Chelsea Discussion

[Storts]

This is a great day for English Football.

Although Chelsea will come out of it smelling like roses on the other side as they always do.

But I have zero sympathy whatsoever. You have to take the rough with the smooth with an owner like this, and the chanting at Burnley sums up that fanbase. Hopefully this ends disastrously (but it won’t) 

[Storts]

2 hours ago, Honey Honey said:

Sounds like sponsors are now looking at how to jump ship and see if they can end contracts early. Could Chelsea Football Club collapse? What's the Premier League going to do?

We can dream 

[Waylander]

The CPO holders are independent so what ever happens no premium residential property can be built over the pitch. Just in case the propery barons are sharpening their knives.

The CPO holders prevented RA from moving to Earls Court.

So think this will go on for a bit yet, think a deal will be done though will it be a quick-fire sale to the lowest PC bidder?

 

[Honey Honey]

Out of interest who is Chelsea's £1.5bn of debt to? 

[Storts]

1 minute ago, Honey Honey said:

Out of interest who is Chelsea's £1.5bn of debt to? 

Roman 

[Danny]

Little sympathy for Chelsea tbh, their fans have absolutely lapped up what Roman has done for the club the past decade and a bit. If this is a natural consequence of that then they can have no quarrels.

Though I’m sure some billionaire will buy them soon anyway

[Dr. Gonzo]

On the one hand I think this is funny.

On the other hand we’ve got a club literally owned by Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund that’s been waging a genocidal campaign for years in Yemen and they were allowed to buy a club this year - and we’re seeing their fans a bit giddy about this… and that rubs me the wrong way.

[Dr. Gonzo]

Does this make Lukaku the highest paid government employee?

[DeadLinesman]

31 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

On the one hand I think this is funny.

On the other hand we’ve got a club literally owned by Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund that’s been waging a genocidal campaign for years in Yemen and they were allowed to buy a club this year - and we’re seeing their fans a bit giddy about this… and that rubs me the wrong way.

Tbh, the Glazers are worse than both combined. They need sanctioning.

[Coma+]

Can't renew contracts, can't buy new players, can't sell match tickets, can't re-stock merch.  Essentially anything that will generate "new" cash that could be filtered to Abramovich is off the table. All expenditures have to come out of any funds that they currently have in the bank, or any money that is already owed to them that hasn't yet been paid (loan/transfer fees).  They also have to continue to pay out on the transfer fees they owe.  

They also have a budget on travel of 20,000.  Looks like they'll be on a bus to Europe .

[MUFC]

15 minutes ago, Coma said:

Can't renew contracts, can't buy new players, can't sell match tickets, can't re-stock merch.  Essentially anything that will generate "new" cash that could be filtered to Abramovich is off the table. All expenditures have to come out of any funds that they currently have in the bank, or any money that is already owed to them that hasn't yet been paid (loan/transfer fees).  They also have to continue to pay out on the transfer fees they owe.  

They also have a budget on travel of 20,000.  Looks like they'll be on a bus to Europe .

They can join the Scottish league.

[Reluctant Striker]

On one hand, every club with any ambition will be looking around wondering if this will open a vacancy. A vacancy Chelsea did rather obtain in mirror circumstances.

On the other, you would imagine a new owner will take over soon. This is after the wheels had started turning for that to happen. It surely can't block that actually happening?

Most ambitious owners have to start from much, much lower than recent Champions League winners & World Club champions.

But, unchanged by this latest development, is that it must be questionable exactly how many can 'do a Roman'. Even Newcastle's owners down played how much they think they will achieve with the club.

[Honey Honey]

Cancel culture the war strategy of this era.

 

[OrangeKhrush]

I am so over these stupid talks.   When you really do all the traces you will always get back to some western politician with their fingers in the pie.  It has just become in vogue to play virtue politics instead of engaging real issues.    Is Abramovich's conduct in running the football club clean?  I would say he has been much cleaner than the City owners when business ethics is considered.    And somebody like mike ashley is allowed to steal 400m out of a club and fail to post financials for 4 seasons,  screwed over his own employees by denying them salaries and covid benefits while cavorting his personal endeavours,  this guy was allowed to run a club because so long as the big 4 are not inconvenienced and the FA don't get a piece of pie then nobody gives a crap. 

