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For all the talk of how ultra-wealthy, state-backed clubs have conquered European football, this year’s Champions League final offers a blast from the past, with two fan-controlled teams vying for the game’s top accolade.
尽管人们都在谈论由超级富豪和国家支持的俱乐部如何征服欧洲足球,但今年的欧洲冠军联赛(Champions League)决赛却带来了一股怀旧之风,两支由球迷控制的球队将争夺这项最高荣誉。
The match between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, which will be played in front of 86,000 fans at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night, is the first time since 2017 that Europe’s biggest final will be without at least one team owned by billionaires or a sovereign state.
周六晚上(北京时间周日凌晨)在伦敦温布利体育场(Wembley Stadium),皇家马德里(Real Madrid)和多特蒙德(Borussia Dortmund)将在8.6万名球迷面前进行比赛,这是自2017年以来,欧洲最大的决赛中,第一次没有至少一支由亿万富翁或主权国家拥有的球队。
Real will be gunning for a 15th European title, while Dortmund, the underdogs, could win their second. To reach the final, both had to overcome an opponent bankrolled by a petrostate. The Spanish champions edged past Abu Dhabi-backed Manchester City in the quarterfinals, while Dortmund saw off Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain in the semis.
皇家马德里将争夺第15个欧洲冠军,而多特蒙德这支处于弱势的球队则有机会赢得他们的第二个冠军。为了进入决赛,两队都必须战胜由石油国家资助的对手。西班牙冠军在四分之一决赛中险胜阿布扎比(Abu Dhabi)支持的曼城(Manchester City),而多特蒙德在半决赛中击败了卡塔尔拥有的巴黎圣日耳曼(Paris Saint-Germain)。
On the pitch, it’s clear that Europe’s old guard can still compete with the best of football’s nouveau riche, while governing bodies now acknowledge that checking the might of sovereign wealth is vital for the long-term health of the game.
在球场上,欧洲的老牌劲旅显然仍能与足球新贵们一较高下,而管理机构现在也认识到,遏制主权财富的力量对于足球运动的长期健康至关重要。
Of course, Real and Dortmund are hardly paupers. According to Deloitte, the Spanish champions had the highest revenue in world football last year, while the German side ranked 12th.
当然,皇家马德里和多特蒙德都不是穷队。根据德勤(Deloitte)的数据,去年这支西班牙冠军队的收入在全球足球中排名第一,而德国的多特蒙德则排名第12。
Despite being member-owned, Real have still been able to bring in capital from outside investors through a partnership with US private equity firm Sixth Street, and have had no trouble in attracting and paying top players such as England’s Jude Bellingham, who signed last summer from Dortmund for €100mn. He is set to be joined imminently by French superstar Kylian Mbappé, who is quitting PSG in search of the European glory that has eluded the club despite Qatar’s billions.
尽管是会员制的,皇家马德里仍能通过与美国私募股权公司Sixth Street的合作,从外部投资者引入资金。他们在吸引和支付像英格兰的裘德•贝林厄姆(Jude Bellingham)这样的顶级球员方面也毫无困难,贝林厄姆去年夏天以1亿欧元从多特蒙德转会而来。法国超级巨星基里安•姆巴佩(Kylian Mbappé)也即将加入皇马,他正离开巴黎圣日耳曼队(PSG)寻求欧洲荣耀,尽管卡塔尔已投入数十亿资金,但该荣耀一直未能实现。
In home leagues, state-backed clubs remain dominant. Manchester City just notched up a sixth Premier League title in seven years, while Paris Saint-Germain have now added 10 French championships to the trophy cabinet since being bought by Qatar Sports Investment in 2011.
在国内联赛中,国家支持的俱乐部仍然占据主导地位。曼城在过去七年中赢得了六次英超联赛(Premier League)冠军,而自2011年被卡塔尔体育运动投资收购以来,巴黎圣日耳曼已经获得了10个法国冠军。
As ever in football, luck played a vital role in shaping Saturday’s contest. Real needed a penalty shootout to beat City in the quarterfinals, while Dortmund withstood a barrage of attacks from PSG in the semis. There was a moment in time when a Qatar vs Abu Dhabi finale looked more likely than not.
与往常的足球比赛一样,运气对于周六的决赛对阵起到了至关重要的作用。皇家马德里在四分之一决赛中通过点球大战才击败曼城,而多特蒙德在半决赛中顶住了巴黎圣日耳曼队的猛烈攻势。曾有一刻,卡塔尔对阵阿布扎比的决赛似乎更有可能上演。
But as football’s governing bodies start to put the squeeze on spending, the financial firepower of state-owned clubs should, in theory, lose some of its potency.
但随着足球管理机构开始限制开支,理论上,国有俱乐部的财务实力应该会有所减弱。
In the Premier League — where 115 allegations of spending rule breaches still hang over City — a new financial regime is on the horizon. Next week, clubs will vote on potential reforms, including one to limit spending by top teams depending on income generated by those at the bottom.
在英超联赛中,曼城仍面临115项违反支出规则的指控,新的财政制度即将出台。下周,各俱乐部将对可能的改革进行投票,其中包括一项根据底层球队的收入来限制顶级球队的支出。
This season saw the introduction of new financial rules by Uefa, European football’s governing body, that limit the amount a team can spend on its playing staff to 90 per cent of revenue. The “squad cost” rule will be tightened next season to 80 per cent of income, and again the following year to 70 per cent.
本赛季,欧洲足球管理机构欧足联(Uefa)引入了新的财务规定,限制球队在球员工资上的支出不得超过收入的90%。下个赛季,“球队成本”规定将进一步收紧至收入的80%,再在接下来的一年降至收入的70%。
Such rule changes will not make European trophies more accessible to a wider group of clubs. Indeed some of them, such as the squad cost rule that ties spending to revenue, are more likely to cement the status quo by making it harder to break into the elite.
这些规则的改变并不会使更多俱乐部更容易获得欧洲奖杯。实际上,某些规则,如将支出与收入挂钩的球队成本规则,更可能通过增加进入精英圈的难度来巩固现状。
Uefa already rewards a club’s pedigree. About a third of Champions League prize money is allocated based on performance in the tournament over the previous five years. That’s why Saudi-owned Newcastle United’s earnings from its appearance in the group stages of the contest this season were significantly lower than those of Champions League regulars.
欧足联已经根据俱乐部的历史战绩进行奖励。欧洲冠军联赛的奖金中约有三分之一是基于球队过去五年在该赛事中的表现来分配的。这就是为什么沙特拥有的纽卡斯尔联队(Newcastle United)本赛季在小组赛阶段的收入明显低于那些常年参加欧洲冠军联赛的球队的原因。
Lax financial regulation left the door open for City and PSG to buy their way into football’s elite. A tightening of the rules will test whether new money can still change the sport’s balance of power.
宽松的金融监管为曼城和巴黎圣日耳曼队买通了进入足球精英阶层的大门。规则的收紧将检验新的资金是否仍能改变这项运动的力量平衡。