10 Feb 2016 22:12:47
Its funny that every fsg bully boy thinks they've won the war.
"The club has also ended game categorisation - meaning fans will pay the same price for matchday tickets regardless of the opposition. "
This just means instead of £30 for bournemouth at home, itll now be the man u price of £59.
Its kinda like when car insurance had to be made equal between men and women, they didn't lower mens insurance, they just raised womens.
002 do you think that's what's happened here? i think its pretty creative if that's what they've done and i applaud them for it.
{Ed002's Note - They have more major issues to deal with right now and they will not be happy with the whole situation.}
10 Feb 2016 22:33:39
It's a brilliant PR move to be honest and the reactions seem positive even though many more tickets I would imagine are now actually more expensive then under the previous (now scrapped) scheme. Frankly I didn't have a problem with the last one nor a problem with this one, but I wouldn't exactly say they've conceded much of anything really.
10 Feb 2016 22:40:27
Yep, like trying to get their 110m back they loaned the club to build the new stand, which the bully boys seem to forget when it suits them.
I want JH to sell up, the guy from day 1 has come across as a nice gent with the club at heart.
he gave us kenny, he gave us klopp, he gave managers over 300m, all whilst the club has been losing money hand over fist.
A stand up guy that's tried to do his absolute best sorting out the mess H&G left, sure he's got things wrong, but he's tried.
An what respect does he get for it? i'm pretty sure him and his wife have received death threats in the past ed? they couldn't come watch games for a long while if i remember rightly.
Lfc fans don't deserve FSG, they can do better than us. i hope they sell up for a profit, getting as much back as possible, and get themselves away from us as quickly as possible.
Disgusted they had to apologise publicly like that, like a picked on kid who looked at the big kid the wrong way.
We have made our bed, just hope sos are ready to lie in the repercussions.
10 Feb 2016 23:26:32
Completely agree Benny.
10 Feb 2016 23:38:01
Well said Benny lad.
10 Feb 2016 23:22:50
They made kenny fly to America to sack him.
They gave us Rodgers and we're still paying him.
. Enough said.
{Ed001's Note - I don't see why someone should be applauded for loaning us money in the attempt to turn it into more money for themselves. That is just business, not good ownership.}
11 Feb 2016 03:45:55
They are businessmen, Benny, they weren't sticking their hands in their pockets because they are nice, generous guys who thought the clubs fans deserved it - it's a business transaction. They have their PR machine smoothly oiled if they have fans thinking they deserve better.
Having said that, they are trying to build LFC into a functional and successful sports business which should ultimately mean more on field joy for the fans.
11 Feb 2016 04:06:18
I mean, we could be into a bank for £170M or thereabouts instead, along with all the interest that would invoke. I'd say them loaning the money interest free instead is a pretty nice thing to do.
{Ed001's Note - and they will turn it into equity which will rise in value by a similar amount when they sell up. So no, not nice, just a nice money earner. I wish people would stop making out they are doing us a favour, they are not, they are doing their wallets a favour. Now that does not mean I am against them as owners per se, just that I am not stupid enough to think they are doing anything out of the goodness of their hearts, out of niceness, or to do us a favour.}
11 Feb 2016 04:17:32
Of course they'll get it back eventually, I didn't say otherwise. But I'd much rather owe them £170M than a bank £170M plus a fat gob of interest. Most of the FSG lot are investment banker types, I'm pretty sure they could make far more money off of that money far faster in many other ways.
{Ed001's Note - quite clearly they can't or they would be doing that. They have invested in sports as they see it as the best way to make money. Short term borrowing off them helps us out, long term it is a bigger hindrance. So I guess it depends on whether you care about the club now or whether you give a toss about its future?}
11 Feb 2016 04:36:56
Fair point on the latter, Ed. But on the former these guys are mostly quite capable of making money elsewhere. Henry with his soybeans, DiBenedetto with his investment management and real estate, Gordon back a few years with Vinik, etc. Sports are generally a poor investment compared to other things they could be doing and I do think at least part of them has a passion for it (granted, probably much more baseball related than football) . As you say, they've made their share of mistakes but I do think they also get a bit more grief sometimes then they deserve as well.
