Football Governance Bill [HL]

Lord Wrottesley Excerpts

Committee stage
Monday 9th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Con)]

As usual, the noble Lord makes a very pertinent and astute point. I disagree with it, because what we are seeking to do is further define what is in the Bill. There is a lack of definition—there has been since we discussed the issue in relation to Clause 1 a week or so ago. That is the difficulty.

The general point the noble Lord makes is also pertinent, because we are still deciding whether this is a hybrid Bill. It is important that we define English football, because if we do not properly define it, there will be an issue of hybridity. According to the Minister’s letter, as I understand it, it is still only provisionally being ruled as a hybrid Bill, and there is no definitive position.

The point that I was making was that we need a proper framework. The new clause proposed by the amendment would add that definition to the Bill. It would therefore make it a better and more holistic Bill. At the moment, there are significant concerns about the Bill’s enabling powers and Henry VIII powers, and the new wording would go some way—were it to be adopted by the Minister; I live in hope that it might be on Report—to ameliorate that issue. For that reason, I support the amendment moved by my noble friend Lord Markham.

[Lord Wrottesley (Con)]

My Lords, I start by offering sincere apologies for not being able to contribute at Second Reading. I am afraid that I had to attend a close friend’s funeral. I did, however, manage to be in the Chamber for the latter part of that debate. I have watched the debate back on Parliament TV, updated myself via Hansard and, where able, attended most of the Committee. I also apologise if parts of what I say might have been more appropriate for Second Reading, but I feel that your Lordships may deserve a bit of background on why I feel privileged to offer some reflections to the Committee on this matter. This may, mercifully, be the only substantial contribution that I make on the Bill.

I declare my interests, as set out in the register, specifically having around 12 years of direct experience in sports governance, but also make an admission. First, I have been a lifelong Chelsea supporter and, as an excepted hereditary, I have of course passed that unfortunate affliction down to my sons and even to my nine year-old daughter who, yes, plays football—although she confessed the other day to having considered the unthinkable: supporting Manchester City. Given Chelsea’s recent form, though, I hope that she will now revert to her inherited team.

I support my noble friend’s amendments that try to define the objectives of the regulator, as well as others that have already sought to address the actual purpose of the Bill. Where I hope we will eventually get to is that something can be financially sound, resilient and sustainable, and grow and be successful. We have already discussed that if sustainability is the sole rationale and motivator for this legislation, sustainability could have a far lower bar and be an inhibitor to growth and success. Given the context of being one of this country’s greatest exports, the success of the English Premier League and now the English Football League is not solely dependent on their sustainability. There is much more to it. I suggest that they are successful not simply because of their sustainability, or unsuccessful because of the lack of it. They are deemed successful because of a whole host of factors, be that results on and off the pitch, financial sustainability, fan engagement or community outreach, to name but a few. Are growth and success not things that we should ask clubs, leagues and all stakeholders to strive for? What enables them to be successful and what should we try to support through the Bill?

In my view, and as we have heard from other noble Lords, the UK is globally successful in the game of football, and the Premier League, the EFL and other successful domestic leagues have grown to a position of global prominence because of various factors, including the game’s heritage and the English language—the lingua franca of football, as indeed it is with most global sports. Football is successful in the UK because of the pro-business environment in this country, which encourages foreign investment into our game and, ironically, is potentially threatened by aspects of the Bill.

We must also credit the consistently strong leadership of the Premier League, its global appeal through strong marketing and its willingness to embrace expertise from abroad in players, coaches and support staff. Some of your Lordships might remember that this pursuit of excellence and diversity was strongly criticised in the first few years of the Premier League’s existence. It was seen as a threat to homegrown player development and that talent progressing up the pathway to the national team—an attitude that I think we can all now agree has been shown up by the recent successes of our national teams.

More broadly, football’s success relies on this country’s position in the world and, yes, the crucial part played by our strong domestic marketplace, characterised by the role that a fiercely loyal fan base has in supporting the leagues and their teams. Above all, it is the ability of so many of the clubs in the UK to build brands around themselves—some of them mega-brands—that has led to five of the top 10 best-supported clubs in their global reach being from the UK, with just one from Germany, one from Italy, one from France and two from Spain. The bottom UK-based team in that top 10, Arsenal, has over 40 million followers on Facebook alone, with a fan base that extends far beyond these shores.

All these factors are more complex and, frankly, equally as important as some of the simpler definitions contained in the Bill. Growth and success are what the Bill should seek to preserve, enable and maybe protect, rather than inhibit. To repeat: the Bill should be about preserving and promoting growth and success, not just ensuring, for instance, sustainability.

Do we measure success simply by sustainability or should we seek a broader, more detailed and more accurate set of definitions—a higher bar as a North Star for this Bill, as suggested by my noble friends Lord Markham and Lord Parkinson in their Amendments 56 and 58? This could be a subtle but fundamental tweak to what this Bill is trying to achieve.

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

My Lords, I will speak to both amendments in this group, to which I have added my name. I am very grateful to my noble friends who have spoken to them, particularly my noble friend Lord Wrottesley, who brings many years’ experience of sports governance. The Committee is grateful to have had his insights. These two amendments attempt to expand the objectives of the regulator under the Bill. These objectives will be fundamental guiding principles by which the regulator will have to abide and will inform its operation from its conception.

