Word: madrid
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...going to the team from which they're being bought) - are the prime beneficiaries of soccer's rampant inflation. Right now, some $400 million is chasing the signatures of just three players - Manchester United's free-scoring Portuguese midfielder Cristiano Ronaldo (a $120 million target of Spain's Real Madrid); Brazilian forward Robinho, for whom English club Chelsea are reportedly willing to pay Real $80 million; and A.C. Milan's brilliant Brazilian playmaker Kaká, sought by Chelsea for a whopping $160 million. But dozens of lesser trades have seen players change clubs for sums unthinkable a few short years...
...finished last season as champions of both England and Europe, it's a seller's market. The Manchester club have the Portuguese star on contract for four more years (after which, if he's not sold, he becomes a free agent) at a weekly wage of $240,000. Real Madrid wants to pay $120 million (of which Ronaldo would keep $12 million, the rest going into the coffers of Manchester United) to sign him - and to persuade the player to make the deal, it will raise his salary to $400,000 a week. And the mutinous grumbling of at least...
...pecking order struggle to hold on to their best players. Even such legendary clubs as Arsenal and Liverpool in England, both of which reached the final four of last season's élite European Champion's League, are unable to match the financial muscle of Chelsea or Real Madrid, lowering their prospects for success...
...Trafford ground, is the richest of the English clubs - Liverpool's Anfield stadium holds only 45,000, by comparison, which at ticket prices averaging around $80 means that United generates as much as $50 million more than Liverpool in annual ticket sales. High rollers like Real Madrid and A.C. Milan, not surprisingly, play in stadiums that hold upwards of 80,000 fans...
...Commercial income such as sponsorships and worldwide sales of replica shirts and other branded merchandise: a couple of years ago, Real Madrid surpassed the earnings of Manchester United, in part because the Spanish club earned 42% of its revenues from commercial income, compared with Manchester United's 27% from the same source. The drive to raise commercial revenues has prompted Real Madrid to seek celebrity stars such as David Beckham (and now Ronaldo), knowing that their presence on the team can sell hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of replica shirts...