An Introduction about Football and its Reach
Football is a game that is played all across the globe; millions of fans watch the game each day and enjoy the experience of watching it. Soccer is more than a game; the game has got everything in it which a person can possibly expect. Ecstasy, emotion, outburst you name it the game has got it. There are so many legends of the game, Ronaldinho, Maradona, Pele, Romario, Ronaldo just to name a few. These players have become household names and this just goes to show the popularity of the game and its global reach. There is no denying that the game has a global reach. It reaches every part of the world that one can possibly imagine. Be it Africa, America or for that matter any other continent.
“In its broadest sense, corporate social responsibility represents a concern with the needs and goals of society, which goes beyond the merely economic. Insofar as the business system as it exists today can only survive in an effectively functioning free society, the corporate social responsibility movement represents a broad concern with the business’s role in supporting and improving that social order” (Eells, 1974).”
The world cup is the most eagerly awaited tournament of all; it brings a lot of joy to all the spectators. In addition to the world cup, there are so many other tournaments that are conducted all through the year, for instance, the EPL, the Spanish League, the Italian Serie A, and other club-level tournaments. The UEFA Champions League is probably the most difficult to win at the club level. UEFA is the governing body of European Football; it stands for Union of European Football Association. This paper will throw light upon the contribution of Sir Matt Busby in transforming Manchester United into the most popular football club in the world.
Literature Review
Old Trafford is referred to as “The Theater of Dreams” and many individuals are largely responsible for the success of this football club. Some of the most important people are Alex Fergusion, Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best who died recently, and others. These are all legendary names but when one thinks of these names one name misses out and that name is of Sir Matt Busby who single-handedly build the whole Manchester United team after the Munich tragedy in which the 7 most important players of the team lost their lives. The contribution of Sir Matt Busby will be highlighted in the paper. How he rebuilt the whole team of Manchester United and what steps he took in his career that made him a legendary name will also be analyzed in the paper. There is a huge statue of Sir Matt Busby outside Old Trafford, he is holding a football in his hands and this goes to show the respect that the club shows toward the people who have sacrificed a lot to make what Manchester United is today. It takes a lot to become the most popular world in the club and the likes of Sir Matt Busby have toiled hard to take Manchester United to a different level altogether. No club in the world is as popular as Manchester United and this is all thanks to Sir Matt Busby, he had that never-say-die attitude that kept the club going even after the catastrophe in Munich. His contribution will be the highlight of this paper. The later part of the paper will focus on the present Manchester United to indicate the position that the club is in these days, this will help in recognizing the efforts put in by Sir Matt Busby.
Analysis and Discussions
May 1909 saw the birth of a real legend who became a professional footballer at the age of 17; he was a prodigy and who would have thought back then that this legend would shape the future of the most popular football club in the world Manchester United. “With his father and uncles being killed in World War One, he had a humble upbringing but he was always obsessed with football. This obsession was to lead him to become one of the most successful football managers ever to grace the sport. Despite being a legend in Manchester United’s history, with a statue in his honor standing at Old Trafford, Busby’s playing career started at United’s fierce local rivals, Manchester City, in 1929. (Sir Matt Busby).
In 1934 Sir Matt Busby won the FA Cup with Manchester City and this was a very good moment in his life. Sir Matt Busby soon joined Liverpool also known as the Kop; he joined Liverpool in the year 1936. He found his feet in Liverpool and played exceptionally well, this was recognized by the club and he soon took over the captaincy of Liverpool. The Second World War that started in the year 1939 and lasted till 1945 curtailed the illustrious playing career of Sir Matt Busby. Many of his teammates were also affected by the Second World War and football came to a standstill because of the War.
Post War and Sir Matt Busby
By the time the War ended, Sir Matt Busby was already 36 years old, and playing at that age was very difficult back then. These days the like of Maldini and others are still going strong because of the facilities available at their disposal but back then there were very few facilities available at the disposal of the players and the same curtailed the illustrious playing career of Sir Matt Busby. “At 36, he no longer saw a future as a player but still had a keen interest in the sport. Liverpool offered him a job on their coaching staff but he turned down this opportunity since he wanted to be more involved with hands-on coaching of the first team. This led to him accepting the job of Manchester United manager in 1946.” (The Post-War Era).
