Let them subscribe to Sky Sports
The fuss over the European Super League shows football's unique place in British culture
As I’m putting this to bed, the European Super League looks to be no more. The six English teams have already pulled out of the proposed trans-continental football contest, with bigwigs from some Spanish and Italian clubs also confirming that the project is scuppered.
I’ve been fascinated by the story, although readers should not expect a sudden switch to football punditry. My interest in the game is like the religious faith of David Cameron and Boris Johnson: akin to radio service in the Chilterns. When Sheffield United were relegated earlier this month it was as if I’d stepped in dogshit. Momentarily saddened, I wiped my foot on the grass and moved on.
The social handicap of being an Englishman without a football club is nonetheless real. People may pick one up later in life, but there is something in inheriting a football club from your family and suffering for it. A Sheffield United fan recreating a pained photo from his childhood after relegation sums up a connection that fair-weather fans can never fully share.
At the same time, top football clubs’ links to local fans are increasingly tenuous, with the European Super League only the latest flashpoint. Every year money seems more dominant in the game, from record transfer deals and seedy oligarch owners to billion-pound broadcasting rights and foppish pundits. This is a long way from the origins of clubs like Arsenal, literally formed by munitions workers.
In this light it is hard not to be sceptical about pundits like Gary Neville condemning the European Super League proposal as “pure greed”. Whatever Neville’s own wealth, plenty of his peers have made bank off the beautiful game, not least senior staff at the governing body Fifa. Perhaps it is only greed when other people do it.
Such snark aside, pundits’ comments reflect a widespread view that football is special, both among sports and among hobbies. Sports scandals do catch international attention, but few prompt prime ministers to threaten state intervention. Many people did seem to believe the soul was being wrenched from English football.
If such soul is so important, the question looms as to what else should be rolled back. Should we be allowing broadcasters to bid up the price of television rights to sell expensive subscription packages? Should there be more requirements for local players? And should British fans have more control over their clubs, as is the case in Germany?
Given that Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn supported the latter proposal, it’s no surprise the free marketeers have spotted a slippery slope. The Spectator’s Fraser Nelson worried earlier this week that state intervention against the European Super League might lead to wider government action against unpopular corporate activities. How terrible etc.
Such analysis does nonetheless bring us back to the question of what makes football special. The New Statesman’s Ailbhe Rea argued that this special concern is because football is a man’s game, despite the recent focus on women’s competitions.
There are, however, plenty of very male interests that are treated as weird and niche. Although the comedy Detectorists features a mixed cast of metal detectorists, the character Lance comments, “Men have hobbies and women don’t understand them. It’s the way it’s always been.”
One feminist response to this would be that the anoraky pursuits Lance references tend to be un-macho. You can still call this ‘patriarchy’, I guess, but what you are describing clearly isn’t a straightforward division between male and female interests.
To my eye the truth is duller: football is important because it is ubiquitous. As UnHerd’s Tom Chivers puts it, “football is a sort of lingua franca”. That it is “especially” true for men matters, but the gendered division is weakening.
Of course this won’t help those of us who don’t care for the beautiful game, by dint of our sex, upbringing or commitment to putting out weekly newsletters on current affairs. Football might be far less important than life or death, but don’t expect the fans to notice anytime soon.
Gotten to the Greek. In the spirit of mocking another great British institution, the Right Dishonourable discussed the death of Prince Philip, his funeral and what it means for the monarchy. Also included are digressions on spelling and Tory sleaze.
King of Mancunia. In an ill-judged comment Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester’s mayor, inadvertently called his colleagues in Westminster frauds. This shows that the bad-tempered conversation around devolution is not all Westminster’s fault, as I argued for UnHerd last week.
One British institution I have supported in the last week has been the pub, newly open for outdoor enjoyment. I can only encourage you to do the same – unless you live in South London, in which case leave the drinking to me.
Jimmy