Dodgy Football Fat Cats like Peter Ridsdale Must Be Punished

Last month, the Insolvency Service banned football club chairman Peter Ridsdale (pictured) from holding company directorships for seven-and-a-half years. Under Ridsdale’s chairmanship, Cardiff City football club accrued debts exceeding £42m between 2006 and 2010. During the same period, Ridsdale secretly and unlawfully transferred more than £345,000 from Cardiff City into his personal bank account, and…

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HMRC vs English Football: The Battle Rages On

English football clubs owed more than £22m in overdue tax to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in 2010, according to figures released last week. Premier League clubs owed £8.6m, Championship clubs owed £6.4m and Football League clubs were indebted to HMRC for £7.4m. Dave Boyle, chief executive of campaign group Supporters Direct, believes the figures…

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Improved Business Models, Not Foreign Players, Will Save English Football

Over the past five months, I’ve posted several blogs highlighting the need for executives and club chairmen to change their business models if they want English football to maintain solvency. It seems English Football League Chairman Greg Clarke may have been following these posts and taken some of my advice as he’s embarked on an…

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