Manchester United was hit very hard because of the Second World War and the club failed to win any trophies. The last trophy that the club won was way back in 1911, the pressure of the fans was become increasingly difficult to take and the club was desperate for success. Busby strongly believed in winning and he considered exciting the fans as important as winning the football games and the same made him instantly successful when he took over as the manager of Manchester United. Manchester United finished second in the first season of Sir Matt Busby; he turned around the fortune of the club within no time. There was more success to follow shortly, Manchester United won the FA Cup in the year 1948 and this was just the beginning of something unprecedented. In the year 1952 Manchester United won the English League as it was called back then, it is known as the English Premier League these days. His revival of the club turned many ahead and made him an instant hit among the fans of Manchester United spread all across the globe.
The free-flowing and free-scoring football of Manchester United increased their fan base all across the globe and made Sir Matt Busby a household name. There were many problems and the success was short-lived, this was major because most of the players in the team were on the wrong side of their 30s and Sir Matt Busby was very worried about this. The most important players like John Carey were aging and this was a very big problem that Sir Matt Busby had to deal with.
The Busby Babes
Many people who had been following the success of Manchester United and Sir Matt Busby expected him to make several expensive signings to replace the aging players in the team. His policy of replacing the older players with youngsters caught the eye of many people and most of them disapproved of this but despite their stern protest he chose to recruit younger players to the team to replace the older players. He brought in players like Duncan Edwards, who set a record to be the youngest player to make a senior debut for England at the tender age of 18. He singles handedly formed a team of youngsters and this team was known as the “Busby Babes”. “They were an instant success and their youthful flair made football fashionable. The Busby Babes won the league in 1956 and 1957 and were unlucky to lose the 1957 FA Cup Final to Aston Villa. The team started the 1958 season confident of success in the league, the FA Cup, and the European Cup. United was the first English team to enter the European Cup and despite condemnation from the Football authorities, Busby viewed participation in Europe as imperative to the club’s future success.” (The Busby Babes).
The Tragic Plane Crash
Manchester United lost 8 of their most important players in a plane crash under the reign of Sir Matt Busby. The plane crash had severe repercussions on the club, Sir Matt Busby himself escaped death but he was severely bruised. The other players who survived were so severely injured that they would not be able to play professional football again. The fans were traumatized by this unfortunate event and the club was weakened by the death of several superstars. Duncan Edwards was among many young players who died in Munich. Sir Matt Busby’s never say die attitude brought him back stronger than ever, he returned to take over as the boss of Manchester United after spending two months in the hospital. He made a promise to all those who died, he promised to win the European Cup for all those who had lost their lives in the Munich Tragedy. He made a new team; players who survived the crash were the main players who helped in the formation of a new team. The likes of Sir Bobby Charlton, Bill Foulkes and others were quick to respond and contribute towards the formation of a new team. “1963 brought FA Cup success to United, as they beat Leicester in the final. He also discovered a new talent in the form of George Best, in 1964. Busby’s new team, who had rediscovered the flair and excitement of the Busby Babes, won the league in 1965 and 1967. (European Success).
European Success still eluded Sir Matt Busby but all this changed in the year 1968 when United won the European Cup beating Benfica from Portugal 4 goals to 1. The whole of England went into a frenzy and everyone recognized how important this victory was for football in England. Sir Matt Busby had achieved his dream and he retired the following year after having proved his mettle. He was given a knighthood in the year 1972 and he also became the director of Manchester United and held other prestigious posts that Manchester United offered him. 20 January 1994 was a very sad day because this legend died of cancer on this day. He was buried in the place where he had commanded so much respect, Manchester. He was fortunate to witness the success of the club under Sir Alex Fergusion, but he was not fortunate enough to witness their treble-winning streak in the year 1999. This goes to show how he single-handedly transformed United into a force to reckon with.
Financial Position of Manchester United all Thanks to Sir Matt Busby
The red devils better known as Manchester United is the richest football club among all the football clubs in the world. “Although Real Madrid laid claim to the honor for a couple of years, United officials believe their gross revenue of £245million in the year to June 2007 exceeds that of the Spanish giants by just 12 Euros if average conversion rates during the 12 months in question are used.” (Manchester United). The cub went into private hands and the ticket prices were increased to earn more profit. Malcolm Glazer bought Manchester United and increased the ticket price, Old Trafford is the home ground of Manchester United and it is one of the largest football stadiums in the world. The stadium can accommodate more than 90000 people. There was a very strong protest from the supporters when Glazer took over United by buying the majority of shares in the Market. Supporters thought that the interest of the supporters will be ignored by Glazer and the only motive he will have is to make as much money as possible but this has been proven wrong by Glazer. The club has tasted success time and again and the Glazer family does not interfere in the functioning of the club, Sir Alex Ferguson has full authority to buy or sell any player he likes to. He has been the longest-serving manager and Glazer realizes this fact and appreciates it.
