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Ben Palmer

Wed 13 August 2025 19:56, UK

Morecambe’s ongoing plight is something that could be fixed by an English football regulator.

That is according to football finance expert Dan Plumley, who told Football Insider exclusively that the Shrimps are unfortunate that a regulator is not in place yet.

Morecambe is currently suspended from the National League due to unpaid bills and staff wages.

The league are due to meet on 20 August to discuss the possible expulsion of the Shrimps.

Morecambe’s chairman Jason Whittingham, the man cited as the cause of much of the club’s woes, has claimed that he is working with a number of potential buyers to secure the club’s future.

Sheffield Wednesday are enduring similar financial issues to Morecambe.

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There is currently no governing body that has the jurisdiction to remove the club’s owner from his post.

Leeds are interested in signing Morecambe defender Olly Tonkin, which may provide a boost to the club’s coffers.

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Their plight matches the one that Sheffield Wednesday are currently enduring under owner Dejphon Chansiri.

This article contains exclusive comment from Dan Plumley, a football finance expert and senior lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University.

On 5 August, Martin Samuels wrote a column for The Times stating that a regulator would have no more power than any other governing body, in response to Morecambe and Lunesdale MP Lizzi Collinge’s comments saying: “If a football regulator had been in place, the current owner wouldn’t have been able to buy the club, because he’s not got a good reputation.

“And ultimately, it would be a last resort, but a football regulator could intervene in situations like this because football clubs will be licensed and if the owners do not abide by the terms of those licences in their business practices, then they wouldn’t be able to stay there.”

Samuels went on to say that the current owners and directors test existed, and there was little more a regulator could add.

Rhys Williams spent last season on loan at Morecambe.

However, Plumley told Football Insider this was untrue and that a football regulator would have the “legal powers” to deal with owners, even if they had passed the test that currently exists.

He said: “I think Martin’s comments are a little bit disingenuous, because the regulator will have legal powers to go in and deal with owners at that point in time, which is not something that we’ve seen before.

“The current regulation can’t do that, and that’s where the Morecambe situation has become so desperate.

“That’s what the regulator should, and will be able to help with in the future.

“Unfortunately for Morecambe, it’s just not in place yet to be able to do that.

It’s a really desperate situation.”

The Athletic reported that the Labour Party are fast-tracking their plans for a football regulator.

Lisa Nandy, the UK’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, is leading the push to have a regulator in place by November.

Derek Adams is the current Morecambe manager.

The move will heap pressure on owners such as Whittingham and Chansiri to sell their clubs before a regulator can intervene.

One of the powers of the regulator will allow owners to be stripped of their right to run clubs, and BBC Sport reports that David Kogan, a sports media executive, is the preferred choice for the role.

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