Parry on potential FFP rule changes for Championship clubs

UEFA introduced new regulations in 2022 and it has been speculated the Premier League could soon follow suit.

There has also been debate over what impact the independent regulator will have on the current rules, with new Football Governance Bill introduced to Parliament on Tuesday.

“The position moving forwards will be that we want to be in alignment because we have got squad cost ratios in League One and League Two,” Parry told EFL reporters in a briefing on Tuesday afternoon.

“They have come in at UEFA level and the chances are they will come in at Premier League level. It makes sense for the Championship to come on board and I think the Championship clubs will embrace that.

“One of the challenges we have been presented with is - because all of this has been delayed - it is really deciding what we do for next season. It is getting late in the day now for wholesale changes for next season.

“The chances are, we will be moving forward for next season with the profit and sustainability (rules) still in place, which I think is the Premier League’s position. Probably the season after, we will be looking towards a change.

“The Championship clubs are getting together to discuss exactly what they want to do and until they do that, it would be wrong to pre-empt it.

“But I think that is the likelihood. We don’t want to rush into this and get it wrong, but I think that is the direction we will head towards.”

Another major talking point in recent weeks has been funding from the Premier League. Last week, top-flight clubs were unable to agree a settlement to the EFL worth £925million over a six-year period.

Parry hopes the imminent introduction of the independent regulator will help speed up an agreement.

“I think this is another area of uncertainty that has now been removed” he added. “Up to now, it has been, ‘Will they do the regulator or will they not?’

“There has probably been a level of, ‘Let’s wait and see’ from the Premier League but now we know it is coming. We know the regulator will have independent powers and we think the regulator will come in relatively quickly.

“The Government clearly wants to get it finalised within this Parliament and it is pretty clear we are facing an election towards the end of the year. Providing all the MPs are suitably supportive - and this has had cross-party support - there is every reason to believe this will become law by the end of the year.

“That really ought to focus minds. The Government’s preference remains for football to find a solution and we are definitely up for that.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we haven’t had any offer from the Premier League. They haven’t been able to get that over the line.

“We hope this might accelerate the process but if it doesn’t, the regulator will have powers to step in and bring a deal about.”

While an agreement with the Premier League would have a big impact in the short term, Parry is also hopeful that the independent regulator will lead to a more stable environment in the long run.

Reading fans protest against owner Dai Yongge (Image: PA)

Bury’s demise is still fresh in the memories of football supporters and the current situation at Reading looks bleak.

“What the regulator will do – and we have never been able to do – is they are going to require guarantees, bonds and assurances that the funding will be in place, that they can’t just turn the tap off,” Parry explained.

“The big issue for me is not the badges or the colours – as important as those things are – fans really want to know that their club is going to be sustainable and exist in the long-term, so that is where the big benefit comes.

“The regulator is not going to do one-off tests, but periodically, to make sure they are still fit and proper, making sure they are honouring their commitments and putting the funding in that they said they would put in.

“If they don’t, they have the ability to tell them to divest and put in trustees to run the club in the meantime. They will have powers that we don’t currently possess.”

One of the arguments against tighter regulations on ownership is that it could put off future potential investors, but Parry is confident it will have the opposite effect.

He said: “We have been asked whether it will stop good owners coming in – but why would it do that? It is a better environment with more certainty and clarity.

“It is fairer, so surely that will produce better long-term investors and, in reality, it will make fan ownership more viable.

“If you don’t have to write out enormous cheques and run clubs on a break-even basis, you can spread the net more widely.”