English Football Is On The Verge Of Collapse

England is home to the largest, oldest, and most revered Football League pyramid in all the world, but its very existence is under threat right now.
Whilst the Premier League is the most lucrative football league on the planet, and the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United are valued at billions of pounds, the likes of Macclesfield Town, Bury, and Hereford United have all recently gone out of business.
So in this short documentary, HITC Sevens takes a look at the existential crisis that faces English football, from the EFL through to the non-league game, and why you ought to care.

[@harveyholmes9533]

The story about your two grandparents was brilliant at explaining the importance of the game at every level, fantastic video yet again

[@bigc181]

Gives some backstory to old aristocratic Alfie the champagne socialist

[@archstanton6102]

@@bigc181 Which is only true if you focus on 1 part of the story and ignore the working class grandfather

[@harveyholmes9533]

@@bigc181 having 1 grandparent who was well off doesn’t mean you’re an aristocrat or champagne socialist, if anything seeing the difference in class status within your own family can be a driving force for valid socialist beliefs

[@akhil4117]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHiZZmOXgL6ia6c

[@1886Joel]

@@bigc181 So you have to come from a poor family and actively choose to stay poor to be a socialist? Interesting.

[@samgardiner585]

At least HITC Sevens has a consistent upload schedule unlike a certain Irish Guy...

[@KrustyKrabPizza22]

It'll all be worth it when he gets Bamford tattooed on him

[@yeetpotatoes69420]

He's working alone now, James made a post on the HITC community page on why he won't be around for a while.

[@kindmulberry7196]

Too busy buying new scarves and shouting "Christ above" at people

[@zhuoluochenzhuoluochen]

@Abhirup Nath source?

[@aboyd3318]

Good Irish guys content is awful and appeals to the lowest demographic of football fans

[@johnsouness7257]

Macclesfield FC fan here - Correction: we won the National League/Conference 3 times, but only got promoted twice - the 1st time (1994/95) we were denied promotion due to the ground not meeting the criteria set.

[@bluevan12]

Trouble is a lot of clubs in the Non league have low attendances well below 1,000. In my opinion unless you are least getting crowds of at least 2,000 in League 2 you are always going to struggle. That said Accrington Stanley are a good example of how to run a club on a tight budget and more clubs should follow suit.

[@beneddu]

I believe that was the year that my team, Northampton Town FC were spared relegation to the conference

[@johnsouness7257]

@@beneddu I think it was actually Exeter who reprieved.

[@beneddu]

@@johnsouness7257 you're right, it was the previous year I was thinking of.

[@graymiao9281]

You're actually making me have a look around and start supporting my local clubs. Thank you.

[@ally_crawford]

Cheers for the existential crisis, Alfie. Don't know what I'd do without my team. Rangers man so relatively familiar with this theme. Hopefully this petition for an independent regulator in England can help make football fairer. Football and wider social issues are so different yet so similar in some senses Keep up the good work (Both here and on the channel you can't talk about here)

[@pistolgrippoet]

What a beautiful story about your grandparents

[@derekevans1932]

Besides the playoff semis, it is the FA Vase final at Wembley this weekend. How Step 5 and below football have survived and hopefully prospering to some extent is amazing.

[@DuranceBell]

Quite possibly your best video yet, Alfie. Even as an American I felt the emotion behind this. I think one of the oft overlooked aspects of sporting events is the ability to bring people together across racial, political, religious, or economic lines. I loved the example of your grandparents, for instance. It's sad to see that disappear because of greed. Keep up the great work.

[@meowwww9275]

This is a wonderful vid, perfectly worded and full of emotion without any need for voice manipulation (like shouting to imply anger or sad tones to imply its your time to feel sad now) or editing in emotional cues. This is the kind of level headed response needed, it isn't the people running the clubs who need to wake up IMO, the money is there because the audience is there spending it so time to look at yourselves if you want to see change.

[@mark.m4954]

18:46 So cool and fitting, he shows a picture of Maggie Thatcher while talking about the downsides of capitalism.

[@soundlessbird9181]

Background picture said it’s suning sports, but sadly, suning disbanded their own football club just after they won Chinese Super League champion.

[@cockneyred9910]

This breaks my heart to hear this. I knew it was bad but my god if we keep going the way we are the pyramid will completely collapse within 10 years

[@slavske2314]

Felt abit emotional when you told the story of your grandads :'(

[@dumbmutts.7758]

Great video. Always had a liking and keep a look out for Hull as me mum is from there. We, I am a Manc and support Man U, bought Stuart Pearson from you and he went on to become a Man U Legend. The Stretford End would sing "Oh Stuart, Stuart, I'd walk a million miles for one of your goals, oh Stuart." Shame about some of these clubs but history has shown this has been happening since the leagues started. My local team, Flixton Town (who once reached the semis of the Vase in the 90s and played about level 7) recently went under. Very sad.

[@Chalks38]

I loved this video great stuff and as a Scarborough fan I can relate so much 😢

[@misterbacon4933]

Very informative vlog! Greetings from the Netherlands! 🇳🇱

[@chrisfry8244]

This is a truly brilliant polemic and I couldn't agree more. I will add that going to watch a game is so much more fun than watching it on TV it is impossible to compare the two. Go watch your local non league side, you can still claim to support whatever big club you want but I almost guarantee that after a couple of years of being on the terraces your sympathies will at the very least be divided and you'll probably care more about your local club. Plus the tenner or whatever entry charge you pay, the burger you buy and the pint you drink will go towards supporting and making a real difference to that club.

