บท 163: Foundations of Ambition
In European leagues, Serie A is thriving. Besides the financial power of the three northern giants, other clubs have also become wealthy due to sponsorship, broadcasting fees, and commercial revenue. Even relegation-threatened teams can attract national team stars to join them, which has made Aldrich quite stressed about the talent poaching from smaller teams.
This summer, the competition between two television networks for broadcasting rights has provided La Liga clubs with substantial funds to strengthen their squads. Consequently, many mid-to-upper-tier teams in La Liga have entered into an "arms race" to reinforce their line-ups. However, due to the league's distinct style of play, most teams tend to overlook players from the Premier League. The young talents emerging from England in recent years have also faced disappointing fates abroad, with examples such as Gascoigne and Rush.
Meanwhile, the Premier League has begun to slowly recover after weathering financial austerity due to a European competition ban, alongside the immense financial pressure of building or renovating stadiums. Each club's annual investment is growing, and successful commercial operations have started to yield benefits for the teams in the Premier League.
Even though Manchester United won the Premier League title last season, Ferguson was still dissatisfied with the squad. After missing out on both Ronaldo and Shearer, he found some solace in the signing of Solskjær and the backup goalkeeper van der Gouw. The backup keeper who had been brought in last season was transferred to Sunderland during the winter break. Following this, Manchester United acquired the remarkable Czech national player Poborsky. The versatile Norwegian international Johansson also arrived at Old Trafford. Finally, Manchester United secured the signing of little Cruyff, who was originally included in the deal with Ronaldo in Barcelona. Yet, with a strong sense of self-esteem, he declined to be used as an add-on in the transaction and chose instead to don the Red Devils' jersey.
Last summer was a chaotic time for Arsenal, with whispers spreading across London that manager Rioch could face the axe. The head coach Arsène Wenger was not entirely familiar with the gossip surrounding Fleet Street. Nevertheless, Arsenal made a major signing, bringing in Pires and Vieira. Pires was looked upon as a symbol of hope for the club's revival, while Vieira, who was not a starting player at Millwall, came with expectations but without established credentials.
Liverpool brought in multiple players of considerable strength, spending over ten million pounds, while Chelsea, under Bates's management, targeted aging stars. Veteran Vialli, who led Juventus to European glory last season, joined Chelsea for ten million dollars, arriving at Stamford Bridge.
In contrast to other Premier League teams that were recruiting players, some were engaging in a massive expansion of their roster.
Millwall, however, remained silent in the transfer market, focusing solely on selling players.
The departures of Vieira, Pires, Solskjær, and Thuram brought nearly thirty million pounds to Millwall. After considering the past two years of purchases and wage expenses, Millwall netted over twenty million pounds!
This has led some to praise young manager Aldrich for being a shrewd businessman, but it has also drawn criticism from others, accusing Millwall of lacking ambition.
Having sold two key players and two important substitutes, it's clear that Millwall's strength may have diminished rather than grown. In the upcoming season, they will face tough competition from stronger teams like Manchester United, Newcastle United, Liverpool, and Arsenal. Undoubtedly, their approach in the transfer market has indicated that they are falling behind.
Aldrich has been incredibly busy, too busy to spare a moment.
Tomorrow marks the day when players return for training, yet Aldrich was engaged in a private conversation in a private room at the Ritz Hotel. Inside the room sat four individuals, all dressed in suits. Beside Aldrich was the club's CEO, Adam, while across from them were the FA's Weissman and CEO Kelly.
As dinner nears its end, Aldrich gets straight to the point: "Mr. Weissman, renting Wembley wasn't a hasty decision; rather, it's a request I've put a lot of thought into before approaching the FA."
Weissman and Kelly remain expressionless, but Mr. Weissman slightly nods, indicating Aldrich to continue.
"First of all, Millwall's stadium is too small, with a capacity of less than twenty thousand. As we prepare to compete in the European Winners' Cup next season, I'm unsure if UEFA will approve our ground, but that's not the focus. I believe Millwall represents English football on the European stage, which raises an issue of image. Furthermore, if Millwall secures the Premier League title this coming season, our stadium will definitely fail UEFA's inspection for Champions League hosting. At that point, I will have to come to you with the same request."
Last season, Millwall claimed two titles and a runner-up finish, qualifying for Europe. In this era, the three major cups are ranked by influence: Champions League first, followed by the European Winners' Cup, and lastly the UEFA Cup.
The Champions League is the platform for each nation's champions, the European Winners' Cup is for the champions of domestic cup competitions, while the UEFA Cup features teams with strength, but without as many title holders, lending a more collaborative atmosphere.
As such, Millwall will be fighting on three fronts in the new season, competing for trophies in four important tournaments. Although Aldrich does not particularly value the Winners' Cup, his sole aim for the new season is the Premier League title!
Yet he was thinking further ahead. With the Champions League set to expand, if Millwall were to compete in the tournament two seasons from now, it was likely that they would not be able to host matches at The Den due to capacity issues. UEFA would undoubtedly not allow the games to be played there.
The Champions League is UEFA's flagship event; without it, UEFA would virtually be irrelevant. Thus, the bar for entry is set high, requiring not only a team's strength but also the infrastructure of the club.
Aldrich needs to plan ahead. Millwall cannot build a high-spec stadium within a year, so if they were to win the Premier League next season, they would need to rent another stadium to host Champions League matches or face disqualification.
