Manchester United icon Gary Neville has urged the government to include Tracey Crouch’s fan-led review in the Queen’s speech. The review into English football, led by former sport minister Crouch, was the result of three so-called ‘crisis points’ and recommended an independent regulator (IREF), of which Neville is a strong advocate.
The demise of Bury FC, COVID-19, and the proposed plan to create a European Super League prompted an in-depth review into how English football operates. Its recommendations include an IREF, a renewed owners’ and directors’ test, and for supporters to be properly consulted in key club decisions by means of a ‘shadow board’.
Former defender Neville has urged the government to include the recommendations in the Queen’s speech ahead of the 2022 State Opening of Parliament on May 10, effectively making it a government promise to implement the changes. Our Beautiful Game – a group of which Neville is a member – is listed as having given evidence as part of the review.
Neville tweeted on Monday morning: “The Fan Led review needs to be in the Queens Speech!”
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In a further tweet, the 47-year-old accused the Premier League of hiring former senior civil servant Helen MacNamara to prevent the review’s implementation. Alongside a screenshot of Crouch announcing that the government will formally respond to the review, Neville wrote: “A positive tweet below from @tracey_crouch regarding the Fan Led Review. Mystifying that the Premier League have hired Helen McNamara (ex No10 Downing St) with part of her remit to stop the Fan Led Review being implemented. They just don’t know when to quit do they.”
The Premier League did not respond when asked to comment on Neville’s claim about MacNamara, although Express Sport understands that her appointment came in the May before the review’s publication in November 2021. However, some Premier League clubs are understood to harbour concerns over the some of the review’s recommendations.
The government has been supportive, but it is unclear whether the recommendations will be made official policy. Sport minister Nigel Huddleston said last month: “We are at a turning point in English football. The fan-led review is pivotally important. We recognise there are failures in the structure and governance of English football.
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“If it was all working perfectly, we would never have needed the fan-led review. We do recognise there is a need for further refinement and more robust owners’ and directors’ tests and the integrity element of that is something that is being pushed.”
Upon the review’s publication last November, culture secretary Nadine Dorries said: “I’d like to thank @tracey_crouch and her panel for their hard work.
“We’ve seen clubs with centuries of traditions, such as Bury and Macclesfield Town, disappear entirely, while the European Super League threatened the very foundations of the game.
“The review also lays bare that incentives in the game all too often lead to reckless financial decision making. While the Government will take time to respond to the review’s recommendations in full, today we are endorsing in principle the review’s primary recommendation.
“This review makes clear that we’re at a turning point for football in this country. Football clubs are the hearts of their local communities, and this Government will ensure they are properly run and fans are protected.”
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