The Charity Commission is unaware of any legal action against its investigators conducting its inquiry into the Professional Footballers’ Association Charity despite weekend media reports, Third Sector understands.
An article published by the Mail on Sunday newspaper yesterday claimed that four trustees at the PFAC, which is the charitable arm of the professional footballers’ union, had started action to take the investigators at the regulator to court for unspecified reasons.
The commission opened its inquiry into the PFAC in January 2020, saying it had “serious concerns” about conflicts of interest in its relationship with the union.
The MoS reported the charity would fund legal action by the PFAC trustees against the regulator.
But it is understood that the commission has not received any claim against its staff carrying out the inquiry.
The ongoing inquiry is examining how trustees have handled potential conflicts of interest at the charity, including in its transactions with other organisations, and whether the board has fulfilled its legal duties.
An independent review of the charity’s governance was also conducted in 2020, although its findings have not been released.
The four trustees named in the MoS report are the former footballers Garth Crooks and Brendan Batson, plus Gareth Griffiths and Darren Wilson.
The charity’s most recent accounts show that total staff costs at the PFAC in 2020/21, which are covered by a donation from the PFA, were £6.9m. The highest-paid member of staff received about £1.75m.
The charity did not respond to emails today, but told the MoS over the weekend that it would be “reluctant to comment” on any legal action until the commission report was released.
A spokesperson for the commission said: “Our inquiry into the PFAC remains ongoing and we cannot comment further.”
The solicitors named in the report as representing the four trustees, Brabners, were approached for comment.