Daily Finance UK http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk Daily Finance UK http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/media/feedlogo.gif Daily Finance UK http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk en-us Copyright 2010 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Real Madrid feel pain in Spainhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/real-madrid-feel-pain-in-spain/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/real-madrid-feel-pain-in-spain/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/real-madrid-feel-pain-in-spain/#commentsFiled under: ,

Real Madrid goal keeper Iker CasillasIn all the tales of football's financial turmoil, the criticism that clubs are trying to 'buy success' is often aired. Spanish giants Real Madrid (goal keeper Iker Casillas pictured) provide proof success is not easily purchased. Last night they failed to reach the Champions League quarter finals for the sixth year in a row, when Lyon knocked them out.

Despite splashing hundreds of millions of Euros over the last decade, Real have only won Europe's top competition once, and the Spanish League four times.

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Real Madrid feel pain in Spain originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>real madridRealMadridMartin CloakeThu, 11 Mar 2010 11:04:00 ESTChester City dies in order to be rebornhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/chester-city-dies-in-order-to-be-reborn/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/chester-city-dies-in-order-to-be-reborn/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/11/chester-city-dies-in-order-to-be-reborn/#commentsFiled under: ,

Chester City FCIf you're settling down to watch the Champions League tonight, spare a thought for Chester City FC. The 126-year-old club was wound up today over a debt far less than the weekly wage of most of the players in Europe's top tournament - the club owed £26,125 to the Inland Revenue.

What's more extraordinary is that the club's own fans had been actively pushing for its death, something brought closer when the Football Conference, the league in which Chester City played, expelled it last week. The league described its decision as "unparalled in the history of our national sport".

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Chester City dies in order to be reborn originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 02:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>126-year-old club was wound up126-year-oldClubWasWoundUpChampions LeagueChampionsLeagueChester City diesChester City FCChesterCityDiesChesterCityFcplayers struck over unpaid wagesPlayersStruckOverUnpaidWagesMartin CloakeThu, 11 Mar 2010 02:37:00 ESTRed hot war of words over United bidhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/08/red-hot-war-of-words-over-united-bid/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/08/red-hot-war-of-words-over-united-bid/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/08/red-hot-war-of-words-over-united-bid/#commentsFiled under: ,

Manchester UnitedThe rumoured supporter takeover of Manchester United stepped up a gear over the weekend with signs of a new publicity front being opened.

'Sources' close to the Red Knights group of wealthy fans claimed team manager Alex Ferguson was not only backing the bid, but prepared to invest his own cash.

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Red hot war of words over United bid originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 03:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>manchester unitedManchesterUnitedONeillRed hot war of wordsRedHotWarOfWordsMartin CloakeMon, 08 Mar 2010 03:40:00 ESTPick of the early market newshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/05/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/05/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/05/pick-of-the-early-market-news/#commentsFiled under:

fruitsBananas, pineapples and melons are down but profits are up at Fyffes, the tropical fresh produce importers. Results posted for 2009 show a decrease in the volume of the salad of produce mentioned above, but the company still made a healthy €21.2m pre-tax profit, up 33.3% on 2008.

Commenting on the results, Fyffes chairman David McCann said the results were the "best since the change in European banana import regulations in 2005. The Group achieved the necessary increases in selling prices to offset the negative impact of higher costs and adverse exchange movements."

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Pick of the early market news originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Fri, 05 Mar 2010 03:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>Landscaping firm Marshalls profits fallLandscapingFirmMarshallsProfitsFallmarket newsMarketNewsprofits are up at FyffesProfitsAreUpAtFyffestropical fresh produce importersTropicalFreshProduceImportersMartin CloakeFri, 05 Mar 2010 03:05:00 ESTUnanswered questions in Mirror resultshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/unanswered-questions-in-mirror-results/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/unanswered-questions-in-mirror-results/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/unanswered-questions-in-mirror-results/#commentsFiled under: ,

Trinity Mirror may have stemmed falling profits, but the way it did so and its future strategy raises fundamental questions.

Chief Executive Sly Bailey (pictured) says the results show TM is "continuing to develop the business for longer term growth", but commentators have used words such as "ominous" and "fragile".

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Unanswered questions in Mirror results originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 12:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>sly baileySlyBaileyTrinity MirrorTrinity Mirror resultsTrinityMirrorTrinityMirrorResultsMartin CloakeThu, 04 Mar 2010 12:44:00 ESTNUJ questions Trinity Mirror spinhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/nuj-questions-trinity-mirror-spin/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/nuj-questions-trinity-mirror-spin/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/nuj-questions-trinity-mirror-spin/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Like any company, Trinity Mirror attempted to put a positive spin on its financial results, which were announced this morning and reported on this site.

