A landmark Football Governance Bill confirming the creation of an independent governing body for football has been introduced in the UK Parliament.
Independent football's regulars will prevent breakaway competitions such as the European Super League, strengthen testing for owners and managers and retain backstop powers over financial distribution between the Premier League and the English Football League (EFL). will have authority.
More than three years have passed since a fan-led review called for the introduction of regulators in November 2021. The government announced the regulator's plans in February 2023.
The regulator will be independent from government and the football authorities and will be a “strong and secure organization that revolves around three core objectives: improving the financial sustainability of clubs, ensuring the financial resilience of the league as a whole and safeguarding the heritage of English football.” “Have appropriate authority.''
Plans for Super League in April 2021, in which Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Chelsea tried to join, along with other European clubs, failed, but fan-led reviews have just begun and an independent This only intensified the calls for a new regulatory authority. .
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Under the new law, independent closed competitions such as the European Super League will be blocked.
The Premier League failed again last week to agree a funding package for the EFL as part of a 'New Deal for Football', despite pressure from the Government.
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The bill includes backstop powers for these financial distributions. This means that “if the leagues are unable to agree to a new agreement on the distribution of money, the backstop could be activated to ensure a settlement is reached.”
The new owner and manager will also face “more powerful challenges to prevent the club from falling into the wrong hands”. They could be sacked and prevented from owning a football club if deemed unfit, following Bury and Macclesfield's financial mismanagement.
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This law also states that “It will give fans a greater say in how the club is run.” Prevent owners from changing club names, badges and home shirts. Fan engagement has been named as “central” to the bill, with a number of clubs already setting up fan advisory panels since the fan-led review.
What does the Premier League say?
While acknowledging the need for sustainability, the Premier League expressed “concerns” that the bill would have a negative impact on the competitiveness of English football.
A Premier League statement read: “The Government has consistently said it wants to support the Premier League's continued global success, which generates the funding to sustain the entire football pyramid. Together with our clubs, we have advocated for a proportional structure that allows us to build on our position as the most widely followed league in the world.
“Keeping in mind that the future growth of the Premier League is not guaranteed, we remain concerned about the unintended consequences of the legislation, which could reduce the competitiveness and attractiveness of English football.”
What does EFL say?
The EFL welcomed the bill, with chairman Rick Parry saying he hoped it would be “an important milestone in ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of England's football pyramid”.
Parry said in a statement: “If implemented in the right conditions, this landmark legislation will ultimately provide the independence and independence needed to enable all clubs to survive and thrive in a fair and competitive environment. “Providing input could help fix the game's broken financial model.” ”
EFL Chairman Rick Parry (Visionhaus/Getty Images)
'A remarkable moment for a sport that has resisted outside scrutiny'
analysis from athletic matt slater
It's been almost three years since the Premier League's six richest clubs announced they wanted to play in the European Super League, cementing their position at the top and dealing a dramatic blow to the finances of domestic leagues across the continent. .
It was greed and stupidity that convinced Prime Minister Boris Johnson that he might have the votes to stand up for football's lower and middle classes.
It's been a few months since a government ruled by a man (Rishi Sunak) replaced the woman (Liz Truss) who succeeded Johnson, but good governance and fans of the English Football League club are in for a treat. It was worth the wait. .
It has finally been confirmed that the Sunak government will introduce the Football Governance Bill outlined in the fan-led review commissioned by Mr Johnson in 2021, meaning the sport in England will introduce an independent regulator. means.
It's a remarkable moment for a sport that has long defiantly resisted outside scrutiny, sometimes staggering from success to success, sometimes from crisis to crisis. The Premier League, in particular, strongly opposed interference, withdrew from the English Football League in 1992, and has spent the past 30 years largely ignoring soccer's governing body, the Football Association.
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Will football's yet-to-be-established independent regulator do a better job than the FA in curbing the Premier League's more selfish moments while encouraging self-improvement and noble instincts for excellence? I don't know yet.
However, the FA has never had the head start or set of powers of a regulator. That means a robust licensing system, control of the owner-director test and, most importantly, 'backstop powers' to force a fairer distribution of finances between the Premier League and the Premier League. If the EFL cannot come to an agreement themselves, as they have amply demonstrated in the past.
The last item is the most eye-catching and controversial of the great powers. It's also the clearest sign that this means defeat for Premier League clubs who thought this government didn't have the energy or time to force them into a bigger share. Share their huge media income with other members of the pyramid. That seems like an amazing miscalculation.
Perhaps this means a win for the EFL, and in particular chairman Rick Parry.
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The Premier League's first chief executive and former chief executive of Liverpool, one of the 'Sneaky Six', has fought the good fight to improve financial sustainability throughout the professional game. . Parry hasn't won a match yet, but he leads in points heading into the final round and has gotten more friendly judges to impress.
(Top photo: Rob Pinney/Getty Images)