[@mdcs1992]

Never was the phrase "You don't know what you've got, until it's gone" couldn't be more appropriate. When you get older, you more frequently compare the cost of everything now, with when you were young. As a supporter of a Premier League team, I was priced out of being able to afford to watch my club (Tottenham), years ago. It was admittedly, 49 seasons ago , 1972/73, that I first went to a Spurs match. The difference in outlay for attending a match then is still absolutely incredible as follows.....1. Match programme: 5 pence. 2. Admission to ground 25 pence (50p for adults). Half-time drink and chocolate 15 pence. Even when I started work in 1974, the cost of a seat in the North Stand was 90p. About 4 seasons ago, I went to see League 2 strugglers Morecambe (Now League 1 strugglers....£17 just to stand. It was of course a long time ago and would seem ages ago to someone only born near the end of the last century, but the fact that I could go and watch Spurs play TWICE for around a quid is mind blowing. My only income was from a paper round and yet in Spurs UEFA cup days, I could see Spurs in Europe on Wednesday and the First Division on Saturday, without too much strain on my "finances." The cost of going twice in one week now...!!! Old geezer rant over but it's hard not seeing things as they are in today's game as shameful.

[@Foxstar1387]

Living in the Greater Manchester metro area. There are so many "smaller " clubs that get over looked. Wigan and Bolton are practicaly next door to each other. Alot of the smaller clubs used to be prime places to blood the youth players with quiet partnerships. As the fat cats get fatter they end up killing off what helped them grow fat. ( Yes OK I know Wigan is a Rugby town but so is Hull. Huddersfield Cardiff and Swansea.) United and city have such a huge pull on fans and kids. Big names. Big games. Only time some of the smaller clubs can get in a good crowd is in the FA cup against a city or Liverpool. This may only really be a thing in other towns that have other sports as the key. But here fans would decide on what game to watch. either Latics Vs Blackpool. Or Warriors Vs Hull KR. Me personally id pick the Rugby over Football due to the atmosphere and experience of it all. Plus i can have a Pint at my seat no issues. I tend to find alot of football days feel very numb and sterile. I do go to as many Games as I can just my overall preference is for Rugby.

[@PaquetasCar2147]

Very important subject to cover especially in light of recent events. Well done to you.

[@ChesterBowerman]

So beautifully written. I went to a League 1 game a few months ago and felt like a child again. The Premier League has perverted our expectations massively, and lower-league clubs should be treated for what they are, institutions not businesses.

[@jasonwyrick3413]

I support a second division club in America and I worry every single offseason that my hometown club, Indy Eleven, might collapse. It’s not fun.

[@PiousMoltar]

Just want to say, I have very little interest in football, yet I still love your channel. If I support anyone, it's Norwich. Apparently they won the Championship this year. I found out yesterday. lol. But yeah your videos are often very interesting. Keep it up!

[@PiousMoltar]

Also, as a motorcycle speedway fan, I'm all too familiar with clubs just ceasing to exist... :( Thankfully my team King's Lynn are still around, after a scary moment of being in financial trouble leading to them not running for a year in 1996.

[@renners4367]

This guy is so right the problem is, people ain’t supporting their local club anymore, people only wanna support a club winning or have a good chance of winning or they have a rich history in trophies 🏆, I know people will say your a city fan and blah blah, I’m from Manchester and supported them then they was shit way before the rich take over. If fans go back to supporting their local community and club it will help more club survival chances, I feel for clubs like macclesfield because most of that area now is Man City or united fans because it’s not far from Manchester tbh

[@Real_Mambo]

I would rather watch entertaining football from the best players than the under 14 s which are the only teams where I live

[@renners4367]

@@Real_Mambo where you live ?

[@beverleywicks6881]

Stunning. Thank you

[@Ygyhhhhhhhh]

All member clubs of the Premier League should pay 1% of their annual profits into a community fund used to invest in the game at grass roots level. This would be the most affordable tax in the history of the UK as well as the most beneficial.

[@shahidwillie6140]

Love the consistency with the videos

[@perseus-tx3zq]

Unfortunately pressure from fans for success and the threat of dropping another tier leads to unsustainable spending at every level. It's the same in Scotland, where sugar daddy chairmen and directors get round the fair play rules on wage bills, by paying players themselves off the books. It isn't sustainable and eventually the financial chickens come home to roost.

[@ycanionlyevafind1sok]

A great piece of journalism

[@nickhanlon9331]

Same thing happened in Aussie Rules in the 80's and 90's. Goodbye South Melbourne, Fitzroy and the entire V.F.A.

[@simonevans6512]

You cannot include the PL in the English football pyramid. The PL is nothing to do with English football apart from the fact the games are played here.

[@mrb6094]

You should do a video on Grimsby Town. Make sure you mention how utterly clueless our previous manager was.

[@BroadwayJoe99]

This sounds fairly similar to how the "pyramid" has collapsed in Mexico. LigaMX clubs are so wealthy, so popular, so omnipresent within the sporting landscape of not just Mexico but the Mexican diaspora in the US, that clubs from the lower divisions have been overwhelmed, neglected and forgotten, to the point where LigaMX enacted a moratorium on pro/rel and transformed their second division into a "stabilization project" that would allegedly allow clubs in the league to stabilize (natch) and rebuild infrastructure to be able to meet LigaMX's minimum standards, though there have been suggestions made that the league may become little more than a reserve/youth league for LigaMX clubs, with the league itself effectively becoming a closed league, and even seeking closer ties to MLS in order to further tap into their diaspora in the US.

[@dylanpriest9756]

This is a big difference between European and American sports. Teams who do poorly are supported whereas in Europe they're punished.

[@in3audio932]

Great content! Liked and subscribed

[@redheadredemption1573]

Great video. This is a really worrying time for the sport

[@mojojojo4865]

Rushden and Diamonds always gets me, the set up they had and it's all demolished, literally.

[@walrus4046]

Excellent analysis

[@Chloraflora]

Nice Manic Street Preachers nod at the end there

[@cynicalahole7131]

Excellent video Alfie!