Abramovich had dealings with putin,  so what,  america has dealing with maduro, xi jimpeng, Putin,  the UK and Europe are up to their necks in the shit pit of despotic leaders.  Spare me the epithets.   The issue in Yemen predates the current Saudi government,  the war is basically the Saudi's and UAE funding two extremist groups that represent different ethnicities of Muslims that are not interested in peace.   If the West really gave a toss they would have steam rolled all the extremists like they did with Iraq and set up a proxy government until Yemen was stable for self governance,  like Afghanistan....oh wait to soon. 

Does Saudi Arabia represent Newcastle,  no not at all unless you suffer from the cognitive dissonance of virtue grandstanding.   Here is a virtuous solution,  these people should get a gun and go fight for their cause,  until then hush it. 

[OrangeKhrush]

35 minutes ago, Honey Honey said:

Cancel culture the war strategy of this era.

 

Until the west cancels itself into oblivion

[LFCMadLad]

@CiceroAnd a few others will be Man City fans by next pre- season 

[Viva la FCB+]

1 hour ago, OrangeKhrush said:

Until the west cancels itself into oblivion

I dont think you understand the difference between cancel culture and whats gone on here.

[Dr. Gonzo]

1 hour ago, OrangeKhrush said:

Does Saudi Arabia represent Newcastle,  no not at all unless you suffer from the cognitive dissonance of virtue grandstanding. 

This and Chelsea fans chanting Roman Abramovich's name during the moments applause of solidarity for Ukraine are demonstrations of why shit countries engage in sportwashing. Cos it works.

[6666]

1 hour ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

This and Chelsea fans chanting Roman Abramovich's name during the moments applause of solidarity for Ukraine are demonstrations of why shit countries engage in sportwashing. Cos it works.

To be honest, I don't think it does work. People just separate a country's crimes from anything else they're doing. They rarely justify the bad things. The bad things are bad and the things that aren't bad, aren't.

To me, "sports washing" is a cringe term that only seems to be applied to non-western countries that people don't know much about so they act as if everything must be connected in some way.

Saudi buying Newcastle is irrelevant outside of football and isn't that serious in the grand scheme of things. The media could cover Saudi bombing Yemen a lot more if they wanted to. Them buying Newcastle isn't relevant when it comes to that as the coverage wasn't great before they took over Newcastle.

To be honest, journalists seem to talk about the crimes of a country more when "sports washing" is taking place. Maybe there should be more of it so that there's more coverage...

[LFCMadLad]

@Cicerowill respond when he returns from his holiday in Moscow 

[Dr. Gonzo]

7 minutes ago, 6666 said:

The media could cover Saudi bombing Yemen a lot more if they wanted to.

Well I understand why the BBC doesn't - it's because the UK government is very complicit in what's happening in Yemen. And it's not just the bombing of civilian infrastructure they probably don't want to talk about - but the fact that we're aiding in a war where the coalition we are on the side of is using famine and disease as weapons of war. It's a disgusting conflict, regardless of what anyone thinks about the Houthis (and I think they're absolute scum, but just because they are absolute scum it doesn't justify what's happening to people in Yemen generally)... and I think it'd be unsettling to a lot of people in the West if more knew that's part of what their taxes pay for.

But I think sportwashing does work - otherwise these regimes wouldn't try to do it. Would Qatar be hosting a world cup if they hadn't spent billions in football trying to improve their image as a footballing nation? Would Russia have a state sponsored olympic doping program if they didn't see the value in having shitloads of olympic medalists? Would Chelsea fans chant the name of a Russian oligarch that made his billions in Russia's kleptocracy during that minutes applause for solidarity country invaded by Russia?

I definitely think sporting glory helps people look the other way when thinking about what certain governments have done/are doing and that's why shady regimes do it.