{Ed001's Note - no mate, they entered sports as a money making scheme. It is one of the best ways to earn in the USA. Businessmen are desperate to get involved in ownership of sporting franchises, in the main, as they are pretty much a license to print money. That is the sole and only reason they are involved as an investment group. I have no doubts they enjoy some sports, but that is not why they invest money into it, and certainly not why FSG bought Liverpool.}
11 Feb 2016 04:41:17
Turning Liverpool into a profitable machine is itself a success and that also implies on field success as definitely on field success isva necessary means to profitability. Look at Arsenal, i bet liverpool fans will be more than happy yr in yr out to be in ucl and able to buy stars like Sanchez and Ozil.
{Ed001's Note - I am not so sure most of us would be happy to be like Arsenal, though I do agree with your first sentence. Arsenal have the cash in the bank to buy the one or two top class additions that would see them challenge season in, season out, for the league title and Champions league, but it stays there, so instead they challenge for top four and champions league group stages each season. That is the problem with a sports business like Arsenal over a sports team like Bayern or Barcelona.}
11 Feb 2016 04:57:41
Cheers, Ed001. Not sure I agree with you entirely still as surely no one interested in making money would buy a newspaper these days! A good discussion though and appreciate all the replies (along with everything else you do around here) .
{Ed001's Note - newspapers are not dead and buried yet, there are still ways to make money off them. Especially when you have the associated websites to go with them. Certainly no one buys a newspaper to win football matches with it.}
11 Feb 2016 05:19:16
Shouldn't be applauded for something the previous owners have failed to do?
You say they've only spent because they'll turn it in to a profit. Yet. £350m for the club, 110m for the stand. £300m on players. All this whilst losing a mill ever week in the early years. There's never a promise they'll make money. It's gamble and a risk.
They saved our club from administration, they've turned us into a profitable business now, I think 002? They're never guna make it all back. The fact you're moaning that they want to get money back, isn't robbing the fans. It's called supply and demand. But I guess now we can just be left behind our rivals some more on match day income, and we can sweat a bit more when ffp come knocking.
{Ed001's Note - all investment is a risk and a gamble, but the Premier League is rising in value, the risk in this case is miniscule. The club was bought on the cheap, it was worth more than that, with a new stand it will be worth even more, which is why it was built. They will get it all back and more when they sell up, let alone any profit they make between then and now. Sorry but you are talking from ignorance, it is not supply and demand, it is ripping people off for a quick buck, there is a huge difference.
You are typical of the modern 'I'm alright Jack' fan, who only cares about whether they can afford to go or not and sod the rest of you. Not that it really affects me as I was priced out years ago. One day, you will move out of home and have to pay real bills, then you might think differently, until then it is easy to think its not that bad.
By the way, if they keep on increasing ticket prices around the league, the whole reason for the English league's success will be driven out. People watch round the world because of the 'famous atmosphere' in English footie, if it deteriorates any further they will have no interest in watching it. What will happen to ticket prices when the TV money starts to dry up?}
11 Feb 2016 05:54:39
bit of a cheap personal attack there, seeing as i'm not the one who moved to dubai to dodge taxes. Guess that's FSGs fault too.
you refer to the premier league as a rising vaule, that's purely because of the tv deal. The tv deal was a bid war, and that's why its ridiculous sums of money. The premier league, has something the tv companies what, so they pay over the odds for it. Its supply and demand. An i have no doubt sky and bt customers will be paying more next year, so the fans are had one way or another.
Too many people want their cake and eat it too, and it looks like youve had your fill.
{Ed001's Note - dodge taxes? I moved here due to illness, that was just a bonus. Though it probably was FSG's fault as I got the liver infection due to drinking too many energy drinks trying to keep the site updated during their takeover! Maybe I should sue?
You are obviously missing the point, fans are already paying for it through the TV subscriptions, if you drive the price of match tickets up no one will want to watch a game in front of a library. English footie is known for match atmosphere, but it is dying out and once it goes there will be no more interest from abroad. The Bundesliga is increasing in interest for just that reason.}
11 Feb 2016 06:31:41
Youd try to sue but then just whine about court costs and walk out in the 77th minute, when you're about to win, but then throw it away.
End of the day sentiment left football a long time ago, and its now a business world.
Id love an aston martin, but i can't have one because i can't afford it. Yet aston martin still makes money. If we all band together and say we want cheaper aston martins, can we all have one?
like you say, youve already been out priced, so have thousands of scousers who can't afford even the cheapest option, so who defines whos allowed to be out priced? the homeless man needs free tickets? the minimum wage guy should pay less then the man on 22k?
its not the idealist dream world you want.
