English football’s first regulator has admitted owners accused of human rights abuses cannot be blocked from clubs because his remit is only safeguarding “financial stability”.
But in a wide-ranging interview with Sky News, David Kogan suggested he is ready to intervene when feasible to act against Sheffield Wednesday owner Dejphon Chansiri amid an escalating cash crisis at the club.
Mr Kogan also insisted his new regulatory body will not try to undermine the success of the Premier League, while warning English football to prepare for the impact of a future drop in the value of TV rights.
However, Mr Kogan’s own appointment is shrouded in controversy, being confirmed this week as chair of the independent football regulator even while the appointment process remains under investigation by the commissioner for public appointments.
There has been scrutiny over Labour links and when it became known the former broadcasting executive was not on the original shortlist and donated to the leadership campaigns in 2020 of both future prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and current Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy.
But Mr Kogan insisted it’s wrong to say “I’m anybody’s stooge or anybody’s crony”.
He added: “The issues aren’t about me and they aren’t about impropriety. They are actually about the process by which DCMS (Department of Culture, Media and Sport) reached the conclusion that I was the right person to do it.”
Premier League warning
At the Football Museum in Manchester on Wednesday, Mr Kogan gathered representatives of 110 clubs along with officials from the Premier League, English Football League and Football Association.
The Premier League has claimed “unintended consequences” of excess regulation could undermine its success.
“We’re not challenging them,” Mr Kogan said.
“I’ve worked on bringing in millions of pounds into the Premier League in my career. Why would I want to restrict in any way the success story that’s the Premier League?”
Human rights
There is a less interventionist approach than originally conceived to factor in government foreign policy when approving owners.
Mr Kogan said: “What we’re absolutely focused on is financial stability and solidity and that’s my remit and that is the remit I have to stick to.”
So asked if, for example, the regulator could intervene to stop North Korea’s regime buying a club, he said owners would be assessed based on “international legal and law enforcement, right the way through to financial stability”.
But he added: “Everything we do will be on a case-by-case basis, but nothing to do with human rights. It’s not part of our remit to actually take a judgement based purely on human rights.”
Future financial risks
The millions he brought into the Premier League were as a TV rights negotiator.
But Mr Kogan said: “What nobody’s thinking about is what happens if those deals stop paying as much money. Where are we going to be in three years’ time in the world of football?
“Where are clubs going in terms of their risk profile? And that’s what we’ve been set up to think about.”
While the Premier League shares £1.6bn with the wider game, there is an impasse with the EFL over a rejected redistribution deal.
Mr Kogan said: “The idea that that is going to lead us to imposing a solution that the EFL think is just going to be gerrymandered for them is not the case. We’re way off having any view at all.”
Banning rogue owners
Men’s professional clubs will eventually have to be licensed by the regulator, assessing owners to prevent them from inflicting financial ruin.
“Once we know there are amber lights flashing then we can move in and we would investigate and we will take whatever decisions we need to deal with that,” Mr Kogan said.
“There are rogue owners but they’re few and far between. What I actually think is much more of concern in the world of football, not rogue owners, is good owners.
“Good owners who are down the league are spending money on keeping their clubs going and are still losing money and are facing an uncertain future… that’s a model that actually needs to be really assessed.”
But at Sheffield Wednesday, delays in paying players have raised alarm bells as Thai owner Mr Chansiri is not selling up.
“Without commenting on an individual club, we’re going to take notice and we have been talking extensively to people in Sheffield,” Mr Kogan said. “And when we’re in a position to act, we’ll act.”
‘No magic wand’
There might be disappointment from fans who think the regulator has more power than it has.
“Every VAR decision, the cost of meat pies, ticket prices, everybody thinks that we’ve got the right now to come in and wave magic wands,” Mr Kogan said.
“Within the legislation our remit is pretty tightly defined and we can’t do any of those things.”
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And there is no comment on the lack of verdict in the big case hanging over football – hearings into Manchester City’s more than 100 alleged breaches of financial rules.
“Lots of people within the Premier League, among clubs, have been surprised by how long it’s taken,” Mr Kogan said.
