There were big celebrations last night when Chelsea FC beat
Bayern Munich to win the Champions League trophy. Even the Prime Minister was
seen to celebrate, apparently. It was a great night for the people of Chelsea
and the whole of British football, wasn’t it?
Well, no, not really. I don’t believe that Chelsea FC
represents the people of Chelsea
these days, any more than the Manchester
clubs represent Mancunians, or any other Premier League club represents the
people of its local area. Premier League teams aren’t local now, they’re
multinational franchises. The constitution of a British team is little
different from that of a German, French or Italian one, and why would a player
from Rome or Rio care anything for the people of Chelsea or the interests of British
football in general?
They pretend to represent their fans, of course; it’s part
of the marketing imperative. And the fans continue to believe it simply because
they want to. It gives them something to believe in. But I don’t believe it’s
true.
Top flight football is big business now. It’s an arm of the
entertainment industry. It’s run by big
money, with big money, for big money. A team can no longer be
successful at that level without spending countless millions buying and keeping
the best balance of the world’s best players. It’s what they all do, wherever
they’re based. The connection it once had with the local community has long
gone. It’s an illusion now, maintained for the sake of the business and
people’s need to associate with the potential for success.
Having said all of which, maybe it doesn’t matter. American
sport has been pulling the same trick for decades, and everybody seems happy
enough. And I suppose there’s no reason why sport should be alone in resisting
the movement taking place in the generality of life – supplanting notions of
meaningful identity with the interests of big money and the rich minority.
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