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Europe France and football
歐洲 法國和足球
The Swedish model
瑞典模式
A football club mirrors many French anxieties
足球俱樂部折射出許多法式憂慮
A literary sensation too
濃郁的文學氣息
When the Qataris last year bought Paris SaintGermain (PSG), the French capital’s premier football club, it touched a raw enough nerve. This is a country, after all, which once declared yogurt-making a strategic industry in need of protection from foreign takeovers. Liberation, a left-wing newspaper, denounced the small Gulf state’s “ferocious appetite for power and influence”, and warned that “bling-bling football” was on its way to France. Nearly 18 months later, many French anxieties—over wealth, taxes, capitalism or free trade—are exemplified by PSG’s fortunes.
去年卡塔爾人收購了法國目前最炙手可熱的足球俱樂部——巴黎圣日耳曼(PSG) 隊后，再一次觸動了原本就脆弱的法國人的神經。畢竟這個國家曾經為了避免異國人士收購一個制作酸奶的產業，而采取過戰略保護措施。法國左翼媒體——《解放報》譴責小海灣國家的行為是“對政權和相關影響都是極大地沖擊”，并且強烈聲明只有在法國，俱樂部才會“閃耀著璀璨光輝”。然而在18個月后，在PSG被收購引發并加強了法國人民對財產，稅收以及資本主義自由貿易的擔心。
Short of the sort of cash that has been sloshing around other European football leagues, the French have traditionally exported talent, often to England. Stadiums are rarely full; no French club has won the European Champions’ League for nearly 20 years. Now the country has become an importer too. Supplied with a fat chequebook by the Qatar Investment Authority, a sovereign wealth fund, PSG has gone on a shopping spree. After bagging an Italian manager, it splashed out on two Brazilians, an Argentinian, an Italian and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a Swedish striker whose father was a Bosnian Muslim and mother a Croat.
伴隨著法國足球界流動資金短缺，那些有天賦的法國足球運動員總是成為其他國家的聯賽足球外援，比如去英超踢球。足球廠很少有客滿的時候，而在近20年中，沒有任何一家法國俱樂部贏得了歐洲冠軍聯賽冠軍。現如今，這個國家也已然成為了一個進口大國。與卡塔爾投資局——一個財大氣粗的財團達成合作協議，PSG俱樂部也開始了隊外援的瘋狂引進計劃。在引進了一名意大利管理人員，他開始了瘋狂的人才引進計劃，隨后引進了兩名巴西，一名阿根廷以及一名意大利外援。除此之外，瑞典前鋒伊布也被法足聯收入囊中，他的父親是一名波斯尼亞穆斯林，而其母親是克羅地亞人。
To French eyes, the yearly salary reportedly promised to Mr Ibrahimovic—some 14m ($18m), said the French press in August, or closer to 9m according to Le Parisien newspaper last month—was shocking. The French like wealth only when it is discreet and do not care much for the fast cars and flashy nightlife that seems to go with high-level football. They elected a president, Francois Hollande, a Socialist who once said he didn’t like the rich and promised during his campaign to tax salaries of over 1m at 75%. Predictably, politicians decried the footballer’s extravagant pay. “Indecent”, given the economic crisis, declared Jercme Cahuzac, the budget minister.
根據法國媒體的相關消息，伊布的年薪約有1400萬歐元（約為1800萬美元），或者就像《巴黎人報》上月報道的接近900萬歐元，但無論是哪一種都足夠讓人震驚。法國人在金錢方面還是很節儉的 不過多關注于高級轎車和浮華的夜生活，似乎看起來全部付諸于高水平的足球了。而他們選舉出來的新任總統——社會黨人Francois Hollande在競選的時候稱自己不喜歡富人，并承諾一旦當選將會對年薪超過100萬歐元的收入人群征收邊際稅率高達75%的所得稅。可以預料得到，政客們將會譴責球星高昂的收入，預算部長Jercme Cahuzac稱“這是不妥的”并將加劇經濟危機。
Parliament has just approved the new top tax rate. French business is dismayed. But it will do little to dampen footballers’ take-home pay: the Qataris are guaranteeing Mr Ibrahimovic’s salary, net. Whether Parisians can overcome their distaste for the vulgarisation of sport and the inequalities that such largesse brings will depend partly on performance on the pitch. So far, Mr Ibrahimovic has scored nine goals in eight league matches; PSG tops the league. Should his feet fail him, though, the Swede may just find other ways to charm the French. On October 22nd his autobiography was shortlisted for Sweden’s smartest literary prize—just the sort of non-financial success that Parisians truly cherish.
國會也通過了新的最高稅率。整個國內的商界都為之沮喪。但是卻不能對足球運動員的收入造成任何的影響：卡塔爾財團已經保證了伊布的凈工資。由于足球運動員收入仍然很高，巴黎人就產生了不公平等想法，他們能否客服這些想法就取決于運動員們在球場上的表現了。到目前為止，伊布在本賽季進行的8場聯賽中已打入9粒進球，PSG也位列聯賽排行榜首席。即使伊布表現不佳，踢得不好，但是這位瑞典人將會用他自己的方式在法國星光熠熠。10月22日，他的自傳入選為瑞典最具智慧大獎——而法國人真正珍惜的正是這種非金融式的成功。 翻譯：周穎
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