GREATER MANCHESTER

Club supported: Everton

Background: Mayor of Greater Manchester, and former sports minister

Quote: “I’m happy to support Fair Game. Their proposals are exactly what football needs. I’m only too aware of the dangers that exist. We've seen the collapse of Bury and the spectre of the ESL. Football is integral to our communities. The game needs a reboot. I back the need for an independent regulator, for an Owners and Directors Test that is fit for purpose, and most importantly the protection of the heritage and traditions of our clubs.”

LIVERPOOL CITY REGION

Club supported: Liverpool

Background: Metro Mayor of Liverpool City Region

Quote: “The European Super League farce showed how the future of the game we love hangs in the balance – especially as so many lower league clubs stare down the barrel of financial ruin. Football is a vital part of the Liverpool City Region, of our local economy but of our communities too. We need to safeguard the integrity of the pyramid and put community back at the heart of football again. The Fair Game campaign help to provide the blueprint for that.”

HACKNEY NORTH AND STOKE NEWINGTON

Club supported: TBC

Background: Labour MP

Quote:

“I was outraged by the proposals for a European Super League, which have thankfully now been dropped. This European Super League clearly demonstrated that football clubs are not just business assets, but they are also vital parts of our communities. Football is only possible because of the fans, and I believe that billionaire owners are a detriment to the game. I have also signed EDM #728 on the governance of football and in support of a fan-led review. I will continue to campaign on this issue, with the goal of a fairer and more accessible game.”

PUTNEY

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“It was great to meet with Fair Game and pledge my support for the proposals of the Fan-Led Review. Lots of constituents have contacted me concerned about what happened to Derby County. We need to put fans back at the heart of football and stop another Derby County from happening.”

GOWER

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Fair game is a brilliant initiative because it not only recognises that fans are the heart of football, but it maps out a realistic future.”

WEST WORCESTERSHIRE

Club Supported: Worcester City

Background: Conservative MP

Quote: “Football governance must keep evolving it if is to keep pace with the challenges of the modern game. The global commercial attractiveness of English football is something to be celebrated, but not at the expense of supporters and their communities. I would like to extend my gratitude to the former Sports Minister, Tracey Crouch MP, for compiling the Fan-Led Review report which serves as a thorough and detailed examination of the challenges faced by English football. It is a demonstration of the financial problems being caused by incentives within the game and reckless decision making by some clubs and owners, both of which are unsustainable and threaten the future of the game. It is clear that current oversight of the game is not up to the challenge of the structural challenges and action must be taken. I warmly welcome the Culture’s Secretary’s announcement that the Government has endorsed in principle the primary recommendation of the review: that football requires a strong, independent regulator to secure the future of our national game.”

LIVERPOOL WAVERTREE

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Football without fans is nothing. We need real change where fans at the heart of decision making and that is why I’m backing the Fan-Led Review.”

WEST DERBY

Club supported: Livepool

Background: Labour MP since 2019. Member of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, and Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

Quote: ”I support every principle that Fair Game stands for, every fan I have worked with would want these core principles for their football club. And I would add grassroots football without which the game will die as the fifth core principal of our game. Sustainability, Integrity, Transparency and Community. Over the years we have seen so many owners fail these tests and the recent European Super League debacle highlighted these failings and why we need urgently systemic change for our game to flourish. Therefore I fully support Fair Game and its aims."

LIVERPOOL WALTON

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Fans are the asset of football and they need to be at the heart of the game and its decisions.”

ROTHERHAM

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“No other sport defines our identity like football. Therefore we need fans to be at the heart of all the decisions.”

STOCKTON NORTH

Quote:
”I’m supporting Fair Game and the Fan-Led Review of governance into football. Fans have been shut out of football for too long, especially in big clubs. It is time to change that and give fans more control.”

SLOUGH

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“In order to ensure good governance and sustainability in the beautiful game we need to implement all the recommendations of the Fan-Led Review. As a football fan, I think it is imperative that we as MPs do all we can to deliver this fundamental structural change.”

