The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

£5.1 billion. It's unimaginable isn't it?

There must be many of you who follow a Premier League team as well. Are you happy that nowhere enough of that money will filter down to grassroots in general and AFC Rushden & Diamonds in particular.

For more there is a certain sweet irony in this deal being announced when pitches are at their most fragile and there are youth teams that have yet to play a match in 2015.

The premier League has done a great job, you don't deny that. At Little Diamonds I have kids turn up in their Chelsea, Man Utd, Liverpool even Villa and Wolves kits, more money outside of the TV deal.

We are getting to the point where the Premier League clubs won't actually need paying supporters through the turnstile.

What is more worrying though is that if not enough of this money gets filtered through then we will see an end to grassroots football because there is nowhere to play. No pitch, no players, no England team.

Just think on this for a second. With that deal I could run Little Diamonds for 2 and a half million years. More realistically just 0/01% of that would fund over 100 3g pitches. Put a 3g in a Secondary School and you have a Community Facility.

The FA, Sky and the Premier League must be pressured into making sure that enough of this money gets filtered down to protecting Grassroots. OUR game.

Please take 30 seconds to sign this.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/66835

It's a massive amount of course, but the demand is there from domestic and worldwide audiences. The only ones to blame for the lack of money in grassroots football is the FA (perhaps the government but there are other sports to look after as well). The only way to see a proper filter down would be for the FA to somehow retake control of the professional leagues and I don't see how that could happen. It's certainly not Sky or the PL's job to invest in grassroots, they don't really need the grassroots for their products. I'm meh about it.

When we do get a ground, we are sure to apply for grants from among others the Football Foundation, funded by the TV money.

Would you be meh if having a decent clubhouse was thwarted by there not being enough money in the Football Foundation coffers?

It would be a shame, no doubt, but I would still feel the same. Lower league football expects handouts to cover the fact that they can't run themselves properly. I don't really think the one league that is a massive success should have to pay for their problems. If you want more money in the Football Foundation pot then pressure should be put on the Government and FA to fund it, not the Premier League and Sky IMO. The Premier League's job is to maximise profit for their clubs, Scudamore said today that they aren't a charity and TBH I agree.

No one's said they are a charity, however they do have a moral and some would say altruistic reason to support grassroots football. If there is no grassroots football then where are the next generation of players going to come from? Not from Academies as they get their players from Grassroots.

There's a difference between Lower League and grassroots in that grassroots clubs do run themselves well, through parents happy to pay membership fees to local businesses chipping in for a new kit.

SouthRushdenJFC wrote:No one's said they are a charity, however they do have a moral and some would say altruistic reason to support grassroots football. If there is no grassroots football then where are the next generation of players going to come from? Not from Academies as they get their players from Grassroots.

There's a difference between Lower League and grassroots in that grassroots clubs do run themselves well, through parents happy to pay membership fees to local businesses chipping in for a new kit.

Abroad, like they have done in the last twenty years or so. As has been shown on the international stage, these players are better than the British ones that are being produced. The Premier League doesn't really need the grassroots IMO.

Bob's Bitch wrote:Abroad, like they have done in the last twenty years or so. As has been shown on the international stage, these players are better than the British ones that are being produced. The Premier League doesn't really need the grassroots IMO.

And how are we ever going to start producing players good enough to play at the very top level without making sure youth players get the very best start to their footballing lives as they can? Compare the Irchester Rec to any of the 3G pitches used by football clubs on the continent - how can we expect young players to learn how to control the ball like Messi or Ozil when the pitches they have to learn on look like battlefields for half the season?

20th gets £99 Million when they go down.

Best quote of the day was the one from Lord Sugar when he likened the recent television deal for Premiership football to prune juice. 'In one end and out the other'.

For money to filter down we need to bring back the three foreigner rule per team. It would also bring a more level field to the premiershit. Buying players lower down the pyramid has a knock on effect that goes further down until it reaches our level.