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Should football clubs cooperate with regulators?

Examining the problems that have arisen with Uefa's Financial Fair Play rules, the Forenisic Risk Alliance argues that football needs to take account of best practice in other industries, in particular developing a more cooperative relationship with regulators.

They argue that 'Clubs in various sports are struggling to meet compliance obligations and failing to proactively engage regulators. It is clear that the wider global trend of intensifying regulation has gained traction in the world of sport, and this is unlikely to reverse given public opinion and the potential commercial consequences. The better long term strategy for sports teams would be to shift into higher gear in their cooperation with their regulator.'

They suggest that clubs should be given incentives to borrow from the corporate compliance playbook.  But what would these incentives be?   They also highlight the importance of organisational culture, but for many football clubs, especially the richer ones, the predominant culture is: 'We do what we want, when we want, how we want.'

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