WESTMORLAND & LONSDALE

Club supported: Blackburn Rovers

Background: Former leader of the Liberal Democrats and current spokesperson for communities and local government

Quote: “The structures of our national game are broken. Owners are allowed to play Russian roulette with the history and traditions of their clubs. Financial sustainability seems to be an almost alien concept and the connect with local communities is waning. The well-run clubs, such as Carlisle, are having to run to stay still in a system that does not reward good behaviour. That needs to change. Fair Game’s Sustainability Index does that. Let’s redistribute parachute payments and give it to the clubs that are financial sustainable, have good governance, properly respect equality standards and cherish fan and community engagement. That would be transformational not just for football, but for all of our communities up and down the country – and I hope it finds cross-party support and is part of Tracey Crouch’s final report. I will be doing all I can to back Fair Game and deliver a game that we can all be proud of.”

LEWISHAM DEPTFORD

Club supported: Millwall

Background: Labour MP

Quote: “I have long supported reform of football. Its governance and finance are broken and fans, whichever club they support, are ignored. I believe it is wrong for owners to treat football clubs as just another commodity, with no care for the history of the sport, for its role across the nation, or for the fans at its beating heart. I believe we must seize this moment to initiate serious and urgent reform on ownership, finance, culture, conduct, regulation, transparency and, most importantly, the involvement and voice of the fans. I would encourage all who care about football to work together to put supporters back at its heart. As we have seen from the games played to empty stadiums football is impoverished without its fans. This is a watershed moment for our national game. I have never before seen such unity across football, and I believe it is essential that we do not allow those who threaten our game to continue to do so. There is a need to act quickly and we must get on with these other necessary changes. I hope the Government will now make time for Parliament to legislate for such reform. “

DULWICH & WEST NORWOOD

Club supported: Dulwich Hamlet

Background: Labour MP

Quote: ”We have known for a very long time that football is broken, and I have long supported calls for an independent regulator to fix it. My local club Dulwich Hamlet have experienced the trials and tribulations of football first-hand. Covid-19 has hit National League clubs hard. And I have been working with the club to raise concerns with the UK Government about the ongoing financial impacts of the crisis has had on clubs such as DHFC in the National League. But there have been concerns around our national game long before Covid hit. And I applaud Fair Game for identifying them and looking to develop realistic long-term solutions. Football needs to be rebooted and Fair Game have my support in their pursuit of building a future that secures our clubs for the long term. The Review recommends that the Premier League should guarantee its financial support to the football pyramid and make additional, proportionate contributions to further support football. In addition, it calls for women’s football to be treated with parity and given its own dedicated review and for the welfare of players exiting the game – particularly at a young age – to be better protected as a matter of urgency. I believe the Government needs to accept all of the review’s recommendations, including both the principle and the detail of the independent regulator, which it should enshrine in law without any further delay and work with Fair Game to ensure that clubs are held accountable for the progress they make.”

BATH

Club supported: Bath City

Background: Liberal Democrat MP

Quote: “I stand completely behind the aims of Fair Game. Grassroots football is at the heart of our communities, like Bath City FC. Over the years many of these small clubs have struggled to survive. We need new structures to bring fans and their clubs together once more and ensure that football can strive at every level. We certainly need an independent regulator.”

LUTON SOUTH

Club supported: Luton Town

Background: Labour MP since 2019. Member of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, and the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee.

Quote: “I fully support Fair Game’s campaign to embed sustainability, integrity, and transparency in our game, to root Football clubs in the local communities they serve. We can never allow proposals like the European Super League to ruin our game, but we also need to confront the structural problems affecting it. We cannot let another Bury FC happen. Football clubs are heritage institutions at the heart of their communities, and I’m proud that Luton Town Football Club in my constituency is behind the progressive reforms needed to create a responsible, fairer, and more equitable game. Comprehensive reform that ensures independent regulation of football governance is critical to ensuring fans’ interests are protected.”

