Football watchdog pitches up to Premier League clubs summit

The bosses of English football's new watchdog will next week pitch up to a summit of the game's most powerful clubs as they await the outcome of the probe into alleged financial improprieties at Manchester City.

Sky News has learnt that David Kogan and Richard Monks, respectively the chair and chief executive of the Independent Football Regulator (IFR), will attend a meeting of Premier League shareholders for the first time.

Mr Kogan and Mr Monks are expected to make a brief presentation to the 20 top-flight clubs, which include Arsenal, Liverpool, Newcastle United and West Ham United.

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Their appearance will come a month after the IFR outlined the proposed scope of its inaugural State of the Game report, which will explore the flow of money through the English football pyramid.

According to a statement from the watchdog last month, the review will examine how financial flows within the game have shifted, including in relation to "cliff-edges" between or within leagues.

The IFR will ultimately have powers to impose a financial redistribution agreement on the Premier League, dictating how much money its clubs must hand over to their lower league counterparts.

Prior to the regulator's formal establishment, talks were held between the Premier League and English Football League about a multi-year deal worth close to £1bn, but no agreement was struck.

The Premier League, which declined to comment on the attendance of the IFR at next week's shareholder meeting, initially expressed scepticism about the need to establish an industry regulator.

The IFR was conceived during Boris Johnson's stint as prime minister, when the formation of a European Super League involving six of England's top clubs sparked outrage across the sporting and political arenas.

The ESL project was quickly abandoned by its Premier League participants, but successive Conservative and Labour administrations decided to press ahead with setting up the regulator.

A verdict in the Manchester City case, which saw the serial Premier League champions charged with more than 100 breaches of the competition's rules, is now said by some in the sport to be close.

A spokesman for the IFR declined to comment.

(c) Sky News 2026: Football watchdog pitches up to Premier League clubs summit