105x68 Power

Episode 7 - Public Companies & Listed Clubs

Chapter 1 – Ownership Models & Ultimate Power Core question:Who ultimately holds power in a football club, and why does that override everything else? Episode 7 - Public Companies & Listed Clubs What really happens when a football club goes public? In this episode, we explore public companies and listed football clubs, where ownership is fragmented, shares are traded on stock markets, and power appears open, transparent, and democratic. But is it? We break down what a listed club actually is, why clubs choose to go public, and how market logic reshapes governance without ever truly governing football. From the myth of shareholder democracy to the reality of majority control, from transparency obligations to the hidden costs of disclosure, we examine how markets finance clubs without taking responsibility for sporting outcomes. This is an episode about financialisation without accountability, about disclosure replacing decision-making, and about the structural tension between football’s need for speed, secrecy, and intuition—and the market’s demand for clarity, process, and explanation. A deep dive into power that looks public, but rarely is. And a closing question that cuts to the core: Can elite football still compete at football speed when it has to operate at market speed?

Episode 6 - Corporate Groups and Holding Structures

Chapter 1 – Ownership Models & Ultimate Power Core question:Who ultimately holds power in a football club, and why does that override everything else? Episode 6 - Corporate Groups and Holding Structures In this episode we unpack corporate groups and holding structures in modern football, where the club is no longer the top of its own pyramid. We explore how “vertical control” works, why a holding doesn’t need multiple football clubs to behave like one, and how group-level boards, budgets, and risk tolerance quietly reshape sporting decisions. A deep look at power as architecture: stability and professionalisation on one side, loss of autonomy and identity tension on the other, ending with one question: can a club keep its meaning when authority sits above it?

Episode 5 - One-Man Ownership: Speed, Risk, Dependency

Chapter 1 – Ownership Models & Ultimate Power Core question:Who ultimately holds power in a football club, and why does that override everything else? Episode 5 - One-Man Ownership: Speed, Risk, Dependency When one person holds all the power, football clubs can move faster than any institution. This episode explores how one-man ownership delivers speed and risk tolerance, but also builds deep dependency and structural vulnerability. A neutral, system-level look at why football keeps returning to this model despite its costs.

Episode 4 - Why Own a Club? (Part 3)

Chapter 1 – Ownership Models & Ultimate Power Core question: Who ultimately holds power in a football club, and why does that override everything else? Episode 4 - Why Own a Club? (Part 3) Power, Identity, and Non-Financial Returns In the final episode of the series, we focus on the structural consequences of non-financial ownership motivations. We explore how football clubs can function as proxy power spaces within families and organizations, why opportunity allocation and authority placement behave differently in football than in other industries, and how the sport tolerates control without technical competence. We then consolidate all previous insights into a clear framework of non-financial returns: visibility, legitimacy, access, influence, identity control, and historical imprint. The episode closes by reframing the ownership question itself and setting up the next chapter of the podcast: what happens when all this power is concentrated in one individual.

Episode 3 - Why Own a Club? (Part 2)

Chapter 1 – Ownership Models & Ultimate Power Core question: Who ultimately holds power in a football club, and why does that override everything else? Episode 3 - Why Own a Club? (Part 2) Power, Identity, and Non-Financial Returns In the second part of this series, we expand the lens from social positioning to political, strategic, and entertainment dynamics. We look at how football ownership generates political capital without formal authority, how clubs operate as soft-power and geopolitical tools, and why concepts like sportwashing are structurally effective rather than accidental. We then shift to football as show business, comparing clubs to entertainment IP, media platforms, motorsport assets, and U.S. franchise sports, where scarcity and emotional demand drive long-term value. This episode explains why football attracts global capital despite weak financial logic, and how clubs become strategic assets rather than commercial ones.