Governing Bodies
FA WARNS AGAINST BREAKAWAY AS EFL CLUBS ENTHUSE OVER PROPOSALS
English football’s increasingly bitter row over plans to change the structure and financing of the game descended into threats and warnings ahead of Wednesday’s (Oct 13) crunch meeting of Premier League clubs.
The plans, backed by Liverpool and Manchester United and dubbed “Project Big Picture”, would see an increase in funds for the 72 clubs in the Football League (EFL) but also include special voting rights for the top clubs in the Premier League and a reduction in the size of the top flight to 18 clubs.
While EFL club chairmen talked of “overwhelming support” for the plans, which include a £250 million (S$440 million) rescue package for their clubs, FA chairman Greg Clarke addressed reports that there had been a threat from clubs backing the plan to leave the Premier League.
Clarke said he had been involved in initial discussions with the top clubs but left them after they began to discuss the possibility of a breakaway.
“In late spring, when the principal aim of these discussions became the concentration of power and wealth in the hands of a few clubs with a breakaway league mooted as a threat, I of course, discontinued my involvement,” Clarke said in an open letter to FA Council members.
EFL chairman Rick Parry was asked by a reporter on Sunday whether he had offered the “Big Six” – Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal – the opportunity to leave the Premier League and join with EFL clubs. Parry declined to comment.
Clarke added a reminder in his letter that the FA, as the English game’s governing body, has the power to block any changes and made a warning about the risks clubs would take with regard to Champions League participation.
“Uefa look to us to nominate the league, and therefore the clubs, that will play in their competitions,” wrote Clarke.
But while his comments clearly provide a deterrent to any top flight clubs thinking of a breakaway option should the plan fail to win enough support from the Premier League clubs, the EFL clubs appear enthusiastic about the plans.
The EFL said the plans “received strong support, with an overwhelming majority of clubs indicating a willingness to discuss the proposals further on the basis that the primary benefits for the future of the English pyramid are clear…while there are no specific timescales for what happens next, there is a clear need for a progress in this matter as quickly as practically possible.”
While several owners of third and fourth tier clubs have been enthusiastic about the plans, Peter Ridsdale, the owner’s representative at Championship (second tier) club Preston North End, said that he was wary of the big clubs.
“If I’m absolutely frank, do I trust the top six today irrespective of these proposals? No I don’t. I don’t think some of them believe in the pyramid,” he said.
“I think some of them believe in a franchise system like you see in the (United) States. However, at the moment what we have is an offer to assist the pyramid which wasn’t on the table.
“Today the Football League has a unique opportunity if this remains on the table to perhaps protect the Football League for the long term while in the short-term it is in real danger”.
EFL chairman Parry, the former Liverpool and Premier League CEO, has been the public face of the plans but his decision to work with the top clubs has caused anger among some of the non-elite Premier League clubs, according to several media reports.
Sky Sports News on Tuesday cited an unnamed board member at one Premier League club saying that Parry should resign.
The Premier League statement in response to the proposals reported by The Telegraph on Sunday named Parry individually.
The UK government has criticised the plans with a spokesman for Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying on Monday: “It is exactly this type of backroom dealing that undermines trust in football governance”.
The Premier League clubs will meet on Wednesday with the FA holding a scheduled Council meeting on Thursday.
-Reuters
Governing Bodies
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Congo officials over financial misconduct
FIFA’s ethics committee launched disciplinary proceedings against three senior Congolese Football Federation (FECOFOOT) officials on Wednesday, including president Jean-Guy Mayolas, over allegations of financial misconduct.
Mayolas, his wife and his son were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month after a criminal court in the Congolese capital, Brazzaville, convicted them of embezzling $1.1 million in FIFA funds. Media reports said their whereabouts were not known , and they were tried in absentia.
FECOFOOT general secretary Wantete Badji and treasurer Raoul Kanda are also subject to the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA said. Badji and Kanda were sentenced to five years each in prison by the court in Brazzaville for related charges.
“These proceedings follow the receipt of information and documents during an audit,” FIFA said in a statement.
