Leeds United silent on government action despite previous noise as fan groups issue response — YEP 20/3/24
Few will need no reminding of Leeds United CEO Angus Kinnear's 2021 views on an independent regulator.
By Graham Smyth
The only recorded linking of Elland Road matters and Maoist
collective agriculturalism in club history, it quickly went viral and national,
as football responded to proposals from a fan-led review. It will have become
lost among the headlines but Kinnear was in support of the majority of the
review's recommendations, taking serious issue with only the idea of an
independent regulator in English football and a transfer levy on Premier League
clubs.
He wrote in his programme notes: "The two most
significant recommendations are as flawed as they are radical. The first is the
demand for independent regulation and the second is an increased transfer levy
to redistribute increased funds further down the football pyramid. These
proposals have been conflated to address the very separate issues of the demise
of Bury, the threat of the European Super League and the takeover of Newcastle
United. Football is a private sector business and has flourished that way.
Enforcing upon football a philosophy akin to Maoist collective agriculturalism
(which students of ‘The Great Leap Forward’ will know culminated in the
greatest famine in history) will not make the English game fairer, it will kill
the competition which is its very lifeblood.”
April 2023 and the publishing of Leeds United's accounts
reiterated the Elland Road view of the proposals. The annual report, which
showed an operating loss of £34m, said: "An additional risk has emerged in
the form of the Government white paper in response to the fan led review into
football. The paper recommends the appointment of an independent regulator, the
precise powers of this body remain undefined, but are predicated to materially
impact both the club's finances and elements of the way it currently
operates."
This week legislation to reform football governance was
introduced in Parliament. The bill aims to enshrine in law an independent
regulator to 'give fans a greater voice in the running of their clubs,' promote
financial sustainability and strengthen owners' and directors' tests.
In the intervening period between April 2023 and this week,
Leeds United have been taken over by 49ers Enterprises, whose views on most
issues, let alone a regulator, are yet to be made known. Chairman Paraag
Marathe, his fellow directors and their investors have kept a relatively low
profile and the club line is that when there is something to say, they will say
it. Talking has been done on the pitch instead, impressively so it has to be
said. The YEP contacted the club for comment but none was made.
However the idea of a regulator sits with those in the
Elland Road boardroom, it has been welcomed, cautiously, by a hat-trick of supporters’
groups. Leeds United Supporters Club wants more than is being proposed,
however. Chairman John Mann told the YEP: "We welcome the creation of a
regulator. However we believe that the bill does not go far enough and should
give supporters a right to be consulted on all the decisions on club location,
name and identity, and to have a legal veto on such changes. Why should a
government appointee decide what a club's badge, home colours or ground
location should be? It is the club's loyal fans who clubs need to
persuade."
There are similar concerns for Leeds United Supporters
Network [LUSN], who represent 12,500 members from 50 independent groups, and
want the practise of fan consultation to be given some real teeth. Chairman
Clive Miers said: "We cautiously welcome the bill. It is a very small step
in the right direction. We are concerned that the concept of fan engagement has
been too loosely defined and we can see this being further diluted by the
clubs, particularly those like Leeds United who see the move as interference in
their business trajectories. There is therefore a need to ensure that the
supporters consulted are democratically appointed, representative, and totally
independent of the club. Leeds United are ranked 89th out of 92 in respect of
fan engagement." That fan engagement ranking was handed out in the 2021/22
season, since which Leeds have installed a Supporters Advisory Board which
meets with the club on a monthly basis.
An attempted breakaway by so-called 'Big Six' clubs looking
to join a European Super League was met with protest at grounds including
Elland Road, and Leeds United made their feelings known by giving players
t-shirts that read 'football is for the fans, earn it on the pitch' for their
game against Liverpool. Miers' wish is that the regulator will keep those clubs
and their commercial ambition in check.
He told the YEP: "It is hoped that the eventual Act
will serve to curtail the excessive influence of the so called 'Big Six' in
respect of many areas of football to the detriment of the pyramid and
supporters. With ownership models changing, spectators being increasingly seen
as a source of data, and the ominous spectre of AI [Artificial Intelligence] it
is essential that the regulator has sufficient powers to stop this tsunami of
commercialisation. Whilst we welcome the appointment of Martyn Henderson as interim
chief operating officer, and LUSN have had an excellent working relationship
with his previous employer, the Sports Grounds Safety Authority, we have
lingering concerns that powerful influences will adulterate the subsequent Act
and further legislation may be needed to provide the regulators with the
structure and authority to control the vested interests. The Government may of
course be playing to the balcony of popularity and there is no real ambition
for effective regulation."
Leeds United Supporters Trust were approached for comment by
the YEP, but their initial response to the news, on social media platform x,
was: "Excellent news and a progressive move to safeguard clubs, heritage
and legacy. Well done to all involved."