NEWPORT WEST

Background: Labour MP

Quote:
“It is not just about the game on the pitch. Clubs like Newport County do a fantastic job across the city and in the community. And that needs to be encouraged.”

BATLEY & SPEN

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
”I was very proud to endorse Fair Game and the Fan-Led Review in Parliament yesterday. We need a levelling playing field for football.”

ELLESMERE PORT & NESTON

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Football is not running for its own interests or the interests of the fans. It is a money-making machine. We need to put fans back in the heart of our game.”

YORK CENTRAL

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Recent times have shown how important fans are. We now need to put fans back at the heart of football.”

BRISTOL EAST

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“What is clear is that people are fed up with the impact of money on the game, so I’m really happy to support the campaign to change that.

MITCHAM AND MORDEN

Club supported: AFC Wimbledon

Background: Labour MP since 1997. Member of the Treasury Committee and a member of the Panel of Chairs.

Quote: ”As an AFC Wimbledon season ticket holder and as MP for Mitcham & Morden, I know how important football clubs are to their local community. Well-run, community-minded football clubs need to be supported and good governance, promoted. We need to change the culture of our game, putting sustainability and fairness at the heart of our football pyramid. Fair Game are campaigning to make this happen, and that’s why they have my support.”

WIRRAL SOUTH

Club supported: Liverpool

Background: Labour MP since 2010. Shadow Sport and Culture Minister. Former Shadow Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Shadow Childcare Minister and Shadow International Development Minister. She plays football for the Women’s Parliamentary Football team and Wirral Valkyries.

Quote: ”We need the money that is brought in at the top elite end of the game of football to find its way to the grassroots and we need that money to support the development of our game. The fans needs to be at the heart of the running of the game. Their interests need to come first and that means big changes in the way our sport is run. We know that racism, sexism and homophobia and hatred of different kinds are still there in football and that has to come to an end. And we know the women’s game needs to be valued just as much as the men. So whether it’s on finance, fans or having a truly inclusive game of football, I support all that Fair Game is going to do to change football for the better.”

NEWPORT EAST

Club supported: Newport County AFC

Background: Labour MP since 2005. Shadow Vice Chamberlain of HM Household (Whips Office). Member of Standing Order (Private Bills) Committee, Adminsitration Committee, and Statutory Committee.

Quote: "I commend Newport County AFC for the lead they have taken in becoming one of the founding members of Fair Game, which has rightly identified the need to address the imbalances in the financial structures and governance of British football. As a supporter-owned, community-oriented club County embody the values at the heart of this movement. I have no doubt that the club - which is run by and for the fans - can play a leading role in this new drive to create a more sustainable future for football in this country."

CHESTERFIELD & STAVELEY

Experience: Labour MP

BOLTON SOUTH EAST

Club supported: Bolton Wanderers

Background: Labour MP since 2010. Shadow Minister for International Development. Previously Shadow Minister for Justice.

Quote: “Fair Game seeks to empower clubs and provide a voice and force to ensure English football is changed for the better. For too long it has been a racket for the clubs at the top, much to the expense of lower league clubs who are ultimately the lifeblood of the game. Clubs like Bolton Wanderers have faced repeated financial hardship, almost to the brink of collapse, whereas clubs at the top of the Premier League flourish as fully fledged multinational businesses. We need to protect vital community assets and ensure we never again see the demise of clubs comparable to that of Bury FC in the neighbouring borough.”

MANCHESTER WITHINGTON

Experience: Shadow Sports Minister, Labour MP

Quote:
“Football needs to change. The Fan-Led Review is a good recipe for organisational structure in football.”

ALYN & DEESIDE

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“Clubs like Wrexham and Chester have suffered under terrible owners. It is about time we change this and the gap between the top and bottom closed.”

TONBRIDGE

Club supported: Tonbridge Angels

Background: Conservative MP for Tonbridge

Quote: “I am delighted Tonbridge Angels are on board with Fair Game. They are one of the best run clubs in the country, invested in the heart of the community, and an example to all. These recommendations can only help improve governance at all tiers of the football pyramid.”

