How do you lead a football club to success? Different people will have different views on the subject. Some will talk about harmony within the squad, while others will insist that discipline and shrewd player management are the keys to success. What very few will dare to disavow, however, is the importance of a budget in the modern-day version of the sport. Any club with money at their disposal will be halfway to a successful season, and a generous financial allowance can help a side rise from relative obscurity in to the limelight once again.
The latest example of this theory is Parisian side Paris Saint-Germain. Although their recent history has not exactly been devoid of success, the club – like many of its French League rivals – had lost much of the expression it once had on the European stage. Constant debt problems and changes in ownership risked stripping the club of the top-rank status it had possessed in the not-so-distant past, and their international achievements were modest at best – the team were usually booking shuttles back from Charles de Gaulle airport to Paris a few short months into the European trophy season.
From the bottom to the top
All that changed when a Middle Eastern conglomerate took over the club. In similar fashion to sides such as England’s Manchester City, the Arabs immediately set about wiping away PSG’s debt and turning it from a debt-ridden liability to the richest club in France. The new-found cash flow was then used to lure in several prominent international stars, who promptly flew to France and made their way from Charles de Gaulle airport to Paris. A record-breaking €147m was spent to bring names such as Jérémy Menez (formerly of Roma), Thiago Motta (formerly of Inter), Ezequiel Lavezzi (formerly of Genoa) or veteran Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic (formerly of Milan) to the club.
Predictably, with such a vast array of stars at their disposal, it did not take long for Paris Saint-Germain to begin changing its fortunes in both the domestic and international competitions. For the past two seasons, the club has regained its stature as a force to be reckoned with in the European competitions, and has been drawing supporters both locally and internationally. Other teams now fear to making the journey from Charles de Gaulle airport to Paris, and the name ‘Paris Saint-Germain’ is once again on the lips of quality football lovers. Alongside Manchester City, the French club sits as a true testament to the power of a sound financial plan in the re-structuring of a football side.