So until they stop investing they are sustainable. Or unless their revenue grows enough during the period of investment.
That's how it works. Any business that wants to grow usually needs investment outside their means. Does that make them all unsustainable?
Ia there any reason that a guaranteed period of owner investment shouldn't be sustainable?
Only if it leads to self sustainability, it's the self part of it that is being overlooked mate.
Owner investment needs to lead to the point where that investment is no longer needed. The reason the likes of Everton, NF, and now Chelsea are in the mire is because their model is 100% reliant on money they don't make themselves. As Airfixx pointed out, Chelsea were £1.6Bn in debt to their owner. As soon as he pulled out, they
another stupidly rich owner to invest even more money to try to keep them relevant. 20+ years they had under Abramovic, with all the on pitch "success" he brought, yet they're in a worse condition than they were before him. They had the opportunity and resources to become self sustaining, but they chose to continue riding the gravy train. Now it's coming back to haunt them.
You mentioned the Glaziers in a previous post, but they just demonstrate just how self sustainable Utd were. Not only were they able to maintain their position at the top, but they've been feeding those leeches for years, whilst managing the debt they got saddled with, and STILL be able to shop from the very top shelf. It's mismanagement to an epic degree that has seen them fall from grace. Even then, they are still able to sustain top wages for top players, all whilst their owners are taking money out, rather than pumping it in.
That's the whole point of P&S, to ensure that clubs are self sustainable.
What we've seen in Football is that owners pumping money in will only last for so long before something comes along to cut off the feeding, then the club starves because it doesn't have the ability to feed itself.
I'm sure someone wrote on here earlier saying how do you become a Millionaire? You make a Billion then buy a Football club.
At some point, Abramovic would have had to say enough is enough and cut off the funds. He'd already lost £1.65Bn, and he'd lose even more trying to keep up with City, Utd (once they get their shit together), or battling to keep ahead of the filth, Liverpool and, yes, us. What's the cutoff point, £2Bn? 3? Whatever it is, it was getting closer. Then Boehly steps in and makes an utter clusterfuck of the job. I think it's only a matter of time before he cuts and runs, but only after he's had to sell the Crown jewels. Do you think he's the type to just shrug off nearly £2Bn on a vanity project?
And when he's gone? No income stream to maintain their expenditure, can't maintain their wages bill as a result. Can't develop their ground to address that. Can't even move, without ceasing to exist as Chelsea, because they don't even own the name. What multi billionaire is going to look at that as a sound investment?
Football eats Billionaires. Some just take longer to digest.
That's why self sustainability is so important. Even with the colossal mismanagement that Utd have suffered, they still have the ability to bounce back because they make so much money, they just have to get their house in order. The filth have that ability, and have demonstrated it with Arteta. Liverpool have that ability now, though they went the other route and had to be bailed out by FSG. We've done it, and we're the prime example of how high you can rise sustainably. Before Sugar, Scholar took the unsustainable route and nearly killed the club. Brighton are following the same path, probably because Barber learned the right way from his time with us.
Then, in the end, was it all worth it? Yes the fans get to bask in the glory at the time, but then they've got to go through the pain of seeing their club die, and live with the shame of history showing that you were stripped of all that glory, because you cheated to get it.
I know the pain of watching your club dying, I lived through it. Imagine adding the shame to it. Forever a laughing stock because you had to cheat to win. We still hate the filth for cheating their way into the first division at our expense. Imagine multiplying that by every club in English Football and across Europe.
That is where unsustainable spending eventually leads you, either into oblivion or infamy.
Hopefully, in Chelsea's case, it leads to both.