Football Governance Bill ‘clears a major hurdle’ following final House of Lords stage

David Thorneloe, public law and legislation specialist at Pinsent Masons, was commenting following the landmark moment for the bill, which is set to revolutionise the governance of football in England.

Thorneloe said: “This is a significant moment for the bill to reach the halfway point of its journey through parliament intact, as it was only in the House of Lords that its opponents had any realistic prospect of seeking to alter the government’s plans. The government will be delighted that it has cleared this major hurdle.”

Sam Ballin, sports law specialist at Pinsent Masons, said: “The bill is today significantly closer to becoming law, so football clubs will want to step up their preparations for the new regime”.

The bill will establish an Independent Football Regulator (IFR). This regulator will oversee the licensing of football clubs in the top five flights on men’s football in England, ensure the fair distribution of revenue from football broadcasting deals, and protect the interests of fans and communities.

The Conservative opposition sought to make significant changes during the House of Lords stages to water down the impact of the Bill. Agreeing to address some concerns, the government made several minor amendments to fine tune certain provisions. However, all attempts to make major changes to the bill were defeated by the government.

Notably, the bill now includes a requirement for the IFR to establish a register of interests for its board members. The bill has also been amended to explicitly include players and fans among the stakeholders that the IFR should engage with. The amendments also extend the corporate governance reporting requirements to include each club’s contribution to the economic and social well-being of its local community. Additionally, the bill now includes a requirement to review the legislation after five years.

All opposition amendments were withdrawn or defeated by the government, with other parties and cross-bench peers generally aligning in support of the government’s bill when Conservatives pressed for a vote on further changes. In particular, the opposition withdrew an amendment taking the bill into the hybrid bill procedure, recognising there was no support for delaying the bill’s progress in this way. Opposition amendments on areas such as excluding equality, diversity and inclusion from corporate governance reporting, banning gambling advertising and sponsorship, and excluding ‘parachute payments’ from the backstop process for revenue distribution deals were also defeated. Additionally, a full redesign of the backstop process, and a proposal to subject the IFR to UEFA and FIFA rules, were defeated. Further, there will be no changes to bring ticket pricing or environmental sustainability into the IFR’s remit.

The bill will now move to the House of Commons to complete its remaining stages before reaching Royal Assent.

“With the government holding a large majority in the House of Commons, the bill is expected to move quickly through its Commons stages without further changes and become law by the summer,” said Thorneloe.