West Ham co-owner David Sullivan has claimed that three Premiership have turned to a wealthy individual to lend them money after the banks refused to continue bankrolling them.  Sullivan did not name the clubs but made it clear that they were not the top clubs and one could also exclude smaller benefactor clubs like Wigan and Fulham as well as clubs that have recently acquired new owners such as Sunderland.

Portsmouth have been ordered back into court after HM Revenue and Customs expressed unhappiness about unspecified aspects of the voluntary administration process.  The tax authorities remained tight lipped about the exact nature of their challenge, but it can be seen as part of their tougher line with football clubs.  Against a background of falling tax revenues, Revenue and Customs are unhappy about the failure of many clubs to meet their tax obligations.

The rule that gives football creditors such as players and other clubs priority in any administration has been challenged.   Some analysts think they are not consistent with the law.  Others say that in any event the rule should be abolished.  Football economist Stefan Szymanski took this view and not just because it favours wealthy footballers over the likes of the St.John Ambulance.  He told the Financial Times, 'It undermines the incentive of the league to put in place some self-regulatory mechanism to control the finances of the club.'

It looks as if the Premiership is going to get a boost from the value of its overseas broadcasting rights.  The current three-year deal is worth £625m but the new deal may well be above £1bn.  However, the Premiership may not disclose the exact amount because of a potential public backlash which is an interesting reflection on reactions to success.   Much of the popularity of the Premier League in Asia is linked to its use in gambling.

The 125-year history of Chester City came to an end today were they were expelled from the Conference by their fellow clubs.   The writing has been on the wall for some time and they now face a winding-up order on 10 March.   Owner Stephen Vaughan has been in a clash with Chester fans whom he deniunced as idiots.

Prime minister Gordon Brown has expressed his regret at the announcement that Portsmouth FC has gone into administration.   It is all very well for him to express concerns about the state of football governance, but the Government decided not to pursue the regulatory recommendations made by the Football Task Force it set up when it first came into office.

For the sixth successive year, League 2 side Hereford United will record a profit, despite experiencing relegation from League 1 in the year covered by the accounts.   In the year to 31 May 2009, Hereford made a profit of £26,899, well down on the £408,467 earned in th previous, promotion year.  During the last six years Hereford have announced profits of almost £1.2m.   The club is finalising a joint venture agreement with developers, Richardsons, which will account for United's lomg-term debt and is in the process of securing a new, long lease on the ground.

Keith Harris, a former Football League chairman and executive chairman of investment bank Seymour Pierce, is the latest leading figure in football to call for a boycott of matches at Manchester United while the Glazers are in charge.   He reasons that protests of themselves won't perausde the Glazers to sell, but hitting them in the pocket will.   Harris is a United fan who has been involved in several takeovers involving Premier League clubs and he reckons that it would be possible to put together a consortium to buy out the Glazers.

A report by Uefa shows that the Premier League owes 56 per cent of Europe's total footballing debt - and the figures don't include Portsmouth and West Ham because their financial problems meant they could not be given Uefa licenses.   The combined debts of the Premiership clubs stand at £3.5 billion, four times the figure for La Liga, the second nost indebted division.   The report criticises the leveraged buyout model used at Liverpool and Manchester United which is seen as burdening clubs rather than being used to support investment or spending.   

Ray Trew, Notts County's new owner, has told The Daily Telegraph that he intends to invite officers of the East Midlands Police Economic Crime Unit to investigate Munto Finance, the previous owners who assumed control last July.