Ryan O'Hanlon examines the Premier League after Manchester City were found guilty of 114 financial violations that added up to an illegal extra spend of $1 billion. The findings have left fans and observers questioning whether the league was ever truly fair, and how the past decade should be judged. City have won six of the past nine titles and sit top of the table this season, yet a punishment is widely expected.
O'Hanlon argues the illusion of fairness was already gone before Abu Dhabi United Group bought City. Last season Arsenal won the league with an estimated payroll of about €219.3 million, while Brentford had the smallest at €62.9 million. Outside Leicester City's 2015-16 run, the champion is almost always one of the league's richest clubs.
To look at the question differently, O'Hanlon ranks clubs by efficiency. He examined the last 10 full seasons, chose the 20 teams with the most matches, and combined average annual wage data from FBref with net transfer spending from Transfermarkt. Each club's total was divided by the points it won, with a win worth three and a draw worth two, giving millions of euros spent per point.
The results show two distinct tiers: clubs spending roughly €60 to €160 million, and those spending above €200 million. Brentford, with the lowest total spend, rank ninth for points won. Their roughly 51 points per season is about 24% above what their spending would predict, which O'Hanlon attributes to their data-driven, "Moneyball" approach.
Source: ESPN Soccer · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing