Beveree Chat

For anyone interested, there's a Fair Game event tomorrow Monday 30th - Fair Game are working to stop football clubs going bust and to help them work with supporters and improve local communities. Event open to all to hear what's happening.


On 30 October, Fair Game will be hosting a panel at an event at Birkbeck University. The event will be in Lecture Theatre B01 in the Clore Management Centre at the University and will start at 6:30pm. A panel of myself, Finance expert Christina Philippou, representatives from a consortium looking to buy Reading, and leading politicians will discuss the future of football. And we’re thrilled to announce we’ll also be joined by former Deputy Prime Minister and and DCMS Select Committee member Damien Green MP. All under the watchful eye of chair Graham Miller, the former anchor of ITV Sport. The event promises to be a great opportunity to share ideas and network - or just hear what's happening. If you’d like to attend please RSVP media@fairgameuk.co.uk with which club(s) you support (good to be on the Fair Game mailing list if not already www.fairgameuk.org ).

This week's King's Speech announced a bill for an independent football regulator to help solve the crisis in some clubs' ownership, clubs going bust and disconnection with local communities. Some clubs' ownership and governance structures are exemplary and they welcome a regulator, tho' some not.

The independent regulator has good support from all political parties, however a regulator needs to have teeth and the Premier League and a minority of owners will be lobbying to scupper the bill.

Current crisis clubs include Sheffield Wednesday, Reading and Scunthorpe United (of National League North) who are staring into the abyss.

Fair Game press release here
https://www.fairgameuk.org/press-releases/kings-speech

The government white paper is here https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... governance.

The proposal is to cover the top 5 tiers so we would currently be out of scope.

Would be much better if it covered the entire National League as seems very strange to have a league run by the same people and same rules applied aside from this legislation.

I guess that there was a concern about the difficulty in covering all leagues so there needed to be a cut off. I would hope that the NL would voluntarily extend the principles to NLS and NLN given that there will be a constant flow between divisions through promotion and relegation. Ambitious club such as ourselves should in any case be ready to abide by the principles.

Our new owners may have been aware and this might have been in the background of their ‘professional ‘ approach?

Shepperton Supporter wrote: ↑Fri Nov 10, 2023 3:49 pm Our new owners may have been aware and this might have been in the background of their ‘professional ‘ approach?

Perhaps, but not sure they are particularly well aligned to the principles around fan engagement and club heritage.

BeaverWatcher wrote: ↑Fri Nov 10, 2023 10:21 am Would be much better if it covered the entire National League as seems very strange to have a league run by the same people and same rules applied aside from this legislation.

I agree. The National "League" comprises of 3 divisions. It should cover all or none of them.

Fair Game UK campaign for an independent regulator for football with video by Niall Couper
https://twitter.com/FairGameUK/status/1 ... 0081380571

https://youtu.be/w-fHjzlmIp0

Latest newsletter from Fair Game including the perennial tragic clubs in crisis section
https://mailchi.mp/fairgameuk/1-decembe ... d37a932700

Terrible news about North Shields FC
https://twitter.com/FairGameUK/status/1 ... 5417375826

Kings Lynn also in financial trouble needing tho raise £300K to see out the season according to their owner. They are now struggling in the NLN after relegation from the NL. Owner claims the wage bill in the NL was £1.1M which seems about right given where that league has gone in the last few seasons.