I think WoT makes an interesting point about the end of the maximum wage. I wouldn't say that was the breaking point ; but it was the thin end of a considerable wedge in that it hastened the demise of the hitherto successful town clubs like Blackpool, Blackburn, Burnley, Huddersfield and Preston, to name but a few..
I think the creation of the EPL in1992 was when the real sea change started. And the commercial success it has had (which is considerable) has come at quite a price for the fans of smaller clubs who want to see their team competing at the right end of the pyramid. You only have to look at our 22/23 accounts to see that Mr. Sadler is, in financial terms, trying to compete with one hand tied behind his back ; and paying around £60k a week for the privilege. His "reward" is endless lectures about showing ambition from people who spend every summer bitching about the price of a season ticket.
The same people will tell you that football is fine, and doesn't need all its shit rules, which is a very odd way of thinking. If the rules are really all that shit - then you change them, not do away with them altogether.
Which brings us onto the Regulator. I have high hopes for it, but even I am a realist about what it can achieve quickly. Our game has far too many owners at the top of the game who want to rig the system to protect what they have ; and they include increasing numbers of Americans who think the sport in the UK is undervalued as a product, rather than a charming, quirky and culturally significant part of our way of life. I'd like to see less of them, and rather more on the kind of owner who understands the concept of custodianship and views effective regulation as a reason to be in the industry, not one to be fought against in the way that much of the EPL does now.
