Theboss

Sorry but I think you are missing the point. Never mind.

Will this upgrade give them the £150k of extra revenue they need from sponsors? Like I say it is the elephant in the room and you like many are ignoring it. Fact is the promoters are right to not accept the BT deal, however from here whatever they do I believe they are in a no win situation and many will struggle to survive if they run as per the current team strength rules.

The elephant in the room that no one is talking about is if the clubs accept the BT offer how will those clubs the bridge the financial gap between the £120k plus they received from sky last season to the £6k they will potentially receive this season.... Plus on top of that two meetings where they will potentially bring in less income as they are being forced to lower their admission to £10? In my opinion this is what is stopping the clubs signing and I can not say I blame them. So what happens if they do not accept the TV deal? Well I would hope they have a back up plan for PPV broadcasting, and if they don't then I can see teams starting 4 or 5 points lower than the 42.5 point limit as they look to cut costs, possibly putting two national league riders at reserve. Shame all of this wasn't thought through prior to AGM. Hindsight was not required, just some business acumen.

This has the makings of a premiership team. I predict now that some championship teams start the season with a stronger 1-7 than premiership teams!

I have sympathy for the promotions who want to get a deal done, however you have to wonder how they ever got into this ridiculous scenario of not having the deal done before the AGM. Would look really stupid if the league had to meet up again and bring in new rules to try and lower costs.

Whilst I like Lewis and really wish him the best of luck, I honestly do not know why he wants to continue to put his neck on the line after so many serious accidents. Maybe he should take it as a sign to stop racing if he can not afford to buy equipment. My advice is to Jack it in, the chance of being a world champ is gone and he is still young enough to make a successful career in another trade that has far less risks and will give him an income all year round.

True, but in those years they had SKY TV money as a safety net. From what I hear their is potentially be no deal in 2018 with sky or BT.

I had a proposal for PPV live streaming before I left the BSPA. It was when I was worried about the sky TV deal not being renewed last time around. 5 years later and words fail me if this is not a back up option to a BT sport deal not being concluded this season.

This news does not surprise me, however it does surprise me that the premiership clubs have gone into 2018 without reducing costs. I estimate they will have a big financial hole to fill by June and some urgent cost cutting measures will need to be introduced.

I would say he is just being realistic about the situation. Shame others can't not be.

Some great questions and ones which get harder and harder to answer with each year that goes by. In truth social media is now a big selling point and Tai for example is at the top of his game in that respect. The clubs need to follow his lead.

Mark Alexander now resides abroad and rarely visits the speedway. He is one of my closest friends and can not see why he would be tempted. However, i am sure there are many company's out there wishing to get on board. Robin is a great guy with good connections and a strong business acumen. I wish him success and hope his involvement at the club does not just stop at just at attracting new sponsors.

The club are clearly looking for a new main team sponsor according to Robins post. I wonder why Trucks R us are not renewing? Could Roger Warnes Transport take the opportunity up once again?

I believe last years live television rights were paid by Sky TV even though it was shown on BT sport.

I believe you have read the situation well. I do however believe every club will be up the creek without a paddle this year unless they find a way to fund the large gap left in their finances from the lose of Sky TV money.

Nothing inspiring or revolutionary and certainly a brave move to set a 42.5 point limit in the premiership. I believe 2018 is now a big financial risk for all clubs and it will be interesting to see how they will make up for the lost sky TV income in their budgets (for example will they increase ticket prices). I wish all the clubs luck in making a success of 2018.

I will reserve final judgement until press release but if this is the case then the 8 existing teams did not do enough to encourage them up, for example lowering the points limit so they could get a competitive team or bringing in a pay cap so they were not taking such a big financial risk .

I noticed that. Could it be some are not happy about the SCB verdict and do not want the BSPA promoting it?

Agreed with most of that although I do sincerely hope change is coming for 2018

Agreed, 99% of sponsors across speedway are gained simply because they are a fan or a friend of a promoter who owes them a favour through other business. It would be nice if speedway could gain sponsors because of the prestige and popularity but that is a long way off.

Yes so probably a Poole asset now as I am sure Rick transferred all of them to Matt Ford.

Having just read this week's speedway star I have to give credit to Phil for encapsulating the problems the BSPA presently face. I have often criticised the publication for sitting on the fence but this article is in my opinion what is needed to highlight the issues in public and open up debate further which in turn will hopefully help the sport. I hope more articles will follow in the coming weeks.

I agree with you Phil, however how many of the premiership promoters can you honestly say will see this the same way?

It all sounds rather promising, let's just hope either sky or BT pay up enough money for the TV rights to keep the bank balances of the clubs employing the 7 GP riders above water. Fine balance between sanity and vanity.