Trust News

Keith Morgan, Trust Chair

Trust Chair Keith Morgan has written an update for members on the latest news on football governance. 

As you will be aware from my previous updates, I have been involved in developments on this topic on behalf of Trust members for a few years, through the Fans-Led Review and the Government White Paper.

Today has seen a big and important development as it has been announced that the Government Bill will be placed before Parliament today. It is expected to be voted through with a very large majority as the White Paper received support from all major parties and both Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer have publicly given their strong support.

The above development means that the appointment of an Independent Regulator of English Football (IREF) will be in place sooner than later and the football industry will be obliged to implement new procedures, including ensuring that full and proper consultation is held with appointed fans groups on strategic matters.

I will continue to be involved in these discussions and consultations, both as Trust Chair and as a member of the recently formed Fans Advisory Group (FAB) at Cardiff City.

The FAB is set up to hold meetings with the club and be consulted on higher level strategic matters such as the club strategy going forward, its board structure, potential new investment and any major plans for ground development etc. This is the level of consultation required under the Government White Paper and Bill so FAB members are not diverted away from such key issues by too much discussion of issues to be dealt with in other formats available to fans.

Matters such as travel and ticketing arrangements will not be on the FAB agenda but will continue to be discussed at the regular Supporters Liaison Officer (SLO) meetings where such matters should be raised.

There will also be bi-annual Fans Parliament meetings where a larger number of fans will have the opportunity to be addressed by senior club officials in a more informal way (Although I understand that the first such Fans Parliament meeting due to be held this month was cancelled at short notice).

As and when further developments occur, and generally, the Trust board will endeavour to continue to keep our members informed.

Keith Morgan

Chair

One of our members, Rob Gough, complained to South Wales Police over policing in Sloper Road after the derby against Bristol City last November.

A fan for 70 years, he was troubled by the way police handled the situation which he felt was excessive and not proportionate.

Below is the response from South Wales Police to his complaint.

There has been a lot of talk about the latest transfer window. Trust chair Keith Morgan sets out the issue of profitability and sustainability in a message to Trust members.

 Dear Member

You will recall that, in my last communication to you after the meeting called by Mehmet Dalman prior to the Preston game. I undertook to update you on the current situation regarding Profitability and Sustainability (formerly known as FFP). I have now been able to clarify some issues so here is my summary of the current situation and its impact on the January Transfer Window. 

There has been quite a lot of criticism on social media about the club only making player signings very late in the transfer window and missing out on “first-choice signings”, so I thought that this brief explanatory note might be helpful.

Since March 2022 the monitoring of club finances in the EFL has been carried out by a separate independent panel of qualified accountants called the Club Financial Reporting Unit (CFRU). It is they who decide whether EFL clubs are in an adequate financial position to have transfers authorised and to what extent. Their rules have become increasingly strict and their monitoring checks far more frequent recently.

The basic rules have not changed much. EPL and EFL clubs are monitored on the basis of the losses they incur. If losses are below £5m on average over a rolling three-year period then no further checks are made. Greater losses are allowed if the difference is made up by new cash introduced and funding guarantees by club owners so that the average is increased to £35m in the EPL and £13m in the EFL. In Cardiff City`s case the “top up” has been made by new cash introduced by Vincent Tan by way of paid-for new share issues.

There was a further restriction introduced in June 2023 in that if a club is even a few days late in paying its HMRC debt then this has to be reported as a Default Event and the EFL can introduce an immediate transfer embargo until the matter is sorted.

The impact in January was that the CFRU only gave clearance to a number of clubs very late in the transfer window. As a consequence, there were more Championship club transfers in during the last two days of the transfer window than in the whole of the rest of the full month.

Keith Morgan

Chair

The latest Trust magazine is about to be delivered to members.

In our main feature article, Peter Jackson, distinguished journalist and former Cardiff City reporter for the South Wales Echo, recalls the club’s efforts to qualify for European competition from the bottom end of the then Division 2. Those fans of Cardiff City today concerned about the club’s form might be interested to learn that over 10 weeks back in the 1960s the Bluebirds went 10 games without a win with just two draws and the rest losses. There are also Bluebirds-related pieces from Rob Jeffery, Paul Evans and David Collins, so plenty to digest.

And, of course, there is the usual Bluebirds Brainteaser quiz for members which comes with a £50 prize.

Note of Meeting with Mehmet Dalman February 10th, 2024

Prior to kick off on Saturday, the Fans Advisory Board (FAB), of which myself and Mike Spear are members, were invited at short notice to a meeting chaired by City Chairman Mehmet Dalman. Also in attendance were Ken Choo (Chief Executive), Steve Borley (Director) and various Heads of Department at the club.

The meeting was informal and was an opportunity for Mehmet to meet with FAB members including those recently elected who may not have met senior officials of the Club before. There was no fixed agenda and the floor was open to questions on any subject. Inevitably, the January Transfer Window was discussed at length.

Mehmet emphasised that player negotiations had taken place throughout the month but, as is usually the case, could only be concluded in the final days with some transactions going to the wire. He stated that the Club’s transfer activity, in the context of the Club’s financial position, was under close scrutiny by the EFL under Profitability and Sustainability Rules (formerly known as FFP). Members will be aware that there is a new focus on Profitability and Sustainability and all EFL clubs were under the same level of scrutiny during the last Window. I will be preparing a separate detailed note on the new approach to the rules governing the financial viability of clubs and will circulate it to members in due course.

Keith Morgan

Chair