Impact of Brexit on Football

Football, considered Britain’s National Sport, will face significant consequences, especially when it comes to free movement of European players and their participation in English Football. Players from EU member states do not need work permits to play and reside in Britain. In case of a player with a non-EU passport, to qualify for a work permit, he should have played in 75% of his national side competitive games over two years.

This could significantly affect the way clubs access the European player market once Brexit kicks in for real, especially accessing cheaper players from countries like France, Spain and Portugal, as some clubs have done over the past few years. In May last year, the British Government tightened their work permit rules, essentially to restrict the number of international footballers playing their trade in Britain.

According to new rules, A player from a top 10 national only has to have played in 30% of their games in the two years prior to the date of application to be granted a work permit. A player from a nation ranked 11-20 must have played in 45% of international games. This percentage rises to 60% for the next 10 countries, then 75% for nations ranked 31-50. A vote to leave the EU would mean that players from the 27 countries still in the union would need to meet these criteria. The last season saw 432 players from the 28 EU member states registered to play in the Premier League.

This could also mean that the highly competitive or the so called the best league in the world would no longer be in a position to attract, if not, access some of the best European footballing talent. Brexit, other significant impact on British Football would see clubs being forced to look inwards, and develop home grown players which will eventually benefit English Football in the long run. From a business point of view, should these new rules kick in, clubs would demand an even heavier price for home grown talent, in addition to what is informally known as the England premium in football circles.

From club point of view, they’d be reluctant to sell some of their best home grown players, both domestically and abroad. However, in the event of that not happening, where Britain remains a part of the larger EEA Bloc, these rules could be relaxed or may not get implemented. Such is Football and particularly Britain’s clout.

Brexit And It's Importance

One of the major global events that are expected to have a big impact on markets is the Brexit. Here is all you need to know about the campaign and why it is important. ‘Brexit’ stands for ‘British Exit’ and it refers to the possibility of Britain withdrawing from the European Union (EU).

The campaign is centered on ending the central control by Brussels and giving Britain the freedom to manage its own affairs. The United Kingdom will hold the referendum on June 23 to decide whether Britain should exit the EU. A referendum is a vote in which everyone of voting age in a country is asked to give their opinion on a political proposal. The participants are asked to either approve or reject it, generally with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Whichever side receives more than half of all the votes cast, wins.

If Britain exits the EU, it could impact the economy. While the long term impact of this move has not been estimated, in the short run, it could trigger flight of capital from Britain, compound its current account deficit problems, weaken the pound and increase inflation. The flight of capital could lead to the dollar strengthening in the short term. The exit of Britain could embolden political parties in the opposition in other EU countries to ask for a similar vote to exit the EU. This could have a cascading impact on global financial markets.

If the global financial markets are affected by the Brexit, Indian markets are unlikely to be insulated. For Indian companies operating in Europe especially in UK, there could be a fair bit of uncertainty with the pound expected to weaken. The bigger problem will be a likely selloff in emerging markets, which India is part of, mainly on account of a strength in the dollar and aversion to riskier assets. Let’s hope for a beneficial result of referendum.

IPL 2016 Revenue Stream

The Indian Premier League has amassed about Rs. 2500 crore in overall revenue in its recently concluded ninth season, growing at a double digit pace over the year before. The figure includes revenue that TV and digital channels made from advertisements, as well as teams from sponsorship, ticket sales and merchandising, and BCCI from on-ground sponsorship.

The biggest chunk of revenue came from TVs as advertisers vied to grab ad spots when matches were telecast during the nearly two-month long tournament, which with its fast paced short format has become very popular in this cricket crazy nation. Official broadcaster Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) made just under Rs 1100 crore while the eight IPL franchises together earned Rs 200-230 crore from Sponsors.

The Board of control for Cricket in India generated Rs 220-250 crore from on-ground sponsorships, whereas Hotstar the digital rights holder got around Rs 40 crore. This season IPL made ticketing revenue of Rs 150-160 crore. India is a market where a lot of new brands are launching. This need to chase salience and eyeballs and IPL viewership has remained rock. IPL is celebrated like a festival that unites once a year and brings families, friends and colleagues together to enjoy the spirit of cricketainment.

IPL has developed many unique skill sets and generated lot of job opportunities that are making a difference to the larger sports and events industry in India. In terms of ticketing revenue, Royal Challengers Bangalore (Rs 25-26 crore), Mumbai Indians (Rs 24-26 crore) and Delhi Daredevils (Rs 22-24 crore) topped the charts, followed by Rising Pune Supergiants (Rs 18-20 crore), Kolkata Knight Riders (Rs 16-18 crore), Sunrisers Hyderabad (Rs 15-16 crore), Gujarat Lions (Rs 14-15 crore) and Kings XI Punjab (Rs 13-14 crore). The BCCI ended up with almost Rs 10 crore in its kitty from ticketing revenue.

