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English Barclays Premier League Internal and External

Analysis
By Reece Showalter
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History
The English Premier League or Premiership was established in the 1980s under the name of The
Football League First Division due to a decline in sports activity and participation in England. With the
inability to participate in European competition, the league slowly struggled to compete with other
European powerhouses because of an incident and then banishment at the 1985 European Cup. During
the 1990s, the English Men's National Soccer Team competed in the FIFA (Fédération Internationale de
Football Association) World Cup and successfully made it to the semi-finals and lost in a penalty
shootout to Germany, which eventually leads to the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations)
lifting the ban and allowing The Football League Division First to compete in European play.1

With a successful two-year increase in participation, the league decided to change its name to the FA
Premier League officially. Throughout the next couple of years, and the thriving promotion and
regulation system, the league, had 40 different teams from around the nation participate in the FA
Premier League. In 2007, the league earned its official sponsor, Barclays Bank, and thus the name
Barclays Premier League was born.

Internal Assessment Overview

The Premier League is a private corporation structured by its 20 member teams that hold interest and are
shareholders in the corporation. Each team has one vote for rule changes, decisions, and the
administration's election. The FA (Football Association) also owns 1% of the shares in the premier
league; this share is called the "Special Share" this gives the FA the ability to vote on certain matters
relating to the league. The FA oversees all UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) club
licensing regulations and rule implementations, while the Premier League oversees club ownership,
finances, and infrastructure.2

The Premier League uses a centralized system that includes representatives and a Board of Directors
from around the league. Each member club is allowed a maximum of two representatives.
Representatives of each member club attend General Meetings to discuss matters of the league. Their
elected body The Board of Directors is the administrative foundation of the Premier League. The
Shareholders decides the Board of Directors' appointment, and then the Audit and Remuneration
committee concludes the terms and conditions of the Board. The Boards of Director's responsibilities
include managing affairs of the companies' operations and regulations, making recommendations to
member clubs, and taking executive steps necessary to give to any policy resolved upon by the Members
in General Meeting.

1
Information from by Page, Dave. “A Brief History and Overview of the English Premier League.” Singapore Travel
Guide,
www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/43683/recreation_and_sports/a_brief_history_and_overview_of_the_english_p
remier_league.html.

2
Information from Boillat, Camille, and Raffaele Poli. “Governance Models across Football Associations and
Leagues.” Centre International D'étude Du Sport, 2014.
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Organizational Chart

Board of
Directors Chair
(Gary Hoffman)

Cheif Executive Non-Executive Non-Executive

(Richard Director (Claudia Director (Kevin
Masters) Arney) Beeston)
Board Directors Chair
The Board of Directors Chair is considered the highest position on the hierarchy chart. The Board of
Directors Chair is the face of the premier league; this position responsibilities include: participating and
running all General Meetings, providing guidance and direction for the company, and communicating
with the FA. This position is elected through the Shareholders and cannot be appointed or reappointed
unless the Special Shareholder endorses such person.

Chief Executive
Chief Executive is another elected position by the shareholders. The Chief Executive is an individual
that is responsible for running the daily business operations of the company and also is an official who
holds a nationally recognized qualification as an accountant or auditor, or who has sufficient experience
to demonstrate his competence as such, who shall be responsible for the company’s finances. This
position communicates with the Board of Directors Chairmen, Shareholders, and the FA, to maintain
balance between the three entities.3

Non-Executive Director(s)
The Non-Executive Directors are not entirely involved in the company as much as the Chairmen and
Executive Director, but instead are involved in the policy making and planning. Non-Executive
Directors monitor the Chairmen and Executive Director and makes decisions solei based on what the
shareholders want. The Non-Executive position is necessary for the engagement of the shareholders and
integrity of the company.4

3
The Football Association Premier League Limited. “2020-21-PL-Handbook.” The Football Association Premier
League Limited, 2020.

4
Barone, Adam. “What You Need to Know About Non-Executive Directors.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 16 Sept.
2020, www.investopedia.com/terms/n/non-executive-director.asp .
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Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths Weaknesses
Best marketed football league across the The inability to have fans for games is
world resulting in teams shifting into lower profit
margins

Presence of superstars in the clubs Lack of homegrown superstars in the

league

Very few weak teams-resulting in high The level of play is inferior to that of other
competition leagues around the world (La Liga, and
Bundesliga)

Presence of some of the greatest soccer Struggling to successfully compete in

teams in the world like Manchester United, major championships
Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool,
Tottenham, and Arsenal

Allowing teams to become shareholders in Providing more opportunity for teams

the league resulting in fair opportunity for entering from the EPL Champions League.
each club

A well-developed youth program resulting

in young superstars.

