Football giants

Chapter 71 Bullying
"At each of their press conferences, they will give a small gift to the participating journalists. The value is more than two or three hundred pounds. If there is only one time, it's nothing, but they give it every time, which is not easy."

Not to mention in the UK, even in the whole world, this is the only one.

When Rebekah Wade heard what his subordinates said, he immediately understood.

It's not uncommon for football clubs to give gifts to reporters, but it's usually during the holidays, and they all have to be big-name reporters.

But like Southampton, it is very rare that no matter the big names or the pawns, they give gifts and treat them equally.

More importantly, they send it every time, which is not easy.

"It's no wonder that in the past two months, Southampton reports appeared in the newspapers almost every day, and all of them were positive reports. It turned out that it was not only because the club had the resources to hype itself, but also because there was such a relationship behind it."

As he spoke, Rebekah Wade looked at the reporter in front of him. His name was Charles Pike, a very young reporter.

"Editor-in-chief, I have actually received many gifts from them, but I can assure you that I have never done anything that violated professional ethics." Charles Pike is responsible for tracking the League One in The Sun, focusing on Southampton.

"Okay, I got it!" Rebekah Wade just put some pressure on him, and in the end, he can share any benefits with him in the future, so that these people under him are rich in money, and the editor-in-chief himself has nothing.

"go on."

"In addition, I also got news that they entertained the referee team and arranged them in the top five-star hotels, and specially arranged luxury cars to pick them up. This is also quite a big deal." Charles Pike was also very impressed.

When Rebekah Wade heard it, he was equally impressed. After all, not to mention the League One, even the Premier League, Southampton is probably the only case where such a high standard of hospitality is given to the referee team.

"The FA should know?" Rebekah Wade asked casually, but it was crucial.

"Well, they reported it, saying that there are not many hotels in Southampton, and they don't want the referee team to live in a bad environment, which will affect the rest of the referee team, so..."

After hearing this, Rebekah Wade clapped his hands on the table, looking very excited.

"Very well, you hurry up and prepare. The headline on the front page tomorrow morning will be Southampton. Also, in the next three days, I will use three important pages to introduce the uniqueness of this team. You should prepare as soon as possible!"

When Charles Pike heard this, he agreed without hesitation, "No problem, editor-in-chief, all my materials are ready."

"Well, go quickly, there is not much time now!"

The headlines on the front page tomorrow morning, I have to start preparing now, or it will be too late.

After seeing off Charles Pike, Rebekah Wade sat down again, looked at the photos on the monitor, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He knew very well that this matter has already caused a lot of controversy on the Internet. I believe that early tomorrow morning, websites all over the world will rush to report this matter, and even newspapers and TV stations may follow.

The Sun must be firmly at the forefront.

This is the biggest secret that they have been able to ensure that their sales are far ahead over the years!

Oh, by the way, he also thought of a nirvana.

…………

…………

In fact, as Rebekah Wade, who has a keen sense of news, guessed.

Early the next morning, almost all the front-page headlines in the British media were about this incident in Southampton.

Even the news of the third round of the Premier League and the UEFA Super Cup were under his control.

This is almost impossible for a League One team.

But Southampton firmly occupied the front pages of major newspapers in the UK within one day, and even occupied the important pages of many newspapers in Europe and around the world.

On the Internet, it has already turned the world upside down.

Everyone is shocked by Southampton's big money, a bonus of 1000 million pounds for a game, which is almost something that has never happened in football history.

Countless fans and spectators are amazed, thinking that Southampton is burning money in an unscrupulous way.

Thinking that the boss of Southampton is the real super rich, what Abramovich, what Abu Dhabi consortium, all are not enough to see.

There are even more and more netizens paying attention, or becoming fans of Southampton.

Because they all believe that Southampton will soon rise under the burning money of the big local boss.

In the process of Southampton's rise, they were able to gain a sense of participation that fans of the giants did not have.

For a while, Southampton's fans skyrocketed.

Even on WeChat, the fans of Southampton's official WeChat account even surpassed Ibrahimovic, ranking first by a distance, with a total number of more than 200 million.

And this incident has further attracted more users around the world to use WeChat.

But it also quickly sparked a series of controversies.

Previously, because of the transfer of Paul Pogba and Ravel Morrison, he had an enmity with Southampton. When Manchester United coach Ferguson was interviewed by The Sun, he was the first to stand up and question Southampton's approach. He believed that this method would destroy the environment and structure of English football.

"According to the legal provisions of the English professional league, all incentive bonuses must be clearly recorded in the player's contract at the beginning of the season, but Southampton has violated this principle. I call on the FA to investigate this."

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger also said that such a money-burning behavior would not do any good to the English league.

The Premier League also expressed its strong concern about this matter, but the Premier League CEO Scudemore believes that whether Southampton has violated the rules requires further investigation and evidence collection by the FA.

Southampton officials apologized as soon as they received the news.

The team's chief press officer, Sun Yue, immediately held a press conference the next day, saying he was responsible for the incident. However, he defended the team and the management, arguing that it was mainly a lack of experience in running the team, and expressed his willingness to cooperate with the FA's investigation and even punish him.

But at the press conference, Sun Yue also fought back against the actions of Ferguson and Wenger.

"We have admitted our mistakes and our lack of experience. After all, we have only been here for less than two months and we are not very clear about the relevant laws and regulations. But I want to ask Manchester United and Arsenal, do you dare to say that you have not violated any regulations? Do you dare to say that everything you do is strictly in accordance with the regulations of the Premier League and the FA? Need me to give an example?"

