Sustaining the game for the benefit of all

The first Fair Game principle is for greater sustainability at all levels

Adam Harwood

One of the most telling conclusions of the recent failed European Super League plan was the total indifference shown by the game’s ‘biggest’ clubs for those further down the football pyramid. 

Currently, the riches of the Premier League are such that their total contribution of £350 million to the EFL during the 2020-21 season merely constitutes ‘loose change’ for many. Yet for the Big Six clubs, who not only scoop up the majority of Premier League television appearance money but additionally benefit from vast sums from the European game, they still want to keep a greater slice of the pie for themselves. 

Hence the proposal of the ESL, which would have maintained their position at the top table year on year, irrespective of how they perform on the field.

While this would guarantee those few clubs their own sustainable future for many years, it would have come at a significant detriment to their fellow Premier League clubs, let alone the rest of the football pyramid. Little wonder that the other 14 clubs called for the heads of executives at the Big Six, in the immediate wake of the ESL collapse.

The first Fair Game principle is for greater sustainability at all levels. This means introducing a fairer, more responsible, and more equitable game across the football pyramid – including greater transparency on the issue of sharing funds.

Even the Big Six can’t be blamed for the ludicrous imbalance that has already split the EFL into effectively a two-tier system. Of the £350 million revenue provided by the Premier League, £325 million was allocated to the Championship – leaving just £16.1 million and £11.2 million respectively for the 24 clubs in each of the bottom two leagues. Aside from a few ‘sleeping giants’ languishing in League One, and the odd success story in the Championship like Wycombe this season, the chasm in English football lies somewhere between our second and third tiers. 

Last season, just seven clubs received the bulk of the Championship cash, due to the parachute payments system supporting sides relegated from the Premier League. Little wonder that two sides relegated last year – Norwich City and Watford – have been able to put their riches into a successful bid for an immediate return, with Bournemouth threatening to make it a full house.

Sustainability isn’t just about how the cash is filtered down the system, but also about how clubs spend what they have at their disposal. All sides should be required to provide far more information as to their financial health with demonstration of how they are planning for a comfortable future. This will help highlight more broad inequalities across the leagues, like we have seen exacerbated recently through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fair Game’s sustainability principle calls for:

●      Greater transparency on financial reporting, ownership structures, balance sheets and a more realistic, long-term view of the financial health of clubs

●      A far more rigorous and properly applied fit and proper person's test applied to potential owners

●      A more equitable and transparent sharing of funds through the pyramid (including parachute payments and salary caps)  

Fair Game is holding two open panel and discussion on sustainability in football this week. The discussions are an essential part of Fair Game’s process in developing real and long-lasting solutions to the problems facing football. You can register to take part in the sessions by visiting the events section of our website www.fairgameuk.org