Inspired by Everton FC, editor Nick Reeve argues that it’s time to make working for a sports organisation good for your retirement.
A warning for all non-football fans: this is a football-themed Friday Takeaway. But stick with it, as it’s also about pensions.
The football season has started, with the Premier League officially kicking off next Friday. Of course, football never really went away, especially if you were following (as I was) the exploits of the England team at the women’s European Championships. Chloe Kelly for prime minister, I say.
As has long been the mantra at Pensions Expert, there is Always a Pensions Angle, so it was interesting to see the retirement and football industries meet in the news this week that Everton FC has received a Living Pension accreditation from the Living Wage Foundation.
Several professional football clubs have been accredited for committing to paying a living wage to their staff – including, I was pleased to see, the mighty Arsenal – but Everton is the first to have extended this to pension savings. The accreditation means the club will pay all its staff well above the statutory minimum contribution to ensure they receive at least £2,950 into their pension pot every year (pro-rated for part-time workers).
In an era of eye-watering wages, bloated transfer fees and frankly ludicrous sponsorship deals, it is nice to see at least some level of financial support for the back office and matchday staff that are essential to any sporting organisation. Especially given the importance of pension adequacy, as we have been discussing in recent weeks.
Football is well overdue a rebalancing in terms of finances. Followers of Sheffield Wednesday and Morecambe (as well as an upsetting number of other struggling clubs) will know all too well the profound impact that financial distress causes to a football club and its community.
I would love to see more football clubs, and other sports clubs for that matter, take the Living Wage Foundation’s model to heart and use the enormous television and sponsorship income they receive to ensure that all their staff earn a decent living and can save for the future.
My guess is that Everton won’t be challenging for the Premier League title on the pitch (although stranger things have happened, eh, Leicester City fans?) but for now they do seem to be winning the Premier League of Pensions. It’s about time other clubs started to make that a bit more competitive.
Nick Reeve is editor of Pensions Expert
This editorial initially appeared in Pensions Expert’s Friday Takeaway email, summarising the biggest news of the week and the latest appointments. To sign up, please register for free.