[@heliumtrophy]

I think that's the problem. While locally due to the myriad of football teams that there are in Dublin, I went with St. Patrick's Athletic but, apart from one night where we knocked out Elfsborg in the Europa League qualifiers, my experiences there have been largely negative. Occasionally a witty chant may break out but there isn't the same appetite for the local game not helped by the horrendous amount of mismanagement at the FAI. The amount of teams going bust and phoenix teams and the phoenix to the phoenix of Icarus teams is just disillusioning. While I obviously have followed/supported teams - I've always felt that kind of divide so the community aspect is missing. Effectively that's what football used to be but when the likes of Paul Merson parrot on about the Premier League as a "product," it just further outlines my disillusionment with football as a whole. The games are not pretty to watch and if a product is not producing, what's the point? All for Jamie Redknapp's confused "analysis" that Man Utd are guaranteed better quality with Harry Kane while "no offence to Cavani but he's 34!" and then arguing with Roy Keane about developing midfielders - which one is it Jamie? We'd be better off with your dad's analysis! The whole idea that post-Hillsborough, that all seater stadia would be a more pleasant atmosphere for everyone has turned into a more naked way of pricing the working class out of the game just like they're pricing them out of buying their own houses. I agree that the hooligan aspect was always going to be a concern but this more than anything else destroyed the soul of football. If working class people can't get to watch the game then step by step we're all being removed from watching the game unless a) we have the money and b) the interest in the game. My interest has waned and seeing these people who watch 70s football videos talk about football as "back when I used to care," I understand that sentiment. When I see so many clubs now in England going under, it just feels like slowly but surely football is dying a slow, painful death. It reminds me of the Half Man Half Biscuit song Friday Night and The Gates Are Low when they say "Sit back, relax and watch us die for entertainment." A lot of football teams are like that at the moment and it's a crying shame.

[@Nada-vk4pk]

Nice Manic reference their at the end lol

[@matthiascallsen4321]

Yessss 👍😍

[@tokra2222]

Yes there is pleasure in watching high tier clubs play but lower league football bring more passion and is sometimes more enjoyable to watch.

[@tonygeinzer6034]

I feel that the mayhem with a lot of these Administration Battles are Criminal.

[@laurencec09]

More players should follow Kane's example Also, my grandmother was also a Hull City fan, growing up near to Boothferry Park!

[@opipoo119]

While you cant help who you support, it would really help if some people paid more attention to their local clubs. Even if it's just going to watch a couple games. It goes a long way

[@WELLBRAN]

they dont want any small clubs to survive and all football will be pay per view and no spectators all games will be in empty stadiums thus removing home and away atmospheres

[@BenchRacerRC]

Brilliant video

[@mikebrandenburg9922]

A Dutchy myself I loved listening to this presentation, however unlike blaming capitalism for the problem there is in English football, which is now experiencing what little football countries went through in a much earlier stage, it is not money that is the problem, the problem came when the EUFA was forced by the EU, to change the rules. Free traffic of labor should also apply to Football. This crushed a system that had worked for tens of years. What was the big change, where in the past teams were only allowed to contract 5 foreign players of which could only play 3 at the same time, the Europe is one mentality came to eliminate national identity, and football was one part of that. When they removed the limitation on foreign players, this gave as you see in many socialist countries a favorable position to the bigger companies, The bigger teams had more money, this had always been the case, but now these teams could buy unlimited players from the continent. This made the big teams even bigger and harder to defeat. This gave several big problems in the world of football, the smaller countries saw every player with a little bit of talent be bought away in such a fast manner that they could not replace them, in The Netherlands you are now no longer considered a talent when you are older than 18, as every team is very young to deal with the fact that everyone who can kick a ball over 35 meters is bought away before they are 20/21. To solve problems EUFA came with a plan that made things even worse, the 6 plus 5 rule, in the near future 6 players need to be produced through the own youth academy of the club or homegrown, which means at least from another team in the country, in all their wisdom, they put the age for the player to be in your youth academy or homegrown at 16 years old, so a player needs to play in the country or for the team from the age of 16, conveniently the same age as you are allowed to sign a contract, which in turn meant that clubs are going through Europe to find the best talents in each country and bring them to the club at the age of 16... Bleeding the smaller countries dryer than they already were. This sounds as if this only affects the small countries, no, this only has a snowballing effect. All these players that get contracted from different countries replace the English football player, and now the talents that are contracted from other countries are replacing the English talents. And this trickles down because in a Piramide the bottom supplies the material for the top to work with, but when you get your supplies from somewhere else, the bottom of the Pyramide becomes obsolete. The money that is being earned in the top stays at the top and moves hands to other countries to teams that sell their top players to the bigger competitions, The problem is not Capitalism, the problem is government regulations. These regulations severed the umbilical cord with the lower divisions. And when your top division is a division with the top players from around the world the second division is not as much fun to watch.. IN the past I used to make the mistake to first watch the NBA and after try to watch Dutch Basketball, I didn't have the patience to watch it. The difference in level was too big, not just for me but for everybody, Dutch Basketball lost a lot of viewers and with this income. I predict that Brexit will turn out to be a blessing for English football as teams will become dependent on the Pyramide again,, not being able to buy every European player that you want and only being allowed to pitch a certain amount of players from outside the UK, will make it more and more important to develop your own players again, and this is not possible without a strong Pyramide. This in turn will bring back the importance of the smaller teams, the difference in income will always be there, but more of the income will flow to the smaller teams as the top teams can not look abroad anymore to form their teams. In the Netherlands especially at my own team, we can already see the difference, not every year at least two top youth players that move to the UK, but now stay. which will lead to more quality within our borders and stronger top teams here, that in Europe will be able to compete better with top teams, so who knows the smaller countries also can bring back the surprise element, where top teams don't always win. If it was up to me, the three foreigner rule would be implemented again like yesterday.