Because at the end of the day, being ambitious with a sporting side is not going to give many people a great return on investment unless you are content with picking up PL TV money and not having any ambition... at which point fans get pissed off and attendances go down and that's not good for the league and it's TV ratings.

[Reluctant Striker]

Sport washing is like the other side of the Olympic spirit coin. Often in sport people gain respect & admiration. In the Olympics, it is kind of the idea that everyone celebrates everyone taking part. The issue can be when it shouldn't be putting a false gloss on someone or some group. And if 1 group should not be celebrated, who else should not be. And who decides where it ends.

[6666]

24 minutes ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

Well I understand why the BBC doesn't - it's because the UK government is very complicit in what's happening in Yemen. And it's not just the bombing of civilian infrastructure they probably don't want to talk about - but the fact that we're aiding in a war where the coalition we are on the side of is using famine and disease as weapons of war. It's a disgusting conflict, regardless of what anyone thinks about the Houthis (and I think they're absolute scum, but just because they are absolute scum it doesn't justify what's happening to people in Yemen generally)... and I think it'd be unsettling to a lot of people in the West if more knew that's part of what their taxes pay for.

But I think sportwashing does work - otherwise these regimes wouldn't try to do it. Would Qatar be hosting a world cup if they hadn't spent billions in football trying to improve their image as a footballing nation? Would Russia have a state sponsored olympic doping program if they didn't see the value in having shitloads of olympic medalists? Would Chelsea fans chant the name of a Russian oligarch that made his billions in Russia's kleptocracy during that minutes applause for solidarity country invaded by Russia?

I definitely think sporting glory helps people look the other way when thinking about what certain governments have done/are doing and that's why shady regimes do it.

Because at the end of the day, being ambitious with a sporting side is not going to give many people a great return on investment unless you are content with picking up PL TV money and not having any ambition... at which point fans get pissed off and attendances go down and that's not good for the league and it's TV ratings.

Regardless of what their intentions are. Countries are more influenced into become more "progressive" and in tune with other countries from more social contact rather than from being cut off in my opinion. That's more to do with sporting events taking place than a country's foreign sporting investments but even with that, excluding them doesn't really achieve much.

I also don't think people look the other way based on "sports washing". Most will separate the two and judge accordingly and some will just judge it all as bad. I've never come across anyone that has had the attitude of "this sporting event/investment makes up for everything". They don't exist.

I also don't like the double standards in which it's applied. It's like if the Olympics were held in the US, that wouldn't be considered sports washing as the country's international politics is separate for anything else that goes on but if it were in China or Saudi, it would be considered sports washing.

For me, I don't think people actually let sports affect how they see things politically and the term "sports washing" isn't applied consistently anyway. All the terrible political stuff should be covered and that's down to good reporting and should be independent from reporting on sports.

If they're kept separate then you can't conflate the two. I prefer that attitude to conflating sports with politics and branding all as bad.

That's not to say I'm happy about the ownership of Chelsea, PSG, Man City, or Newcastle (hell, I'm not even happy with our owners) but that's more from a sporting point of view than a political point of view.

Edited March 10, 2022 by 6666

[OrangeKhrush]

2 hours ago, Dr. Gonzo said:

This and Chelsea fans chanting Roman Abramovich's name during the moments applause of solidarity for Ukraine are demonstrations of why shit countries engage in sportwashing. Cos it works.

sure it was not the smartest thing to do, but Roman has been a great owner and from a business standpoint built Chelsea into a powerhouse.   

this is a witch hunt of convenience.  like who doesn't deal with Russia prior to 2 weeks ago?

[Dr. Gonzo]

12 minutes ago, OrangeKhrush said:

sure it was not the smartest thing to do, but Roman has been a great owner and from a business standpoint built Chelsea into a powerhouse.   

this is a witch hunt of convenience.  like who doesn't deal with Russia prior to 2 weeks ago?

I mean there've been sanctions on Russia since they invaded Crimea, perhaps the West should have taken a harsher stance in 2014 to make Russia think twice about further invasions rather than placating them to let them feel they could continue their expansion in Europe with nobody giving a shit.