Dissertation - How has Commercialisation affected professional Essay

Dissertation - How has Commercialisation affected professional football since the formation of the English Premier League and what effect has this had on the 'a - Essay Example d the 1980s witnessed England entering into a rather novice phase marked by lack of commercial enterprising on the part of sponsors and top brass of soccer administrators. In fact European football in general followed a downward curve during these two decades (King 59). Several key factors were responsible for this lean period in the history of English soccer. These factors ranged from societal issues to lack of technical adroitness. However, the Premier soccer League teemed with the very best from the global arena and players from all continents signed for various clubs featuring in the League (Storey 108), thus turning English club football into an action-packed display of power and dynamism. The charm of English soccer ebbed away following the series of poor performances by the national soccer team in FIFA World Cups after their historic win over West Germany in the 1966 version of the premier title. It was imperative for the administrators and players alike to bring people back to where they could relate themselves to. However, due to a pervasive sense of hopelessness prevailing among the average followers of the sport, the task was not an easy one. Moreover, hooliganism was on the rise in the 1980s both on English soil and outside (Dunning and Malcolm 101). In fact English football had earned a notorious distinction of promoting hooliganism across Europe and to other soccer playing countries (Bloom and Willard 306). Political reasons also came into contention in this regard, as some of the earlier events in the annals of world history were believed to have contributed to the imperialistic aggression displayed by English football fans (Chesner and Hahn 168). It was in the 1980s when the problem of vandalism, on and off the soccer field, increased beyond the level of tolerance, as English fans were involved in atrocious activities numerous times, that the game was brought to shame and disrepute. Another issue that plagued English soccer during the 1970s and