Christina Philippou

Sport Unlocked From the pitches to the boardrooms, the stories behind the big decisions by sports leaders affecting every fan. Featuring sports news insiders Rob Harris, Martyn Ziegler, Tariq Panja and more

🚨POD
🎙 @robharrisreports.bsky.social @martynziegler.bsky.social @tariqpanja.bsky.social

➡️Transfer window analysis, joined by @cphilippou.bsky.social

➡️ @nickdemarcokc.bsky.social on Paqueta win over FA & spot-fixing case flaws

➡️ Ceferin update on Russia ban & Israel

podfollow.com/SportUnlocked

Is Olivia Smith’s Record Breaking Transfer To Arsenal The Start Of A New Era For Women’s Football? Making waves on and off the field, Olivia Smith, women's football's latest star girl is setting new parameters for the sport.

Women's football has grown dramatically in the last few years, with commercial, broadcasting and matchday income all increasing across WSL teams.

Great to speak to Elle UK about this growth in #womensfootball and the first £1m transfer fee.

www.elle.com/uk/life-and-...

Euro 2025: women’s football has exploded – here’s how it can grow even more The tournament could provide another boost to engagement and participation.

With WEuro 2025 in full swing, it's a perfect time for reflecting on commercial lessons learned from Euro 2022 and the financial state of the English women's game.

theconversation.com/euro-2025-wo...

Lucy Bronze on how she decided to blast her penalty down the middle (and score).

“Statistically it’s risky for the goal keeper to stand still… so yeah, I love maths”.

Euro 2025: women’s football has exploded – here’s how it can grow even more The tournament could provide another boost to engagement and participation.

It's #WEURO2025 time which is perfect for reflecting on commercial lessons learned from Euro 2022 and the financial state of the English women's game

theconversation.com/euro-2025-wo...

⚽ 💰🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Football Studies welcomed @cphilippou.bsky.social to speak about Global Sports Finance, the EPL financial rules, multi-club ownership models, and new football grounds' financial sustainability.

🔵 We also talked about Man City's case...

Give it a listen!

youtu.be/xh5dwSEHcc8 l

Chicago newspaper prints a summer reading list. The problem? The books don't exist | CBC News The Chicago Sun-Times is being roasted online after it confirmed that a freelancer used AI to generate a summer reading list made up of real authors and fake books. The newspaper called it "a learning...

In case anyone missed this genius example of, well, how not to compile a reading list www.cbc.ca/news/world/c...

YouTube video by Bloomberg Originals Can You Americanize the Premier League?

US ownership in English football brings both benefits and pitfalls, particularly because of cultural differences between the two countries in both business and sport. Talking through some of these football finance implications on this Bloomberg Originals doc

youtube.com/watch?v=VVFB...

The wider social and cultural connections vs club loyalty debate is portrayed so well here. Great article.

Is it ever OK to wear another club’s shirt? My life in a Liverpool top this week | Emma John I am not a Liverpool fan but this week I have crossed a sacred line – and I’m struggling to feel sorry

Is it ever OK to wear another club’s shirt? My life in a Liverpool top this week | Emma John

Chelsea value women’s team at £150m. What do finance experts think? The sale of Chelsea Women to the club’s parent company helped them to avoid a breach of Premier League financial rules — but the team’s valuation has surprised those in the know

Chelsea Women's huge, PSR-easing valuation has football finance experts raising eyebrows — so how can the club legitimise such a forecast?

With insight from @priceoffootball.bsky.social, @cphilippou.bsky.social and @mattcutler.bsky.social for @timessport.bsky.social www.thetimes.com/sport/footba...

Why the future of women’s rugby in England looks stronger than ever Commercial tactics seem to be working.

Women's rugby in England has seen rising attendances, more sponsorship, and the Women’s Rugby World Cup later in the year already breaking records.

But there are also lessons to be learned from other sports on potential challenges and overcoming them.

theconversation.com/why-the-futu...

Philly Roller Derby celebrates 20 years of challenging gender norms and promoting inclusivity. The league has been at the forefront of revolutionizing women's roles in sports since 2005. A kinesiology professor skates through the history of the sport: buff.ly/4abw5FP #rollerderby #feminism

World Business Report - Tariffs, threats and backtracking - BBC Sounds But America still plans a 25% tariff on Canadian steel and aluminium imports.