Amendment 56 introduces two new objectives into Clause 6. The first is a growth objective and the second a financial investment objective. The growth objective is not intended to encourage a more activist regulator, to reassure the noble Lord, Lord Watson of Invergowrie. We do not want to see the regulator take further action than necessary; we want it to have the growth of the sport constantly in mind so that, when it carries out its other duties, it does not restrict the ability of clubs to look forward and plan for the future. I take his point about our wording on the number of clubs; we want to see the growth of football, so if new clubs spring up and enter the pyramid then he and I would jointly welcome that objective. However, I take the point that this would create more work for the regulator and the regulatory regime. As he will see from our wording in proposed new paragraph (d), what we have suggested as metrics

“includes, but is not limited to”.

It is an attempt to point to some metrics for growth, but if there are better ways of doing it then we are certainly open to hearing them.

By trying to focus the mind of the regulator on growth, we would ensure that, when it is drafting its rules or working on the levy or financial thresholds it may set, it will always have regard to how its work and rules will allow clubs to grow. We mean not financial growth but growth in every aspect. That is why Amendment 58 tries to expand on the meanings of the growth objective and gives a number of examples in the legislation. As it sets out, that objective would include the

“continued … expansion of all aspects of regulated clubs and specified competitions”.

We want clubs to be able to increase their revenues so that they can continue to invest in the future of the game, not just for their own sake but for the whole pyramid, and help the regulator achieve its financial sustainability objective. We also want them to increase their match-day attendance, TV viewership, fan base and more.

The focus on growing the fan base relates to an amendment to which the Committee has already given some thought, which called for the inclusion of current and prospective fans in the stated criteria for the sustainability of English football. In a similar vein, this amendment is trying to stress the importance of expanding the fan base of English football and appealing to future supporters as well as current ones.

I will also address the inclusion of a financial investment objective, as my noble friend Lord Markham set out in moving his amendment. This would seek to ensure that the regulator always considers the impact of its actions on the security of future investment in English football. As all noble Lords will know, professional clubs in this country would not be the world leaders they are today or command the fan base that my noble friend Lord Wrottesley set out without significant investment. This amendment does not attempt to place any restrictions on the regulator but, as with the growth objective, seeks to keep it on the straight and narrow so that it exercises its functions only ever in a manner that genuinely benefits football.

Football Governance Bill [HL]

Lord Wrottesley Excerpts

Committee stage
Monday 9th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Brady (Con)]

My Lords, I support the amendment from the noble Lord, Lord Watson. I wholeheartedly agree that footballers are at the heart of football. Without them, we certainly could not achieve anything at all. The relationship with players is absolutely vital to football clubs. West Ham was one of the very few clubs during the pandemic where I and my footballers took a 30% pay cut to ensure that all other staff were paid in full and that nobody lost their job; that is part of the spirit and it is why footballers really must be consulted.

I also support Amendment 86, which would introduce vital principles to guide the regulator’s approach. These principles reflect a sophisticated understanding of how football actually works and what makes it successful. The existing principles in Clause 8 of the Bill appear largely defensive and process focused. In essence, they tell us that the regulator should use resources efficiently, co-operate with stakeholders and act proportionately. With respect, I would argue that these are descriptions of basic administrative competence, not meaningful regulatory philosophy. No one would argue for inefficiency or disproportionality, and that is really the test of whether these are real, consequential principles.

More concerning is what these principles admit. They say nothing about preserving what makes English football successful; nothing about maintaining the competitive tension that drives our game’s appeal; and nothing about enabling the responsible ambition that has created the world’s most watched sporting competition.

Let me begin with the fundamental point that I believe is captured by this excellent amendment: the need for clearly identified harm and least-intrusive measures. Football thrives on calculated risk taking and sporting ambition. A regulator consistently intervening without clear necessity will suffocate the very qualities that make our game exciting. This is not about weakening regulation; it is about making it effective.

Consider how successful football regulation actually works. The Premier League has developed sophisticated mechanisms for maintaining financial sustainability while preserving competitive tension. When issues arise, they are typically best addressed through existing structures that understand football’s unique dynamics. This amendment would ensure that the regulator works with those proven systems rather than creating unnecessary parallel requirements.

The principles around competitive tension and ambitious ownership are particularly crucial. The Premier League’s success rests on maintaining genuine competition, where any club can succeed through good management and investment. Aspiration can happen because clubs are empowered and incentivised to take measured risks in pursuit of sporting achievement. The amendments focus on commercial autonomy and innovation, reflecting another vital truth: football’s success comes from constant evolution. The Premier League leads the world precisely because it enables responsible innovation in everything from broadcasting arrangements to community engagement. Overly prescriptive regulation risks spoiling this competitive advantage that we have developed.

Most importantly, these principles would ensure that the regulator maintains proper focus by requiring clear evidence of harm and demonstration that the existing structures cannot address issues. We would avoid unnecessary intervention while maintaining proper oversight. This would help us enhance, rather than inhibit, what makes English football successful.

[Lord Wrottesley (Con)]

My Lords, I rise briefly to seek clarity on a key point that does not seem clear in some of noble Lords’ amendments, in particular Amendment 79 from this group. From what I can tell in reviewing the Bill and debates around it—I beg your Lordships’ and particularly the Minister’s indulgence if I have missed something and this has been adequately addressed—we have not yet defined a fan. I make my sincere apologies, but I need to point out this abundantly obvious fact. Amendment 79 is a one-word amendment.