In 2020 the Manchester United star Marcus Rashford successfully persuaded the UK government to reverse its stance on the provision of vouchers for free meals to children in poorer families during the school holidays. Rashford's experience of poverty during his own childhood motivated his campaign and his status as a football star gave him the platform to effect change at the highest level. Although football is organized around clubs and national teams, the footballers themselves are the celebrities. They have the power to pull in spectators and to gain the support of media and the general public. Players have taken a leading role in the fight against racism, not just in football but in society more generally. The practice of “taking the knee” before the start of matches in support of the Black Lives Matter movement highlighted the symbolic importance of football and the players themselves as a force for social change.

A club's success is dependent on the acquisition and deployment of skilled talent, encompassing coaches and support staff as well as players. As Szymanski observes, “The main activity of a professional football club is the acquisition of playing talent” (Szymanski 2015: 29). This is an expensive activity, and “since 1992, the average cost of a player has risen 565%” (Tomkins et al.: 10). Transfer fees have continued to rise, as have wages. Accounts for 2018/19 showed that total income in the Championship was L796 million but the wages paid were L855 million.

Assessing the skill level of any one player is no easy matter, however. Agents put together videos featuring a player's outstanding moments, but these are no guide to how a player will perform over a gruelling season. Football is a team sport and it is not easy to estimate how a player will fit into a team and whether they will be a disruptive influence in the dressing room. Some players turn out to be injury prone, but that is difficult to forecast, although sometimes clubs will take a risk on a player with an injury record who can be bought at a discount and whose problems might be resolved with better medical attention.

As transfer fees and wages rise relative to inflation, clubs have attempted to become more sophisticated in the judgements they make about players.