Bbc - Scottish Football Doesn't Deserve More Cash (From Daily Mail)

[combat]

Scottish football doesn't deserve more cash, insists BBC supremo Barbara Slater

ByJohn Greechan For The Scottish Daily Mail

Published: 01:47, 15 May 2015 | Updated: 01:47, 15 May 2015

The BBC’s director of sport has slammed the door on SPFL chief Neil Doncaster by insisting that Scottish football doesn’t merit a bigger slice of the licence fee.

Barbara Slater was speaking after Doncaster vowed he would be chasing broadcasters for an improvement on current TV deals, which includes the Corporation’s reported £3million for Sportscene highlights and radio commentaries.

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Scottish fans will continue to see more of their money spent on England’s top flight than our own Premiership

That is a pittance compared to the staggering £204m the BBC paid to secure the Match of the Day package for three more years.

But Slater told the Telegraph Business of Sport conference that the ‘inequality’ was a price worth paying to retain highlights of England’s more lucrative Premier League.

And, in an argument potentially at odds with the Corporation’s public-service remit, she said that Scottish fans paying exactly the same amount of licence fee every year would continue to see more of their money spent on England’s top flight than our own Premiership.

Answering a question about the need for a more equitable split among domestic leagues, Slater said the ‘global appeal’ of England’s top flight meant it was always going to cost the Beeb more.

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Neil Doncaster poses with the SPFL league trophies after announcing a new sponsorship with Ladbrokes

‘The sports rights market is intensely competitive and there are all sorts of dynamics that are taken into consideration when you put together what you would bid for rights,’ she said.

‘And it is quite correct that, the licence fee, we are trying to get as much as we can in terms of sports rights with the investment. So we are, to a degree, going to be dictated by the market rate.

‘And the fact is - and I know the comparison you’re going to draw between highlights of football in Scotland and highlights that we would pay for the Premier League.

‘The truth is, the Premier League is a global brand. It is loved by audiences and we think it’s incredibly important that Match of the Day, as the highlights broadcaster of Premier League football, is an incredibly important programme for us to invest in.

‘The message from audiences across the UK is crystal clear: they love Match of the Day and they want Match of the Day to stay on the BBC.

‘The strength of reaction we got when the BBC renewed those Match of the Day highlights this time is probably the most positive reaction that we’ve had to a set of sports rights because I think there were real concerns in that current marketplace about how tough it is to secure rights.

‘So, yes, there is inequality, in fairness, but, as a broadcaster, as someone investing the licence fee, I’ve got to invest it in the way the market dictates.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3082609/Scottish-football-doesn-t-deserve-cash-insists-BBC-supremo-Barbara-Slater.html#ixzz3aBtq7on6

Discuss

Edited May 15, 2015 by combat

[Flure]

I think that posting links to the Daily Mail should be banned.

[Bzzzz]

"Better Together"

[aaid]

Without getting into a pointless argument about the relative appeal of the two leagues, I can't understand why the EPL being a global brand - which it is - has any relevance in so far as UK TV rights is concerned.

[John_B81]

Gary Lineker gets paid more per annum than Scottish Football gets from the BBC, enough said.

[adamntg]

The English league has global appeal because it rakes in multi-billions in media rights and can buy the world's best players. Scotland can't even keep their good young players past the age of 21 because they don't get the media rights. Classic chicken and egg situation.

I don't doubt that if the Scottish league were as competitive as it was in the early 80s where any of Aberdeen, United, Celtic, Hearts and Rangers (ok, not Rangers) had a shot at winning the title each season, were all playing to crowds of 15,000 and up and the clubs were playing in the quarters, semis and finals of European competition each season, we'd have a bit more "global interest" as well.

Because you're not telling me that Hull City v Stoke or QPR v Wigan is anything like as attractive a match in terms of history and name as Celtic v Aberdeen or Hibernian v Rangers. We're just left behind by the noveau riche.

TV money, the Champions League and Bosman has done for our domestic game. A shame.

Edited May 15, 2015 by adamntg

[ProudScot]

The English league has global appeal because it rakes in multi-billions in media rights and can buy the world's best players. Scotland can't even keep their good young players past the age of 21 because they don't get the media rights. Classic chicken and egg situation.

I don't doubt that if the Scottish league were as competitive as it was in the early 80s where any of Aberdeen, United, Celtic, Hearts and Rangers (ok, not Rangers) had a shot at winning the title each season, were all playing to crowds of 15,000 and up and the clubs were playing in the quarters, semis and finals of European competition each season, we'd have a bit more "global interest" as well.

Because you're not telling me that Hull City v Stoke or QPR v Wigan is anything like as attractive a match in terms of history and name as Celtic v Aberdeen or Hibernian v Rangers. We're just left behind by the noveau riche.

TV money, the Champions League and Bosman has done for our domestic game. A shame.