But the National Union of Journalists has questioned the picture painted by the statement, and says worries about the future remain.

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NUJ questions Trinity Mirror spin originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>Martin CloakeThu, 04 Mar 2010 09:33:00 ESTMirror results dominate early marketshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/mirror-results-dominate-early-markets/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/mirror-results-dominate-early-markets/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/04/mirror-results-dominate-early-markets/#commentsFiled under: , ,

stock marketsTrinity Mirror, which publishes the Mirror, People and Record newspapers, made pre-tax profits of £72.7m in the 53 weeks to 3 January 2010. The group, which also publishes regional newspapers, saw circulation fall and advertising revenue decline, but reports an increase in online users.

The performance comes on the back of a year in which Trinity Mirror axed 1,700 jobs, 20% of the total, closed 15 offices and one print plant, and shut or sold 30 regional newspapers. New online brands such as mirrorfootball.co.uk and 3am.co.uk took the group's number of monthly unique users to 17 million.

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Mirror results dominate early markets originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 03:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>average joint circulationAverageJointCirculationincrease in online usersIncreaseInOnlineUsersmirror pre-tax profitsMirrorPre-taxProfitsTrinity Mirror resultsTrinityMirrorResultsMartin CloakeThu, 04 Mar 2010 03:19:00 ESTPick of the early market newshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/03/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/03/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/03/pick-of-the-early-market-news/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Stacey Solomon x-factorVoting for your favourite act in The X Factor has made a major impact on ITV's profits. Revenue from phone voting and competition entries made £30m of the company's adjusted profits of £108m for 2009. There were almost 100 million 'viewer interactions', with 10 million votes cast in the X- Factor final.

But profits are down 4% on 2008, with advertising revenues falling 11% to £998m in what ITV says is "the worst television advertising downturn on record." The TV company's share of peak time viewing across all channels grew to 28.2% (up on 2008's 27.8%) and online users rose substantially.

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Pick of the early market news originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>banking crisisBankingCrisisefficiency savingsEfficiencySavingsITVs profitsItvsProfitsMedia transformedMediaTransformedrevenue for competition entriesRevenue from phone votingRevenueForCompetitionEntriesRevenueFromPhoneVotingtelevision advertising downturnTelevisionAdvertisingDownturnVoting for The X FactorVotingForTheXFactorMartin CloakeWed, 03 Mar 2010 03:11:00 ESTReal Madrid top football's rich listhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/real-madrid-top-football-s-rich-list/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/real-madrid-top-football-s-rich-list/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/real-madrid-top-football-s-rich-list/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Real Madrid team membersAs Real Madrid (team members pictured) are named as the first sports team to post annual revenues of €400m (£357m) and Roman Abramovitch's Chelsea are overtaken by London rivals Arsenal in the annual Deloitte Football Money League, grass roots organisation by football fans alarmed at the influence of big finance continues.

Hundreds of fans attended a Beyond the Debt rally organised by FC United of Manchester at Bury FC's Gigg Lane ground on Saturday, with speakers from Supporters Direct, the Football Supporters Federation and fan workers from Germany all stressing the need to act on the ownership issues facing football.

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Real Madrid top football's rich list originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Tue, 02 Mar 2010 09:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>real madridRealMadridMartin CloakeTue, 02 Mar 2010 09:39:00 ESTCadbury set fur thanks to gorillahttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/cadbury-set-fur-thanks-to-gorilla/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/cadbury-set-fur-thanks-to-gorilla/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/cadbury-set-fur-thanks-to-gorilla/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Cadbury Dairy MilkIt's fair bet the TV advert you remember the most from last year featured a gorilla playing a drum kit to the strains of the Phil Collins hit In The Air Tonight. The latest issue of ad industry creatives magazine Shots gives a fascinating insight into how the ad came to be, and its affect on Cadbury's sales.

During the ad's on-air period, sales of Cadbury's Dairy Milk boomed by 9%, with sales figures helping to drive the return on investment to four times the normal level of the fast moving consumer goods market. Over the whole of 2009, Dairy Milk sales grew 11%, helping Cadbury post a 30% rise in profits.

