The Changing Landscape of Sports Regulations: An Examination of the Impact of Regulatory Changes on Football Governance and Transfer Policies in Post-Brexit UK

Ononye, Ugochi Paul

Abstract

Sports governance studies tend to focus on sports management, and such studies are widely seen to
overlook the key role of regulation and law in sports governance. Jonson and Thorpe (2019, p.35)
note that “what is evident from the sport management literature is the absence of consideration of
the role of the law makers – the courts and the parliaments – in determining sport governance
practices”. As such, this makes sports law an under-researched area within sports governance
(Forster, 2006).
This study’s aim was to examine the key role of law and regulation within sports governance; the
impact of changes in supranational agreements like the Treaty on the Functioning of the European
Union (TFEU) and Brexit; and varying governance practices involved in the football transfer system
within the UK and the EU. Using Brexit as a pivotal point, this study evaluates the governance
networks in professional football, with particular attention to governing bodies and the player
transfer system across the UK and the EU.
A qualitative case study approach has been adopted for this study, as it is an appropriate method for
a descriptive and exploratory study, placing focus on the analysis of the context and a nexus of
interrelations (Yin, 2018). This study utilises both primary sources and secondary literature. These
include semi-structured interviews, academic literature, publicly available official documents of
governing entities, and news reports.
The study is structured into three parts. The first one is an exploratory case study that reviews key
governance structures and major regulatory changes that have shaped the governance of the
international player transfer system pre-Brexit, assessing the role of the EU in the governance of
professional football. The second part explores contemporary changes to governance of the UK
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player transfer system post-Brexit and considers the impact of regulatory changes due to Brexit on
the player transfer market in the UK. The last part explores the recent Fan-Led review and its
implications to the future of professional football governance in the UK.
The study will extend the theoretical application of Multiple Streams Theory to the governance of
the professional football player transfer system on both the supranational level and at national level
within the UK. It also utilises a theoretical triangulation of organisational pathology and legitimacy
theory proposed by Anastiadis and Spence (2020) to investigate governing bodies within football on
a multi-tier level, assess regulatory changes to the player transfer system due to Brexit, and assess
the future of football governance proposed in the Fan-Led Review.
The study found that the main involvement of the EU in the governance of the player transfer
system is the work with the football governing bodies in the policy stream in the developing a selfgoverning transnational player transfer system that is compatible with EU laws and principles. The
study also found that a key aim of the regulatory changes in the transfer system due to Brexit, is to
incentivise the utilisation of more homegrown players. This is because the post Brexit Governing
Body Endorsement (GBE) regulations have substantially reduced talent pool of players available to
transfer into the UK. The findings of the study will enhance the understanding of the new GBE
system within the football transfer system in the UK and facilitate football clubs and recruitment
professionals in strategizing future player transfers in light of Brexit. Lastly, this study’s evaluation of
the Fan-Led Review and governance practices within professional football highlights an
unsustainable framework of governance practices in the UK, particularly down the football pyramid
in the EFL leagues.

Citation

Ononye, U. P. (2024). The Changing Landscape of Sports Regulations: An Examination of the Impact of Regulatory Changes on Football Governance and Transfer Policies in Post-Brexit UK. (Thesis). University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Jan 12, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 27, 2024
• Award Date: Jan 26, 2024