Information about Strengths and Weakness from TSkool. “English Premier League SWOT Analysis: Top English Premier
League Competitors, STP & USP: Detailed SWOT Analysis of Brands.” MBA Skool-Study. Learn. Share., MBA
Skool, 12 Apr. 2020, www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/sports-teams-and-events/5659-english-premier-league.html.

Financial Analysis
Since the English Premier League is a corporation made up of its 20 shareholding teams, this Financial
Analysis will be centered around its 20 clubs. The inability to find a balance sheet and or an income
statement for the Premier League will examine each team's financial turnover, profit, and loss. This
examination will be for 2019-2020 and the profit difference from 2018-2019. This graph will illustrate
each club's Equal Shares, Facility Fee's, Merit Payment, Overseas TV Income, Commercial Revenue,
Payment/Wage Bill, and Profits from the 2018-2019 season.5

5
Information about financial records are provided by: Football, Planet. “Club-by-Club: A Breakdown of the
2019-20 Premier League Prize Money.” Planet Football, Planet Football, 31 July 2020,
www.planetfootball.com/quick-reads/club-by-club-a-breakdown-of-the-2019-20-premier-league-prize-money/.
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Premier League Financial Analysis 2019-2020

Team Equal Facility Merit Overseas Commercial Total Profit

Share Fees Payment TV Revenue Revenue Difference
Income

Arsenal $40.51M $36.68M $29.42M $78.33M $6.37M $188.77M +$6M

Aston Villa $40.51M $17.07M $9.04M $62.16M $6.37M $135.02 +$112.22M

Bournemouth $40.51M $14.39M $6.7M $60.38M $6.37M $100.8M -$9.30M

(relegated)

Brighton and $40.51M $18.34M $13.63M $65.73M $6.37M $144.57M +$9.94

Hove Albion

Burnley $40.51M $15.57M $24.84M $74.77M $6.37M $162.15M +$25.48M

Chelsea $40.51M $34.14M $38.47M $85.47 $6.37M $204.95M +$18.98M

Crystal Palace $40.51M $17.07M $15.79M $67.51M $6.37M $147.25M +$1.78M

Everton $40.51M $24.97 $20.38 $71.08 $6.37M $163.30M -$510K

Leicester City $40.51M $20.99M $36.13M $83.59M $6.37M $187.53M +$30.66M

Liverpool $40.51M $39.44M $45.17M $90.71M $6.37M $222.14M +$28.24M

Manchester City $40.51M $35.50M $33.80M $88.93M $6.37M $214.12M +$22.01M

Manchester $40.51M $40.46M $40.71M $87.15M $6.37M $211.45M +$30.15M

United

Newcastle United $40.51M $26.21M $18.07M $69.21M $6.37M $160.31M +$7.51M

Norwich City $40.51M $14.38M $2.29M $56.74 $6.37M $120.23M +$120.23M

(relegated)

Southampton $40.51M $14.38M $22.65M $72.77M $6.37M $156.62M +$23.92M

Sheffield United $40.51M $18.32M $27.10M $76.54M $6.37M $168.67M +$159.64M

Tottenham $40.51M $35.49M $33.84M $81.79M $6.37M $197.93M +$13.23M

Watford $40.51M $14.37M $4.58M $58.51M $6.37M $124.28M -$20.61M

(relegated)
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West Hampton $40.51M $22.6M $11.32M $63.86M $6.37M $144.25M -$11.58M

Wolverhampton $40.51M $20.99M $31.67M $80.01M $6.37M $179.48M +$17.68M

Financial Analysis Conclusion

Each team owns an Equal share in the premier league; this allows rightful ownership and equality across
the league. Facility fees differ from club to club; influential organizations such as Arsenal, Chelsea,
Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, and Tottenham pay a tremendous amount for their
facilities compared to other smaller organizations. Like Facility Fees, the top clubs also profit from
Overseas TV Income more than smaller organizations. Still, each club earns the same commercial
revenue due to local English television companies' deals. In terms of profit differences from the 2018-
2019 season, teams such as Bournemouth, Everton, Watford, and West Hampton have lost profit in the
2019-2020 season, two of which have been relegated this season (Watford and Bournemouth).

