The gentrification of football or How a popular sport has become elitist and controlled by business? : The example of the British premier league from 1992 to 2020

The gentrification of football or How a popular sport has become elitist and controlled by business? : The example of the British premier league from 1992 to 2020.

Football and sports in general are the reflect of the society and can help understand his tendencies. Football is the most popular sport in the world. In the 19th century the game was only played in schools by aristocrats. Then the Education Act gave the opportunity for the working-class to be educated too and allowed them to play football. Over the years the working class took over football and made it their sport and the “beautiful game” became accessible to masses. Recently, on the 19th of April 2021, twelve of the biggest European football clubs had released a testament announcing the creation of a private competition, the European Super League. This breakaway league shocked many fans and the project has been canceled two days after. In this way we can ask ourselves how a popular sport has become elitist and controlled by business ?

In order to respond to the question we will take the example of the English Premier League from 1992 to 2020. Firstly we will see how the Premier League became the most powerful and richest league in the world. Then we will analyze if the expansion and the internationalization of the PL is a dramatic change for fans ?

I. How did the PL become the most powerful and richest league in the world ?

A. The boom in the TV rights deal

The Premier League is the highest level of the men’s English football league system. The competition was founded in February 1992. At this period the battle between bigger and smaller football clubs for TV rights almost ended. Rupert Mudoch, owner of many British newspapers and media, took the opportunity to broadcast football games on a TV channel named Sky Television. Thanks to this broadcasting, Murdoch made a lot of money since people who wanted to watch football games had to pay a subscription. Moreover with all his influence on the United Kingdom’s readership, it allows him to encourage people to take subscriptions and go to stadiums. This propaganda worked effectively and allowed Sky sports to generate more money.

The broadcaster went from a loss to a profit in only one year. In three years this profit was multiplied by five, with 257 million profit in 1996. It also benefited the clubs since in a decade the total attendances in stadiums climbed from 16 million people to 20 million in a season Thanks to the rising popularity of the league, the clubs also counted on new sponsorship deals with brands interested in football’s new commercial point.

B. The development of merchandising : a new way to make money for the clubs

Overall, the PL became popular, attracted fans, customers, brands and sponsors. Before 1990, only a few players were considered as stars, they were simple footballers issued the same working-class as spectators. The beginning of the Premier League era changed that. Great players with great personalities thanks to medias, were seen during the games but also in newspapers, on TV shows, everywhere. Quickly clubs started to sign contracts with industries they were able to produce many jerseys with names and numbers of the fans’ favourite players to sell them. The best of them became more than players, they became marketing products that could make clubs sell thousands of jerseys or derivative products, allowing them to have bigger revenues. Kids in the 1990s would wear their polo shirts with the collar upturned like Eric Cantona or try David Beckham’s latest haircut. Players were increasingly put in the spotlight and many boots manufacturers such as Nike or Adidas signed sponsorship contracts with some of the Premier League’s biggest talents. In just over three decades, the English PL became the most powerful football league in the world. It is also the League generating the most revenue, with eight of its 20 clubs part of the Deloitte Football Money League.

The notoriety of the best players allows the championship