And the more ghastly it looks across the channel, the more the UK looks like a better bet, and the easier and cheaper it is for the UK government to borrow.

BBC: Would euro solution be costly for Treasury?

Like any other business in the UK, a football team could be bought and sold by anyone who could borrow enough money.

CNN: May 18, 2012 -- Updated 1609 GMT (0009 HKT)

To put it in more practical terms, a monetarily and fiscally integrated eurozone should be able to borrow as cheaply and easily as the other major developed economies, namely the UK, US and Japan.

BBC: Eurozone nations�� sovereignty v AAA