IPL is progressively growing at a 10-12% rate year on year. It may not be galloping, but it is definitely not sinking either. It is going in the right direction. Another small revenue stream for the franchises was merchandising, which is estimated to have generated Rs 17-20 crore for the teams put together. While it is hard to put a definite number to it, there is substantial revenue to the broadcaster from the TV channels that are subscription based.

SPN may allocate this revenue, estimated to be anywhere from Rs 250 crore to Rs 400 crore to the three channels – Sony Max, Sony Six, and Sony ESPN, which air IPL. SPN payout to the BCCI of Rs 820 crore per year (the 10 year deal is worth Rs 8200 crore) as well as Franchises fee has not been considered for the estimates. A major chunk of this goes into a central revenue pool, from where it is distributed among the Franchises.

Ways to make Money from Blog

Over the past decade, blog monetization has gained momentum. What was once just a way of making money on the side has now become a full-fledged profession, with various revenue channels opening up. Here are few ways to make Money from Blog.

Google AdSense- Once you sign up for AdSense, you will be allotted ads to place on your blog. After this, it’s a waiting game to see if your account is approved. If it is, you can continue to receive ad placements and earn a steady, if not large, income from it. AdSense pays on the basis of clicks and views the ads receive. The two categories on offer are cost per click (CPC) and cost per 1,000 impressions (CPM), and the ads are allotted based on which category can earn more revenues for a particular blogger.

The CPC rate, for instance, can range from Rs 2 to Rs 50, depending on the niche, content, use of keywords and the traffic you receive. AdSense lets you choose where you want to place the ads on your blog, and pays you when you accrue a certain amount from clicks or views. It is a safe bet because you don’t have to screen the ads for quality or compatibility with your content. Earnings can range from a few hundred to several lakhs of rupees for different bloggers.

Affiliate Marketing- Using your blog to sell or promote another seller’s product can be one of the most profitable avenues, if you can successfully convert readers into buyers. One of the main advantages of this channel is that you will not have to deal with production, shipping and customer care. However, it also requires you to have an audience that trusts your judgment. It works best for niche audiences, especially if you have a good degree of authority in your domain, as well as great salesmanship.

You will earn a percentage of profits made by the seller from the traffic redirected by you blog. You can feature product reviews with relevant links, but too much plugging can annoy readers. It is also important to find a good offer that is credible and rewarding, and the best way to ensure this is to approach a network rather than individual brands or sellers.

Product Sales- You can market your own product by featuring photos and descriptions on your blog. You can either allow your audience to purchase the items directly through your blog or redirect them to an e-commerce portal that stocks them. You can also turn your blog into a membership site, where readers can subscribe to receive personalized services. For instance, if you specialize in handling fiancés, you can allow your audience to sign up to receive specific financial advice tailored to their needs.

Sponsorship- If your blog already attracts a significant amount of traffic, you could choose to enlist blog sponsors. Sponsorship includes selling ad space on your blog to merchants, which offers a more stable source of income. You can charge for hosting banner ads, button or links on either a one-time or a monthly basis. Ads can pay Rs 2000-15000 a month for a 2x2 space, depending on your niche and readership.

Sponsored content which blend seamlessly into your blog prevailing tone and theme can also add to your earnings. The best bet for bloggers who want to monetize is to reach out to companies or wait to be approached. Promotional posts for events or reviews can fetch you anywhere between Rs 3000 and Rs 20000, depending on the sponsor and your popularity. You can also be paid in merchandise or services, if you’re open to the idea.

Ways to find your Niche- If you are looking to start blogging; here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing your niche. Being passionate about your subject matter is crucial to creating good content. Choose a topic you love to write about it, to set yourself apart and to hold the interest of your audience. Being fond of a subject is not enough. You need to evaluate whether you have enough specialization to offer valuable content to your readers.

Like any business venture, blog monetization can only be successful if you offer something that is not easily available elsewhere. Find a gap in the content market and plug it. You must ensure that your blog is one of the top results offered by search engines when people start looking into your niche. Use SEO techniques to help your content show up in search results. For AdSense, use the Google Keyword Planner to find out which keywords rank higher, and try to choose a niche that corresponds with them. This will ultimately yield better revenues.