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Cadbury set fur thanks to gorilla originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>cadbury advertCadburyAdvertCadburys Dairy Milk sales boomedCadburysDairyMilkSalesBoomedDairy Milk loved againDairyMilkLovedAgainGorilla adGorillaAdIFOCUSIn FocusinfocusPhil Collins gorilla adPhilCollinsGorillaAdMartin CloakeTue, 02 Mar 2010 04:00:00 ESTPick of the early market newshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/02/pick-of-the-early-market-news/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Manchester UnitedRecord profits for car insurer Admiral and feverish speculation about a new takeover bid for Carling Cup winners Manchester United dominates the early market round-up. Admiral's chief executive refers to "a great year", while success on the pitch for United is doing little to quell the turmoil off it.

Admiral posted a record £215.8 million profit before tax for 2009, a total that is 7% up on 2008, while turnover rose 18% to £1,077.4 million. Admiral says car insurance customer numbers rose 19% to 2.08 million. The results are good news for the company's 3,500 staff, who are in line for a £9m payout.

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Pick of the early market news originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Tue, 02 Mar 2010 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>car insurer Admiral newsCarInsurerAdmiralNewsearly morining newsEarlyMoriningNewsmarket newsMarketNewstakeover bid for Manchester UnitedTakeoverBidForManchesterUnitedMartin CloakeTue, 02 Mar 2010 03:00:00 ESTPick of the early market newshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/01/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/01/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/03/01/pick-of-the-early-market-news/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

FT websitePublisher Pearson, which owns the FT and Penguin among other brands, saw sales rise 4% to £5.6bn last year, with adjusted operating profit also up 4% to £858m. The figures form part of the company's preliminary results statement. Digital products generated £1.7bn of sales, 31% of the total.

Chief executive Marjorie Scandino says, "We increased sales and profits while investing heavily in the future," pointing to an investment last year of £500m on new education programmes, FT journalism and author's advances. Savings such as a redundancy programme at Penguin have also been implemented.

Continue reading Pick of the early market news

Pick of the early market news originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Mon, 01 Mar 2010 03:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>stock marketStockMarketMartin CloakeMon, 01 Mar 2010 03:45:00 ESTPick of the early market newshttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/25/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/25/pick-of-the-early-market-news/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/25/pick-of-the-early-market-news/#commentsFiled under: ,

The Rank Group reports an increase of 3.4% in Group revenue to £540m in results for the year to 31 December 2009. The Group's two largest businesses, Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos, showed the strongest performance. A dividend of £1.35 per share is to be issued after last year's suspension.

Group operating profit was down 3.8% to £58m as a result of higher gaming taxes. Coincidentally, Rank also announced the publication of a report calling for the replacement of the UK's seven different current regimes of taxation with one common rate of duty.

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Pick of the early market news originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 04:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>stock marketStockMarketMartin CloakeThu, 25 Feb 2010 04:10:00 ESTTime to go easy on our MPs?http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/23/time-to-go-easy-on-our-mps/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/23/time-to-go-easy-on-our-mps/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/23/time-to-go-easy-on-our-mps/#commentsFiled under: ,

£10 notesAre we being too hard on our MPs and their expenses? Ahead of this evening's BBC Four drama on the expenses scandal (On Expenses: The Heather Brooke Story) it may be time to reflect on how we expect our elected members to do their job, and whether the expenses frenzy has gone too far.

Make no mistake, a significant number of MPs at best stretched the rules to their limit, exploiting the system by means of such devices as "flipping" the designation of a main home. And MPs claiming for moat cleaning and duck houses certainly invoked the spirit of Marie Antoinette.

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Time to go easy on our MPs? originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 06:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>expenses scandalExpensesScandalMpsExpensesMartin CloakeTue, 23 Feb 2010 06:37:00 ESTPompey's plight upsets Premiershiphttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/20/pompeys-plight-upsets-premiership/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/20/pompeys-plight-upsets-premiership/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/20/pompeys-plight-upsets-premiership/#commentsFiled under:

Portsmouth FC logoPortsmouth FC prepare for today's televised home game against Stoke City with the club's chances of financial survival looking more precarious than ever. Pompey's worsening plight is prompting growing nervousness in the ranks of the Premiership, as the possibility of a top club failing looms large.

A statement of affairs delivered to the High Court this week revealed debts of over £70m, with total tax arrears of £18m, 50% higher than previously thought. The crisis has prompted some desperate moves which have prompted criticism that, if implemented, the integrity of the game could be affected.

