Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Ownership Structure of Football Clubs

Thursday 26 January 2023 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Government do not assess individual football clubs' ownership arrangements.
  • Government response to the Fan-Led Review calls for tests of new owners and directors to ensure football club sustainability.
  • Plans for reform including a regulator to protect fans and communities will be detailed in an upcoming White Paper.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Nicola Richards
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

No specific event mentioned, but a broader concern about football club governance and sustainability.

Question

What steps she is taking to review the ownership structure of football clubs. The Government do not assess the ownership arrangements with individual clubs.

Answer from Stuart Andrew

The Government response to the recommendations made in the independent Fan-Led Review of Football Governance sets out our view that tests of new owners and directors are needed to ensure the future sustainability of football clubs and the stability of the game in total.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific steps or timeline for review was not provided, only general statement on need for tests of new owners and directors.

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Q2 Nicola Richards
Culture, Media & Sport
Context

Thousands of West Bromwich Albion fans are concerned about the owner's actions, including a £5 million loan from the club and a high-interest £20 million loan secured against the club's name and stadium.

Question

Will my right hon. Friend bring forward the Government's response to the Fan-Led Review and introduce a regulator to give fans the power to stop owners abusing the club's assets in this way and to penalise owners whose business decisions are not in the best interests of the football club?

Answer from Stuart Andrew

We will set out our plans for reform in the White Paper, which will be published in the next few weeks and will include strong action on owners and directors to ensure that they are suitable custodians for clubs and to avoid harm to fans and local communities such as she has described.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not commit to introducing a regulator explicitly, only stated plans for reform in the upcoming White Paper.

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Q3 Clive Efford Lab Eltham and Chislehurst
Context

There are ongoing negotiations between the English Football League and the Premier League around parachute payments, which create a financial imbalance. Fourteen premier league clubs may not move on this issue as they are most likely to fall into the championship.

Question

Sustainable ownership in the long term can only be achieved if we sort out football finance. There are negotiations going on at the moment between the English Football League and the Premier League around the issue of parachute payments, which create a financial imbalance, particularly in the championship. Will the Government act on this issue?

Answer from Stuart Andrew

We have had extensive engagement with both the EFL and the Premier League, encouraging them to get on with the negotiations. Sometimes they have progressed and sometimes they have stalled, but I am pleased to say that they have been progressing somewhat more rapidly in recent weeks—I think the prospect of the coming White Paper may have encouraged that—and we hope they will come up with a solution that will bring financial stability to the whole of the pyramid.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not commit to government action, only stated encouragement for ongoing negotiations and expectation of progress through the upcoming White Paper.

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