[@darren2514fv]

The Third Division North and South were rebranded as a national 3rd and 4th Division

[@jackgrimley5780]

Another excellent upload.

[@orourkeda]

I'm an Aston Villa fan. We couldn't pay our tax bill a couple of years back.

[@itsjared4845]

As a Derby fan, im expecting my team to be wound up if we don't get a new owner, since no one will touch us with our £60 million debt. I can't wait to start supporting Derby Rovers in the regional leagues 😂

[@LKeet6]

if there was ONE thing english football/sport/culture could be proud of, it would be supporting so many professional clubs. But we're even fucking that up now, smh...

[@Veniceredmask01]

Very well said

[@christianb.8306]

That's what happens when you overpaid (foreign) players (often > 70 % of club's expenditure). Today there are 11 You-Inc. on pitch. These small football clubs should be there for their people of the region and provide them to play football and watch. These excesses come from a sick business model with which you sell your identity with the intention of maybe playing a league higher. I hope as many of these clubs as possible go bankrupt and make way for clubs that do better. Football itself will not die, it will only change, and hopefully in a positive way. Today football is only buisness and no sport.

[@innocento.1552]

1 million pounds a week for Haaland. That changed the taste of the entire video in my mouth... Made it worse than it already was.

[@davidlonhol8016]

Morecombe just won their playoff.

[@MarkWTK]

maybe 7 best players from the relegated teams ? (from each league?) edit: love your videos Alfie! very genuine story intermingled with history

[@Bigfatslim]

This should be seen throughout the world

[@YCFCfollower]

You know lower league clubs are screwed when you were the only kid (out of a year group of 100) who supported the local team, which was in League Two at the time. And the stadium was literally a ten minute walk away from the school

[@rhensn]

Yeah my school was a bit better but the trouble was we were in-between 2 clubs so I chose Northampton cos my family supported them but everyone else chose mk 🤮

[@YCFCfollower]

@@rhensn lmao, wouldn’t wanna go to that massive empty stadium mk

[@rhensn]

@@YCFCfollower Yeah I've been there because I actually live closer to stadium mk it's such a soulless ground 😂

[@careyroberts3924]

Such a sad fact. Heartbreaking actually. It all stems from the power and the destructive effect of mass media indoctrination.......It has a destructive effect on many aspects of our lives...... #TurnBackTime #Traditionalism #Patriotism

[@YCFCfollower]

@@careyroberts3924 Definitely😢

[@jon6720]

‘Our pyramid is so top heavy that our foundations are about to collapse.’, well said.

[@michaelhickland4450]

Exactly I was talking about it on twitter today

[@AdamMiligan]

Is impressive of how this is truth not only about footballl, but of our society in nowadays capitalism.

[@oilslick7010]

And the top probably doesn't care. They would be happy to wall off the PL or the combination of PL and Championship from the rest of the piramid, making it a closed system. Hell, it's already like that in all but name

[@BigBlack81]

@@oilslick7010 Believe me, these issues have been debated in America for years, by Americans. NOT ALL in America like this system of closed franchise ownership and not all in America like capitalism unchecked. That's the sad thing about this, in my opinion: Americans/Brits/Etc. who speak out in support of the British system staying because it provides a model for those at the bottom are being usurped by Americans/Brits/Etc. who want nothing but the rich to get richer and more exclusive on a global scale. It's disgusting and sad from a solidarity perspective.

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

Haha the American system is so much more stable. We have balance in our leagues small market and big market teams can afford the same players. We have a salary cap but even with the cap our players make more. Bad teams get high draft picks for rookies so they can retool. There are different champions every year unless a team has a strong front office in making excellent player moves and/or good coaching. Your system is about to collapse and all I can do is laugh because of the snobbery of English football fan. But I do get a kick of how Americans own your top teams. We are truly an empire and the sun sets on the American empire USA! USA ! USA

[@KuzzenFeralFerret]

As a 30yo Crystal Palace fan, I've seen my club go into Administration twice in my life, on the Palace Centurion Wall there is a plaque with the initials of myself, my dad and my late grandad. Without my grandad I wouldn't be the football I am today and to see my club disappear breaks my heart and makes me hold onto my memories from when he was still alive. It's a feeling I don't wish on anyone, not even Brighton, Millwall or Leeds, the 3 clubs I hate the most. I love to hate them, and I hate to lose them from the game.

[@disillusionedanglophile7680]

Rebecca Lowe NBC Sports- "I was a Crystal Palace fan...I had a unhappy childhood..."

[@bri1085]

Why Leeds?

[@iangascoigne8231]

Why do Palace hate Brighton?

[@PilliamWilliam]

@@iangascoigne8231 East Croydon rail station / the line that it is on. Basically any time Brighton played away from home they have to go right by palace territory, used to be a few fights as a result

[@KuzzenFeralFerret]

@@iangascoigne8231 it goes back to the 70s/80s when our manager and their manger didn't like each other and due to some BS, there was 3 FA Cup games between us instead of 2 and Brighton changed their nickname from Dolphins to Seagulls to try and drown out the chants of Eagles and things spiralled out from there

[@themathsdebater5471]

alfie’s writing is heavily underrated, some beautiful metaphors within this

[@rueisblue]

his isis joke in the superleague video was so perfect man

[@chrismichael5832]

but the delivery is terrible

[@gustavsmirnov1456]

Last time I was this early people didn't lie about how many days they've been suggesting their ideas

[@AbbasAdejonwo]

Day 31415 of making a video suggestion

[@Roscododger]

Yeah you never see day 1

[@testertlc4905]

@@Roscododger lol i actually was honest. if u scroll back u can see my day 1

[@L1am21]

Fighting a shit meme with a even more shit meme.