WALSALL SOUTH

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“It is important that clubs speak with one voice. Fair Game is doing a good job at ensuring these recommendations will be implemented. We need one voice to make sure the government listens to the fans.”

BEDFORD

Experience: Labour MP

Quote:
“There should be fairness in all leagues. Money should be distributed fairly. We want small clubs to perform and I support fairness in football.”

CAMBRIDGE

Club supported: Cambridge United

Background: Labour MP since 2015. Shadow Minister (Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). Former Shadow Minister (Transport)

Quote: ”The outrage and anger from fans across the country at the European Super league proposals showed just how vital it is that the principles promoted by Fair Game are adopted as soon as possible. For fans, our clubs are part of our very being. Of course clubs need money and to be properly resourced – which is why spreading the resources more fairly is not only right, but essential to the future of the game at every level. But football clubs are about so much more than money, and we need the protection of regulation to defend ourselves against those who seek only to extract profit. I’m completely with Fair Game – we need to succeed!’”

WINDERMERE

Club supported: Carlisle United

Background: Current member of the Services Committee. Former Labour MP for South Shields (1979-2001) and Colne Valley (1970-74). Director of Carlisle United.

Quote: ”Football rivalries were set aside to unite against the European Super League plan. We cannot let the opportunity to reform the game to pass us by. The game faces deep issues of governance, owner behaviour, independent regulation, financial transparency, sustainability and fairer distribution of broadcast revenue, conduct and culture and cost control. It’s a long list. Without addressing these, clubs and the game are in danger and that impacts on fans of all clubs and the local communities they are such a big part of. Fair Game is bringing together ‘like-minded’ clubs to call for change and I fully support that.”

LORD ADDINGTON

Club supported: Liverpool

Background: A Liberal Democrat Peer since 1986. He also sits on the National Plan for Sport and Recreation Committee

Quote: “The time to have a look at football is here and I give my support to Fair Game in identifying problems and more importantly finding solutions that will allow game to flourish in the modern world.”

Maidenhead

Club supported: AFC Wimbledon

Background: Member of Risk Assessment and Risk Planning Committee. Previously Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department of Health and Social Care. Former Downing Street aide, and Director of Policy to David Cameron

Quote: "Football clubs are businesses but, more importantly, they hold a special place in our communities. As an AFC Wimbledon fan it is a relationship I know very well. Fans should not face losing their clubs because of the financial mismanagement of weak and unaccountable owners. We need to create a culture of sustainability - one where the heritage of our clubs is protected and where fans have more control over how clubs are managed. And that is why I'm backing Fair Game."

BOLTON

Club supported: Bolton Wanderers

Background: Labour Peer

Quote: ”Football clubs are at the heart of our communities but the system of regulation now in place fails to protect their integrity, financial sustainability, or their connection with the fans. Without a better system of governance we risk losing more clubs with all that means to so many people. Therefore I wholeheartedly support the aims of Fair Game to protect football and football clubs for all fans.”

NEWPORT WEST

Club supported: Newport County AFC

Background: Labour member of the Senedd for Newport West

Quote: “As a lifelong supporter of Newport County AFC, I am proud to support Fair Game. County has shown how it can be done. Our club came so close to losing it all, and it is only through the hard-work and determination of the fans and all of the people behind Newport County AFC that we have a club at all. County is now a supporter-owned and community-driven club that’s going from strength to strength. It embodies what we all want the sport to be. But up and down the country, clubs too often fall victim to owners who have no interest in the community they rely on. This is why we need reform. I want to see more clubs make the change that County has. That’s why I’m very happy to back Fair Game’s call for independent regulation and more fan leadership in football.”

Motion passed: 1 November 2021

Liberal Democrat Cllr Chris Hogg said: “Kendal has kicked off a debate that every town hall in this country should be having. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to safeguard and strengthen football clubs as civic and community assets and to avoid some of the disasters that have arisen from inadequate oversight and dubious decision making.”

