Football regulator vows no political interference in Man City case: 'I would resign'
IFR chair David Kogan says he would resign over any political interference in Manchester City's case, as club licensing begins in November and the regulator's powers to force owner sales come into view.
Published 17 Oct 20264 min read
The chair of English football's Independent Football Regulator (IFR) has said he would resign rather than allow political interference in the Manchester City case, as the watchdog prepares to begin licensing clubs from November — the first real test of its authority over the Abu Dhabi-owned club.
'No one is above the rules'
David Kogan, chair of the regulator established by the British government last year, said he saw no room for political pressure when the IFR eventually weighs Manchester City's fitness to hold an operating licence. An independent commission last month found City guilty of more than 100 charges of breaking Premier League financial rules, after concluding the club artificially inflated its revenue by more than $1 billion over nearly a decade. City have appealed and deny any wrongdoing.
If there were political interference, I would resign.— David Kogan, chair of the Independent Football Regulator
The pledge came after Prime Minister Andy Burnham — a former mayor of Greater Manchester, where City play — was criticised for saying he would be "really concerned" if City's Abu Dhabi owners walked away following the verdict. Downing Street subsequently insisted no one was "above the rules", and Burnham published all of his dealings with the City hierarchy. Kogan said the IFR was still awaiting the outcome of the club's appeal before any licensing decision.
Licensing becomes real in November
From November, every club in England's top five divisions will need an IFR licence to operate. Kogan indicated the guilty verdict would not by itself block a licence while the appeal is ongoing, but he was clear about what comes next. "A verdict once it's gone through an appeal process will certainly be something that we would clearly be taking into account when looking at awarding a license or looking at the owners, directors and senior executives," he said.
The regulator's powers go beyond licensing: it can declare an owner unfit and force a sale. That gives the IFR an independent second front alongside the Premier League's own sanction process, where City face potential punishments ranging from a massive fine and points deductions to expulsion from the top flight.
A regulator finding its feet in a struggling industry
The row over City lands just as the IFR sets out the scale of the problem it was created to fix. Its first State of the Game report found that while English football generated £9 billion in revenue last season, 94 percent of clubs across the top five divisions were loss-making, 32 clubs could not survive more than 30 days without owner funding, and 17 would make a loss even if their players played for free. Total debt is forecast to pass £5 billion by the end of this season.
Owners in many football clubs will inject the money two or three days before payday and not keep any cash in the club. This is not how most businesses are run, and it's a major issue which we will require football to address.— Richard Monks, IFR chief executive
The IFR is also brokering talks between the Premier League and the English Football League over solidarity and parachute payments, proposing that money currently concentrated on relegated clubs be spread more evenly, alongside new requirements for clubs to manage financial risk.
What happens next
- City's appeal against the commission's verdict runs its course, with the Premier League's sanction decision still to come.
- Licensing of clubs in the top five divisions begins from November, giving the IFR formal control over who can own and run a club.
- Kogan is scheduled to appear before the House of Commons culture, media and sport committee next month, where MPs have already demanded the regulator show what it intends to do about the risks in its own report.
For Manchester City, the message from the regulator is that the boardroom battle now has two arenas: the Premier League's appeal-driven sanction process, and a licensing regime designed to outlast any single verdict. Kogan's resignation pledge is aimed at the one thing the new watchdog says it cannot survive — the suspicion that a football club's fate could be settled in Westminster rather than by the rules.