New Club Buyers Must Provide Future Financial Information

Last updated : 06 June 2014 By Covsupport News Service

Anyone wanting to buy a League One and Two club is going to have to provide future financial information and evidence of the source of their funding. 

Hedge Funds like SISU at Coventry City and others have been able to take over football clubs without revealing where their funding to run the club and sustain it, is coming from and this loophole has now been tightened up and will apply to all Football League clubs.

The principle has already been adopted by clubs in the Championship, but at the Football League AGM in Faro, Portugal on Friday afternoon, clubs voted to extend regulations applying to club takeovers in the Championship to clubs in Leagues 1 and 2. 

This means that any purchasers of clubs applying for a change of control at clubs in Leagues 1 and 2 will now have to provide 'Future Financial Information' demonstrating the club's ability to trade and evidence of the source and sufficiency of funding. 

Football League Chief Executive Shaun Harvey  said to the Football League’s website: "Having operated these rules in the Championship for the last four seasons it is logical to now extend their implementation throughout our competition. They will assist our efforts to ensure that anyone taking control of a Football League club has the necessary funds, from a legitimate source, to support its business plan."