Industry Analysis
The Premier League competes in a global soccer industry; this industry includes some of the most elite
soccer leagues. The Premier League has many customers of different ages, nationalities, and ethnicities;
it's one of the most dominant leagues in the soccer world. There are numerous competitors in the global
soccer industry; these competitors include La Liga (Spain), Bundesliga (Germany), League 1 (France),
Serie A (Italy), and Primera Liga (Portugal). The previous UEFA Championship League and UEFA
European League finals include teams in La Liga (Sevilla), and Bundesliga (Bayern Munich) winning
the tournaments, leaving the Premier League empty-handed in silverware.

Opportunities/Threats
Opportunities Threats

Tap the growing soccer markets in the United Opposing leagues are preforming better in
States by setting up exhibition games in the European championships
states.

Take advantage of the huge global fanbase Big spending from the top clubs may destroy
through marketing and merchandising the competitive nature of the league

Opportunity of cyclisation of new teams in the A huge chunk of the league’s revenue comes
league through relegation and promotion. from the top 5 or 6 teams. Instead of wealth
sharing.

Increasing number of young superstars in the

league can provide opportunities for
endorsements

Presence of some of the greatest soccer teams

in the world like Manchester United,
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Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool,

Tottenham, and Arsenal can increase fan
participation

PEST Analysis
Pest Analysis Factors

P (Political) Employment laws, environmental regulations,

national industry regulations, government
leadership, political trends, COVID-19 rules
and regulations.

E (Economic) Ticket Revenue, taxation, inflation, tariffs,

disposable income, merit payment, facility
fees, commercial revenue, overseas tv income,
mechanizing, and marketing.

S (Social) UK’s Demographics, lifestyle changes,

education, trends, living standards (COVID-
19), youth development, diversity, public
relations, and employee relations.

T (Technological) Manufacturing of new health equipment, the

ability to use goal-line technologies, VAR
(Virtual Assistant Referee) has enhanced the
refereeing of the game, crowd noise speakers
during matches, and COVID-19 temperature
and symptom checkers.

Porter’s Five Forces

Rivalry between Potential Potential entry of Bargaining power Bargaining power
competing firms development of new competitors of suppliers of consumers
substitute
products and
services

Strong force Moderate force Moderate force Weak force Weak force

La Liga, Football, More and more Suppliers are the Since the premier
Bundesliga, Ligue Basketball, leagues continue to teams inside the league is one of the
1, Serie A, Cricket, Rugby, get significant league, each team most well-known
Primera Liga, and and other sports if funding (MLS, owns an Equal and successful
others face strong marketed and Chinese Super share of the leagues, customers
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competition in merchandised League, and league, so teams continue to

performance, successfully can Eredivisie) could have a great power support the league
management, replace association enter as of nomination and and purchase
merchandising and league soccer competitors to the control of the merchandise
and success. in Europe Premier League league.

References

Page, Dave. “A Brief History and Overview of the English Premier League.” Singapore Travel Guide,
www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/43683/recreation_and_sports/a_brief_history_and_overview_of_t
he_english_premier_league.html.

Boillat, Camille, and Raffaele Poli. “Governance Models across Football Associations and Leagues.” Centre
International D'étude Du Sport, 2014

The Football Association Premier League Limited. “2020-21-PL-Handbook.” The Football Association Premier
League Limited, 2020.

Barone, Adam. “What You Need to Know About Non-Executive Directors.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 16
Sept. 2020, www.investopedia.com/terms/n/non-executive-director.asp.

TSkool. “English Premier League SWOT Analysis: Top English Premier League Competitors, STP & USP:
Detailed SWOT Analysis of Brands.” MBA Skool-Study. Learn. Share., MBA Skool, 12 Apr. 2020,
www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/sports-teams-and-events/5659-english-premier-league.html.

Football, Planet. “Club-by-Club: A Breakdown of the 2019-20 Premier League Prize Money.” Planet Football,
Planet Football, 31 July 2020, www.planetfootball.com/quick-reads/club-by-club-a-breakdown-of-the-
2019-20-premier-league-prize-money/.
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Jones, Dan, and Michael Barnard. “Annual Review of Football Finance 2020: Deloitte UK.” Deloitte
United Kingdom, 11 June 2020,
www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/sports-business-group/articles/annual-review-of-football-
finance.html.