How the Premier League has made controversy marketable

Jacque Talbot

• Updated: 14 Mar 2024 13:51 GMT
• 4 min read

Once celebrated as the epitome of football, the Premier League has gradually become the same old tired affair overshadowed by a surge in controversies.

In what was once a showcase of the best in the game, the league has taken a detour to something closer to a soap drama than a sports competition. There is a huge challenge of immersing in the actual gameplay amid the benign talking points that have encircled the league.

Fuelled by the broadcasters, Premier League fans have succumbed to an obsession with controversy that has left what was initially so great about the league almost entirely diminished. The conversations surrounding agendas, Var, referees, and corruption have veered so far from the actual competition that it now resembles a drama script, full of heroes, villains, managers, and referees.

This fixation on the controversy has rendered the league, for me at least, unpalatable. Indeed, the incessant discourse about decisions and conspiracy theories, though perhaps just about tolerable in social media, is exacerbated by pundits who further fuel the fire. Sky Sports and TNT Sports have seen what gets engagement. Everything talked about on the show must be contentious - the great big talking point will be higher on the list than the superb debut of a youngster or unique tactical setup by the coach.

West Ham are denied a penalty in injury time ❌

Should VAR have given the handball?#UEL pic.twitter.com/aKYDC6oWZj

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) March 7, 2024

Shock, the man who shouldn’t even be on the pitch scoring the winner

The PGMOL want the Gunners to win

— Tom Little (@TomL1ttle_) March 9, 2024

One strong take about a Var decision from a pundit then it's packaged as a clip and sent across social media to rile up fans. The focus is seldom on beautiful goals or tactics and analysis anymore, it’s whether Alexis Mac Allister dived or it was a penalty. Every Super Sunday seems incomplete without a sensational talking point.

PGMOL trying their best to deny Liverpool the title is it! pic.twitter.com/B1GwaMeDUy

— Jonny Donaghy (@DonaghyJonny) March 10, 2024

Last weekend's episode featuring Jeremy Doku became the final straw for me - almost an entire game passed without incident until a high boot stole the headlines. Man City fans think it wasn’t a foul, Liverpool fans believe it was common assault. (No one even cares about what’s right, it’s about what benefits their team.) It was a great that signified the end of an era between the two head coaches, but it's Var once again that takes centre-stage.

You have to ask yourself, is this even fun anymore? I don't think so. I can't handle a full 90 minutes anymore and it's been like this for this whole year. It's built up and built up and now Premier League football is just a loud noise with referees and coaches as the stars. I have not missed it one bit and I’m safe to assume that I am not the only one who isn't sick of the constant talking about the game rather than the game itself.

The constant tinkering of the game itself mixed with the VAR and the discourse around the PGMOL and everything else is too much to bear. Only when you pull your head out do you realise what a complete waste of time the whole thing is. This isn't about football anymore, it's a generator of clicks of engagement that we're all falling for, and even some to relish at this point.