[@abdulrahim6522]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/f6OkfJuwdraJbKs e

[@BenaldoCR7]

Never seen my hometown club of Macclesfield mentioned so much in any video, just know we’ll be back very soon Ⓜ️

[@mark.m4954]

I am from Germany, so I didn't know Macclesfield Town. Is it a well known club in the UK?

[@matthewb5624]

Macc FC now isn't it mate? Drove past the stadium the other day seems to have been renovated?

[@matnichol]

@@mark.m4954 It‘s pretty well known in England.

[@kindmulberry7196]

@@mark.m4954 Very well known yes

[@jumi2559]

@@matthewb5624 Hi, its Macclesfield FC, we were shafted by the EFL who protected the owner who had the money but didn't pay the players. there should have been a general strike but several clubs in league 2 were actively trying to relegate us instead of Stevenage., where were the likes of Neville then. WTF.

[@mcfcfan1870]

Sadly modern football isn't about the local community anymore

[@hemanthkumararumugam4988]

Because of the money bro.....they ve taken the game away from the fans

[@mcfcfan1870]

@@hemanthkumararumugam4988 Exactly. And its become way to globalized. People from way across the world support the premier league while their local teams are struggling to stay in existence. Supporting a team if your from a different country is fine if theirs a family connection etc or the people also support their local but plastic fans and all that just ruin the sport.

[@brandonhey7797]

@@mcfcfan1870 yeah. Like, I support Manchester United, but also my local team. And I'll be honest about that. Although, I honestly prefer supporting my local team than Manchester United, with them being a non-league team for a good while.

[@Amadeus-ni3et]

@@mcfcfan1870 yes how dare people want to watch the best play.

[@shibarmyburnz1978]

@@mcfcfan1870 the fuck

[@bury_the_elite65294]

Fun fact: when Macclesfield Town was founded in 1874, Australia (where I live) hadn't even been federated yet (that would happen in 1901). We were still six separate, self-governing colonies, under the rule of the British Empire. Loved the Manic Street Preachers reference near the end - I've been a Manics fan for over two decades. A touching video, but a very timely one. Those in charge of professional (and amateur) sport (not just football) would do well to listen to you, Alfie. We've already seen similar things happen to sport here in Oz - mainly in rugby league, but in other sports as well, and at just about all levels. I'll finish with a quote from former Aussie rugby league player Steve Knight - "Whatever team you follow, whatever sport you follow, the sense of camaraderie, the pride, the mateship - that's something you can't manufacture." Thankyou & keep up the good work, mate! :)

[@Eibarwoman]

A similar issue might be occurring at the lower end of the MLB. As in the not particularly liquid assets of the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays owners have resulted in budgets that resemble Championship teams to the LA Dodgers. While the Rays are quite competitive, the Tigers are 11 games below .500 and even a few weeks ago were sitting even worse and on pace for 122 losses.

[@Dan_Casey]

@@Eibarwoman But with the draft etc., The Tigers have a chance to come good again and from time to time do. The real mystery of MLB is Baltimore. A pedigree side rn to ruin by owners who have no plan at all. Time to pack them up to Las vegas or Salt Lake.

[@markdouglas9182]

Good points. In Australia though there's no pyramid system in the main codes. AFL and NRL, even the A League.There's one professional national tier - and minor leagues/ state leagues at the next (semi-professional) level. Also there's salary cap and drafts - like the US system - which makes it more even. I'm an EPL fan but I sometimes struggle with the fact that there are only 5-6 "power clubs" that can win the EPL, and the bottom half playing to basically avoid relegation, and having no hope of ever winning the title?!

[@johnrconnolly]

"Don't believe quotes you read on the internet, as you cannot find a reliable source to corroborate them" - Abraham Lincoln.

[@sapiens1076]

"Lmao bruh,you got me" - Gandhi

[@JC-hu1wd]

I am John Connolly...

[@michaelofsydney6128]

Is that the actual quote or is that a shortened version?

[@johnsaunders2109]

Lincoln must have used the Internet a lot whilst flying around the USA in Airforce One !!

[@michaelofsydney6128]

@@johnsaunders2109 I don't think the internet was invented yet and Lincoln had to use teletext. Not sure, but I think that was the case

[@mzy12]

The lower down you go in the footballing pyramid the more it means to the fans and people involved with the club.

[@lewisgreen1633]

Well said. It’s true (Leyton Orient fan)

[@BOABModels]

👏👏👏 You showed why you are the 'People's Channel' in this video, Alfie. 'If you tolerate this, your football club will be next'

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

Screw the people a bunch of malcontents. Never happy with anything. You don’t deserve to have a league.

[@barrysheridan9186]

Not a real football fan but it is very sad to think so many clubs are on the verge of collapse. It has played an important role in local communities, uniting many people and providing a focus for life.

[@isaaca6445]

Uniting some people, but hating some who don't look like them, and the hooliganism!

[@thomasmahoney4991]

Going off football quite a bit these days, and I'm a Leeds fan (!!) But videos and messages like this are so vital, you deserve more of a platform! So many wankers on KZbin with far more subs who produce nothing but meaningless brain-numbing shite, while things like this are so much more important

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

Just switch to American foitball. It’s modern sport layered with incredible amounts of strategy and world class athleticism. Soccer is for the simpletons who like simpleton rules “kick ball into net”

[@thomasmahoney4991]

@@Mynipplesmychoice that's just a shit version of rugby union which I already like😂😂

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

@@thomasmahoney4991 watching people fumbling for a ball (which u can’t see) on the ground , is not idea of fun. Half the game is floor wrestling

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

@@thomasmahoney4991 in the 1800s we were like “ rugby that’s for monkeys let’s make I awesome” so Americans and Canadians put their heads together to create the richest and bestest sport in the world.