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Pompey's plight upsets Premiership originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Sat, 20 Feb 2010 01:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>footballportsmouthMartin CloakeSat, 20 Feb 2010 01:49:00 ESTFootball's finances are coming homehttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/19/football-s-finances-are-coming-home/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/19/football-s-finances-are-coming-home/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/19/football-s-finances-are-coming-home/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Manchester United football club logoOver 160 English professional and amateur football clubs now have Supporters' Trusts, with a total membership of 120,000 people. Of that figure, 110 Trusts have shareholdings, 60 have directors on the board, and 15 own or control their clubs. Some £20m has been brought into the game by Trusts.

The most successful and well-known clubs are not in the upper echelons of the League. Exeter City and Brentford have league status, while AFC Wimbledon and FC United of Manchester are pushing to rejoin the league. Supporters Direct has helped many of those fans to achieve what they have.

Continue reading Football's finances are coming home

Football's finances are coming home originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Fri, 19 Feb 2010 06:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>ManchesterUnitedsupporters trustSupportersTrustMartin CloakeFri, 19 Feb 2010 06:13:00 ESTIs English football's future German?http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/18/is-english-football-s-future-german/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/18/is-english-football-s-future-german/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/18/is-english-football-s-future-german/#commentsFiled under: ,

German flagDespite the levels of debt and recurrent crises at English football clubs, the game's authorities insist that There Is No Alternative, harking back to the catchphrase of the free-market heroine Margaret Thatcher. But the example of Germany proves them wrong.

"The Bundesliga is the world's most popular league in terms of average attendances and there is healthy competition between the clubs, with the title and champions league places changing hands between clubs every season," says Gavin Hamilton, editor of World Soccer magazine.

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Is English football's future German? originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>English footballEnglishFootballgerman footballGermanFootballMartin CloakeThu, 18 Feb 2010 05:30:00 ESTIn football, winning is not enoughhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/17/in-football-winning-is-not-enough/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/17/in-football-winning-is-not-enough/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/17/in-football-winning-is-not-enough/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Manchester United football club logoPortsmouth, Cardiff City, Southend United, Crystal Palace and West Ham United have all faced financial crises this year. But they are not the game's biggest names, and their plight could be explained by simple lack of success. The same excuse cannot be applied to debt-laden Manchester United.

Manchester United is what football's marketers like to call a true global brand. The club's history, its trophies and its glamorous stars make it big box office. But today, despite wining more trophies than any other English club, it is over £700m in debt. How can this be possible?

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In football, winning is not enough originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Wed, 17 Feb 2010 05:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>debtfootball clubFootballClubmanchester unitedManchesterUnitedMartin CloakeWed, 17 Feb 2010 05:04:00 ESTThe incredible case of Portsmouth FChttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/16/the-incredible-case-of-portsmouth-fc/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/16/the-incredible-case-of-portsmouth-fc/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/16/the-incredible-case-of-portsmouth-fc/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Portsmouth F.C logoIn order to own any football club in the English Premiership you have to pass a test proving you are a "fit and proper person". In effect, that test requires a prospective owner to answer "yes" to two questions. 1) Have you got lots of money? 2) Are you a fit and proper person?

To be fair, that is not entirely accurate. Question 1 does not necessarily require a yes. You just need to show you can get access to what may potentially be a lot of money. Because increasingly, football's finances are built on little more than imaginary profits which could materialise some time in the future.

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The incredible case of Portsmouth FC originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>chelseafootball clubFootballClubliverpoolmanchester unitedManchesterUnitedportsmouthMartin CloakeTue, 16 Feb 2010 06:11:00 ESTThe man whose vision football rejectedhttp://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/15/the-man-whose-vision-football-rejected/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/15/the-man-whose-vision-football-rejected/http://www.dailyfinance.co.uk/2010/02/15/the-man-whose-vision-football-rejected/#commentsFiled under: ,

Portsmouth team on the pitchAlex Fynn has been dubbed "The spiritual Godfather of the Premier League" by The Sunday Times. While working as a director at Saatchi & Saatchi, he advised the English Football Association to back a breakaway Premier League of its top clubs. It would, he firmly believed, be for the good of the game.

Today he still believes it could have been. But he is pessimistic about the future of a game he says failed to take its chance because of a "lack of vision" and the dominance of "self-serving interest". He believes the major failing of the system the FA created is that "every team has to have success".

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The man whose vision football rejected originally appeared on Daily Finance UK on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 05:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>alex fynnAlexFynnfootballPremier LeaguePremierLeagueMartin CloakeMon, 15 Feb 2010 05:32:00 EST