Suddenly recalling around the year 2000, when Arsenal rented Wembley Stadium as their home ground for the Champions League, Aldrich made a preemptive move by securing a rental agreement this season, which would remain in effect until the new stadium was opened.
The benefits of an early rental are clear: players will become familiar with Wembley sooner, minimizing any disadvantages of lacking home-field advantage.
Additionally, Wembley's larger capacity means greater ticket revenue.
This will also aid Millwall's promotion efforts and enhance their visibility.
Whispering together for a moment, Weissman and Kelly then turned to Weissman, who sighed and said, "Aldrich, I genuinely want to help you, but your plan isn't a long-term solution. Wembley Stadium cannot be rented to you indefinitely. Millwall has been performing well this season, and I've heard that the new stadium project was put on hold after the Hall family took over, which was then converted into a youth training facility. Ultimately, you need to have your own substantial stadium."
Aldrich nodded in strong agreement, but Adam, who was sitting next to him, felt a chill of fear; if Millwall actually went ahead and invested in a new stadium, it would clearly indicate his incompetence as CEO!
The new stadium would merely have a capacity of twenty-five thousand, and even if built, it would not meet UEFA's Champions League standards, leading to questions about whether it could be expanded. If that money were wasted, Adam would definitely resign and become a laughingstock in the industry.
Aldrich handed Weissman a document and stated, "This is the plan for our new stadium, with an investment budget ranging from £100 million to £150 million. My elder brother is helping me negotiate, and Millwall will initially invest £20 million, with the remaining funds being raised through loans. We plan to finalize the land by the end of this year and start construction, expecting to complete it within five years."
Suddenly pushing for over one hundred million pounds in funding to build a stadium may even be beyond the Hall family's liquidity, given that Millwall itself lacks significant value, but the players they own are worth a lot!
A year or two ago, it was impossible for Millwall to secure a loan, especially one exceeding £100 million; even if Barnett stepped in, it would only be feasible if he put his company up as collateral, as all the major banks would simply refuse.
However, this summer was different. Millwall's entire squad is now valued at over fifty million pounds. With Barnett representing them, Millwall can now invest that initial twenty million pounds, and the banks are more willing to sign agreements. As funding is released based on progress, but if Millwall encounters difficulties during the project and cannot repay the loan, subsequent funding will be halted, and Aldrich will lose everything, facing bankruptcy.
This decision is a gamble for Aldrich—he has everything at stake.
Building a new stadium is essential, and doing it earlier means lower costs and quicker results.
If they wait until the Premier League fully embraces a capital-driven era, the financial pressure of building a stadium could leave Millwall with no chance to recover.
Where will the income come from?
Aside from the club exploring commercial development, they will have to sell players.
This year, player sales have generated nearly thirty million, with twenty million allocated to the early stages of stadium construction.
Stam is almost certain to leave next summer; as long as he doesn't miss a transfer due to injury, Millwall's income can start to repay loans next summer. Coupled with the ever-increasing TV revenues from the Premier League, Millwall aims to qualify for the Champions League each year to secure new benefits. All of this must be founded on the team's performance, so Aldrich is under immense pressure. However, it is this very pressure that fuels his motivation and passion for the long road ahead.
Weissman and Kelly discussed for some time longer, their final argument centered around financial concerns.
The FA, a decaying institution, is rife with political struggle, and Kelly, in his position as CEO, often finds himself in the crosshairs of public scrutiny. Ever since the Premier League broke away from FA control, the FA's debt has only skyrocketed. Kelly's role as CEO of the FA is fundamentally to generate revenue.
In this regard, Aldrich doesn't want to engage in petty disputes, knowing that for a team like Millwall, renting Wembley is already a tremendous advantage, both financially and in terms of image.
Eventually, both sides reached an agreement. Aside from the maintenance fees for each match at Wembley that Millwall would need to cover, the FA would receive 15% of the ticket revenue as rent for Millwall.
Although 15% may not sound like much, Wembley can host over 60,000 spectators. Even if only 30,000 Millwall fans attend, the ticket prices for European matches can be significantly higher than domestic league or cup games. Calculating it in terms of pounds, the FA could expect a minimum of £100,000 in revenue for every match. Over the course of the season, if Millwall progresses further, the FA's total income could easily approach a million pounds—a substantial figure for the FA.
While Weissman and Aldrich reached a verbal agreement, Weissman still needed to check with the FA internally for a consensus. Before the upcoming Community Shield match starts in the new season, he promised to provide Aldrich with a definitive answer.
Aldrich smiled, shaking hands with Weissman and Kelly before stepping out with Adam.
Tomorrow, the team will start training, and Millwall's transfer window has officially closed.
The club secured numerous new sponsorship contracts over the summer, and with the nine million pounds brought in from transfer dealings entering the club's accounts, Millwall's finances for the 96–97 season are at least safe.
Now, Aldrich's headache is how to prepare a team that has hardly rested over the summer for the new season.
**Millwall 96-97 Season First Team Roster:**
**Goalkeepers:** Butt, Keller, Wright.
**Defenders:** Schneider, Mills, Materazzi, Richards, Stam, Southgate, Elgrou, Ferdinand, Cappadivilla, Zambrotta, Neil (out for a year due to injury; returned in March 97, with no appearances that season).
**Midfielders:** Makélélé, Gattuso, Pirlo, Lampard, Nedvěd, Ballack.
**Forwards:** Larsson, Trezeguet, Shevchenko, Phillips, Van Nistelrooy, Gronkjaer, Tony.
**Total:** 25 players.
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