Luton Town v Crystal Palace – Saturday 25 November 2023
David’s notes took on a wider scope to financial matters, all of which reflects our future plans.
“This week Gary and I took part in a Shareholders’ Meeting of the Premier League. There was a full agenda covering a wide range of topics, the most newsworthy of which was the “New Deal for Football” and the topic of the incoming Regulator for Football having been recognised in the recent King’s speech. I’m sure you’re aware both are designed to help clubs become more sustainable, implement financial controls to protect a more level-playing field and make it more difficult for rogue ownership and poor management putting clubs at risk of going out of business often carrying the devastating effect on the communities they serve.
Clearly the details of the discussions are confidential and are continuing, but it’s clear that the majority want a deal done. It is highly complicated and as you can imagine the diversity of opinion is extreme, largely because the clubs themselves are so different in their ownership model and financial muscle. We have found that the debate is of high quality and the management of the meeting very professional, with all clubs being encouraged to have their say in a pleasingly democratic manner. As we are the only club with recent experience of the top five divisions, and with Gary in particular having made important connections in the EFL, his experience can be a valuable part of the discussions. We feel confident that nobody will be completely happy with the eventual outcome, but it would seem wrong otherwise. There isn’t anyone here who enjoys giving money away, but it is vital for the health of the pyramid. Having said that it is important that the deal achieves the result it is set up for, so it makes a bad situation better and the funds are used in the appropriate manner with tighter controls to prevent clubs from deviating from the rules. When you are dealing with 20 givers and hundreds of takers, it’s impossible to please everyone and in this instance probably anyone, but it is so important for the future of our game that we get the best deal we can for everyone concerned. The deal has momentum and will attract a great deal of interest over the coming months. There are good people with the best intentions working to achieve the desired result, and we feel confident of a positive outcome for the long-term benefit of our “beautiful game”.”