[@thomasmahoney4991]

@@Mynipplesmychoice Such points and such a mindset aren't worth addressing I'm sorry😂😂

[@JackBryan]

I’m a Derby fan and feel this hits the nail on the head. The anguish felt by fans at the thought of their club going out of business cannot be understated, not helped when the papers sensationalise rumours. Yes, the likes of Mel Morris have done wrong, but the fact that gambling to attempt to achieve is seen as a good idea/necessary speaks of deeper issues within the English football pyramid.

[@dev0nSA1nt]

it's always sad to lose historic clubs: Accrington Stanley went, and they were founder members of the First Division along with your County. In fact, there was a scandal which led to another founding club, and the oldest professional team on Earth, Notts County, falling into non-league. And I really hope things go okay up there for you lot, make sure you keep out any Steve Dales, George Reynoldses or Rupert Lowes. Stay safe English football.

[@leopold7562]

A very impassioned speech, sir, but unfortunately it's nothing that we haven't heard before and over many years. I think the first time I heard it mentioned about the death of a club was back in 1998, shortly after my team were overturned by York City, some very sombre fan muttered, "If we don't get out of this shit league, we're doomed as a club." It's a sad state of affairs and, frankly, it's complete bollocks that it happens at all. There's so much money in the sport at present and it's being siphoned off the top by loan interest, greedy shareholders, agents demanding ridiculous wages, clubs demanding ridiculous transfer fees and owners after a quick buck. Meanwhile, we've seen clubs like Bury and Macclesfield go to the wall with debts that could be covered simply by three Premier League footballers donating the money they would've used to buy their next Ferrari. Had the money been allowed to flow down into the lower leagues, things would be very different, but what we are seeing instead is the equivalent of "trickle down economics", where the trickle coming down has already been stemmed by people who already have way more than enough money as it is. It's disgusting, and it needs to stop. Fortunately, I have the answer. If you support a Premier League team and you can't afford to go, then find a local club from a lower league and support them. For the price of a burger at the Etihad, you can bag a prime seat at Hyde United. For the cost of a single ticket at the Emirates, you could take your entire family along to watch Aylesbury. For the price of simply parking your car at Anfield, you could get a ticket and a beer at Tranmere. Granted, neither the fixture nor the facilities will be as good, but the money you're spending there will help the club survive, rather than be funnelled into some rich bloke's already swollen bank account.

[@geoffpoole483]

Good points. At a non-league game you might get to see someone who breaks through, like an Ian Wright, Stuart Pearce or Jamie Vardy. Or, you might see a former great such as Jimmy Greaves at Barnet or the late Martin Peters playing for Gorleston.

[@Espinin]

3:09 Of the 11 times they faced hull city, they won 6, drew 8, and lost 5. Me: *Woman doing equations meme*

[@charlie1a5]

I was going to comment about this too 😂😂😂. I wonder when KZbin would allow GIFs in the comment section

[@mamateva]

26/57 points

[@cycklist]

What a wonderful essay on the true soul of football. This speaks so loud to me as a lifelong Portsmouth fan. Thank you.

[@Mynipplesmychoice]

Haha the American system is so much more stable. We have balance in our leagues small market and big market teams can afford the same players. We have a salary cap but even with the cap our players make more. Bad teams get high draft picks for rookies so they can retool. There are different champions every year unless a team has a strong front office in making excellent player moves and/or good coaching. Your system is about to collapse and all I can do is laugh because of the snobbery of English football fan. But I do get a kick of how Americans own your top teams. We are truly an empire and the sun sets on the American empire USA! USA ! USA

[@adventussaxonum448]

@@Mynipplesmychoice "The Sun sets on the American empire".... You said it 😂

[@bigbigchungusbigchungusbig1117]

man, even as a Southampton fan it's tragic to see what happened to Portsmouth Hope to one day see a return to the Premiership one day!

[@Zaghzackio]

Day 1 of requesting hitc sevens fans to stop suggesting silly videos and make real comments on the subject matter in the video

[@stonecold6521]

Agreed. He should do what other channels do and ask for video suggestions on Twitter or FB.

[@duncanfairbairn1350]

For years, I was a Southampton fan, taking my daughter to the Dell and later St.Mary's. But in the last few years I've become so disillusioned with top flight football that I don't bother anymore. Paying £50-£70 every other week to keep millionaires rich has lost its lustre. Now, I a support my local non-league team, Romsey Town FC. Instead of £50-60 per match, I paid £75 for a season ticket! The passion on the pitch, the complete lack of animosity in the crowd, cheap beer in the clubhouse, and feeling a part of something rather than being alienated is addictive. If you have a local non-league side, support them! If your Premiership/Championship team are away, tickets sold out, international break, whatever reason, the £6-£10 you'll pay on the gate will be more important to them than you can ever imagine! Give it a go, you won't regret it.

[@astrochild1575]

Inject more HITC sevens content into my veins please.

[@Sluetch90]

Sadly I’ve never had a parent or grandparent that are into football so I had to find my own way & as a consequence I guess , I’ve never actually found a club I fully support so over the years have just ended up watching anything and everything. That said it doesn’t mean my love for the game is any less , it’s just not concentrated in one place.

[@Eibarwoman]

For me, it came from politics where my teams are unlikely to play each other but all are politically aligned on the left with anti-fascism. Signs like Celtic's "Follow Your Leader" mocking Lazio fans for the Lazio ultras being far right and the team even employs a Mussolini (Luca, the direct descendant of the dictator) as a player. Safe to say, I am aligned with Celtic, Livorno, or Athletic Bilbao (where the presence of Kenan Kodro, Inaki Williams, etc prove it's about local born talent rather than ethnicity)

[@NiSiochainGanSaoirse]

Support your home town team mate.

[@LegendNinja41]

similar story, by dad supported a side but from a different country to where we lived so i was pretty much a neutral football fan having sympathies to different football clubs, local teams and non local until i became a LFC fan after i got to know the more and more of the clubs history, the locals, the city itself. But nothing wrong with just being a fan of football :D

[@tedzer94]

@@Eibarwoman Antifa FC

[@loonranger469]

Find your local non league team and watch/support them

[@ringosimon1]

I'm a Liverpool fan, but felt sad when Bury went bust. The reason football is so popular is the history and Bury (a cup winner over a hundred years ago) are every bit a part of the history as the big six.

[@StoutProper]

Strange how the Neville’s didn’t step in

[@eyeballjellyforbreakfast]

@@StoutProper Philip is a manager abroad and Gary owns a club and has many other duties also.. You can not expect two brothers to save every local club in the Manchester area... This comes back to.. do not spend outside your means. If you do it will haunt you later. This is not just true of the situation in lower leagues.. Top clubs have fallen to the same fate.

[@djevo5662]

@@eyeballjellyforbreakfast what about all the other former players that got on the high horse. Rio would have just told fans to buy the club like he did with Newcastle. There all mouth and no action

[@StoutProper]

@@eyeballjellyforbreakfast what are you, a Neville brothers simp? First off, drop the straw men arguments. No one said every club in the Greater Manchester area. Bury is where they are from, it’s their local club they grew up supporting, their mother was treasurer for 30 years until it went bust and their father has a stand named after him.

[@Jaaassaa]

@@StoutProper exactly. Gary Neville always preaches about grass roots football, and how it needs to be saved, but he was MIA when Bury needed help. Now they don’t exist.

[@TheDeadlyTikka]

God damn that story about your grandparents was next level. Actually hit me so deep

[@beeyah805]

As an American, I truly hope our brand of franchised sport never taints the English game

[@johnmknox]

It already has started to for the last year especially with the American political and cultural problems.

[@stoby3356]

Here here! Taking the example of The Rams in the NFL, I really felt for their fans that lived in LA and regularly went to games there who then had to head to St.Louis.

[@airzulu2733]

Sorry my friend it's already happening . It's not a game anymore its as business. The Glazers who own Man United haven't the slightest clue of what the club means to the local community.and history , not forgetting the Munich disaster. But they understand the money involved. And it's not just about American owners it's an epidemic of greed all over the world from various owners. Yes its killing our lower leagues and in my view isolating those British youngsters that want to play the sport . Dont know what it's like for the NFL .

[@xaviermalcolm8481]

@@stoby3356 The Rams are in LA now. Not St Louis.

[@Keiphton27]

This is quality and well stated. I thoroughly enjoyed this piece and you couldn’t be more spot on regarding the topic. As an American I’ve always looked upon England with MASSIVE envy at your leagues. Most yanks don’t get it, but it is the most incredible sporting situation in the world. Period. Nothing else like it at all. I hope for the people of England this finds resolution somehow.

[@davidkettell1073]

Woke will make you broke ?

[@Louisejames23]

I would be pretty sure a number of premier league clubs are living on the generosity of their owners *cough Man City* rather than their ability to make a profit.... Portsmouth was just the tip of a very large iceberg.

[@StoutProper]

The majority of clubs have been for a long time

[@animeshkhare1769]

For all their faults, at least the City owners are genuinely interested in developing the area around the club.

[@cormaccorrigan9086]

Then you don't really know what you're talking about. Manchester city have spent 1.28 billion on players since 2013 but have made 3.8 billion revenue. They only make 20 million revenue less than united a lot of the time, yet united have a higher wage bill and spend more. Get to know what you're talking about.

[@hman8379]

City have been profitable for several years now (excluding 2020, of course). That may have been the case in the early years of Mansour's ownership, but not anymore.

[@saxglend9439]

Why are you coughing?

[@jatin2616]

Football died in 2012 when capitalist owners of English clubs drove away genuinely passionate owners of Italian clubs via introduction of FFP. What a shame.

[@shanewright2772]

But, but, but.... what on earth was your point? It's as plain as the nose on your face what the condition and the cure are. Improvidently run, poorly branded and under capitalized businesses will inevitably fail in a competitive marketplace. And everytime you try to prop one of these cases up, it just makes the fall even harder and more inevitable. England is oversupplied with football product. The marketplace is flooded. It's like the Mitchell and Webb sketch - FOOTBALL ALL THE TIME! Raising demand to consume supply only works for the clubs that have the capital and the brand to do that (hence the Super League). For the rest, the number of inefficient and overpriced suppliers must be removed from and by the marketplace until supply is lowered to accommodate demand. If your demand is specifically for Hull City flavoured football, you may have to accept it as a non-league experience if demand for the product isn't high enough to generate income sufficient to keep investment up. The rest of the sentimental claptrap I'm not sure there's an answer to. Frankly, after 20 minutes, I'd forgotten what most of it was.

[@georgeventris8201]

Macclesfield fan here we are back as Macclesfield fc and with football people on board such as Robbie savage and a local businessman so things are looking way better our owner is also easy to communicate with 👌

[@thelastfeast3849]

Kind of crazy that there wasn’t a single rich business man in Macclesfield that was prepared to bail them out over such a small sum.

[@rueisblue]

honestly how much return on investment can you expect from an investment in a club like that? plus they were pretty deep in debt, hurting the financial incentive even more

[@ishoottheyscore8970]

The size of the debt is usually not the issue, it's the ongoing liabilities - You not only have to clear the existing debt, you have to find a way to make the club turn a profit, or it's just throwing good money after bad. Some of this is a long time coming though - all seater stadia have lower capacities (a point the video failed to consider in comparing to the 50s), but a significantly higher maintenance expense so that introduction (~1990 if I recall) was a double whammy for clubs and it still has an impact in making the games more expensive to attend. Heaven help an owner that tries to run a club to a budget though - when every other club is happy to make losses, the frugal ones usually get abused by fans for 'not investing'

[@xtrey19x]

@@ishoottheyscore8970 on top of all of that if you do manage to perform this miracle and the club becomes profitable the fans will very likely frown upon you taking money out of the club and depositing it into your personal bank account. Who their right minds want any of these headaches?

