The Football Association is planning a revolution for the national game with much tighter rules governing players' wages, transfer dealing and the activities of agents.
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The Football Association is planning a revolution for the national game with much tighter rules governing players' wages, transfer dealing and the activities of agents.
The measures will be announced in the next few weeks and come as the game is facing unprecedented financial problems. They follow a large-scale survey by Mori commissioned by Adam Crozier, the FA's chief executive, soon after his appointment two-and-a-half years ago. The survey, involving thousands of interviews at all levels of the game, delivers the chilling verdict that only a dramatic - and draconian - restructuring of the game's finances can head off a disastrous decline in its role as a cornerstone of national life.
In an exclusive interview, Mr Crozier told The Independent: "Football has gone through a period of monumental growth and it has to be recognised that no business can ever keep going like that. It has to level off at some point. The trick is to sort yourself out before it does."
Mr Crozier added: "This whole survey took nine months and it leaves no doubt that one issue, whether you are a Sunday morning player or someone right at the top, stands above all - it is finance and its effect on football.
"It has confirmed our belief that the long-term viability of the game has to be at the top of our priorities. There are lots of people in football who want it to work and what we have to do is get together with all elements in the game and find a way that works for everybody.