Former Premier League boss Richard Scudamore on foreign owners, the ESL’s future, and fan power

Richard Scudamore did not give many on-the-record interviews during his 19-year reign at the Premier League and he has not given many since retiring in 2018, so when he tells you he is happy to share his “observations on anything”, the decks are cleared.

The governor — and a bit like US presidents are always presidents, Scudamore will always be the governor — has something he wants to say!

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And he did, over 45 very cordial minutes with this writer and Mark Chapman, lead presenter of The Athletic’s Football Podcast.

You can and should listen to the whole interview on the podcast, which is available wherever you get your podcasts, and ad-free if you listen via The Athletic app.

But for those who prefer things written down, here is an abridged transcript of the most newsworthy parts of the interview: his views on whether football needs an independent regulator, parachute payments, the American takeover of the Premier League, the pyramid, the European Super League and who is to blame for the congested fixture calendar.

Bristol City, his club, are mentioned, as are Oldham Athletic, Notts County and even Southend United.

And golf fans should try the full podcast version because one of the jobs Scudamore still does is advise the Ryder Cup on how to deal with LIV Golf. No spoilers — you’ll have to listen.

Mark Chapman: When you first got the job as CEO of the Premier League, what did the clubs want from you?

Richard Scudamore:  Well, I think most jobs in sport like that one, something’s happened to make them vacant — there’s usually some sort of crisis. And in this case, my predecessor (Peter Leaver) had signed an agreement that gave away a slug of the Premier League’s TV value to media rights advisers. Decent guy though he