Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

“The regulator must be transparent, it must have teeth, and it must be able to ensure a fair financial flow that rewards well-run clubs. It can be done. Our report provides the template. It is now up to our politicians to deliver and ensure the game has the sustainability that well-run clubs, fans and communities desperately need.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

“The European Super League is not in the wider interests of the sport and undermines national leagues and grass roots football.  The devil is in the details, but what is essential is that such a venture cannot ever be allowed to pass.

It is now up to the incoming independent regulator to put the final nail in the coffin of the European Super League.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

“This is a fantastic piece of news. Today, Fair Game has been given the European stamp of approval, and our voice has grown dramatically overnight. This partnership is a real shot in the arm for those who want a fairer future for football.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

““Football stands at a critical juncture, there is a prevailing need to resist pressures to dilute the regulator's authority and to ensure it has the teeth to deliver.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

“It is now abundantly clear that football in England urgently needs a culture change and the regulator must be given full and comprehensive powers to deliver it. The current reliance on punishment has clearly failed. Overspending and financial recklessness remains commonplace.”

“Today’s announcement is a historic moment for football and represents a real chance to end the cycle of overspending and mismanagement that has plagued our National Game and threatened the very existence of our clubs.

"Right now clubs like Sheffield Wednesday, Reading and Scunthorpe United are staring into the abyss.

"There will be intense pressure to weaken the regulator’s remit at a time when proper protection and scrutiny of our National Game is needed more than ever.

“Those tasked with setting up the regulator must resist that pressure and remain laser-focused to deliver a fairer future for football and the culture change the sport desperately needs.

“Reckless spending, disconnect between clubs and their communities, and lip service to equality standards must be consigned to the rubbish bin of history. This transformation can only be achieved if the regulator has the teeth and resources to deliver.”

Niall Couper

“We are delighted to have secured this partnership. Along with ESM’s innovative web-platform their approach to partnerships has built them a reputation for integrity across the world of football. It’s clear that there is both ESM and Fair Game support the aim of stopping more clubs going bust by achieving greater fairness and sustainability in football.”

Niall Couper

“There are some referees that have reached the dizzying heights [of the Premier League] who have shortfalls in capability and I don’t think they are good enough.”

Keith Hackett

Greg Campbell, co-author of Code, said:

“Good governance is at the heart of sustainability for any organisation or business. There is little doubt that football needs the added structure to ensure its longevity, so that it can ensure clubs are well run and engage effectively with their fans and their communities.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

“The Premier League need to re-look at this deal and take a holistic view of what is happening on the ground in our national game. Clubs lower down the pyramid are struggling to pay their energy bills and are forced to cut back on community programmes.”

Niall Couper, CEO of Fair Game, said:

"Football urgently needs a fair financial flow. At the top of the game the £100m transfer has been normalised. Yet lower down the pyramid, clubs are struggling to pay their energy bills, community programmes are being cut and some are even worried whether they will survive the season.

"The Premier League is the de facto ruler of the game in England right now. Our hope is that they show some proper leadership, back the deal favoured by fans across the country and support clubs throughout the pyramid - clubs that are the heartbeat of their local communities.

"And if they fail, then for the sake of football, we call on the Government to step in and give the power of financial oversight and distribution to a new Independent Regulator. Only then will the future of the game be secure."

“If we are to get a Game we can truly be proud of then the big questions cannot be ducked or ignored. Football needs a fairer financial flow, it needs to embed good governance, truly respect its fans, and become leaders on ethics, environment and equality standards. Our political leaders hold the key to deliver that future. They musn’t waste it.”

Niall Couper, CEO, Fair Game

“It is great news that there will be a regulator for English football, but as ever the devil is in the detail.

“The back stop powers need to be firmed up to help protect the pyramid.

“There is no doubt that the financial flow in football needs to be addressed. A system where the game receives £3.19bn of TV revenue each year, but clubs in League One can’t afford to pay their energy bills, the hiring of a kit manager in the National League is considered a luxury, and indeed a club’s very survival is a daily concern is clearly flawed.

“At the moment, for every £1000 of TV revenue, £882 goes to Premier League clubs, but £32.85 to most Championship sides and just 15p to National League South clubs.

“The omission of equality standards and environmental standards from the regulator seems short-sighted, and we would urge the government to allow the regulator to have the powers to look at those areas in the years ahead.”

Niall Couper, CEO, Fair Game

“The £100m transfer has become normalised, meanwhile clubs in League One are struggling to pay their energy bills, having a paid kit man in the National League is now considered a luxury, and community programmes are being slashed. Since the start of the Premier League, 64 clubs in the top four divisions have gone into administration. Football needs a financial reset. The time is now to introduce Tracey Crouch’s Transfer levy.”

Niall Couper, CEO, Fair Game

“On the one hand we have normalised the £100m transfer. On the other, Fair Game research has revealed that 39 clubs are technically insolvent. And since the start of the Premier League 64 clubs in our top four divisions have gone into administration. No wonder there is growing support for a ‘solidarity levy’.”

Niall Couper, CEO, Fair Game

FAIR GAME today revealed the top clubs in the English football pyramid in an exclusive video. The Fair Game Index rated the top 92 clubs in the pyramid through 80 different touchpoints across four criteria: Financial Sustainability, Good Governance, Equality Standards and Good Governance.

The Index comes in the wake of a commitment from the Government to introduce a new Independent Regulator into football, a new state of play survey for football and a determination to oversee football’s financial flow.

And with the possible demise of Southend United, and question marks over both Reading and Barnsley it couldn’t be more timely.

Forget Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea, the top six best run clubs in England are all in the EFL. Read the results in the most comprehensive survey on English football ever conducted: The Fair Game Index

FAIR GAME today named the club with the best record when it comes to Fan Engagement. The top three clubs are AFC Wimbledon, Carlisle United and Exeter City. Comedian, co-host of the Price of Football podcast and avid Crystal Palace fan Kevin Day, revealed the winner in the video above.

Huge thanks must go to long-term supporters of Fair Game Think Fan Engagement for providing most of the data for this strand.

FAIR GAME today named the club with the best record when it comes to Equality Standards. The top three clubs are Huddersfield Town, Lincoln City and Southampton. Former Aston Villa, Cambridge United, Leicester City, Manchester United and England star Dion Dublin, now famous as a presenter for Homes Under The Hammer, revealed the winner in the video above.

The scoring came from publicly available data and involved analysis of over 20 different touchpoints. The data was collated by Fair Game’s team of researchers led by Jack Ruane. Thanks must also go to our friends at Sporting Equals who helped guide the team in the development of the criteria.