MP's OFFER SWEET FA TO FANS

13-10-2006

If football supporters want to change the money-mad obsession of the national game they'll have to do it themselves. That was the bleak message to emerge from a screening of Manchester Disunited And Other Football Feuds in parliament yesterday.

The documentary, made by Stirrer editor Adrian Goldberg brought together fans and MP's including Alan Keen, the chair of the all-party football committee.

Keen insisted the desire of government to control the game is virtually non-existent; any changes regarded as being imposed by politicianswould, he said, would inevitably meet a barrage of criticism, not leastfrom supportersthemselves.

Along with West Bromwich West MP Adrian Bailey he said that he and his colleagueswould only respond to calls for change in the game if there was a strong grass-roots demand, supported in the media.

“We are very media reactive” Keen admitted. “But when the Prime Minister is dealing with a war in Iraq, the health service and so on, there's only so much you can do.”

He raised the prospect of intervention by the EU though, to challenge the rights of clubs like Chelsea to run up enormous deficits and distort competition in the game.

Overall though, there was the feeling that football's current inflationary bubble would have to burst of its own accord before we see prices reduced and a return to the days when more than two or three teams actually had of winning something.

Fair enough, although it does make you wonder if politicians are so powerless a) why anybody bothers being a backbencher and b) why so many MP's are keen to sing up for the football committee. With 150 members, it's one of the most popular in the Commons.