David Kogan Says He Will Quit If Politicians Interfere in Manchester City Case

David Kogan, chairman of England’s Independent Football Regulator (IFR), has said he would resign rather than allow political pressure to influence decisions concerning Manchester City and the club’s ongoing appeal against alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules.

Kogan, according to the BBC, said no politician had attempted to interfere with the regulator’s work and stressed that the body would follow the law and its established procedures when considering the case.

When asked what he would do if politicians attempted to pressure him over Manchester City, he gave a direct response: “I would resign.”

Commenting on Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s earlier remarks about the club’s ownership, Kogan said: “The Prime Minister is entirely entitled to make his own observations on anything.”

He added: “We are independent. That is in the name. I am the chairman of the Independent Football Regulator and independence absolutely runs through everything we’re doing.

“And no politician has tried to influence and would try to influence anything we do on that.”

Burnham had previously said he would be “really concerned” if Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi owners chose to sell the club. The comments prompted criticism from opposition politicians and fuelled concerns among some Premier League clubs about the possibility of political involvement in the case.

The prime minister subsequently denied playing down the seriousness of the findings against City. On Monday, the government published details of his meetings with senior club officials after calls for greater transparency.

Kogan insisted that neither political statements nor comments from other individuals would change the regulator’s approach.

“As far as we, as the regulator, are concerned, we have a very, very clear course of action that is governed by statute and we are going to follow that course of action and no comment by any politician or indeed any individual is going to affect what we do,” he said.

“Process is going to drive what we do. Process will lead us to a conclusion.

“We cannot reach any conclusion at this stage because we don’t know the outcome of any appeal and once we do then we will act accordingly.”

Possible Sanctions Await Manchester City

Manchester City was found by an independent commission to have breached financial rules over a nine-year period from 2009 to 2018.

The findings included allegations that commercial agreements were used to direct more than £830 million into the club’s football operations. The commission also determined that some witnesses representing the club had given false or dishonest evidence in key respects.

City have denied wrongdoing and lodged an appeal against the verdict.

A separate independent panel is expected to hold a hearing to decide on possible sanctions, with the process potentially lasting several months. Manchester City could challenge any punishment through a further appeal.

Reported possible penalties include a substantial financial fine, a points deduction, expulsion from the Premier League or the stripping of titles won during the period being investigated.

Kogan said the regulator would assess the situation after the appeal process and determine whether its own powers should be used.

“We are waiting like everybody else to see what the independent panel will do… and then we will bring in a view in terms of our own investigation and statutory powers if we need to do so,” he said.

Explaining the scope of the regulator’s authority, Kogan said it could examine whether club owners, directors and senior executives were fit to manage a football club responsibly.

“Our powers relate to individual owners, directors and senior executives. They refer to whether people are in a position to run a club in a way that is safe, coherent and done with probity, and we will be examining those things.”

The IFR’s responsibilities include assessing the suitability of club owners and senior officials. Should the findings against Manchester City be upheld, the regulator could consider whether further action against individuals connected to the club is warranted.

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