The Ballers League is a new football social media division that is being backed by all of your favourite content creators as well as some of the best footballers ever, including former Ballon D’or winner Luis Figo.
With 12 clubs in this six-a-side league managed by the likes of John Terry, Chloe Kelly and rapper Dave, the ballers league is set to make its debut on English televisions after several successful years in Germany. With its sides being decided through an American sports style draft format, sourcing from both the free agency market as well as the non-league parts of the English footballing pyramid. This provides a dilemma for players, which we have seen split opinions online, often these players that are being asked to play in the Ballers League are not making a living playing football, they’re part-time.
The Ballers League provides them with the financial and exposure to most likely be able to quit their day jobs, something everybody would love to do. On the other hand, these players are committed to play for the clubs they currently play for, if a player were to pick up a serious injury in the Ballers League, what would that mean for their club career? What are the potential knock-on effects of this Ballers League?
The financial aspects of the division to me are what is driving players to take the opportunity. All footballers want to play football for their job, and the extra money from this new opportunity may allow players to ultimately realise their dream. So why are some on social media spinning people reaching everything they have ever dreamt of into a bad thing?
Well, it is mostly fans of these National League and North/South sides that are worrying. They are seeing players of the team they love and support all over the country put their fitness and availability at risk for what is effectively a game show. Players are putting themselves and their careers first, which is echoed by Gateshead player Jean Belehouan. He was one of these National League players who has chosen to partake in the Ballers League and when replying to criticism on X has said “Personally doing it for the exposure for my brand off the pitch, and financially too.”
This is leading fans to think players are selfish, which, in a world as competitive as football, they have to be.
The financial increase the Baller League offers to players will also have a follow-on effect on players’ expectations in their pay from the clubs. Say the Ballers League does what a lot of players are hoping for and it provides the platform for them to be able to show off their skills and earn a move to a club providing better opportunities in the game.
When these players are going to negotiate a contract, they are going to be expecting the pay to be higher than they would if the extra money from their new 6-a-side adventure was not there. Clubs will not be able to afford to pay this a lot of the time, we have seen the financial trouble in the lower tiers more than ever in the aftermath of Covid, and this will undoubtedly provide a potential warp in the market.
Players will become dependent on the income from the Ballers League, as anyone would, so may opt to stay at a lower level, lower-paying club who allows them to play in the Ballers League rather than progress their careers up the footballing pyramid.
This will cause issues predominantly in League Two, the money in the fourth tier is not really enough, which is why a lot of the clubs source their transfers from the non-professional leagues. These players are often able to pick up on cheap wages, but the Ballers League will change this. Professional footballers are not allowed to play in the Ballers League, and everyone in League Two is a professional footballer, they’re all full-time.
Taking this recruitment method away from clubs will inevitably leave the clubs either over-paying for talent they cannot afford, or even leading the National League to become stronger than League Two. As though it may seem crazy to say the fifth tier becoming a more appealing division than the fourth, in recent times we have seen the clubs that come up from said fifth tier do exceptionally well in the fourth tier. Such as Wrexham winning back to back promotions and Stockport reaching the Playoff final and being crowned League Two champions in the two seasons after winning the National League.
With the appeal of still being able to participate in the Ballers League as well as play football at a similar standard, it would not surprise me if players opt to sign for clubs in the National League rather than League Two, especially as the National League talent in the Ballers League you would expect would be some of the best players on the show. This not only means that they will most likely be paid more, but will also draw the most attention to themselves in the games with their technical quality presumably shining through.
Of course we cannot be sure on anything at the moment, the Ballers League has not even started yet. We do not know how much these players are being paid to participate in it, but we do know that at least some of them are being paid. With the financial pulling power to attract names like Gary Lineker, KSI and Robert Pires to partake, as well as a TV deal with Sky Sports, it is probably safe to assume the Ballers League has some cash to throw about.
It is certainly interesting to think about how this, combined with the efforts of National League clubs to get an extra promotion spot into the EFL, will affect the structure and future of England’s fourth footballing tier.
