Football Regulator: Industry experts call out governance of sport
Over 400 points have been docked from clubs in the English Football League since the Premier League launched in 1992, insight shared with City PM reveals.
It points to an English top flight that has pulled away from the rest of the promotion-relegation pyramid ahead of the introduction of an Independent Football Regulator.
Insight provided by Indigo: Independent Governance, who are one half of the UK’s first “good governance” partnership alongside Southend United, states that a total of 418 points have been deducted from 35 clubs, with 11 relegations and one expulsion coming as a result. The data excludes this season.
There have also been points deductions in the Premier League, however, while Manchester City are awaiting the verdict from claims made by the Premier League relating to 115 charges of financial misconduct and related matters.
Distribution of football finances
Indigo stated that “the Premier League controls how income is distributed to the lower leagues and parachute payments have deepened the financial divide between divisions”, while the firm’s director, David Gracie, said: “Our research shows just how damaging a lack of proper governance has been on the fortunes of so many clubs.”
“Simple governance changes will help improve the financial stability and longevity of teams throughout the country,” Gracie added.
“This is not only for the benefit of individual clubs but also for the fans, local communities and businesses that these clubs are a huge part of.”
The biggest single points deduction since the introduction of the Premier League in 1992 came in the 2008-2009 season, when then-League Two Luton Town were docked 30 points for “financial irregularities and administration issues”.
Football Regulator future
The Football Governance Bill is currently in the Houses of Commons having passed initially through the Lords and will include a State of the Game Report.
This week Indigo and Fair Game will head to league side Wimbledon’s Plough Lane for a conference on governance.
Fair Game’s chief Niall Couper said they “do not believe in sitting on the sidelines”.
“Our ground-breaking conference will put 15 topics under the microscope,” he added. “The aim is to develop solutions for all of them.
“At the top of this list is a new Governance Code for football.”