Government To Meet UEFA As It Prepares New Football Regulator
3 min read
The Government is set to meet with Europe's top football body in the coming weeks as it prepares to introduce an independent football regulator.
Sports minister Steph Peacock is expected to hold talks with officials from The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) before Christmas, PoliticsHome understands. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport did not comment.
The meeting comes amid Government plans to significantly reform the English Football League through legislation called the Football Governance Bill.
At the heart of the proposals is establishing a new independent regulator, which Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy has described as a "top priority" for her department.
The new regulator will be responsible for overseeing the top five leagues of English football with the core aims of improving financial sustainability of clubs and protecting their heritage.
Plans for a new independent regulator enjoy broad cross-party support and were first introduced by the previous Conservative government before the General Election.
Calls for an independent regulator have gained greater momentum in recent years, particularly after a failed 2021 bid to create a breakaway 'European Super League' caused outrage. The owners of the English clubs involved in the plan — Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham — were accused of greed and turning their backs on English fans at a time when some lower league teams were on the brink of collapse.
The move to bring in a regulator has not been wholly welcomed, however, with ministers being warned that it could amount to undue government interference in football.
PoliticsHome reported in April that ministers had been warned the plans could risk England’s participation in international competitions and the country's elite clubs from taking part in Europe's most prestigious club competition, the Champions League.
Last month, Theodore Theodoridis, general secretary of UEFA, reportedly warned Prime Minister Keir Starmer there are “specific rules” which “guard against” the state or politicians interfering in sport. “The ultimate sanction for which would be excluding the federation from UEFA and teams from competition," said the letter leaked to The Sunday Times.
The Government has rejected the claim that the new regulator will impact English participation in UEFA competitions, or the England national team's future qualification for EURO 2028.
Football has emerged as a major issue early in the new Labour Government's premiership as tensions grow between clubs in the Barclays Premier League.
Nandy was set to hold talks with Premier League clubs on Wednesday after a tribunal upheld two complaints filed by Manchester City against the Premier League relating to rules covering commercial deals. The ruling has led to claims that the country's highest-ranking football clubs could be heading for 'civil war'.
Manchester City face 115 separate charges relating to financial fair play rules in a legal case which threatens to engulf the English game and which could have severe ramifications for the current Premier League champions.
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