That's my initial read as well. If the government needs to step in, what is the purpose of the FA? Surely stewarding the game is their sole raison d'etre, but for some reason, they've shirked it at every opportunity.
They aren't a free market economy otherwise individual clubs would be allowed to sell their own TV rights packages, and the top clubs would be even further out of reach.
I don't think anyone would disagree with the notion that impartial regulation is necessary for the good of the game, and not individual clubs. In other words, exactly the opposite of the free market economy, which favours the survival of the fittest and best equipped.
The issues and driving forces are different down the pyramid, but if the Glazers get into bed with this Elliot group, we could very easily end up like Bury. Currently, parasitic ownership groups have been allowed to take over and strip billions from the game right under the watchful eye of the stewards, yet the potential fallout could be much much worse. Any regulatory body needs to stop owners like the Glazers from not only taking over in the first place, but imposing the levels of debts onto the club, and potentially borrowing from the equivalent of a loan shark.
Not sure more money down the pyramid is going to solve the problems. There will always be more money nearer the top, which will still drive owners of lower league clubs to chase the pot of gold at the end of whatever rainbow is the closest.
