UEFA's Financial Fair Play regulations have created a bigger divide between the elite and smaller football clubs, according to a new study.
Europe's governing body introduced FFP in 2012 to try to reign in spending at top clubs and level the playing field -- but the report from the Technical University of Munich says the rules have had the opposite affect.
The study compared the impact of football owners to venture capitalists, and said the regulations provide a disincentive to invest in smaller clubs.
"Investors can break up established structures and thus strengthen competition -- similar to what we have seen with venture capital in economics," co-author Daniel Urban wrote.