Ultimately it was what wasn’t said that was far more interesting that what was actually revealed by Channel 4′s Dispatches: How To Buy A Football Club on Monday night. Very little damning was actually proved, but reading between the lines Alex Thompson’s film shone a light into some of the murkier corners of the beautiful game and what emerged from the shadows may not have been a surprise to many who follow the game, but were no less disturbing.
The film focused on far eastern investment company the London Nominees Football Fund, who were advised by former Manchester United and England captain Bryan Robson and headed up by businessman Joe Sim, who boasted of his close friendship with Sir Alex Ferguson. Unsurprisingly, Fergie responded by saying his relationship with Sim wasn’t quite at the level the Thai claimed it was.
But to focus on Robson and Ferguson, two of the most recognisable figures in the documentary, would be to slightly miss the point. It was a shame that the programme spent so much time focusing on the Ferguson link.
Robson, meanwhile, came across as a jaded, cynical, if somewhat naive ex-pro now out for the money, and with very little caring for fans of individual clubs. If Captain Marvel hadn’t been involved, then no doubt there would have been another equally high-profile “legend” putting in an appearance at some point.
Even the clubs mentioned were slightly beside the point. The point here being that, even if no money changed hands and no deal was ever concluded, it was perfectly feasible to own more than one Football League club, in direct violation of Football League regulations.
And while it’s not clear how much was bravado on the part of Sim, there is a question to be answered about just how much influence the London Nominees Football Fund has in the boardrooms of Football League clubs.
Nine clubs -Sheffields Wednesday and United, Crystal Palace, Derby County, Cardiff City, Leeds United, Leicester City, Birmingham City and Oxford United were names tossed around with gay abandon. What, if any influence, does the fund have here?
Both Leicester and Cardiff have recently been taken over by owners from the Far East, and their respective owners’ relationship with Sim was hinted at but not taken any further. While there’s no suggestion these aren’t above board, one wonders if the Football League will have another look at the ownership of both clubs.
Indeed, watching the Football League’s chairman, Greg Clarke, admit that it was “difficult” to know exactly who owned all of the 72 clubs under his watch, was one of the more disturbing moments. At the very least, it suggested the Fit And Proper Persons Test for prospective club owners is failing.
Of equal intrigue and concern was perhaps the aspect that many would have trouble following. The opaque and confusing ownership structures around many clubs, held in Caribbean offshore accounts, PO Boxes in the Cayman Islands, and ultimately owned by God alone knows who.
So, while not necessarily providing a smoking gun, Dispatches did show how easy it was to own more than one club in the attempt to make a profit. Fans, who needed to be placated by good PR, according to Sim, were an afterthought. Collusion between clubs over players and results, due to boardroom influence, was hinted at, if again not proved.
And ultimately, despite the weariness that greeted Dispatches, that is why documentaries like this matter. It’s easy to forget many journalists and bloggers are more familiar than most with the depressing nature of ownership, boardroom and corruption. That doesn’t mean Channel 4 won’t have shocked and angered many fans who weren’t so aware of this.
It’s also why it’s important for fans to know who owns their club. The house of sand that was Munto Finance and their ownershhip of Notts County, combined with Sim’s claims, show why it’s important to ask who owns Leeds United or Crawley Town, or why Plymouth Argyle fans are right to be concerned their club could be taken over by a mysterious consortium fronted by a property developer, while their manager is listed as one of the Fund’s advisors.
This isn’t, as some fans are quick to claim, about jealousy. It’s about protecting the integrity of the competition and protecting clubs from those who could bring them to their knees. Because without that, you may as well not bother.
Tags: Alex Thompson, Bryan Robson, Channel 4, Crawley Town, Dispatches, Dispatches: How To Buy A Football Club, Football League, Leeds United, London Nominees Football Fund, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday
The key work in this article is integrity. Because barely a single person shown on screen had any. Instead, it was a programme about greed. Sad and shameful in equal measures.