CAP THE WAGE.

Professional football was "accepted" in 1885 and the amateurs went their own way. needless to say the northern clubs led the way with lesser known players earning 4 shillings a week and  star players earning as much as £10 a week. Footballers were paid more than general labourers and by 1890 four times as much. As the popularity of the game grew wages increased at a fast rate.

Win bonuses were common, with "extra payments" and expenses added to the wage packet. Over the close season wages were reduced and it would be common for players to get another job.

In 1893 the movement of players between clubs were controlled without the permission of the initial club and this was known as "retain and transfer". This enabled a club to retain a player against his will, at the end of his contract, even though he wanted to move.

A maximum wage cap was introduced which encouraged players such as John Cameron of Everton and Jimmy Ross of Preston to form the Association Footballers Union in 1898. It quickly gathered 250 members but was not recognised by the FA or the FLeague. Despite the AFU being in existence the maximum wage was capped at £4 per week (equivalent of £230 pw now) in 1901.

In 1961 Jimmy Hill called out his professional footballers if the FLeague did not abolish the maximum wage set at £20 in the winter and £17 in the summer. Tom Finney was known as the Preston Plumber and that was his job in the close season to supplement his income.

In the 1920s the wage was £9 and in 1953 only £15 in winter and £13. This did not please Stanley Matthews.

To the consternation of the Pools' Companies, a strike was due for January 21st 1961, but it was averted after various inputs from club owners such as Bob Lord, the Burnley "butcher", who conceded that the maximum wage should be banned.
Near neighbour, Jim Wilkinson of Blackburn Rovers, did not agree and stated that even a maximum wage of £30 a week would cripple many clubs.

Ted Hill, Chairman of the TUC, encouraged the public to boycott matches, but when the super star Stanley Matthews joined the strikers and supported picket lines around the clubs, the League management persuaded the clubs to abolish the maximum wage.

This also eventually saw the end of the "retain and transfer" system after George Eastham, later an 1966 World Cup England international, was not allowed to leave Newcastle United despite being out of contract. Jimmy Hill and two union representatives met at the Ministry of Labour along with Alan Hardaker, the League representative, Joe Richards of Barnsley and Joe Mears of Chelsea. The PFA prevailed and the strike was off.

56 years ago Johnny Haynes at Fulham became the first player in England to earn £100 a week.

Chris Sutton at Blackburn Rovers picked up £10,000 a week.
By 2009 Tevez earned £200,000 and he now earns thrice that with Shanghai Shenhua in China.

Lionel Messi is now earning £1 million a week at least having signed a new four-year contract worth £54.8m pa. Well deserved? Who knows! Ronaldo probably does.