In the midst of the continuing discussion about the possible establishment of an independent football regulator, Gary Neville has accused the Premier League of acting like “bullies” and said that the league is “entitled” and “selfish.”
In response to the Football Governance Bill, which would establish an independent football regulator under the next Labour administration, Gary Neville has accused the Premier League of acting like “bullies.”
Support for the establishment of an independent regulator started during the 2021 European Super League scandal. Plans were initiated by the recently defeated Conservative administration, and Labour has pursued the notion since assuming office, claiming football clubs would be “protected” as a consequence by “ensuring their financial sustainability.” The measure would give a regulator backstop the authority to step in and meddle in football as needed if it were to pass parliament.
However, the Premier League has been reluctant to implement it because the league’s CEO, Richard Masters, has warned that it would be a “risk.” As a result, the Sky Sports pundit has criticized the league for its reluctance, saying to PA at the Labour Party Conference: “We have a Premier League that’s entitled, they feel entitled. I’m not going to use the word greedy, but I just have.” Neville is still a staunch supporter and believes that its introduction would protect the interests of English football fans throughout the pyramid.
“I don’t comprehend their selfish mindset, and they are selfish. They give food leftovers to the younger brothers around the table in a manner akin to that of the big brother.
It has nothing to do with being a family member. They have such a bullying mentality. They have the mentality that, once the regulator is in place, they can influence them and, possibly, get a better deal from the other side of the regulator. And just as we saw a few weeks ago, they’re using their influence and soft power to attempt to incite fear and tell scary stories.”
Amidst the independent regulator’s possible approval, there have been suggestions that clubs like Nottingham Forest or Neville’s former Manchester United would be barred from competing in future UEFA competition because of the organisation’s policy against state interference. Talking at the same event, Labour’s Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, Lisa Nandy, labelled this idea ‘ridiculous’.
Nandy also reassured that the government will not adopt a ‘heavy-handed’ approach, emphasising a desire to address the lack of sustainability in parts of the football pyramid.
In response to Neville’s charges that he was acting like a “bully,” the Premier League has retaliated by saying they are still in talks with the new government about the football regulator. Making reference to CEO Masters’ comments from the conclusion of the previous season, they have proposed that ‘light-touch, targeted and proportionate legislation can be made to work’.
He had warned: “My overriding concern is that the bill will reduce our competitiveness and weaken the incredible appeal of the English game. Our competition is the most watched and commercially successful football league in the world. Thanks to that success, Premier League clubs are able to give away £1.6bn every three years – 16 percent of our total revenues – to the wider game, helping to make it the envy of the world.
“It is a risk that regulation will undermine the Premier League’s global success, thereby wounding the goose that provides English football’s golden egg.”
He went on, “Those competitors are relishing the prospect of the Premier League being uniquely constrained,” referring to other elite European domestic football leagues. While I am optimistic about the League’s near future, it would be a mistake to take for granted that we are the most well-liked league in the world. Empires come and go.
“Introducing uncertainty and bureaucracy into an industry that primarily depends on a small group of investors—many of whom view club ownership as both a commercial venture and a passion project—carries a risk. Even if the sport is thriving right now, it would be quite simple to make a mistake and divert our industry-leading investment. “We have spent the last year in discussions with the EFL about an even more generous financial settlement. But these talks have only served to highlight how destabilising intervention could be. The government claims its regulator will not interfere on the pitch, but by intervening in the carefully calibrated distribution of revenues and upsetting competitive balance, it is already doing exactly that.” The promise of regulatory intervention in football finances has already, before it has even arrived, changed the incentives for the striking of a new voluntary agreement.
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