Does the EPL need a salary cap?

by JoshuaR on Aug 23, 2010 4:33 PM BST

In his column (seen here) Grant Wahl argues that the 4 6-0 scorelines so far in the EPL suggest a lack of competitive balance that is hurting the EPL. He goes on to say that sooner or later, the EPL will need to introduce some sort of salary cap (not as stringent as some American leagues).

What do you think of this? I have some reservations about this and how it will be implemented. How can you take a team that was built without a salary cap and shove it under a cap without decimating each team at the top?

I would also like to know how this would reveberate through the lower leagues. I am not sure that the lower divisions could handle the same salary cap as premier teams. This could lead to the same teams bouncing back and forth between promotion and relegation.

Finally, and the biggest strike against this, is that a salary cap could be the death of the EPL if other leagues do not adapt a similar cap. The biggest draw for stars is the chance to play Champions League football. Do you think they would jeopardize this and sign as the star for a weak team in the EPL when they could make more money and be guaranteed Champions League with Real Madrid, Inter Milan, etc?

If a salary cap is implemented in England but not other countries, I think we will see a mass exodus of stars, weakening the league. Although it hurts the competitive balance at times, I think that these scorelines are an early abberation and nothing to worry about. As Wahl says, this has happened only 20 other times so it looks like more of a early season deviation related to teams finding their identity, form and chemistry rather than a long term problem. I think that the lack of a salary cap is fine for the EPL and one should not be implemented.

Thoughts?

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A salary cap would pretty much kill the league IMO

If teams can no longer buy the best talent, they are going to lose TV moneys worldwide as viewership drops. As an american fan, my only real attraction to the premier league is that it’s the best in the world. If I want to watch lesser talent play, frankly I’m going to watch MLS. The only way to make a salary cap situation work is if it was applied by UEFA, and in that instance I think a league outside of Europe would just blow up.

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by Stephen Schmidt on Aug 23, 2010 5:27 PM BST reply actions

I tend to agree

A cap for the EPL would have to come from UEFA, to ensure that Champions League/UEFA cup is on a level field. That said, this might allow a different league without a cap to attract all the talent. I just don’t see it happening, nor do I think it should happen.

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by JoshuaR on Aug 23, 2010 6:30 PM BST up reply actions

Re the lower leagues, I believe there is a cap to some degree, in terms of being able to spend a maximum percentage of revenue, but not a cap itself.

I cannot see a cap being brought in because of the competitive leagues around Europe. Whereas the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL don’t have rival leagues to tempt players away, there is Serie A, La Liga, Bundesliga etc. You would have to have all leagues within UEFA’s jurisdiction signing up – a tough ask to say the least.

by Danny Pugsley on Aug 24, 2010 8:58 PM BST reply actions

I dont think the EPL needs a salary cap but a luxury tax would be good kind of like baseball has. Where the rich teams help the poor. They would just have too make sure the teams spend the money on the team.

by Fran Galasso on Sep 20, 2010 9:56 PM BST reply actions