[@ishoottheyscore8970]

@@xtrey19x Yeah, it's kind of funny I've been seeing people trying to castigate the Fulham owners for taking money out of the club even though they've been making losses consistently, and the Khans have converted some debt to equity. If you know how to run a business, you'd generally avoid running a club, but perceptions have been warped by the likes of Gartside at Bolton, Whelan at Wigan and Walker at Blackburn who were OK with losing parts of their personal fortune in running a club. Then you get the supercharged versions like Man City and PSG, and now that sort of indulgent spending is treated by fans as the ideal. They just chose to ignore what happens to clubs when the subsidy is withdrawn... I wish we'd get an equivalent video to this that tried to educate the fans

[@Veaseify]

@@ishoottheyscore8970 Up until 1992 nobody expected to make money owning a football club, it was generally a vanity project for a local Car dealership owner or scrap metal dealer. Some of it was pretty feudal, like how the Hill-Woods at Arsenal and the Cobhams at Ipswich ran their clubs...

[@noeldown1952]

The quality of writing, analysis and insight is amazing. This video could've been a fitting conclusion to a series on the state of English Football, if you were ever to create such series.

[@no92108]

It is disgusting how much money is in EPL football and the amount of clubs that are neglected by the FA. Not only is there class warfare between the people but also class warfare between the football clubs. It is heartbreaking and truly unfair. I started paying more attention to the EFL clubs than the EPL because to me that is what real football is all about. Much love from America, amigo!

[@geoffpoole483]

The Championship, League 1 and League 2 are much more exciting to follow because of their unpredictability. In the EPL it's obvious which teams will be contesting the title.

[@AmazinJ89]

Great video Alfie, the lower levels of football really need to be mentioned more.

[@lougiacobbi725]

Indeed. As someone new to English and European football, I felt a rush of euphoria knowing that Ramsbottom United exists. For all that is good and decent, please allow them to keep going.

[@OfficialFingazMC]

A Port Vale video would be interesting especially the rocky times when smurf was in charge

[@66Viscount]

I have to say that I really worry about County in these difficult times

[@stonecold6521]

Alfie, instead of asking for video suggestions in the comment section, how about asking for them on Twitter or Facebook? That way we can have conversations about the actual video you've worked so hard on.

[@thebigquack6945]

Facebook: does anyone still use that? Twitter: a football conversation on Twitter ends two ways. In War or in chaos

[@bluest.9320]

@@stonecold6521 Football Daily is a dead channel no wonder why people use Facebook when they want to talk the FD people directly

[@stonecold6521]

@@bluest.9320 Why would Sky buy a dead channel? Sorry mate. You're talking nonsense. Have a look at the views per vid. Also have a look at the subscriber count.

[@kkmac7247]

@@stonecold6521 I agree, but many dead channels have many subs, eg watch mojo

[@stonecold6521]

@@kkmac7247 Just had a look and both channels have got videos between 80k and 100k views in 24 hours for some videos. Wouldn't say that was dead.

[@Rodderz1992]

It makes me weep to think that I could have lost my time this year due to bad ownership. I hope now that Wigan can get back on their feet and keep going. I'm also looking forward to having another season with Bolton... We've both been through the ringer and it'll be nice to see the old rivals again and enjoy our footie together.

[@charlytaylor1748]

I remember when my club had to literally pass a bucket round for spare coins to keep the club afloat. It got sold on for a fiver at one point and an investment scheme had to be set up so the supporters could literally own the pitch. Thankfully it worked and next Saturday we play Man C in the CL final. People forget.

[@loseweightusingketo]

One of the saddest videos I've ever watched on KZbin. I think there needs to be a fund set up by the Premier League to help lower league teams in distress, where every club has to contribute an amount based on their revenue. Just 100 million, for instance, will go a long way!

[@eyeballjellyforbreakfast]

Then what incentive do the lower clubs have to spend sensibly? Bailing people out despite their poor economic choices is what the 08 banking crisis looked like...

[@loseweightusingketo]

@@eyeballjellyforbreakfast Well, not all clubs facing financial trouble due to mismanagement. You see. Maybe to be underplaying the impact of Covid-19 on these clubs' finance. When the Matchday revenue which is a big chunk of net revenue is taken away, and matches suspended, lower league clubs tend to struggle despite being run prudently. It's a gross generalization to label all clubs facing financial troubles as poorly-run when the reality is different. Of course, I do not discount the correlation between clubs bring run poorly and being impacted the must due to the pandemic, but it's not true for all clubs.

[@Murphinator-gx5on]

@@eyeballjellyforbreakfast it's like you didnt watch the video at all

[@NiSiochainGanSaoirse]

F the premier league It’s their greed which is destroying lower league football

[@andyg806]

@@NiSiochainGanSaoirse I know its easy to just blame the Premier League teams, but the fact of the matter is, many of the top PL teams are global brands, which most of, if not all, lower league teams are not unfortunately.

[@guessundheit6494]

It's the same in other sports. When revenues increased dramatically, its was the players and others at the top who benefitted, while those at the lower and developmental levels got nothing. Short term greed will kill sports.

[@martintielemans]

This is the content I subscribed for. Keep up the good work, Alfie.

[@matnichol]

Great video again. I’m a fan of one of the top 6 teams but it’s heartbreaking to think about the history and communities that are going to be lost.