Now is the time to come together

“We need change and we need it urgently”

My name is Xavier Wiggins, and I am the co-chair of the Dons Trust, owners of AFC Wimbledon. I want to talk about the perilous state of our national game, its unsustainable financing and impotent governance, and I want to explain how, together, we can avert an impending disaster. 

We need change and we need it urgently and that is why my club is backing an exciting new initiative which, I believe, will give us the antidote football sorely needs in this Covid-ravaged era. We have an opportunity to put our destiny in our own hands. The question is: have we got the vision and courage to do it

Ever since the pandemic struck, and the country has lurched from one lockdown to another, the way football is financed, structured and governed has been exposed like never before. It is abundantly clear that the fundamental model on which the game is based is unfit for purpose. 

It is a lesson we ourselves are all too aware of – both in the recent and distant past.

You don’t have to take my word for this. I’m not banging a drum for my own club here. Football is littered with fallen giants, famous clubs who once graced the top of the game now floundering or, worse, extinguished. In 2019 we witnessed the sad demise of Bury, while once-mighty Bolton have fallen into our basement division.

It is simply a matter of time before the next catastrophe strikes and another community is deprived of one of its most-precious assets.

We – football club owners – have a straight-forward choice. Do nothing until we all go under, or get our house in order. I'm choosing the latter, along with an influential group of like-minded clubs who want to directly tackle the problem from the top, downwards.

AFC Wimbledon have joined an umbrella organisation called Fair Game and the aim is simple. We want to transform football’s structure so it has a solid, sustainable foundation capable of helping clubs survive and even prosper.

Together we believe we can apply the pressure needed to deliver real and sustainable change for the better of football.

As a priority, we want to see the game governed with fairness, openness and transparency. 

Sustainability is the key. 

And while, it may seem unpalatable to some, that does mean we need to open ourselves up to scrutiny. Football needs to be better regulated. 

The current authorities have failed in this duty and we want the Government and key decision makers to install a new legislative regulator.

We need greater transparency on financial reporting and ownership structures with a far more rigorous ‘fit-and-proper-person’ test.

If football is serious about addressing and safeguarding smaller clubs then it also needs to look at how to address over-spending and offer proper support and encouragement to clubs that choose to run on a sustainable basis. And that means a fresh approach to parachute payments and squad salary caps and a ban on leveraged debt.

Out on the pitch, we want to protect the integrity of our most-cherished tournaments by stopping clubs treating them with contempt. The debacle of the European Super League shows the real risk we face. And equally we don’t want B teams competing at any level of the pyramid and we don’t want to see the removal of relegation or promotion at any level.

Finally, and this is something extremely close to our hearts at Wimbledon, we want to foster much deeper partnerships between clubs and their local communities. My club is owned by its fans and we would like to see far more structured supporter engagement at all clubs, and greater involvement with local councils, politicians and leaders so we can effectively combat all forms of discrimination and social problems together. Economically it makes sense to. Communities are the lifeblood of a local football club. Fair Game believes that should be enshrined.

All of these things are achievable and all of them can transform our game for the good. That is why I urge all club owners and executives to join forces with Fair Game. Let’s not wait for bad stuff to happen. Let’s not be dictated to. Let’s implement a structure that is more responsible, fairer and more equitable. Let’s shape our own future.

Together we can be powerful and influential but divided we will fall – and so will the game we all love.