Manchester United unveiled a £2bn redevelopment and 100k seater stadium plan. Basically, they aim to spend lots of money in order to make more money from matchday, commercial and year-round income in the future.

Talked some of the pros and cons through with the BBC

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Spot on

As any woman in the back of a locked taxi knows, Sam Kerr should never have been brought to court | Suzanne Wrack The Matildas and Chelsea forward won’t be proud of the footage of her in a police station. But her acquittal underlines that the charges and court battle that followed were a waste of time and money

As any woman in the back of a locked taxi knows, Sam Kerr should never have been brought to court | Suzanne Wrack www.theguardian.com/football/202...

How do WSL clubs make money, and is there a salary cap? BBC Sport breaks down the different ways clubs in England’s top women’s league make money, and what factors influence transfer spending.

Women's #football has seen the first transfer fee to top $1m, alongside increased spending on wages and staff over the last few seasons. All things that increase the value of the sport, but also cost money.

So where is that money coming from?

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

Why Manchester City offered Erling Haaland the longest contract in Premier League history A long-term approach is risky, but can save money.

Haaland's new contract deal at Manchester City is of record breaking length. But why do long-term contracts sometimes make sense for a club and player? And what risks do they bring? Kieran Maguire and I unpack these questions and more for The Conversation UK.

theconversation.com/why-manchest...

What challenges do investors face when trying to value a European women's football team? Discussing this and more on the Women’s Football Finance Podcast @twffpod.bsky.social

World Business Report - US Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban - BBC Sounds The US Supreme Court has upheld a law signed by President Biden banning TikTok.

Today, I found myself explaining amortisation on BBC World Service's World Business Report. My thanks to Erling Haaland for creating an interest in accounting in ways I could never have imagined!

(If you are interested, it's the last 4 minutes)

#football #finance

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Interview: Lawyer Jean-Louis Dupont, who represented Jean-Marc Bosman and Lassana Diarra Podcast Episode · The Price of Football · 17/01/2025 · 1h 7m

Today’s PoF with is an exclusive interview with Jean-Louis DuPont, known as ‘the Bosman Lawyer’. He talks about Bosman, the Diarra case, the CAS ruling that may be announced today, SuperLeague, FIFA & much more, fascinating for anyone with an interest in sport law
🍎 shm.to/list.en
🎧 shm.to/le.arn

🎙️We're on the hunt for our next round of podcast topics.

We'll cover anything related to football history and heritage - a pretty wide scope!

Club histories. Famous players. Lost clubs. There's no story we won't tell. The more niche, the better.

What story do you want to hear on our podcast next?

BBC Radio 4 - Woman's Hour, Women's Rugby World Cup, Amy Gledhill, National Care Service, Russian ballet Potentially a breakthrough tournament to inspire a new generation of women's rugby fans.

Women’s #Rugby World Cup 2025 has been shattering ticket sale records & helping grow interest in the sport. US sevens star Ilona Maher's debut this weekend also saw club attendance records broken. But how can momentum be maintained? Discussing this on BBC's Woman's Hour
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

My favourite thing about research is the random gems. This is a roundup of sponsorship income from the FA's 1976 financial statements.

#football #finance

English Premier League club gives Croatian club ultimatum over crest A small Croatian football club is facing a peculiar challenge after its crest attracted attention from an English Premier League club, sparking an unexpected copyright dispute. Football club NK Jadran...

Copyright infringements are fairly common in most industries including #football, but the way this was brought to the attention of Brighton is fairly novel

www.croatiaweek.com/english-prem...

The best books of 2024, as chosen by The Economist
www.economist.com/culture/2024...
From The Economist

Absolutely!

Why are you assuming Football Manager is not useful???

Ashworth’s exit and Ratcliffe’s comments are alarming for Man United’s women’s team Ashworth helped United's women's team feel connected to the rest of his club, his exit and Ratcliffe's comments are a worrying combination

How many times do you have to sound the alarm bell?

@theathleticfc.bsky.social

www.nytimes.com/athletic/598...

Economic and social impact of sports teams is a much debated area by academics, investors and taxpayers. But investment models differ and so the costs or benefits do too. This article highlights how stadium builds can have the oft-promised benefits on the local community