Rob Hughes writes that, “If England’s Premier League is the barometer of financial health at the top of the international sport, then soccer in 2010 isliving a lie like some of the world banks up to 2009.” Manchester United is saddled with debt, Chelsea is totally beholden to its Russian owner, Roman Abramovich, who says he seeks noreturn — other than trophies — for the $1 billion he has provided the club. But the real story of English soccer is Portsmouth.
Portsmouth has been around since 1898, but it wasdeclared insolvent by a court registrar last week. It owes more than almost $19 million, to the British