Football Governance Bill [ Lords ] (Seventh sitting)

Lee Dillon Excerpts

Committee stage
Thursday 12th June 2025 Public Bill Committees

[Lincoln Jopp]

I wish to build on my hon. Friend’s themes. Football has the unfortunate concept of the friendly; frequently, they are not very friendly at all. When I read the Bill, it was clear to me that the drafters had in mind the prevention of another flyaway European super league, which we have debated.

I would like the Minister to look at look at the example of a one-off friendly match. Many of our teams tour in the far east and in America, in their off-season, to generate additional revenues and expand their fan base and brand. Let us envisage a set of circumstances in which a North Korean has somehow managed to purchase an English football team, and they have the bright idea that they would like to play a “friendly” match in North Korea. It is a one-off match, but the Government in North Korea decide that they want to make a big deal of it, so it becomes the Pyongyang cup—a one-off match between the English team and the North Korean team. In the Minister’s view, would the regulator be justified in considering whether such a one-off match was a competition and therefore within the purview of the regulator?

[Mr Lee Dillon (Newbury) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Butler. Pre-season friendlies constitute cup competitions all the time. There is the Audi cup; any major brand we could name will have sponsored friendly cups. When the Minister gives the hon. Gentleman assurance on the Pyongyang cup, perhaps she might also cover the friendly cups that actually exist.

[Lincoln Jopp]

The hon. Member makes a pertinent point. As I said, the word “competition” seems to refer to the sort of flyaway league we have discussed; are one-off friendlies competitions under the terms of the Bill?

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Betts]

The purpose of this group of amendments is to introduce a wider definition of a club’s home ground that includes the training ground, which is how the different amendments link together. Amendment 86 sets out the wider definition that is then used in the other amendments. In the end, in this day and age, most professional clubs cannot survive with just a home ground and need additional facilities. If those additional facilities are sold off, the club can become unviable. That is what some unscrupulous owners will seek to do, because sometimes the training ground is the most valuable asset in potential for development.

[Mr Dillon]

The hon. Gentleman’s amendments find support from the Liberal Democrats. He referenced training grounds, and Reading football club’s training ground, Bearwood Park, was actually in that exact position. The owner tried to sell it off because it was prime land for residential development. However, without that training facility, the club would clearly struggle to continue. There was even the potential to sell the training ground to rivals Wycombe Wanderers, so that they could then have an enhanced training ground. The hon. Gentleman will be aware that the Liberal Democrats have tabled new clause 11, which seeks to protect various assets of a football club, including the training ground, so he has our support.

[Mr Betts]

I hope the Minister can take this seriously; it is a worry that the Bill does not quite go far enough at present. The reality is that this legislation tries to deal with bad owners and anticipate how they might behave. The more restrictions that we can build around bad behaviour, and possibilities for controlling it, the better.

--- Later in debate ---

[Stephanie Peacock]

I thank my hon. Friend for tabling the amendments. Home grounds are a vital asset for all clubs, so I do understand his intent.

Regarding changes to the ownership of a home ground, the potential adverse outcomes are entirely financial. We do not believe that they impact the heritage of the club, which is why clause 46 does not require any heritage consideration or fan engagement. Additionally, decisions about the financial arrangements of a home ground are commercial decisions and therefore we do not think it is appropriate to legislate on them. However, I will reassure my hon. Friend that if the sale of a club’s home ground would result in the relocation of the club, fans absolutely have to be consulted about that, as per clause 48, which we will discuss later. We know how much home grounds matter to fans and communities, but this clause is purely about protecting a club’s financial position.

[Mr Dillon]

I seek some clarity on the relocation of a ground. White Hart Lane was demolished and rebuilt on a similar, but bigger footprint. Obviously, at Old Trafford, Manchester United’s owners are talking about building on land next to the stadium. Personally, I would not class either of those moves as the relocation of a ground. However, in the Bill would they count as relocation, because those new stadia are not on the same footprint as the original stadium?

[Stephanie Peacock]

I will double-check that point, but I believe they would. I also refer to the points we discussed earlier in the Committee: clubs may want to move for a particular, legitimate reason—to improve their ground, or because they have to due to flooding in adverse weather, for example. We appreciate that these are not all bad actors and it is not all bad faith, but I will double-check that point and come back to the hon. Gentleman. We know how much home grounds matter to fans and communities; this clause, together with the owners and directors test, is about protecting the club’s financial position and its balance sheet from asset stripping by bad actors.