Tories: Labour desperate to use bookies tax to bail out Rachel Reeves June 17, 2025 Shadow sport and gambling minister Louie French has ripped into the Government over its plans for gambling taxes so soon after a sector white paper, describing them as a threat to bookies and horseracing. The Conservative MP for Old Bexley and Sidcup said Labour were “desperate” to find “easy tax rises to bail out Rachel [...]
Draper calls on government to invest in tennis and padel May 20, 2025 British No1 Jack Draper is among a number of tennis stars who have called on the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to invest in court facilities. Draper joins the likes of Katie Boulter and Alfie Hewett in expressing concern over potential cuts of funding to tennis facilities, while demanding funds for “high quality community sports [...]
Kogan set for football regulator role after CMS committee endorsement May 9, 2025 David Kogan looks set to be confirmed as chair of the football regulator after a Culture, Media and Sport committee gave him a qualified endorsement for the role. In a report following his grilling by MPs on Wednesday, the committee said it was “content to endorse David Kogan OBE’s appointment as Chair of the Independent [...]
Independent Football Regulator costs could hike ticket prices, MP says April 28, 2025 Shadow sport minister Stuart Andrew has insisted the Independent Football Regulator’s reported £47.3m club compliance cost could push ticket prices up for fans. It came as the Conservatives, who introduced the original Football Governance Bill before the 2024 General Election, opposed the proposed legislation at the second reading stage on Monday in the House of [...]
Parliament warns against extending Premiership Rugby Covid-19 loans April 2, 2025 A top parliamentary committee has insisted Premiership Rugby clubs who are “financially unviable five years post-pandemic” should not have their Covid-19 loans extended. The damning report from the Public Accounts Committee – an influential group of backbench MPs who probe state spending – singled out the process in which £124m of loans funded by the [...]
Baroness Brady: Football regulator a solution in search of a problem February 19, 2025 West Ham United vice-chair Baroness Brady has said the incoming football regulator is a “solution in search of a problem”, adding that doing anything that changes the value of the Premier League broadcast deal would be “reckless and wrong”. The Football Governance Bill has been reintroduced into the House of Lords by the government having [...]
DCMS issue insolvency threat to rugby clubs over Covid-19 loans February 10, 2025 Rugby clubs have been warned after the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said it “wouldn’t hesitate” to use “all financial levers” available to recover loan payments owed by sports organisations from the pandemic. Those powers could see the government department aid in forcing insolvency on sports clubs to ensure the taxpayer recoups the [...]
DCMS extends deadline for Grainger’s successor at UK Sport January 9, 2025 Dame Katherine Grainger is proving a hard act to follow as chair of UK Sport. DCMS had intended to close the application process to be her successor earlier this week but has now extended the deadline for the £40,000-per-year, part-time role until 15 January. The decision is understood to have been taken in light of [...]
Gloucester Rugby forced to pull Russia flag from player shirt January 8, 2025 Gloucester Rugby has been forced to remove a Russian flag from the shirt of one of their players after a complaint from a fan. The Cherry and Whites have operated a policy, since 2015, of rewarding their international stars with the flag of their Test nation on their club shirt. But Gloucester were forced to [...]
DCMS fear rugby future as £30m in taxpayer loans expected to be written off December 18, 2024 The government could be forced to write off nearly £30m of taxpayers’ money loaned to sports bodies, clubs and the arts during the Covid-19 pandemic. The figures, revealed today by the National Audit Office, provide a stark update on the £474m aid package provided by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. Rugby union was [...]