Stop the spending spree in football

As an avid fan of football, I enjoy witnessing matches that provide excitement, suspense and uncertainty. However in the present day, these types of games are rare to come by. This is a result of huge funds being injected into some of Europe’s top clubs, thus allowing them to build teams that are almost unstoppable. A prime example of mediocre teams rising to the top is French side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), who were considered a mid-table side until the 2011-12 season. It was then that Qatar Sports Investments became the club’s majority owner, resulting in PSG becoming the richest club in France, and one of the richest in the world. Since then, PSG have won the French League three times and have acquired world-renowned players, such as Zlatan Ibrahimović and Thiago Silva. The money invested into PSG has affected the competitiveness of the French League, as there is little doubt that PSG will win the league comfortably every year. Individual player transactions have also increased significantly over the past decade, with players rising in market value every year. Raheem Sterling, who was a coveted young midfielder for Liverpool, was sold for a whopping £49 million (DH280.45 million) to Manchester City, who is also one of the wealthiest clubs in the world. This transfer shows the importance that teams place on youth, and the excessive price tags that are associated with these players. The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), who are the governing body of football in Europe, have implemented Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules within the top leagues in the world, but have done very little in order to restrict huge financial takeovers that result in an imbalance within the competition. More transfer embargos should be placed if a club exceeds more than $250 million (Dh918 million) in transfer fees, and more points should be deducted from teams should they fail to comply with these price-caps. With these additions to football, we will be able to witness more competition within leagues, and hope that the beautiful game will flourish once more.

The reader is a student based in Canada.