Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
Now you may have seen my posts in regards to my new trading company ‘Real Football Man’ Investments. If you have not then it’s connected to the new trading platform known as Football INDEX
The long and the short of is you can buy and sell footballers on the stock market as if they were shares, you don’t bet on results you bet on the players. A real novel way of making some money I’m sure you will agree.
My Portfolio is slowly making some profit after a shaky start (thanks Zlatan) but my good friend Taxi for Maicon (who also writes an excellent blog under the same name, which you can find here) has written this excellent guide as to how the really get the best out of your portfolio
So without further ado let’s hail that Taxi For Maicon as he shows us how the world of Football INDEX is really done.
It is more difficult than I thought to write an article about Football Index without it sounding like an advert or a press release. So I’m just going to come clean. I’m hooked. So hooked that just writing it down is a huge weight off my mind.
My habit started as a £20 gamble on a new idea that had piqued my attention. A stock market for footballers? It seemed so simple, so obvious and so damned attractive. I couldn’t believe there was no such thing already.
Buy shares in players and their value rises and falls depending how many people buy into them.
That’s basically it. And because I know football better than I know my wife, it was a guaranteed money-spinner. Not even a gamble. Surely?
You can also earn money if your players finish top of the media-based “Buzz” list and through player promotions from the “Squad”. I’m not going to explain all this because you can do it in your own time and I need to hurry up and get rid of Robert Lewandowski, so to speak.
I checked in on my £20 a week later and, sure enough, I still had it. If this was an accumulator, I’d have lost it twice. Instead I had a profit…. £1.10. It’s nothing to write home about but it’s higher than interest, so maybe I was looking at it all wrong. Maybe it was more of a long-term option than a get-rich-quick scheme.
In went another £50. Now I felt like a big-hitter.
Weekly checks on the app became daily, then hourly and, gradually I was getting a feel for the way Football Index works. By then I was checking back in every single time anything happens; a goal, a transfer bid, a team sheet even.
But it was also hitting home that some folk have thousands ploughed into each star player, so for every 10p I was earning, they were gaining something like £100!
Needless to say, more money went in and I now have a healthy profit on my investment. Not life-changing but I am also gradually working out how to get the best from my funds. So here’s a few pointers from what I’ve sussed out so far…
Football Index is first and foremost about expectations
Speculation is what drives players up the index. Potential for big moves and high fees is the main reason people buy into someone. Antoine Griezmann and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have enjoyed huge rises of late having been linked to English clubs. Be very careful, though, because when that talk dries up, your man will sink like a stone.
For instance, Dimitri Payet soared to double his value on the announcement he wanted out of West Ham. It was the start of the January window and you thought it was going to be saga central. There would be a transfer tug of war and his stock would go through the roof. But when it quickly became evident he wanted to return to Marseilles, everyone jumped ship and he was nearly back at his original value within the day.
The Premier League is where it’s at
Global stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo may hog the UEFA awards but Football Index is a British site with British customers so, if they are not looking like moving to the Premier League, then the chances are they will not be leading the market. I was rather excited to be in on Neymar when he singlehandedly won Brazil the Olympic gold medal. Yet his share price stayed exactly where it was.
That’s not to say you can’t cash in on some epic rises from European stars at times. They will also sneak up in value when coming up against an English team. Bayern’s Douglas Costa, Thomas Muller and Lewandowski all enjoyed big rises ahead of the Arsenal game. But remember, if the reality does not outweigh the expectation their price will drop off quickly.
Attack, attack, attack
You know what they say: “Sex sells”. Well, so do goals. You have to go a long, long way down the Index to find a defensive-minded player. Even further to find an actual defender. Joe Hart is currently somewhere in the low 30s and that’s even taking into account he is an England star with a big chance of a return to the Premier League in the summer.
Next is N’Golo Kante way down around 65th-70th. He does enjoy the odd bump but just bear in mind that defending is not the glamorous part of the game and not where the big bucks are spent. That said, that could all change over summer, so you could pick up a bargain in Southampton’s Virgil Van Dijk due to his potential for a mega-money move – and the fact he is currently injured.
Early bird beats the herd
I’m about 10 per cent up overall having enjoyed some good rises from Sergio Aguero, Anthony Martial and expecting a big boost from Mesut Ozil.
But ultimately, with this fledgling idea constantly gathering users the whole platform is generally on the rise. Players still fall in value and you have to gamble responsibly but Football Index is an immersive and fun alternative to betting.
The best way to enjoy big returns on your investment might simply be just to get involved. If the Index really catches the public imagination, it could sky-rocket. And you’ll be furious you were not involved nearer the start.
Thanks Taxi (if that is your real name) and best of luck with your own portfolio
If you would like to write a guest article on any matters to do with the wide world of Football then please get in touch – you can email me at – realfootballmanwordpress@gmail.com
Taxi For Maicon is a Tottenham Hotspur blog. No wild speculation, no knee-jerk idiocy. Just honest opinion, news and interviews from a lifelong Spurs fan.
Please follow @Taxi_For_Maicon on Twitter for more hints and tips on Football Index.