"Even if what we did did ruin the competition in English football, it would only be temporary, but what about you?"

"As a wealthy family, isn't your every move and deed causing damage greater and more serious than ours?"

Sun Yue's inquiry gave Manchester United and Arsenal a strong counterattack.

Everyone knows that laws and regulations are only on the surface, and what everyone does in private is turning a blind eye.

But Arsenal and Manchester United are now putting pressure on the FA at the same time, which is undoubtedly suppressing Southampton.

Moreover, after Southampton made a public apology, it was equivalent to indirectly admitting the huge bonus, which once again detonated the media all over the world. Everyone thought it was just misinformation and hype, but looking at it now, it is indeed true.

That said, Southampton did spend £1000m to reward the team.

Otherwise, why apologize and offer to accept punishment?
The FA also showed high efficiency this time. On the afternoon after Southampton apologized, they held an impromptu high-level meeting and made a judgment. Considering that Southampton is a newcomer and a first-time offender, Southampton was given a verbal warning without fines as appropriate.

Just kidding, just the day before yesterday it was announced that I received a donation of 200 million pounds from someone, and I fined him in the blink of an eye, are you embarrassed?

Southampton immediately announced that they would accept the FA's punishment and promised not to commit another crime, but Sun Yue once again vaguely expressed Southampton's attitude at the press conference, that is, the team was suppressed by the giants.

The outside media also like this kind of role positioning very much, that is, Manchester United and Arsenal, which are at the top of the English professional league pyramid. The two giants joined hands to suppress the small team Southampton, which is developing rapidly.

As a result, Southampton was cast as a tragic role suppressed by the rich teams, while Manchester United and Arsenal became bullying hegemons.

There is no doubt that the underdogs have attracted more sympathy points, and Southampton has almost received overwhelming support in public opinion.

"How much people like to reward, that's their business, what does it have to do with you Manchester United?"

"I want to question Manchester United and Arsenal, can you guarantee that you have not evaded taxes?"

"The FA should look into the financial situation of these two teams!"

"Southampton is doing well, dare to admit your mistakes, and take responsibility. Don't be afraid of the suppression of the giants. We support you!"

"Yes, supporting Southampton has long disliked the two hegemonic players, Manchester United and Arsenal."

"Come on, Southampton, strive to be promoted to the Premier League as soon as possible, kill them!"

Southampton's top star Zlatan Ibrahimovic also expressed his dissatisfaction with Manchester United and Arsenal's practices in an interview with The Times, and explained the whole thing.

"Our boss rewarded the team with a lot of money, mainly hoping that the team can work hard and wash away the decline at the beginning of the season. In fact, we did not win the game because of huge bonuses. Each of us worked very hard to win every confrontation."

"After this incident, everyone in the locker room saw the truth of the incident and became more united. This incident did not dampen our enthusiasm and aggressiveness. On the contrary, it made us more motivated."

"Ferguson and Arsene Wenger said we played hard for the money, but we will prove we are not."

"We hope to be able to draw these two teams in the FA Cup, because we will use facts to prove that even if there is no bonus, we will still give our best, and a Southampton team that plays with all their strength has the strength to beat any opponent."

"Even if they are Manchester United, they are Arsenal!"

Ibrahimovic's remarks were immediately unanimously supported and affirmed by Southampton fans and players.

As the saying goes, cutting off people's wealth is like killing their parents.

After finally encountering a rich boss with generous rewards, who would not be angry if he was messed up by Manchester United and Arsenal?
Neymar also expressed his opinion on WeChat, saying that the team is currently united and hopes to challenge a strong enemy in the FA Cup.

Captain Adam Lallana even issued a challenge to Manchester United and Arsenal to be careful.

"You better not draw us in the FA Cup!"

No one thought that it was originally a violation by Southampton, but under the public relations and operation of the news department, the whole world felt that this was a move by a wealthy team to suppress a low-level league team.

Southampton, on the other hand, was portrayed by the media as a brave man who defies power and won the hearts of fans.

Entering September, the turmoil stopped temporarily, but Southampton quickly attracted the attention of the media again.

Through the help of Kesh Harris, Southampton signed a sponsorship contract with Citibank, with a total value of 700 million pounds. This is also the highest jersey sponsorship that can be obtained in the League One and the Championship. Even more than half of the Premier League teams are not as good as Southampton.

At the press conference, the CEO of Citibank also stated that there is a one-year renewal clause in the contract. If Southampton is upgraded next year, Citibank's sponsorship payment will be further increased.

After signing a heavy sponsorship contract, Southampton's first game in September ushered in the first round of the English League Championship in the lower leagues. The opponent was Swindon, also from the League One.

The Saints played at home and continued their vigor of defeating Charlton last night, beating Swindon 5-0 at home.

Three days later, at St. Mary's Stadium again, Southampton once again defeated the visiting northern team Rochdale 6:1 at home.

With a big win over their opponents in three consecutive games, Southampton has been in the limelight for a while, and has received continuous attention and unanimous appreciation from the British domestic media.

While Southampton's performance improved greatly, and they beat their opponents one after another, Yang Huan appeared on the campus of the University of Southampton.

This time, he challenged all the students in the University of Southampton!
　Thanks to [Liu Xinyu], [Feixu's Track], [Landing￥Rooting] and [Uladino] for their rewards!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)