Paul Ince and the dearth of black managers
Should you need evidence that football is the global game, then England is the place to find it. The Premiership is the most widely followed league in the world (if not perhaps the best, whatever Sky may claim) and there are more nationalities represented in it than any other. All of which throws into stark relief that in one way English football upholds a very old tradition – almost all the managers are white.
Jonathan Wilson examines how Guus Hiddink, a potential Blues boss, is faring with Russia
A surge of popular excitement, a couple of iffy results followed by a couple of good performances, and the Russian attitude to Guus Hiddink is still largely positive. Were he to leave for Chelsea, there would be disappointment and anger, but the Russian sports pages haven’t exactly been buzzing with warnings of his imminent departure. Partly because there is no Russian Mark Palios ready to build a wall of cash to keep his manager in situ, but also because no one thinks a move to Chelsea is that probable.
Dear WSC
It was good to see your piece on York City Supporters’ Trust in WSC 239, which gave an excellent summary the position at York City. One minor point – it was never the intention of the trust to take a controlling interest in the club. That was dictated by circumstances whereby if the trust had not taken control the club would have folded. So returning to private ownership probably isn’t a setback for the cause of fan ownership. We still retain a 25 per cent share of the club and can now go back to our original objective which was to represent fans – we still have two seats on the club board. Taking the broader perspective, being the major shareholder brings the major responsibility of financial management and raising funds to fill the gap between gate and commercial income and costs. The fans of York City have been magnificent at raising money, but closing that gap proved impossible for the volunteers of the trust to do. Ultimately, “private ownership” was the only way forward. We do wonder if majority fans’ ownership can ever be a realistic option.
Steve Beck, Chairman, York City Supporters’ Trust
One of the game’s American pioneers has died. David Wangerin wonders if the game Lamar Hunt leaves behind is that healthy
Soccer America referred to him as “the man who may have done more to advance soccer’s cause in the USA than any other individual”. It may be improbable, but could be true. Though Lamar Hunt, who died in December, is better known for starting the AFL professional gridiron league that ended up merging with the mighty NFL, his impact on America’s international brand of football was no less significant. Eulogists may have focused on his underwriting of the US’s first soccer-specific stadium and ownership of NASL and MLS franchises, but his most telling contribution to the game was probably his sheer loyalty.
There are no official feeder clubs in England, to the relief of Jon Spurling. But, as he reports, Arsenal and others are busy doing abroad what they can’t get away with at home
Feeder clubs are very much in vogue – and not always in the expected places. Blackpool’s Latvian director Valery Belokon is currently setting up a “farm club” in his homeland and Sheffield United, who already control Chinese side Chengdu Blades, are discussing a link-up with Sparta Rotterdam. Top clubs – Manchester United with Royal Antwerp, Arsenal with Beveren – led the way.