Years of not developing our own talent killed the Scottish game - we are coming back now but due to the financial strength of English, Spanish, French, German & Italian clubs now, we will never see teams prperly competing at a European level again i'm afraid

Edited May 15, 2015 by ProudScot

[Khana Lagur]

It's the TV companies that have turned the EPL into a 'brand' so they have to keep their focus on their main investment.

[ShedTA]

Its globalisation really. Big companies want everyone to watch eat, drink, wear, watch the same thing regardless of country/ location. its cheaper for them to produce fewer items for consumption and have us all just consuming the same products , regardless of who, what or where we are. As a result they manipulate our tastes to suit them. hence the lack of spend in scottish football;. they would prefer us just to watch match of the day every week.

its sh*te.

[adamntg]

Years of not developing our own talent killed the Scottish game - we are coming back now but due to the financial strength of English, Spanish, French, German & Italian clubs now, we will never see teams prperly competing at a European level again i'm afraid

Well, Scotland was quite slow to adapt to the new environment where kids could no longer be relied upon to grow into decent footballers by playing among themselves, that's true. But equally, England have suffered by the swamping of their domestic league with expensively paid foreign players, and the same happened in Scotland at the same time, with the difference being that we brought in inferior imports and didn't have Daddy Warbucks to drown us in cash.

In all honesty, where we are now, with lots of young improving Scottish players filling our league and with club's debts dwindling, it's really not such a bad place to be. English clubs are still carrying sickening levels of debt and watching teams filled with overseas players. They may be rich, but the money is all going into the players' pockets with little or no benefit to the supporters or their national team.

The lust for money almost killed Scottish football before, and if it's ever interrupted down south - and nothing lasts forever - they are truly sunk. They may find that Swansea v Sunderland is not such an attractive product after all. I'd like our boys to have enough money to retain our talent domestically for a little longer, but beyond that, you know - what do I care if an extra few million of TV money is filtered down to players to waste in casinos and on tasteless mansions?

What a ramble....

Edited May 15, 2015 by adamntg

[Nobby]

Scottish football doesn't deserve more cash, insists BBC supremo Barbara Slater

ByJohn Greechan For The Scottish Daily Mail

Published: 01:47, 15 May 2015 | Updated: 01:47, 15 May 2015

The BBC’s director of sport has slammed the door on SPFL chief Neil Doncaster by insisting that Scottish football doesn’t merit a bigger slice of the licence fee.

Barbara Slater was speaking after Doncaster vowed he would be chasing broadcasters for an improvement on current TV deals, which includes the Corporation’s reported £3million for Sportscene highlights and radio commentaries.

+2

Scottish fans will continue to see more of their money spent on England’s top flight than our own Premiership

That is a pittance compared to the staggering £204m the BBC paid to secure the Match of the Day package for three more years.

But Slater told the Telegraph Business of Sport conference that the ‘inequality’ was a price worth paying to retain highlights of England’s more lucrative Premier League.

And, in an argument potentially at odds with the Corporation’s public-service remit, she said that Scottish fans paying exactly the same amount of licence fee every year would continue to see more of their money spent on England’s top flight than our own Premiership.

Answering a question about the need for a more equitable split among domestic leagues, Slater said the ‘global appeal’ of England’s top flight meant it was always going to cost the Beeb more.

• SHARE PICTURE

Copy link to paste in your message

+2

Neil Doncaster poses with the SPFL league trophies after announcing a new sponsorship with Ladbrokes

‘The sports rights market is intensely competitive and there are all sorts of dynamics that are taken into consideration when you put together what you would bid for rights,’ she said.

‘And it is quite correct that, the licence fee, we are trying to get as much as we can in terms of sports rights with the investment. So we are, to a degree, going to be dictated by the market rate.

‘And the fact is - and I know the comparison you’re going to draw between highlights of football in Scotland and highlights that we would pay for the Premier League.

‘The truth is, the Premier League is a global brand. It is loved by audiences and we think it’s incredibly important that Match of the Day, as the highlights broadcaster of Premier League football, is an incredibly important programme for us to invest in.

‘The message from audiences across the UK is crystal clear: they love Match of the Day and they want Match of the Day to stay on the BBC.

‘The strength of reaction we got when the BBC renewed those Match of the Day highlights this time is probably the most positive reaction that we’ve had to a set of sports rights because I think there were real concerns in that current marketplace about how tough it is to secure rights.

‘So, yes, there is inequality, in fairness, but, as a broadcaster, as someone investing the licence fee, I’ve got to invest it in the way the market dictates.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-3082609/Scottish-football-doesn-t-deserve-cash-insists-BBC-supremo-Barbara-Slater.html#ixzz3aBtq7on6

Discuss

so sell the rights to ITV. Something is worth what somebody is prepared to pay for it

[girvanTA]

If sky went bust half of the epl team would go aswell

[fishcumnock]

I read man utd were £450 m in debt , how can that go on ?

[ShedTA]

see the complete arrogance of that lady p*sses me off. We wouldnt give aflying f&ck what they paid for the EPL highlights package if they paid scottish football 10% of that.

