What is football white paper? How could it impact Manchester United takeover

The Government of the United Kingdom is scheduled to finally release their long-awaited white paper on football before the end of February.

In the aftermath of the initial announcement that six Premier League clubs were joining The (European) Super League in April 2021, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson threatened that a “legislative bomb” would be used to prevent anything of the sort from happening. Almost two years after it was promised, the bomb is now finally due to drop.

But what does this all mean? And what impact could it have on Manchester United and a potential takeover of the club? The Manchester Evening News attempt to explain all below...

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What is a white paper?

A white paper is a formalised plan for legislation, the act of making a new law or set of laws. In this case, the government will outline how it intends to create an independent regulator for football after agreeing with Tracey Crouch's fan-led review following many months of lobbying.

What was the fan-led review?

The review was commissioned by the government in the wake of The (European) Super League being launched, and former sports minister and current MP Tracey Crouch was responsible for conducting it. Seven months later, in November 2021, the review was published, which called for the creation of an independent regulator for the game.

When will the white paper be released?

The paper has been delayed several times since its initial release date last summer. The most recent postponement came two weeks ago when it was scheduled to be publicised on February 8 before that was shelved due to the visit of the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The paper has