What to expect from sports law in 2025: Man City, Saudi and the ‘unlikely MVP’ December 21, 2024 What will the big talking points be in sports law in 2025? We asked the experts at one of the industry’s top firms. This year will be remembered as one in which key sporting decisions were made in the courtroom rather than the boardroom. With the Football Governance Bill, ongoing financial regulatory disputes, and the [...]
Tory peer’s plan for English football ‘opens door to Kim Jong Un and Assad’ December 15, 2024 Dictators such as Kim Jong Un or Bashar al-Assad could be encouraged to buy English football clubs if “preposterous” proposals from Tory peers are passed, campaigners have warned. Lord Moynihan, a former sports minister under Margaret Thatcher’s premiership, has argued that anyone with diplomatic immunity should be exempt from the owners’ and directors’ test that [...]
West Ham chief snubbed over ‘alarming’ football regulator letter demand November 28, 2024 The Government has rejected calls from West Ham chief Karren Brady to publish a letter from Uefa which warns that domestic clubs and the England team could be banned from the Champions League and Euros over interference from the incoming football regulator. Speaking in the House of Lords, Conservative peer Baroness Brady described the correspondence [...]
Fans being left in dark over football regulator’s powers, peers warn November 25, 2024 A House of Lords committee has criticised the Football Governance Bill for failing to define which leagues the incoming football regulator will have power over. The bill, which had its second reading in the Lords this month, says only that the watchdog will be tasked with overseeing “English football”, meaning that ministers will have to [...]
Tories concerned about overreach in new Labour Football Governance Bill November 13, 2024 The Conservatives issued a caution against potential overreach of the Independent Football Regulator on Wednesday as the Football Governance Bill returned to Westminster. Initially introduced into the House of Commons by the Tories, the second reading of an altered bill was introduced in the Lords on Wednesday by the Labour government. But in the opposition’s [...]
Lords urged to add ‘Wimbledon clause’ to Football Governance Bill November 10, 2024 The Football Governance Bill should be amended to include a “Wimbledon clause” that prevents any club from relocating without their fans’ consent, say campaigners. The suggestion is one of a raft of changes that Fair Game believes should be made to the bill, which will define the powers afforded to the incoming football regulator and [...]
Ahead of the Game: A$AP Rocky’s Tranmere takeover hits a snag October 30, 2024 City AM has learned that one of Tacopina's key investors, who was providing around 30 per cent of the funding, pulled out last week.
Football regulator boss should come from the Square Mile, says Crouch October 29, 2024 Former sports minister Tracey Crouch says the incoming football regulator should be run by someone with a background in the City. Crouch has done more than anyone to give rise to the regulator by making it a key recommendation in her fan-led review of football governance. A revised bill laying out the watchdog’s proposed powers [...]
Football Governance Bill: What do lawyers think about changes? October 25, 2024 On Thursday the government reintroduced the Football Governance Bill, in what they describe as a “strengthening” of the previous attempt. Among the changes was a drop of the requirement to take note of UK foreign policy, and a development to include fans in plans to hike ticket prices and relocate stadiums. But what do top [...]
Parachute payments: Government clarifies stance after regulator move October 24, 2024 The government insists it does not want parachute payments to be abolished, despite giving the incoming football regulator new powers to look at the controversial mechanism. The Premier League and English Football League remain at loggerheads over the issue, which has contributed to an impasse over the so-called New Deal of financial redistribution. More than [...]