If you haven't noticed, anfields already a libary. i'd rather anfield be making more money and quiet, rather than quiet an making less money.
ed002 has never been more spot on, its nothing to do with ticket prices, its sos just having another chance to attack the owners and in their idealistic dream world, own the club.
{Ed001's Note - it is a library because fans have already been priced out and replaced with customers. Customers expect for their money, whereas fans go along to provide support for their team.
As for the Aston Martin crap, people buy a cheaper car, if that happens in football, which it will, that then becomes a problem for the sport. It is not a similar thing, people don't buy an Aston Martin for the atmosphere provided by other Aston Martin owners. Whereas the atmosphere at a game is one of its major selling points.
Court costs? I would of course apply for legal aid and get you tax payers to cover it for me :-P
11 Feb 2016 06:56:30
i didn't perhaps explain the metaphor well enough.
If we all banded together to get the aston db9 down from £140k to £90k, that still doesn't mean we can all have one ( go to games )
If sos were really that worried theyd be striving to get ticket prices down to a tenner. Whos to say £59 is any more manageable than £77?
Its selfish greed from each individual who moans when an upper class bloke can afford it and they cant, but all the while ignoring the poor little die hard fan jimmy down the road who can't ever go.
All double standards. An that's why its nout to do with ticket prices.
{Ed001's Note - I would be quite happy to support an effort to get prices down further, I agree, this is just a start.}
11 Feb 2016 07:17:41
This is a great site, its amazing to think how quickly we get responses to posts with accurate information on the club we all love.
Considering i check this more than Facebook or twitter its testament to the Edds. As a fan and someone with an interest in its continued existence I would gently advise you both to take a few hours out to breath a bit. There have been a few low blows said out of anger recently and none are really deserved in my humble opinion.
{Ed001's Note - I was just warming up! I hadn't got to the mummy's boy insults or anything yet. Let alone the soft southerner jibes etc. Oh well, I will save them up for the next podcast we do.....}
11 Feb 2016 07:41:01
Back to FSG, I'm pleased they responded positively.
I don't care who owns the club or how much money they spend as long as the club is run responsibly, relatively ethically and they respect the fans.
FSG fit this profile for me. If they've received death threats then that's a matter for the law to deal with.
I think this is the perfect opportunity for the fat, lazy, greedy cats at the FA to get off their posteriors and do something positive for the game.
They should set maximum ticket prices across the board for football played in English grounds.
They are supposed to protect the game, this could be the most positive thing they could do for decades.
{Ed002's Note - The FA is not in a position to control ticket prices for commercial enterprises.}
11 Feb 2016 07:34:30
Eds needs a few hours to catch his breath you're right. He's just gone down a set of stairs.
{Ed001's Note - now now benji I never use stairs, that's why we have lifts mate.}
11 Feb 2016 07:56:39
Quick question on that ed002 - would the FA be able to cap ticket prices for the FA cup as it's their own competition?
{Ed002's Note - No, The FA has no remit to mandate the ticket prices for a commercial business. The division of income from the games was negotiated between The FA and the clubs. In the past the UK had an organization called the Office of Fair Trading and they were involved in a number of ticket related cases with clubs - generally these related to what were considered unfair terms conditions for the consumer (e.g. not having access to all league and cup games when holding a season ticket, having seats relocated for whatever reason (that was a Fulham issue) and suchlike.}}
11 Feb 2016 08:17:02
If that's correct Ed002, and I don't doubt your info, then they really have lost control and sold the soul of football.
I'd be happy clubs to make money any other way, but football should be accessible to everyone, it should not be an elitist sport and I thought it was the FA's remit to protect that.
{Ed002's Note - Nonsense. You seriously want The FA given control over individual club finances?}
11 Feb 2016 08:27:52
No I don't want that, I just want the FA to be able to set maximum prices for match day tickets. Like I said, what I'd really like to avoid is football becoming even more of an elitist sport.
Corporate facilities etc, travel packages would be exempt.
{Ed002's Note - What has it got to do with The FA? It is not becoming an elitist sport - the premier league grounds are full every week. Some clubs have much higher costs than others, are you looking to penalise them? Clubs rely on match day income - why do you want to see it reduced?}
11 Feb 2016 09:04:01
I didn't say "reduce" and I agree grounds are still full but we are reaching tipping point I believe. I think no further increases should be tollerated.
Anyway just thinking outside the box. If it's a daft idea then it's not my first 😉.
{Ed002's Note - You are not comparing like for like - the costs incurred are vastly different between clubs.}
11 Feb 2016 11:32:00
Thanks for the info Eds.