There are roughly about 333 Million United fans all across the globe and the majority of them are based in Asian countries like Japan, Korea, etc. The merchandise that the club sells is a good way to make a profit and the highest sales are recorded in Asian countries. Manchester United has some of the best players any team can think of having, Ronaldo is the ace of Manchester United; he recently won the FIFA World player of the year award. His Jersey sells like hotcakes and Manchester United profits from the same. “It is little wonder the Old Trafford outfit have been able to post stunning profits of £59.6million for the 12 months to June 2007, a massive 93% rise on the previous year.” (Manchester United).
The English Premier League is the most widely watched by supporters all across the globe. Manchester United competes in the English Premier League and they have been winning the league for the past 2 seasons and are well on track to make a hat trick of Leagues. The TV rights fetch the club huge money, it is the most widely watched league and there is no denying that, considering the same the world’s richest club is expected to get richer with each passing day.
“Only eight Premier League clubs recorded an operating profit in 2006-07; total debt for all 20 clubs was up 19 percent to more than £2.4billion, although £1.25billion of that figure is accounted for by Manchester United and Chelsea, and interest charges for Premier League credit were £144m in the year.” (Boom and Bust Years).
The recent recession has knocked the stuffing out of the major football clubs in almost all the leagues. Manchester United are no exceptions, major clubs like Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool are all believed to be in debt and the recent recession has put these clubs in further trouble. Some of the sponsors of big clubs like Newcastle have become bankrupt. Northern rock a very popular bank was the sponsor of Newcastle but the bank has been adversely affected by the recession. Even AIG the sponsor of Manchester United is trying hard to consolidate its position in the market of insurance. All these factors suggest that the future does not look bright for Manchester United financially but another viewpoint suggests that the recession will be over shortly and the club will only grow with each passing day. What happens in the future can’t be exactly predicted by anyone, we can only speculate over the same. “Manchester United looked unbeatable on the pitch this past season and it seems like they could go on winning forever, but lots of clubs have been in this position. Most recently we can look to the fall of AC Milan, Barcelona, and Real Madrid. All three clubs enjoyed major success over a two-to-five year period before falling from grace quite abruptly.” (Boom and Bust Years).
The performance of United has been consistent over the past few years and the same has helped the club in earning more money. “Real Madrid increased revenue by €15m to take their total to €366m. Manchester United’s performances on the pitch in 2007-08 resulted in a £45m (21%) increase to £257m. Third-placed Barcelona grew its revenue by €19m (6%) to €309m.” (Manchester United’s Expense).
Football is already a global sport and the popularity of the sport is expected to pick up within the next 5 years and from that perspective, Manchester United will only get richer. The global reach of the sport will ensure lucrative TV rights for the club, allowing them to make good money and in addition to this, the merchandise will become more popular among the fans. The club will also make huge profits from selling the club merchandise. Manchester United is well on course for winning their third successive English Premier League title this season; this will also ensure more profit to the club. Barclays is the sponsor of the English Premier League and the winner gets a huge compensation. Barclays is a bank based out of Britain. Hence to conclude it is very fair to say that the future looks very promising for the club both financially and from the perspective of silverware.
Conclusion
The paper threw light upon the contribution of Sir Matt Busby, enough evidence has been provided in the paper to show that Sir Matt Busby acted like a catalyst in transforming Manchester United. He singles handedly re-build the team after the Munich tragedy, so many legends came to light under his reign. The likes of Bobby Charlton, George Best, etc became fan favorites because of Sir Matt Busby, he gave youngsters a chance to show their talent and this was why these players became popular among the fans. The paper also threw light upon the financial position of Manchester United and this was only to show that the club has come a long way and the credit for the same goes to Sir Matt Busby. Hence it is very fair to say that Sir Matt Busby acted like a catalyst in transforming the fortune of Manchester United.
References
Boom and Bust Years. In SPORTINGO.
European Success. In Football Managers.
Eells, R., & Walton, C. 1974. Conceptual foundations of business (3rd ed.). Burr Ridge, IL: Irwin.
Manchester United’s expense. In Guardian.
Manchester United. In Manchester Evening News. Web.
Sir Matt Busby. In Football Managers.
The Post-War Era. In Football Managers.
The Busby Babes. In Football Managers.