English football in ‘shocking state’ as report reveals just FOUR full-time clubs are ‘regulator ready’

English football is in a ‘shocking state’ as the New Fair Game Index report reveals just FOUR full-time clubs are ‘regulator ready’.

The 2025 Fair Game Index, which can be seen in full HERE, provided a comprehensive analysis of 164 English men’s professional and semi-professional football clubs across the top seven divisions, assessing their readiness for the Independent Football Regulator (IFR), introduced following the Football Governance Bill passed on the 24th of July 2025.

The Index evaluates clubs on eight key indicators: financial sustainability, governance, fan engagement, transparency, ethics, diversity, environment, and community engagement, using over 22,000 data points from the 2024/25 season.

It found that only four full time clubs (Brighton & Hove Albion, Cambridge United, Carlisle United, AFC Wimbledon) are deemed “regulator ready,” achieving a Gold Award.

National League South side Bath City, a semi-professional side, are the only other surveyed club to tick all boxes.

Nearly half of the top four divisions’ clubs (43/92) have less than one month’s cash reserves, with only 8.7% able to cover three months of wages.

Joshua Price, the Founderand CEO of Goal Assist Limited, a company that provides financial consultancy and support to football clubs and stakeholders, said: “The financial gaps within the pyramid are widening at every level not just between the Premier League and the Championship, but also between the Championship and League One, and further down into League Two and the National League.

“In this ecosystem, it is becoming almost impossible for clubs to act sustainably. We urgently need systemic change in how football distributes its wealth if we are to protect the long-term future of the game.”

Price adds: “Cash flow challenges are nothing new in football as Lord Sugar once said: ‘money flows through the game like prune juice’. But the frequency of crises is increasing, as we’ve seen at Sheffield Wednesday, Morecambe, Reading and Southend. Very few clubs hold even three months of reserves, leaving them one shock away from crisis.

“While responsibility lies with owners and directors to be responsible custodians of their clubs, the reality is that the current system makes sustainability almost impossible. Football needs change, and it’s a privilege to contribute to Fair Game’s work in driving the reforms required to safeguard our clubs and communities.

KEY FINDINGS

Fair Game UK said in their press release:

In the most comprehensive survey of men’s professional football in England, Fair Game have scored every football club in the Premier League, the EFL, the National League, the National League North and the National League South, across eight criteria:

Financial Sustainability;

Governance;

Transparency;

Fan Engagement;

Ethics;

Diversity;

Environment; and

Community Engagement.

Each of the criteria covered a range of different issues and were developed following extensive research and numerous conversations with the then Shadow Regulator to provide a best approximation of the standards required for football clubs in a new regulatory regime.

It took Fair Game’s team of 15 researchers four months to gather all the data accumulating a total of 22,000 datapoints.

In short, the Fair Game Index is the most comprehensive analysis of English men’s professional football and provides the best insight into how regulatory ready our national game is.

Fair Game believes to change football’s culture this ranking should be used to reward well-run clubs – simply put the higher they score the higher the share of football’s TV revenue they get.

Just five of the 164 clubs assessed across English football’s top seven divisions and only four in the regulated divisions are classed as ‘regulator ready’.

The four are: Brighton & Hove Albion, Cambridge United, Carlisle United, AFC Wimbledon. The fifth is National League side Bath City.

Only one in six clubs received any kind of award, whether that be Gold, Silver or Bronze.

Fair Game clubs account for 11 of the 12 Gold, Silver or Bronze Awards outside the top two divisions.

No Championship clubs received a Gold award and only one League One club reached that level. This reflects the financial cliff edges between the Premier League and the Championship, and the Championship and League One, with many clubs continuing to take more risks to reach a higher level and a larger payday.

Overall, the 92 clubs in English football’s top four divisions are taking big financial risks, with nearly half of them (43) having less than one month’s cash reserve to cover their operating costs.

There is a substantial drop off between League Two and the National League, reflecting their different regulatory regimes. Clubs in this division are likely to face a difficult adjustment to the regime established by the IFR and will need support to make that transition.

The scores on governance suggest greatest attention is needed on Board Independence and Transparency, with no division hitting much above 50 in this area.

Fan engagement scores suggest that the Regulator has some existing foundations to build on to set minimum standards, but progress in establishing mechanisms for dialogue needs to be matched by clubs sharing information with fans in a way that will build trust.

Transparency ratings are substantially weaker in all divisions for governance than for finance.

Scores for club value areas (Ethics, Environment, Diversity and Community Engagement) tend to be weaker in most divisions than the core areas, particularly for the first two categories. These areas are currently less regulated, which suggests that significant support, information and guidance will be needed to achieve progress. It also shows that clear regulation and expectations tends to inspire organisations to act.

Even amongst the largest clubs, there is little evidence of a strategic approach to environmental issues. For example, only eight Premier League clubs have targets and roadmaps for both Scope 1 and 2 and Scope 3 carbon emissions.

On ethics, exactly half (82) of the 164 clubs receive sponsorship from either gambling or alcohol-related companies. In the Premier League, 19 of the clubs take sponsorship money from both sources.

This year, Fair Game is also awarding a Silver Award to nine clubs for ‘good progress’ and a Bronze Award to 13 clubs reaching a ‘minimum’ standard. This equals just one in six clubs across seven tiers of the football pyramid.

The recipient clubs are:

Silver – Chelsea, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Plymouth Argyle, Swansea City, Exeter City, Rochdale, Chester.

Bronze – Arsenal, Brentford, Liverpool, West Ham United, Burnley, Luton Town, Norwich City, Watford, Lincoln City, Chesterfield, Forest Green Rovers, Darlington FC, Maidstone United.

Fair Game CEO Niall Couper said: “If anyone had any doubts whether football needs a regulator, today’s report blows those doubts out of the water.

“Financial recklessness is rife, good governance is a rarity, and matters concerning ethics and environment rarely reach the board room.

“There are some exceptions and we are delighted to champion those clubs today. These clubs are exemplars and football’s financial flow should look to reward them.”

Couper added: “Fair Game is delighted that a regulator is now in place – something we campaigned for – and we will do all we can to make sure it is a success and our hope is that the 2026 Index will show significant signs of improvement within our National Game.”

We are pleased to be one of only five clubs to be awarded ‘Gold’ status in this year’s Fair Game index, finishing top in fan engagement. 🥇#CamUTD | @FairGameUK

— Cambridge United FC (@CambridgeUtdFC) September 10, 2025