Arsenal have a new business venture. Al Needham has a go at Arsenal Monopoly
Monopoly is a board game that extols the virtues of avarice, greed and personal gain to the detriment of everyone else. “The game reflects the essence and spirit of Arsenal football club,” says a spokesman for the makers of Monopoly, who have launched a new version of the Sunday afternoon pursuit of driving other members of the family into bankruptcy with the help of a couple of dice and a Get Out Of Jail card.
Holland's version of the FA Cup is so underappreciated, many teams field their reserve squads to compete as well. Ernst Bouwes investigates
If the FA Cup is the best and most exciting cup competition in the world, the Amstel Cup, organised by the Dutch FA (KNVB), has to be a contender for the worst. Nowadays, the clubs playing in European competitions are given a bye as far as the last 16. This is only fair, according to the KNVB. “We need our best clubs to do well in Europe to gain points for us in the UEFA ranking,” says the KNVB’s Henk Kesler.
While many feel footballers earn too much these days, there are those who argue that salary capping players would be a bad idea
One of the biggest clubs in the country is in dire trouble; another high-flyer has slumped from the top of the league to the bottom, both as a result of spending too much on players’ wages. That may sound familiar, but in fact these two examples from Australian sport could hardly be more different from the nightmare scenarios painted for the future of football clubs in Britain and the rest of Europe.
The Robins have soared to new hights, but their rapid rise looks to be coming to an abrupt end. Cheltenham fan Mark Herron explains what has hampered his club's momentum
Does Cheltenham’s poor start suggest there is a significant gap in standards between the Second and Third Division?
A lot of people are saying the gap is greater than that between the Third and the Conference, but there are other reasons for our poor start, not least the loss of Steve Cotterill, whose part in our rise can never be overestimated. Also, it should be remembered that we went into the Third Division as Conference champions, whereas we got into the Second through the play-offs. Neither Plymouth nor Luton, the two best teams in last season’s Third, appear to be struggling.
Dear WSC
Have any other readers noticed that clubs and players seem to be under increasing pressure to pay money for successful outcomes to fixtures? On The Premiership, September 28, Jon Champion at Man City v Liverpool observed that “Michael Owen can’t buy a goal from open play at the moment”. A bit later, during Charlton v Man Utd, Clive Tyldesley told us: “Charlton can’t buy a home win this season.” I know football is a money-dominated sport, but this is ridiculous. However, what I really want to know is how does the system work? Is there a sliding scale of charges, so that Owen could afford to buy a goal against the generous Man City defence, but not against West Brom’s tight back four the previous week? Are “six-pointers” decided by bids in a sealed envelope, which may explain why Sunderland beat Villa, but Bolton v Southampton was a draw? And do teams expected to win easily not bother buying that week? This would certainly account for Chelsea’s home crash to West Ham. To take it further, do supermarket-style special offers and other assorted gimmickry apply? For instance, was Owen’s hat-trick part of a “buy two, get one free” arrangement? Did Charlton, who led at half-time but eventually lost, buy a past-its-sell-by-date home win for half price? And is there a loyalty card system for frequent win buying? Arsenal must be well sorted if there is. It would be bad enough if this was limited to the top flight, but it’s even happening in the Nationwide. Ronnie Moore, explaining my team Rotherham’s unexpectedly good start, cautioned that: “This time last season Grimsby were top of the league, but their manager couldn’t buy a win after that.” So, as a Miller, can I please urge whoever is in charge of our points purchasing department to keep up the good work and carrying on signing the cheques.
Steve Ducker, via email