CAST officers have had a useful meeting with Martyn Henderson - the Chief Operating Officer of the Independent Football Regulator (IFR) which is the body set up under the Football Governance Act.
Martyn was previously the Chief Executive of the Sports Grounds Safety Authority (SGSA) - a post he held for five years, but he has been leading the transition team setting up the new organisation since January 2024.
He informed us that, once Royal Assent for the Act was received, work towards the legal establishment of the IFR began. This process should be concluded in October. His team have been building the structure of the organisation in readiness for its formal launch. It will be based in Manchester. He stressed that the IFR is independent of government and will be funded by a levy on the football industry.
He said he expected an announcement about the appointment of the IFR Chief Executive shortly and he reminded us that media rights expert David Kogan's appointment as Chair had been endorsed by a cross-party committee of MPs last month. He hoped that a board of independent directors would start to take shape by October.
The IFR's jurisdiction will cover the 116 clubs of the Premier League, the EFL and the top division of the National League and all clubs will be obliged to hold an operating licence. It is through the conditions attached to the licence that the IFR will exert its powers. Martyn stressed, however, that the process of applying for licences is still somewhat far off as consultation is planned to start in October with the aim of piloting a system in 2026/27.
The IFR's main role will be financial regulation with a strengthened owners' and directors' test but it will also cover fan engagement, protection of club heritage and financial distribution (including parachute payments) if the relevant parties cannot reach agreement themselves. Martyn was at pains to emphasise that sporting matters were outside the scope of the IFR and will remain the responsibility of competition organisers. So, for example, the IFR will have nothing to do with sanctions such as points deductions.
Martyn was well aware of Charlton's ownership tribulations in recent years and the shenanigans that had threatened the future of the club. We asked him about a situation in which the IFR's proposed sanctions against an owner might come into conflict with company law. He said that the IFR would be able to appoint trustees and force the sale of shares but acknowledged that there were likely to be legal challenges.
In the recent Meet The Directors meeting Gavin Carter and Ed Warrick reiterated their commitment to the principles of the Football Governance Act. We look forward to working constructively with them as it is implemented.
On 4th September the IFR published the following consultation documents about (1) its proposed Owners, Directors and Senior Executives (ODSE) test and (2) Information Gathering and Enforcement (3) Sanctions
https://engage.footballregulator.org.uk/
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