Actually, this is something I care about.
As you know, I do not give a monkey's about football as a game. But the sort of casual corruption that seems to even now be rife within it does affect me. If, as seems likely, it is allowed to continue, it may well become the model on which other major sports are run, particularly as the "businessmen" move on to other sports. This, in turn, will have drastic effects on minor sports, including my own. A simple example comes where a club sells its ground so as to develop a new stadium, and gets planning permission by promising to replace sports facilities at the new site with new ones. Sadly, this often means a members gym, which in no way replaces playing fields. Meanwhile, the insatiable greed of these "businessmen" sucks funding from the local sports economy. Rubbing shoulders with them, the suits of the local FAs then swagger in with demands for exclusive use of communal playing areas. And this is happening, in Leeds, at my club.
So don't try to claim people don't care. And try to see the massive damage antics like the "management" of LUFC do to the wider community.
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In the beginning, players were under the authority of the referee, who was respected (OK, so that bit was fiction!)
Then the FA set up a system whereby a referees decision can be challenged after the match, and, often as not, reversed. Two fingers up to referees, and undermine their position.
Now I see that West Ham, having had their appeal turned down, are trying to take Carroll's case to the Arbitration court. Two fingers up to the FA and undermine their position. Allardyce's justification is that "we are fighting for our lives" - in which case get your players to play with a little more skill and discipline. :roll::roll:
