Manchester City have just won their fifth Premier League title in six seasons, the culmination of a lavishly funded project to boost the prestige of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family. The Saudi monarchy has bought their domestic rivals Newcastle United and the rulers of Qatar own Paris Saint-Germain.

The financial gulf between the wealthiest clubs and their rivals is wider than ever before, depriving many national leagues of any element of surprise. But members of the self-perpetuating oligarchy at the top of the game are still looking for ways to strengthen their economic advantage. How did a sport deeply rooted in working-class communities become a multibillion-dollar industry where financial doping is the norm, and is there anything that can be done to reverse the process?

We spoke to Jonathan Wilson, a football columnist for the Guardian and the Observer, about the current state of the football industry. His books include Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics and Two Brothers: The Life and Times of Bobby and Jackie Charlton. The following is an edited transcript from Jacobin Radio’s Long Reads podcast. You can listen to the interview here.