Sepp Blatter wants foreign owner rules

07-10-2008 10:39

Fifa president Sepp Blatter has called for stricter rules on foreign ownership of clubs in the UK and abroad.

"Something has to be done about these billionaire owners," Blatter told reporters at the European Parliament.

"These days you can buy a club as easily as you buy a football jersey. There is something wrong and that's why I ask the European Union to act.

"This is not just about England where the problem is acute. This will spread across Europe."

Manchester City was bought by the Abu Dhabi United Group last month and Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United are also under foreign ownership.

Blatter is concerned at the fate of such clubs should the economic downturn affect foreign owners. He met with EU lawmakers yesterday to discuss overseas investment in football, among other issues.

Blatter added that while there was "no single remedy", he believed owners should have an association with the area before buying a club.

"There are national laws in Switzerland, for example, when you buy property or make an investment, you must prove yourself," he explained. "You have to prove your link with the area.

"There must be better control of football's finances especially in the difficult climate we are facing. I urge Uefa to work with the EU to tighten up the rules, otherwise there will be big financial difficulties in the future."

The economic crisis is already affecting some of the Premiership's biggest clubs, Liverpool's American owners delayed the building of a new stadium as the global crisis took hold, and Manchester United's shirt sponsors, AIG, had to be rescued by the US Federal Reserve in September.