Leveson could sort out English football, says Andy Burnham MP

21 May 2013

Shadow Health Secretary, Andy Burnham MP, believes the proposed Leveson model for press regulation should be used to regulate English football.

He was speaking at the Football, Fans & Finance workshop held by the Centre for Research on Socio-Cultural Change (CRESC) at the University last Friday (17 May).

Mr Burnham argued: “Independent regulation of the press, backed by Royal Charter, is a model which football could use; it would not involve government regulation, so FIFA wouldn’t need to worry, but it would ensure that the people who benefit are not the ones making the decisions.

“Decisions about football should be independent of any vested interests, and there should be greater supporter ownership of clubs, which would lead to better governance and better decisions.”

Mr Burnham, one of the founders of the fans’ organisation Supporters Direct, added:  “Independent regulation of football cannot come soon enough, run on the Leveson model, with genuine independent regulation at its heart.

“My ambition is that this would be included in the Labour manifesto at the next election, to encourage greater fan ownership. Indeed, the more enlightened clubs are already beginning to embrace the idea of fan involvement.

“I am very proud of Supporters Direct which has made an enormous change, especially in the lower leagues.”

Mr Burnham, a season ticket-holder at Everton, added:  “Football in this country is no longer run in the interests of 92 clubs, it’s run in the interests of four or five – it is more unequal than ever, and clubs are doing desperate things to try and keep pace, such as hiking ticket prices massively, leaving clubs less rooted and less connected than ever.”

The workshop also explored the tensions between clubs and their surrounding communities, due to increasingly globally dispersed models of ownership.

Other speakers included football writer Jim White from the Daily Telegraph and Andy Green from Andersred blog.

Conference organiser Dr Keir Martin from the University's Social Anthropology department added: “Despite the huge influx of money into top-flight football over the past 15 years, there is increasing evidence that supporters feel that they are the last to see any benefits. If we are going to secure the long-term health of the national game, it will be important to take into account the increasing sense of disconnection between supporters and clubs that seems to be resulting from the current regime of light touch business regulation.”