ETOILE SAHEL IS AFRICAN CLUB CHAMPION

But the Competition Needs a fine Tuning

At a packed and intimidating atmosphere in the Cairo National Stadium Etoile pulled off probably the biggest shock in African club football to trounce the Mighty Al Ahly 3 nil to lift their first ever champions league trophy.

The Champions League has evolved to become of the most lucrative club competitions outside Europe with the winning team bagging a whopping $1m. The other tames that gets into the group stages are guaranteed $250000 at the least.

Now that is where the tuning comes in; most of the clubs that are unable to get into the all important Group stage gain nothing but spends a fortune. Most clubs in Africa really struggle to raise money even for their local commitment. Then raising money to travel in a a huge continent with very scanty transport infrastructure is a big asking. It is almost a miracle how some club are able to participate in African club competitions . Most of these teams don't even have sponsorship given the fact that most African countries dont have deep corporate support for sports.

Some teams travelling to north Africa have to connect through Europe because of lack of direct flight links between the African countries. This has led some teams from especially southern Africa to pass up the opportunity for glory in the CAF champions League.South African clubs are especially quick to pass up the opportunity to play in the champions league.

It is a huge gamble for smaller African clubs without a rich backer to venture into the Champions league.Failure to reach the money making Group stage will definitely spell financial and football doom for such a club.Bearing this in mind some clubs who would like to participate in the Champions league pull out fearing it could cause a major solvency problems fro them.Accra Hearts of Oak which is certainly not a small club (having won the Champions league seven years ago) has pulled out of next season's champions league fearing it could cause financial problems for them if they fail to reach the Group stage.

CAF must restructure the Champions league so that the money will be spread in a way so that most of the participating club could be guaranteed something when they qualify for the Champions league. This will undoubtedly remove the predictability (the last six champions league finals have been contested among four clubs) of the champions league and bring some uncertainty and excitement into the premier club competition in Africa.

CAF needs to to ensure that their flagship continental club competition does not become a victim of its own success by making it an elite competition.

The Cost of Qualification Failure

Corporate UK counts the loss as England Fails to Qualify for EURO 2008

Amid the uncertainty of the future of English football companies that rely on the performance of the three Lions for their turnover and profit are counting their cost as business is set to plummet over the coming years.
Among the biggest losers are UMBRO the apparel manufacturer that over paid to kit the Three Lions. They are set to loose around 40 million Pounds in lack of sales of England replica shirts. Even before the Wembley disaster, shirt sales had been falling as a result of the indifferent performances over the qualifying campaign.
Hot on the heels are the TV giants like SKY who had modelled their revenue and rating predictions with the assumption of England playing in Austria- Switzerland. They will lose big from ad revenues that goes with England matches.
Then there are the miserable pub operators around the UK who have already taken a hit from the public smoking ban. It is estimated that they will lose over 250m Pounds over the next summer.
So as the pall of gloom hangs over the future of English football ,a lot of livelihood are at stake.

WELCOME MY CRAZY FOOTIE BRETHREN TO 11vrs11

Football is our soul!
There is no game in the universe to compare with this beautiful art called football.
This blog will give fans of the exquisite game a place to come and find out about all the things about football that do not quite make the headlines. It will look at all aspect of the game with a bias towards the economics and finance of the game worldwide.
I want to blaze a trail in the research into the finances of especially African Football.The aim is to let the Fans of the game in Africa discover the finances that drive the game as football becomes more commercialized and globalised.
I will also look at contemporary ways of suggesting innovations and change to improve the economics prospects of African club football.
The focus on finances and economics of football will definitely not be to the detriment of the real-on-the-field action...........after all it is the core of the universe of football.
So join me here every week to share in the excitement and the behind-the -scene- aspects of the BEAUTIFUL GAME