy, to carry their name in Premier League. However Spurs could increase their coffers by landing another deal with the would-be sponsors holding rights for the FA Cup, League Cup and the qualifying rounds for the Champions League.
Daniel Levy, Spurs chairman and former investor in Autonomy has said “We are delighted to have Autonomy as our new global partner. I have been impressed with Autonomy’s vision and growth for many years…”
Meanwhile, Championship side Middlesbrough have failed to find a year longer shirt sponsor, so have taken the bold step in becoming the first club in the world of offering month by month shirt deals.
Watford has signed a lucrative 2 year deal with Burrda with the sportswear company now supplying the club kit and becoming the official club sponsor.
Burrda previously targeted the Middle East clubs such as the Qatar and Kuwait national sides and are aiming to become a global kit supplier. BURRDA’s General Manager, Charles Diab, added: “Next season is our first in the UK football market and it was vital for us to launch with the right kind of partner and Watford FC is just that.
“It genuinely is a club at the heart of its community and the outstanding work it does with young talent at the Harefield Academy really caught our eye. This makes it stand out as a progressive club ready to challenge in its field, which is exactly how we see ourselves too.
“There’s exciting times ahead for Watford and we can’t wait to be involved. The opportunity to become the main club sponsor and kit manufacturer enables us to help them move forward with their plans to be a top thirty club aspiring for a return to the Premier League.”
Deloitte’s Sports Business Group has calculated the value of Blackpool’s promotion to the Premier League.
According to Paul Rawnsley, Director of the Sports Business Group the increased revenues from international broadcast rights of the English Premier League and extended parachute payments equal the “most substantial prize in world football”.
So in the first year the club should receive £40m from TV deals, higher gate receipts and increased commercial income. Then even if Blackpool are relegated they will receive parachute payments of up to £48m.