by The government’s decision to accept all the recommendations made in the major review led by Karen Carney into women’s football should be welcomed. Coming six days after the Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship clubs went ahead with launching a new independent company (NewCo) to take over the two premier divisions from next season, the answer comes at a crucial point.
The government’s acceptance of the review is a timely reminder of what should be included in a holistic approach to the development of the women’s game at a time when vested interests, particularly clubs with men’s teams, are at risk. in the Premier League. Central to the disagreement that delayed Championship clubs from fully supporting NewCo’s proposed launch, with some opposing it and others conditionally supporting it, was over the voting power of those clubs.
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The Professional Games Working Group, set up by the Football Association to set up NewCo, is putting forward a revenue split between the leagues: 75% to the WSL and 25% to the Championship, emphasizing that a much larger share is the share given. to the English Football League in the Premier League. As a result, WSL clubs are pushing Championship clubs not to be able to vote on commercial decisions, mainly because those in the top flight are responsible for generating the majority of revenue across the leagues and it is a statement the share is 25% for the Championship. on their commitment not to separate from the pyramid.
The commercial success and viability of WSL clubs is not a historical phenomenon. It is a new one and, although the state of Championship clubs is mixed, the potential for Championship clubs to rise to a low level of commercial viability in the medium term is not an unrealistic prospect.
It is understood that the NewCo board will have a mandate to represent the interests of both leagues, and will therefore have the power to give Championship clubs votes on all key issues affecting them. But there are some unknowns, such as the composition of the board itself and how the interests and pressures of WSL clubs supported by the Premier League will be managed against the overall interests of the league.
A day after several clubs in the Championship rebelled against their vote to remove some items, all 24 clubs across both tiers agreed to the proposal. In a sense they were caught between a rock and a hard place, the Irish Championship was cut from NewCo as one of the other options.
The government’s response to the Carney-led review sides with the Championship clubs in this discussion. He says that “priority should be given to the proposal for a one-programme principle between the leagues and allowing clubs to represent sharing” and that “independent decision-making is not only good governance, but is vital to protecting vested interests ensure don’t drag the game to places that aren’t to everyone’s benefit. NewCo has an opportunity to take this approach in its establishment, and we urge NewCo not to miss the opportunity.”
With the government supporting the review’s recommendation that there is no independent regulator for women’s football at this stage, and the opportunity for NewCo to embed financial regulation and planning from the start, this will remind the importance of democratic decision-making among club affairs. at this point. .
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There are a number of other significant recommendations in the review, including that the Professional Footballers’ Association should fully unionize WSL and Championship players. This is another contentious issue, as the PFA are not receiving ring-fenced funding for WSL player memberships but are choosing to cover players anyway when proposing funding for it. Meanwhile, the organization says it is unable to do that for Championship players even though it is not a fully professional league, which the FA says in its response to the government’s response. The issues brought to light in the review led by Carney show that there is an urgent need for players to be properly represented and this situation needs to be resolved so that players feel able to speak up when the new minimum standards are not being met.
Another major coup for the Carney-led review is the government’s support for ending the Saturday 3pm broadcast blackout for women’s football. In a saturated football calendar, the women’s game desperately needs a slot that it can have exclusively. This has affected attendances and viewing figures in several other leagues, including the highly successful Mexican Women’s League, which has its own Monday night slot. The statement in the government’s response to the review is also a significant acknowledgment that “there is a legitimate question about compensating the women’s game for this lost revenue opportunity” if a slot cannot be found where women’s football is under-supported and valued. . too long.
NewCo has a lot of decisions to make and a lot of work to do in a very short amount of time. It is hoped that the Government’s response to the review will help to revive the discussion.
