Sports Illustrated - whose dedication to fiscal issues is almost as great as their dedication to taking pictures of pretty ladies on the beach - have published a list of the twenty highest earning non-American sportsmen. They did this back in February, when David Beckham sat in fifth place with his paltry $29.7m annual fortune. Now, Mr B stands atop the pile with a much more befitting sum:
1. David Beckham (LA Galaxy) $48.2m
2. Kimi Räikkönen (Formula One) $46m
3. Ronaldinho (Barcelona) $37.5m
Annual Deloitte report reveals fiscal health of the Prem
Yesterday, the number crunchers at Deloitte released their annual report regarding the games’ finances in the 2006/07 season. The reams of data tell us that Premier League wages have now topped the £1billion mark, with each Premiership side dishing out an average of £48.5m to their staff (with Watford’s £17.7m at the bottom of the scale, and Chelsea’s staggering £132m at the top).
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While revenues have never been higher (The Premier League brought in €2273million in 2006/07, almost twice as much as the closest financial competitor, The Bundesliga), many clubs are spending far more than they are generating. Of all the teams in the top two flights, Derby’s situation was most troubling, as their wages/turnover ratio stood at 125 per cent. That means for every £100million that came into the club (and that’s just turnover, not profit), they were spending £125million on keeping the team in place. Of course, this figure is skewed by the performance-related bonuses given to Rams players for winning promotion, but it represents part of a trend that Deloitte partner Dan Jones believes will ‘lead to a continuing flow of insolvency cases’.
The financial housekeeping in Derbyshire leads a lot to be desired, but bank mangers in north London are considerably less aggravated. The famed wage structure at Arsenal puts them in a healthy third place in the league of wages/ turnover ratios (with 50 per cent), but based on this criteria, Spurs’ 42 per makes their structure the most economically sustainable in the top two flights.
Rubbish team will strike, but English club could save the day
Fresh from a bizarre centre circle protest last week, relegated Levante are planning to ruin Real Madrid’s championship celebrations on Sunday. Players of the financially-troubled club, who are owed around 18million Euros in wages, are unapologetic about a plan to strike and spoil Real’s big day. Captain Luis Manuel Rubiales said:
“Madrid has fans all over Spain, including in our team, and we are the last ones to want to cause it [sic] trouble.”
Levante has not been training all week and are adamant they will not play the league game, which means Madrid will be awarded all three points. If they find themselves contractually obliged to show up for a friendly tie, however, the players also have a scheme to enrage the Bernabeu faithful: according to some Spanish reports, they will field seven players (the minimum
Obviously, Lamps is a Chelsea favourite and an integral part of the current team, however, his latest rumoured contract demands see him asking for £140k+ a week for the next four years. That will mean the largest weekly withdrawal from the Bank of Chelsea will be going to a 34 year old.
So should the Blues acquiesce to Princess Frank’s demands, or should they wave him goodbye as he prances off to Spain? Vote now!
New contract will buy Princess Frank a lot of pretty gowns
According to today’s Daily Express, Frank Lampard wants a £30m four-year deal to stay at Chelsea after his current contract expires. According to my super computer, that’s a cool £144, 230.77 a week, which will put him way above teammates JT (£135k) and Schevchenko (£130k), and also a few quid above Kaka, the current best paid player in the world who takes home £143,438 a week.
But will Chelsea pay out? And how will he manage if they don’t?
Is Lamps a victim of the moneymen, or making his bed and crying in it?
Despite being one of the best paid players in the world and an a huge asset to his club, Frank Lampard has decided to lay his cards on the table and speak to the press about his contract once more. Negotiating huge deals should be second nature to a club like Chelsea, so why has this scenario become so messy? Is it because Frank wants a get out clause (as some papers are suggesting) and more lightbulbs around his dressing room vanity mirror, or does it all come down to simply wanting a few more notes from Mr Abramovich every week? Who is the villain here?
Michael Owen’s £104k-a-week contract expires at the end of next season, and this morning’s Guardian says the 28 year old will be seeking a pay rise. He says:
“Players don’t change overnight and I am still the same player I was five years ago.”
He has scored just four goals this season - not a great return on Newcastle’s staggering weekly investment.
Do you agree with Mr Owen’s startling self assessment? How much should The Toon be paying him? Comments and votes below, please.
Fans of great lists: get your reading slippers on. A terrifyingly solemn Portuguese website called futebolfinance.com has compiled a list of the fifty highest earning European footballers. It being Portugal, the sums are in euros (and it being Portugal no one playing for a Portuguese club side is on the list), but with one euro worth about 76p, by subtracting a quarter of the sum, the all-important pound value will be revealed.
Once you’ve managed to control the powerful waves of envy and indignation crashing together inside your head, the list makes for some interesting reading. Who’d have thought Darren Bent was top twenty? How much higher would he have been if he’d gone to West Ham instead? And since when was a Harry Kewell worth more than a Joe Cole?
Sports Illustrated magazine have compiled their annual sports rich list, which Tiger Woods dominates for the second year running. He banked nearly $112million last year, which is over $12,700 an hour. That’s a lot of tees.
They also publish a list of the top 20 non-American earners, the results of which are quite surprising: Beckham is fifth and only one Premier League player makes the top ten:
1. Fernando Alonso. Auto Racing. $35m.
2. Ronaldinho. Barcelona. $32.7m.
3. Roger Federer. Tennis. $31.3m.
4. Valentino Rossi. Motor Sports. $30m.
5. David Beckham. Real Madrid/LA Galaxy. $29.7m.
