Independent regulator relaunched

GM football fans. Route One here, and we’re covering updates on the Independent Football Regulator, proposed changes to the MLS schedule and much more. Enjoy Route One? Share us with a friend on WhatsApp with this link.

PREMIER LEAGUE MW9 STATS

Arsenal vs Liverpool (Sun, 16:30 UK). Arsenal have won their last two league meetings against Liverpool, but their win rate drops from 74% to 45% with William Saliba absent. Chelsea vs Newcastle (Sun, 14:00 UK). Chelsea have only lost one of their 29 league matches against the Magpies on home soil. However, Eddie Howe has won two of his four games against Chelsea while in charge of Newcastle. Manchester City vs Southampton (Sat, 15:00). City are on their longest-ever unbeaten league run, going 31 Premier League games without defeat, while the Saints are on a 21-game winless run in the top flight. Full list of Premier League fixtures here.

Plus…

• Europa League results: Fenerbahce 1 - 1 Man Utd | Spurs 1 - 0 AZ | Roma 1 - 0 Dynamo Kyiv | Rangers 4 - 0 FCSB | Porto 2 - 0 Hoffenheim (Full results here)

• Conference League results: Panathinaikos 1 - 4 Chelsea (Full results here)

• Ballon d’Or ceremony takes place on Monday; Vini Jr is favourite (More)

• The first El Clasico this season will take place on Saturday (Preview)

• Ferguson resigns as manager of Inverness after 15-point deduction (More)

Editor’s note: Our team will be taking a week-long break from next week. We’re using this time to plan content and rest. We’ll be back by 4 November. 

In the meantime, we’d love to hear from you, Router. Please answer this question in our form or simply hit reply to this email.

INDEPENDENT REGULATOR INCOMING

Government introduce ‘strengthened’ football governance bill, expected between 12 to 18 months

The UK government had relaunched the Football Governance Bill, including a number of changes to the initial Bill, which was first launched in March. The new Bill, should it pass MP scrutiny, will put parachute payments – money given by the Premier League to relegated clubs – in the Regulator’s remit as a last resort. This is the most controversial change to the incoming Bill (More background here).

The updated Bill will also mean that clubs must discuss topics like ticket prices with fans and be encouraged to ‘democratically’ select fan representatives. However, the government has dropped a requirement for the regulator to consider “foreign and trade policy” when approving club takeovers. The idea is to ensure the regulator is fully independent from political influence.

In response to the update, the Premier League has reiterated its concerns about the regulatory framework. It believes the regulator will stifle the League’s competitiveness and its global appeal.

There is still a while before the Regulator comes into force through Law. Now that it has been officially introduced to parliament, it could take between 12 to 18 months.

POLL

HEAD START

🇵🇹🇮🇹 Portugal and Italy move up in latest Fifa ranking. Both Portugal and Italy have moved up one space in Fifa’s latest world ranking to seventh and ninth, respectively. Argentina remain top of the table, with France, Spain and England trailing behind. Tunisia were named the biggest fallers, dropping 11 places to 47th. Find out how the men’s ranking is calculated here.

💼 Arsenal appoint new director of football. James King, a former Arsenal executive, is set to return to the club as director of football operations. King left Arsenal to join the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) in May 2022. He will now take up the position left by Richard Garlick.

🏟️ Wrexham to resign Kop stand. A new architect has been appointed by Wrexham to redesign the 5,500-capacity Kop stand. The original standing Kop terrace was abandoned in 2007 and was unused until its demolition in 2023. Populous, the architectural firm, have worked on the likes of Wembley and Tottenham’s new stadium. The stand will be built before the summer of 2026.

MLS UPCOMING CHANGES

MLS considers switching to European-style winter league by summer 2026

Major League Soccer could change its calendar so that the season takes place between autumn and spring, aligning with the European leagues. If the proposal goes ahead, changes could come as early as the summer of 2026.

Executives and owners believe that it will help maximise the league’s participation in the global transfer market. It would also mean that the MLS playoffs aren’t competing for attention with America’s most popular sports as much – the MLB playoffs, the NFL and the NBA.

The proposed changes mean that the MLS season would begin, like most European leagues, in early August. A five-week break would take place from mid-December and then resume in early February. The league says it will continue to survey fans to determine whether to go ahead with the changes.

AROUND THE FOOTBALL WORLD

Top Five European Leagues

> French minister says that Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 matches might be suspended or halted completely if incidents of homophobic chants and violence continue (More)

> Four Atletico Madrid supporters have been arrested for allegedly coordinating a hate campaign against Vinicius Junior (More)

Rest of the World

> Juan Riquelme, former Argentina midfielder and Boca Juniors president, had to intervene to stop a confrontation between the fans of Boca and Gimnasia La Plata (More)

> More than 250 supporters of Uruguayan club Penarol detained after clashing with law enforcement in Rio de Janeiro (More)

Women’s Football

> Lord Triesman, the former chairman of the FA, has said that the governing body is not making football “fair or safe” for women by inaction over transgender policy (More)

> New York City FC men’s coach, Nick Cushing, leads on the shortlist to success Jonas Eidevall as head coach of Arsenal Womens (More)

ROUTER’S VOICE

Yesterday, we asked you: Should the UEFA Conference League be considered a major tournament?

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🏆 Absolutely, it's another path to European glory... (54%)

🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 📉 Nope, it shouldn't be considered major... (44%)

⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (write in!)... (1.5%)

Your punditry takes:

• 🏆 J.E.D: “It is a major trophy in the same way we used to have the European Cup, the UEFA Cup and the European Cup Winners Cup. For the fans, it is a great experience of playing European football and for the clubs, it is a great footballing experience.”

• 📉 D.H: “The fans decide by attendance, the clubs use the opportunity to give squad players a game, but major, I don’t think so 🤔.”

• ✍️ B.R: “Too many of these Mickey Mouse competitions are designed to make money for the organisers.”

EXTRA TIME

Opta’s updated Champions League predictions.

Inside Mourinho’s Man Utd reign.

The stats behind Vini Jr’s Ballon d’Or claim.

Do officials really favour the ‘Big Six’? / w data

Ten memorable moments from Arsenal vs Liverpool.

The footballer playing on despite stage four cancer.

When Matt Le Tissier scored two Goal of the Month contenders in one game. / via X

Average age of recruitment among the big five leagues.

GAME FACE ON

Question: Who Am I…

• I become the first Crystal Palace player to score 50 Premier League goals.

• I was Sir Alex Ferguson’s last signing at Manchester United.

• I currently play for Lyon, on loan from Galatasaray.

Scroll below for the answer.

ON TODAY

Premier League

• Leicester City vs Nottingham Forest (20:00)

Championship

• Portsmouth vs Sheffield Wednesday (20:00)

La Liga

• Espanyol vs Sevilla (20:00)

Bundesliga

• Mainz 05 vs M’gladbach (19:30)

Serie A

• Udinese vs Cagliari (17:30)

• Torino vs Como (19:45)

Ligue 1

• Rennes vs Le Havre (19:45)

*All times in UK. EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer

Wilfred Zaha.