Chris Weatherspoon
@cweatherspoon.bsky.social
2K followers 240 following 590 posts
Football Finance Writer at The Athletic UK | Will write about money for football | Views are not someone else's
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cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Some news I should probably share with you...

Delighted and not a little humbled to tell you I've joined @theathleticfc.bsky.social as their first designated Football Finance Writer

I'll be covering all things money in football, I think it's gonna be busy and I'm very excited to get going
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
When FSG wrestled Liverpool from Tom Hicks and George Gillett, a lawyer for the pair called it "tragic" and said "there is nothing positive for #LFC"...

Pfft! Great to discuss 15 years of FSG on the latest episode of Walk On

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/1...
15 years of FSG: the highs, the lows & the transformation of Liverpool
Podcast Episode · Walk On: The Athletic FC's Liverpool show · 13/10/2025 · 50m
podcasts.apple.com
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
migueldelaney.bsky.social
Quite a day for football's soft power in Egypt. Trump shaking hands with Man City owner Sheikh Mansour as he talks about how his state has "limitless cash" and then Infantino appearing at the end of the photo of world leaders.
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
billkristolbulwark.bsky.social
Pope Leo quotes Hannah Arendt:

“The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist."

www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...
Pope Leo calls for news agencies to stand as bulwark against "post-truths," lies and manipulation
Pope Leo XIV has encouraged international news agencies to stand firm as a bulwark against the "ancient art of lying" and manipulation.
www.cbsnews.com
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
They claim not...getting awfully smoky though
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Big development at Spurs, as ENIC, via Lewis family trust, injected £100m

ENIC funding:
• 2001-21: £24.6m
• 2022-25: £232.5m

So..
• Why now?
• What's it for?
• And what does it mean for Daniel Levy?

w/ @jackpittbrooke.bsky.social for @theathleticfc.bsky.social

www.nytimes.com/athletic/670...
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
It has, perhaps at least until today, very much gone under the radar how key to Sunderland's recent rise Stuart Harvey was
safc.com
Sunderland AFC today confirmed the departure of Head of Player Recruitment, Stuart Harvey.

The Club would like to thank Stuart for his contribution and wishes him every success in the future.

🔗 safc.com/news/2025/october/10/safc-confirm-stuart-harvey-departure/
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Can you tell it's an international break?
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Mild #SAFC news here as Companies House filings detail Arvesa Corp, which held club co-owner Juan Sartori's 20% interest in Madrox Partners (remember those guys!), divested its shares in mid-August

Sartori resigned as a Madrox director in Nov 2023, and now fully disconnected
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Confirmation in DAZN's 2024 accounts that Saudi Arabia's PIF, via SURJ, invested $1billion in DAZN in March of this year

DAZN lost $962million in 2024, a reduction(!) on 2023 of $498m(!)

DAZN has lost $10billion over the last decade
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Manchester United's accounts are 580 pages long and, as hard we may try, impossible to summarise quickly.

So here's a 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 dive into a club where finances are changing rapidly, and where football performance is increasingly important

@theathleticfc.bsky.social

www.nytimes.com/athletic/668...
The BookKeeper on Man United finances: Brutal cuts helped, but on-pitch results matter more than ever
Brutal cutbacks and improved sales have helped but United's lack of European football remains an issue, so on-pitch results will be key
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
barryglendenning.bsky.social
Simon Jordan on TalkSport, unchallenged yet again.

As a Talksport employee, I am embarrassed by this rebuttal of what Neville said. This moron pontificates without question. It is bonkers.

And yeah, i'll probably be sacked. Fuck it.

youtube.com/watch?v=FrXr...
"APPALLING STANCE!" Simon Jordan rages at "COWARD" Gary Neville after Union Jack REMOVAL admission!
YouTube video by talkSPORT
youtube.com
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Yes but not the above figure - they split it all out
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Using a club which discloses player wages

Barcelona's 2023-24 football wage bill:
• Per Capology: €201m
• Per club accounts: €326m

Difference: €125m

Cost of employing players is much higher than their basic wage too (and Capology even say their figs don't include bonuses)
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Mostly too low. Tends to ignore bonuses and doesn't include full cost to clubs like employer taxes etc. Compare the figures to published club wage bills and they're miles apart
cweatherspoon.bsky.social
Football finance PSA: Capology wage figures are based on little reliable, bear no clear resemblance to published club wage bills and should not be looked upon for accuracy (or anything else really)

Prominently cited in a national outlet today and, well, come on
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
gelliottmorris.com
at this point you have to acknowledge that there is no way that these guys don't try to mess with the 2026 midterms. there is absolutely no respect for the legitimacy of the opposition
bluegeorgia.bsky.social
Stephen Miller: "Eventually elections don’t carry the day because violence beats votes… When we see a muscular response from the federal government, it’s because we’re not going to let violence beat votes."

Is he implying federal intervention determines political legitimacy, not ballots or courts?
Reposted by Chris Weatherspoon
stuarthoddinott.bsky.social
So after promising to cut "wasteful spending" and council tax Reform has:
- Found no waste and instead plans to cut invest-to-save schemes
- Will now raise council tax by the full 5%
- Realised they don't control asylum spending

A staggering amount of failure in 5 months