Keeping football out of the limelight doesn’t happen too often and even during sports showpiece event, the Olympics, the first £100million footballer has managed to dominate the back pages today. This particular transfer saga has gone on for most of the summer and finally last night, the ‘will he, won’t he’ question was finally answered as adidas revealed his move to Manchester United.
The fact that one of Pogba’s sponsors, albeit one that pays a reported £31 million for the sponsorship, announced the deal ahead of Manchester United, is a window into how much this deal is driven by the commercial elements as it is the on-pitch.
While there is no denying or arguing that Pogba is an exceptional talent with untold potential, many are having a hard time wrapping their heads around the price tag. £100 million on a 23-year-old who has not yet hit the heights of some of the previous players to be crowned the ‘most expensive footballer of all time’ does seem questionable.
‘For that sort of money you want someone who will score 50 goals a season like Ronaldo or Messi. Pogba is nowhere near there yet’ were the words of former United playmaker Paul Scholes.
Although it is hard to argue with the words of Scholes, when looking at the inflated rates players are being sold for in recent years, it’s easier to make sense of the huge price tag on a player such as Pogba. So what are Manchester United getting for their money?
As an investment, Paul Pogba is worth so much more than the potential he shows on pitch. In today’s world of football, where brand value is more relevant than ever, Pogba’s marketability and popularity means he is a money making machine. It has been reported that in his first season alone at United, Pogba could generate as much as £40million in commercial revenue for the club.
He is the type of player that transcends youth culture and with it football. Pogba is more than just a football player, he is a global superstar who is one of adidas’ most valuable assets. As the grime artist Stormzy unofficially announced Pogba’s arrival in a video by adidas on twitter, it demonstrated that the demands of sponsors and social media holds much more sway over how and when these transfers are announced.
The purists will wince at the suggestion but is this a step closer to an era where players will only move between the clubs of their sponsors? Was there a clause in the £31 million deal with adidas that prohibited him from moving to a fierce competitor, such as Barcelona?
The commercialisation of football is nothing new but as the sums of transfer and sponsorship deals continue to rise, the pressure to provide more than just a player will subsequently increase. When Brian Clough turned up to the Nottingham Forrest training ground in a bright red sports jacket, squash racket in his hand to oversee the minor business formality of Trevor Francis becoming the first million-pound player, there were certainly no grime artists in sight.
