Football Governance Bill Committee MPs urged “to save football” as Ebbsfleet United, Maidstone United and Tonbridge Angels join forces

Three Kent clubs have called on Kent MPs to “help save football”.

Tracey Crouch, MP for Chatham and Aylesford, and Damian Collins, MP for Folkestone and Hythe, are both members of the Football Governance Bill Committee.

The committee will start to look at the bill line by line on Tuesday, covering issues such as football finances, owners and directors test and FA Cup replays.

Ebbsfleet United, Maidstone United and Tonbridge Angels are all members of Fair Game, a group that is campaigning for fairer governance in football.

Currently, the broadcasting deal is worth £3.19bn a year, but according to Fair Game research for every £1,000 that goes to a Premier League club, 57p goes to a National League side like Ebbsfleet, and just 14p to a Maidstone or Tonbridge in the National League South.

“The problem fundamentally is that those making the decisions don’t care about the rest of the football pyramid,” said Maidstone co-owner Oliver Ash.

“They haven’t listened. We’ve seen that just recently with the FA Cup replays debacle.

“The football authorities didn’t listen to the fans, and they certainly didn’t consult a vast number of the clubs in the pyramid.

“The big decisions - and that includes on football finance - need to go to an independent regulator.”

Ebbsfleet chief executive Damian Irvine said: “Football needs a reset. The gaps in the pyramid are getting wider and wider each year. And it is making it harder and harder for clubs like us to survive and compete.

“The Bill at the moment leaves football’s financial flow firmly in the hands of the existing authorities.”

David Netherstreet, of Tonbridge Angels, added: “We are not asking for radical change. We want a proper independent assessment.

“The new regulator should have the