Saving Football From Dubious Owners Is Not An Easy Task

Football is an industry built on passion and commitment, with clubs steeped in tradition and soaked in the hopes and dreams of supporters captivated by the rollercoaster of emotions that professional sports can bring. It follows that football clubs are not normal businesses, and the stewardship of those clubs is a key role, heavily impacting on and off-field performance, with owners charged with protecting what many consider to be community assets.

Owners Under Scrutiny

In recent years, the ownership of English clubs – both in the Premier League (EPL) and the English Football League (EFL) – has come into sharp focus. The effort by owners of a number of EPL clubs to initiate a breakaway European Super League in 2020 caused widespread outrage, immediate back-pedaling, and a raft of apologies to fans and football at large. The ownership of Chelsea, acquired by Roman Abramovich in 2003, came under scrutiny in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,