-Reuters
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The World Anti-Doping Agency is considering rewriting its rules to try barring President Donald Trump and all U.S. government officials from attending the LA Olympics in 2028, in a move that could also have implications for the World Cup being hosted by the U.S. this summer.
The proposal, on the agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting of the global drug-fighting watchdog’s executive committee, is the latest manoeuvre to come out of a yearslong refusal of the U.S. government to pay its annual dues to WADA.
The refusal is part of the American government’s unanimous, bipartisan protest of the agency’s handling of a case involving Chinese swimmers and other issues.
The Associated Press learned of the agenda item through correspondence it obtained between WADA and European officials involved in the agency’s decision-making. Two others with knowledge of the agenda confirmed the existence of the rules proposal to AP; they were not authorised to speak publicly about the agenda, which has not been released publicly.
The proposal was, in fact, first brought up in 2024, when U.S. authorities successfully lobbied for its rejection. The U.S. has since lost its seat on the executive committee.
“In spite of WADA’s increasing threats, we continue to stand firm in our demand for accountability and transparency from WADA to ensure fair competition in sport,” said Sara Carter, the director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).
The rule, if passed, would figure to be mostly symbolic, given the limits an international sports federation could have on the president of a country attending an event inside his own borders.
“I have never heard of a $50-million-budget Swiss foundation being able to enforce a rule to, for example, prevent the United States president from going anywhere,” said Carter’s predecessor at ONDCP, Rahul Gupta, who was on the WADA executive committee two years ago and led the movement to reject the proposal. “And the next question you have to ask is: How are you going to enforce it? Are they going to post a red notice from Interpol? It’s ludicrous. It’s clear they have not thought this through.”
In a news release after this story published, WADA said the AP story was “entirely misleading,” focusing on Fitzgerald’s statement to the AP that if proposals being discussed were “introduced, given that the rules would not apply retroactively, the FIFA World Cup, LA and Salt Lake City Games (in 2034) would not be covered.”
Fitzgerald’s only answer to three emails from AP seeking clarification on his initial response — specifically about how a rule that had not yet been adopted could or couldn’t be applied retroactively on events that are scheduled for the future — was: “I’m trying to say that it would not apply retroactively so those events would not be covered. Given that and the next meeting of the Board being scheduled for November, I don’t see how it could come into play for this year’s World Cup.”
-AP
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The Confederation of African Football has dismissed Yasin Osman Robleh, the Djiboutian official who headed its judicial bodies for the past six years, in a move aimed at restoring confidence in the organisation’s disciplinary processes.
According to reports from convergence sources, the decision was confirmed on Saturday by CAF Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba, bringing an abrupt end to Robleh’s tenure overseeing the confederation’s disciplinary and investigative committees since 2019.
Robleh’s position reportedly came under increasing pressure following the controversy surrounding sanctions imposed after the Africa Cup of Nations Final between Morocco and Senegal. The disciplinary decisions that followed the match sparked criticism from several quarters and placed CAF’s legal framework under intense scrutiny.
In response to the situation, CAF’s Executive Committee has appointed Togolese lawyer Cedric Egai, currently the confederation’s Director of Legal Affairs, as interim head of the judicial bodies.
Egai is expected to stabilise the organisation’s legal arm while CAF works toward appointing a permanent successor to Robleh.
Disciplinary Decisions Delayed
The leadership change has already affected ongoing disciplinary processes within the confederation. CAF’s disciplinary committee reportedly held hearings last Thursday on several cases, including the high-profile encounter involving Egypt’s Al Ahly and Morocco’s AS FAR.
However, decisions on those matters have been temporarily put on hold pending the confirmation of new leadership within the judicial structure.
Sources indicate that once a permanent successor is appointed, CAF will move swiftly to conclude outstanding disciplinary rulings affecting both clubs and national teams.
Restoring Confidence
The move is widely seen as part of CAF’s effort to restore confidence in its judicial system following weeks of controversy surrounding disciplinary decisions at major competitions.
Robleh’s departure closes a significant chapter in CAF’s legal administration, while Egai’s interim appointment signals a potential shift in leadership and governance at a critical time for African football.
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