Sutcliffe attacks 'obscene' wages

Minister feels fans could be alienated by spiralling salaries

By Lewis Rutledge   Last updated: 1st November 2007   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Sutcliffe attacks 'obscene' wages

Terry: One of the league's highest earners

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Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe has hit out at the 'obscene' wages earned by Premier League players.

Sutcliffe, who took over from Richard Caborn earlier this year, believes fans are becoming alienated by spiralling salaries and high ticket prices.

"Good luck to John Terry but I think it is obscene to be on 150,000 pounds per week," he told a sports industry conference on Thursday.

"Chelsea are 250 million pounds in the red and they may be able to cope with that but it's not the real world. That is not sustainable.

"This year Manchester United increased their season tickets by 13 percent. That's taking the game away from the ordinary grass-roots fans.

"We don't want to be in a position where people are alienated."

Sutcliffe also admitted he was appalled by some of the behaviour he had witnessed by footballers and urged top players to set an example.

"Players should be exposed if they are not acting properly as role models," he said. "I abhor what goes on sometimes."