Football clubs on brink of collapse can be saved, says culture secretary

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These clubs belong to their fans... and we will always fight for them

Football clubs in crisis like Sheffield Wednesday and Morecambe can "absolutely" be saved from the brink of collapse, says Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy.

The future of both clubs remains uncertain after a torrid summer of issues including delayed wage payments for players and staff, registration embargoes and in the case of Morecambe, suspension from the National League.

In July, a bill to establish an independent football regulator became law, granting it powers to oversee the mens game in Englands top five divisions. However, the regulator will not be launched until later this year.

When it is operational, Nandy says the regulator will be able to make a difference.

"These clubs belong to their fans. They are nothing without their fans and we are on their side and we will always fight for them," Nandy told BBC Breakfast.

"Nobody should have to go through this. When Bury collapsed, we were absolutely clear that that had to be the last time that ever happened to anyone again. Its happened to far too many people since."

Bury were expelled by the English Football League in 2019 while in League One after a takeover bid collapsed.

"Owners need to recognise that they have a responsibility to be the custodians of a club and hand it on in good shape to the next generation," she added.

"Theyre hugely important to the economic life of a town, which I know from my own experience."

Nandy highlighted Wigan Athletic, the team she supports, as a club who were saved from the brink of collapse in 2021, but have experienced further financial challenges.

"Wigan went right to the wire, we were within hours of HMRC pulling the plug because taxes havent been paid, players were about to walk, the wages havent been paid and at the final hour we managed to achieve a resolution.

"So Ive absolutely said that to the fans groups and to the local MPs do not give up."

Morecambe were put up for sale by owners Bond Group in September 2022, but a deal has still not been completed, and two relegations in three seasons since have seen the club drop into the National League for the first time since 2007.

Last week the Shrimps were suspended by the league for failing to comply with their rules, while Nandy wrote an open letter to Morecambe owner Jason Whittingham urging him to sell the club.

Bury are granting free entry to Morecambe supporters for their opening Northern Premier League West game of the season against Newcastle Town on Saturday as a gesture of solidarity.

Meanwhile, Championship club Sheffield Wednesday have lost £178m between 2015, when Thai businessman Dejphon Chansiri bought the club, and 2024.

The Owls are under a transfer embargo, manager Danny Rohl left the club by mutal consent in July and the North Stand at Hillsborough has closed because of concerns over its structural integrity.

A training match against Burnley at the weekend was cancelled after players refused to play, but it is understood the club will fulfil their opening game of the new Championship season against Leicester City on Sunday.

Stronger tests around potential owners and directors will be brought in by the new football regulator, which Nandy says will help struggling clubs falling into peril.

"In the case of Morecambe [the regulator] would definitely make a difference," Nandy told Radio 4s Today programme. "There are powers for the regulator to be able to force the owners to sell in circumstances where it would otherwise be lost.

"In the case of Sheffield Wednesday, which I know many, many people are concerned about, there are some measures in the bill that will make a big difference. Legislation, for example, gives fans much greater power over the direction of their own club."

But with the independent regulator not yet up and running, the prospect of either Morecambe or Sheffield Wednesday, or both, becoming the next Bury is very real.

"I dont want to sugar-coat this, people have been through it," said Nandy.

"Bury is an example of this where they lost everything because of poor ownership. And it proves why there is such a need for the legislation that weve just passed.

"We are working at pace to set up the regulator and I can promise Sheffield Wednesday fans and every other football fan in the country, this is personal for me and were going to make sure this happens."

Sheffield Wednesday fans have conducted regular protests against Dejphon Chasniris ownership of the club