Private Firm, Public Corporation or Member`s Association – Governance Structures in European Football

Abstract

Based on the analysis of the specific industry environment in which football clubs compete, this paper presents a comparative institutional analysis of three paradigmatic structures of football club governance: classical (privately owned) football firms, modern football corporations (stock corporations with dispersed ownership) and members’ associations with an own legal personality (Verein). The results of the analysis are applied to current developments in German and English football and to recent initiatives of the Football Governing Bodies.