She seems to forget that 10% of what they pay for the english highlights comes form viewers in scotland, or at least indeirectly is funded by viewers in scotland. I know the bbc will make a lot of money selling the epl rights to other countries but 10% the initial investment for that has come from scottish TV licence payers. in effect we own 10% of the BBC so why the f*ck are we not egtting 10% of the football spend?

10% of the epl deal would make a massive difference up here. whether it would be good or not i dont know but we should still get it.

[adamntg]

so sell the rights to ITV. Something is worth what somebody is prepared to pay for it

There's truth in that. Football, like everything else that turns into a product, has been crystalised into the lowest common denominator of the English Premiership, Barca/Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and the Champions League. It needs a mass market to work, and Scotland just doesn't have it.

Edited May 15, 2015 by adamntg

[stewarty66]

see the complete arrogance of that lady p*sses me off. We wouldnt give aflying f&ck what they paid for the EPL highlights package if they paid scottish football 10% of that.

She seems to forget that 10% of what they pay for the english highlights comes form viewers in scotland, or at least indeirectly is funded by viewers in scotland. I know the bbc will make a lot of money selling the epl rights to other countries but 10% the initial investment for that has come from scottish TV licence payers. in effect we own 10% of the BBC so why the f*ck are we not egtting 10% of the football spend?

10% of the epl deal would make a massive difference up here. whether it would be good or not i dont know but we should still get it.

You can't argue with that.

[ShedTA]

so sell the rights to ITV. Something is worth what somebody is prepared to pay for it

There's truth in that. Football, like everything else that turns into a product, has been crystalised into the lowest common denominator of the English Premiership, Barca/Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and the Champions League. It needs a mass market to work, and Scotland just doesn't have it.

Not entirely right Adam. If it was pure market forces then fine but its not that simple. We are effectvely shareholders of the BBC and at the moment the dividends are not being paid out equally. We cant consider it purely in commercial terms because we help to fund the thing. if it was as cut and dried as Nobby says - market forces, then the BBC might find that a lot of people might not want to pay the licence for what they show us. we might want a different product. unfortunately we cant express our views that way as the licence is compulsory.

[mariokempes56]

There's truth in that. Football, like everything else that turns into a product, has been crystalised into the lowest common denominator of the English Premiership, Barca/Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and the Champions League. It needs a mass market to work, and Scotland just doesn't have it.

Not the point though - licence payers cash which is being grossly unfairly allocated to the English league, well thats novel eh ...

[adamntg]

I can see the point with the BBC, they have a public service to provide (ha ha). I would love to see Scottish highlights on a Saturday evening.

You can't do anything about Sky though, who are the real culprits.

[mariokempes56]

I can see the point with the BBC, they have a public service to provide (ha ha). I would love to see Scottish highlights on a Saturday evening.

You can't do anything about Sky though, who are the real culprits.

Ay I know - it was BBC that I was addressing. Sky can and will do what they please.

[Nobby]

see the complete arrogance of that lady p*sses me off. We wouldnt give aflying f&ck what they paid for the EPL highlights package if they paid scottish football 10% of that.

She seems to forget that 10% of what they pay for the english highlights comes form viewers in scotland, or at least indeirectly is funded by viewers in scotland. I know the bbc will make a lot of money selling the epl rights to other countries but 10% the initial investment for that has come from scottish TV licence payers. in effect we own 10% of the BBC so why the f*ck are we not egtting 10% of the football spend?

10% of the epl deal would make a massive difference up here. whether it would be good or not i dont know but we should still get it.

Nope you shouldnt. If you had a league that was exciting and more that one (two when Rangers make it back) team had a chance of winning then maybe. You can moan all you want about the EPL but at least there are generally 4/5 teams in with a shout of winning it at the start of a season. the SPL are selling a product like it or not and outside of the fans that actually go to games not too many people will pay to see celtic win the league for the next 5 seasons.

[1320lichtie]

Emm yes we should

It's public money, 1/10th of it we are ENTITLED to. The fact we get 1/60th is absolutely scandalous.

It wouldn't matter if it was pub football on a park, we should still get 1/10th of that money

That's clear to anybody who isn't a fecking moron

[Nobby]

Not the point though - licence payers cash which is being grossly unfairly allocated to the English league, well thats novel eh ...

As previously, sell them to someone else then. You could argue that the BBC are wasting cash spending any money on a highlights package that no one else is interested in showing . There is no competition for the product that the SPL offer, so you get what you are offered.

[1320lichtie]

It's great to finally see Scotland stand up for itself

Slowly getting confidence back and asking for what WE DESERVE.

London

[Nobby]

Emm yes we should

It's public money, 1/10th of it we are ENTITLED to. The fact we get 1/60th is absolutely scandalous.

It wouldn't matter if it was pub football on a park, we should still get 1/10th of that money

That's clear to anybody who isn't a fecking lovely cuddly bunny

Nope you aint ;-) As previous the SPL are selling a product if no one else likes it you get what you are offered .