Motion passed: 15 December 2021

Liberal Democrat Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani, said: “I’m a City fan – I was there when we were losing games in the third tier, and I have seen us ride the rollercoaster all the way to the top. As much as I love watching the great players it has brought to my club, I don’t think that the way football works is even close to fair. I have friends who support Macclesfield Town. I have friends who support Bury FC. Clubs that have failed, and which have ripped the heart out of those towns when they went into meltdown. Too many teams are too close to doing the same elsewhere. The Fair Game manifesto proposes practical measures which will refocus football clubs on the score and not on their profit margins, and which recognise that fans and not sovereign wealth funds should come first.”

Motion passed: 13 February 2022

Conservative Cllr Ben Shirley, who represents Dalton North, said: “The financial model of football is broken. It is fans, and the local communities who suffer as a result of the broken model. That’s why I worked together with Cllr Will Clark to present the motion to council calling on Tracey Crouch MP’s fantastic fan led review into football to be implemented in full. so that clubs like Barrow AFC, Carlisle United, Workington Town, Kendal Town, and Penrith amongst the hundreds upon hundreds of grassroots clubs like Dalton Utd, and Askam Utd May have a prosperous and sustainable future.”

Motion passed: 11 January 2022

Liberal Democrat Cllr Thom Campion, who represents Castle Ward, said: “I’m so proud that Newcastle City Councul have unamisoisly agreed to become the first major city to sign up to the Fair Game manifesto, hopefully leading the way across the county. Local football teams are more than just a sporting club - in so many ways they are the beating heart of our local area. Newcastle has a rich footballing heritage, something our city should be proud of and with new owners taking control of Newcastle United, there has never been a better time to push for investment into the grassroots. Together we can push to make football a fairer game for all.”

Motion passed: 6 April 2022

Conservative Cllr Ashley Dearnley, who represents the ward of Wardle and West Littleborough, said: “I am delighted that the Council unanimously backed my motion. Football clubs such as Rochdale are at the heart of our town. We need a better set up. The current situation fails to protect the interests of fans. Without a better system of governance, many clubs are at risk, as we have seen in neighbouring Bury. We need urgent change."

Motion passed: 13 July 2022

Labour Cllr Mark Wilson, who represents Ulverston East, said: “It is about football, but more importantly about Community values for all. Everyone should be able to benefit from the big bucks income of the professional game.”

Motion passed: 27 January 2022

Conservative Cllr Ally Simcock, who represents Sandford Hill ward, said: “I am extremely proud to have been successful in proposing Stoke on Trent City Council to become a Fair Game council. Standing up for fans’ values and demonstrating commitment to support our football heritage is of utmost importance to our city.”

Motion passed: 22 February 2022

Liberal Democrat Cllr Garry Bridge, who represents Vauxhall ward, said: “I'm delighted that by passing this motion councillors from all parties on Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council have recognised the importance of our local football clubs to our borough. The proposals set out in Tracy Crouch's review of football should be implemented as soon as possible."

Motion passed: 12 May 2023

Council leader Conservative Cllr Lezley Picton said: “I know what it’s like, what that heartache is like, when your football club is badly managed – mismanaged – and in my case, as a proud Portsmouth supporter, twice. These days football is used to improve inclusivity, to improve mental health, to improve fitness and combat loneliness, to improve confidence and get people back into work, and to help people who have found education a challenge. Football is being used as a real positive – positive for individuals, communities and society – and you only have to look at the brilliant outreach programmes that are offered by all of our football clubs across the county to see how important they are to their communities. But what happens when this goes wrong? Following the pandemic, many teams outside the Premier League are struggling financially, and if you add mismanagement into that, you have a situation that could threaten the very existence of the club. I’m not saying for one minute that any of our football clubs are financially mismanaged, in fact it’s the opposite, but they need the football wealth to be spread more fairly through the leagues.”