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Wednesday, 18 May 2022

English Premier League fans aren’t so sure about the ‘Muricans running top clubs + Russia-Ukraine war threatens treatment for malnourished children

EPL fans worry that American ownership of their top clubs will lead them astray: As Chelsea’s sale to US businessman Todd Boehly nears, the English Premier League could soon see more than half of its teams backed by US owners, according to Bloomberg. American ownership of the teams has long been a contested idea, with English fans wary of the US owners who seem to prioritize their bottom line as opposed to the game itself or the success of the team. Their insistence on significant returns on investment can often lead these US-backed teams to pour less into signing expensive players and coaches and developing the team so that they rank high on the league tables, sports insiders and consultants tell the newspaper.

And the fans do have evidence to back their point: Where Arsenal and Manchester United are owned by Americans, Manchester City FC is backed by UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Chelsea was bankrolled by Russia’s Roman Abramovich. The two US-backed clubs have been struggling in recent years, while Chelsea and Manchester City have together taken home seven of the last 10 EPL titles. Arsenal and United have seen their fans protest in the past few years over the state of the management while an outcry waved over Europe last year over several of the US-backed teams’ idea of rolling out the Super League. There are caveats to the trend of course, with US-owned Liverpool doing well lately, now competing for the top rank during this season.

The cost of treatment for the world’s most severely malnourished children is set to rise 16% amid the global food crisis sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and pandemic disruptions, UNICEF warned. The essential treatment, named ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF), is a high-energy paste made of ingredients including peanuts, oil, sugar and added nutrients. UNICEF needs an additional USD 25 mn in funding in the coming six months to avoid a scenario where 600k children miss out on RUTF. Around 13.6 mn children worldwide under five years old require this type of treatment and even before the war and pandemic, two in every three did not have access to the therapeutic food needed to save their lives.

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