La Liga President Worries About Economic Stability of European Football
La Liga boss Javier Tebas has expressed his concern about the economic future of European football with the possibility of state-owned clubs beginning to dominate leagues.
Tebas has long been a critic of wealthy clubs like Manchester City and PSG, accusing them of using made up sponsors, backed by states, to invest heavy sums of money.
He even said PSG were "cheating economically" after they secured the signature of Neymar for a world record £198m.
Speaking to Sky Sports' Gulliem Balague, Tebas said: "We looked for about 12 months at the situation at Man City, and we are really worried about the stability of European football, not just La Liga.
"The football industry is not the same as it was 10 years ago. It's a situation that lacks regulation so football does not get destroyed in many countries.
"The appearance of state-owned football clubs is really worrying, the numbers are there. The fact that PSG and Man City have in the last four years made the biggest investment in players, 30% more than the next biggest investors, says everything.
"Either they are geniuses in the worlds of marketing and commercial rights, or they have won the lottery."
His argument could be viewed as slightly ironic given Real Madrid and Barcelona's duopoly at the top of La Liga for the bulk of modern Spanish football history and the vast sums of money they have been spending to be the best.
La Liga table-toppers Barcelona are currently 19 points above fourth-placed Real Madrid, and if they can replicate their unbeaten form in the first half of the season then they will surpass the 100 point mark when they are crowned champions.
However, Tebas is only worried if one team completely runs away with the league. He said: "There are many decisions being taken in European football that are affecting the competitiveness of teams.
"I don't get worried if the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid win the league but it worries me if they win with about 100 points.
"In a league of 20 like we or the Premier League have, we have to fight so that the leagues are won with a total of about 80-85 points and it doesn't matter who wins it."
