Exclusive: Arsenal and Chelsea to receive Met Police invoice after ‘£100m’ claim
Premier League clubs should work together with the Met Police to overcome recent complaints about matchday spending, according to Keith Hackett.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that clubs such as Arsenal and Chelsea deserve the right to have their games policed, but not at a cost to the Met.
This comes as Mikel Arteta’s side seal the signings of Martin Zubimendi for £60million [BBC Sport] and Noni Madueke for £48.5m [BBC Sport], while the Blues have signed Jamie Gittens, Joao Pedro, and Liam Delap.
Met Police chief hits out at Premier League spending
Speaking to The Sunday Times (6 July), Met chief, Sir Mark Rowley, said it was “particularly astounding that the Met is still being asked to pick up 80 per cent of the £24million annual cost of policing football matches in London, including the Premier League’s.”
He then cited that, with seven Premier League clubs in the capital, likely leaning towards Chelsea, Arsenal, and to a lesser extent Tottenham, some of these clubs can afford to spend £100million on a single player, with their wages “equivalent to more than 600 constables”.
Clubs only pay towards the cost of officers who enter their grounds, with the Met doing so much more around the city, such as patrolling the streets and transport hubs on match days, taking them away from other duties.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, when asked about Arsenal and Chelsea’s spending, former referee Hackett said: “There’s no question that he has a good point. Looking at it from a balanced approach, Premier League clubs generate a huge amount of tax that is paid into the government.
“£24million is a drop in the ocean. So, what I think should happen is that the police should not have to pay to offer a service to Premier League clubs.
“They should say how much it is, and out of the receipts, that should be wiped out. If the Met Police put in an invoice for the policing of a particular match, the club ought to be able to set aside that sort of money against their tax revenue.
“We’ve seen huge amounts of money spent, but football clubs deserve the right to receive a service that is appropriate to them, and if that’s policing the ground, so be it. I think this is a matter which can be resolved by this tax arrangement.”