Football (Soccer) Thread

[The Larch]

Yup, and even more so for big names. Losing a player and getting nothing in exchange is seen as the worst possible outcome. It happens more often with less relevant players, and when it happens to a big player it's normally because they're int he tail end of their careers and on a very big contract that nobody will match.

I know nothing about US sports - beyond occasionally watching them. What causes the free agency thing to be so big there?

My impression (mostly through following the NBA) is that teams operate on a similar logic, when a big name player refuses to renew their contract it becomes a ticking clock scenario for his team to trade him in order to get something out of it, and it has happened many times in recent years. The difference regarding player transfers is that over there players don't sign a new contract with their new team upon being transferred, they retain the contract they already had, so it's not a chance to increase their wages. Also, most players don't have a say and are traded without being informed or even giving their approval, so they're even more explicitely club assets.

Then again, even taking all of this into account, there's always a reasonable amount of players who still finish their contracts and enter free agency, in order to sign a new contract with a new team (there's no chance of signing a new contract with your current contract still active, like in footie when players can sign new contracts once there's less than 6 months remaining on their current contracts. There's also a "sign and trade", in which a player signs a new contract with his current team and is immediately trasnfered to a new one, in which all parts are in agreement.

The fact that American sports also have highly regulated Collective Bargaining Agreements in place makes comparisons difficult, as they're normally quite intricate and nothing of that sort exists in Europe.

[celedhring]

A big part of American free agency, I believe, is the fact that it is the only way players get to choose their destiny, since they have no formal input on their trades. Also wage caps remove incentives for teams to keep everybody under contract.

[The Larch]

A big part of American free agency, I believe, is the fact that it is the only way players get to choose their destiny, since they have no formal input on their trades. Also wage caps remove incentives for teams to keep everybody under contract.

Yeah, that too. Then again, and at least in the NBA, it is said that we're in the era of "player empowerment", as players tend to have more of a say in this kind of things, but I think it's mostly theoretical and only really works for the biggest names. Mid and low level palyers will still keep getting churned around. As I said, in US sports players are club assets in a much more tangible way. Also, the way many leagues work, player rotation is quite high and players contracts can be much more easily rescinded (many times for purely financial reasons, or simply to make room in the roster for a new player), so there's always a decently sized pool of free agents (ie, unemployed players) lying around waiting for a contract offer.

[The Larch]

I cannot comprehend what Arsenal thought they'd achieve by firing Gunnersaurus

Apparently Ozil is offering to pay Gunnersaurus' salary out of his paycheck for as long as he's an Arsenal player. 

[Gups]

I cannot comprehend what Arsenal thought they'd achieve by firing Gunnersaurus

Apparently Ozil is offering to pay Gunnersaurus' salary out of his paycheck for as long as he's an Arsenal player. 

Reminds me of one of my favourite David Squires strips

https://www.theguardian.com/football/ng-interactive/2018/may/15/david-squires-on-the-north-bank-redemption-arsene-wenger-arsenal

[The Larch]

I cannot comprehend what Arsenal thought they'd achieve by firing Gunnersaurus

Apparently Ozil is offering to pay Gunnersaurus' salary out of his paycheck for as long as he's an Arsenal player. 

Reminds me of one of my favourite David Squires strips

https://www.theguardian.com/football/ng-interactive/2018/may/15/david-squires-on-the-north-bank-redemption-arsene-wenger-arsenal

That one is brilliant. Lots of people on Twitter were referencing it upon all the Gunnersaurus debacle.

[Sheilbh]

I cannot comprehend what Arsenal thought they'd achieve by firing Gunnersaurus

Apparently Ozil is offering to pay Gunnersaurus' salary out of his paycheck for as long as he's an Arsenal player. 

Reminds me of one of my favourite David Squires strips

https://www.theguardian.com/football/ng-interactive/2018/may/15/david-squires-on-the-north-bank-redemption-arsene-wenger-arsenal

Yes! One of his best. I have no attachment whatsover to Arsenal, but I weirdly like Gunnersaurus because of David Squires.

[The Larch]

Apparently Arsenal had to come out to say that as soon as fans are allowed back in the stadium Gunnersaurus will be back as well.

[celedhring]

I've loved gunnersaurus since I watched him looking solemn and dejected in an Arsenal game during Remembrance Day 



Magnificent mastery of mascot body language.

[The Larch]

And of course Squires includes the Gunnersaurus affaire in his latest strip, getting more space than Man U0s's thrashing by Tottenham.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/ng-interactive/2020/oct/06/david-squires-on-anarchy-in-the-premier-league-and-extinct-dinosaurs

[Sheilbh]

I've loved gunnersaurus since I watched him looking solemn and dejected in an Arsenal game during Remembrance Day 

There's nothing better than mascots having to look solemn

This Twitter account's worth a look:
https://twitter.com/MascotSilence

[celedhring]

I've loved gunnersaurus since I watched him looking solemn and dejected in an Arsenal game during Remembrance Day 

There's nothing better than mascots having to look solemn

This Twitter account's worth a look:
https://twitter.com/MascotSilence

That's a fantastic account. I love you. 

[Syt]

If you like mascots, there's also Mondo Mascots, showcasing weird Japanese mascots for cities, companies, etc.

https://twitter.com/mondomascots

[The Larch]

West Bromwich Albion has (or had) as a mascot, due to sponsorship reasons, a water boiler. Let that sink in.

[Sheilbh]

West Bromwich Albion has (or had) as a mascot, due to sponsorship reasons, a water boiler. Let that sink in.

One of the all time greats.

They even had a sort of mascot hand-over between Baggie the Bird and Boilerman (I'm not clear who the dinosaur is):