Did Steve McClaren Get You Fired?

English red-top The Mirror is piling the misery on Steve McClaren. They’re claiming that poor old Second Choice Steve’s failure to get England to Euro 2008 is directly responsible for JJB Sports axing 800 jobs, based on lost replica shirt sales profits.

Basically if England were in Swissaustria this summer, JJB Sports estimate they would have sold £23m worth of England shirts as the whole country united behind the team. But since England aren’t there, JJB will be lucky to sell any shirts at all, so the lines on JJB’s profit graphs all go in the wrong direction.

There’s no doubt England’s absence is a financial blow to all kinds of people. For example, can you imagine how much England branded beer would have been sold this summer? I’m no economist, but I’m guessing lots.

And I’m as angry with McClaren’s bungling as anyone else. He royally screwed up and no mistake.

But to blame him for people losing their jobs? That’s too much. JJBs profits were already down. Even The Mirror articles recognizes that JJB is losing ground to rivals JD Sports and Sports World.

Steve McClaren’s been fired, and that’s what he deserved. But he doesn’t deserve to be made into a hate figure or the scapegoat for people losing their jobs.