Since the establishment of the Premier League, life had not been easy for the FA.
The Premier League represented the lion's share of interests in English football, but that power was divided between the Premier League Alliance and the Premier League clubs. The FA only played the role of a caretaker, handling routine matters such as appointing referees, arranging fixtures, and reviewing work permits for foreign players.
In fact, these routine matters had been pushed onto the FA when the Premier League was first established because the Premier League Alliance had no time to manage them. This had always been a thorn in the FA's side.
Over the years, Premier League clubs had become wealthier, and the Premier League Alliance's voice had grown stronger. The FA's confidence when dealing with Premier League teams had weakened, and they often had to swallow their pride when facing criticism from the big clubs.
Under these circumstances, asking the FA to make further concessions on fixtures would undoubtedly mean giving up even more power, which was clearly very difficult.
Relying on what he knew from his previous life, Ethan knew that even by 2010, the Premier League still had not introduced a winter break. Almost every year, clubs called for one, but it was never implemented.
Now, Ferguson clearly wanted to use the threat of withdrawing from the FA Cup to pressure the FA into making concessions. Even if he could not secure a winter break, he at least wanted reforms to the fixture schedule.
"Sir, you are truly far-sighted!" Ethan said with an admiring smile.
Ferguson smiled in response, clinked glasses with Ethan, and took a sip of his wine.
"However, I wonder if Sir Alex has considered another very important but often overlooked area?" Ethan asked solemnly.
"What are you referring to?" Ferguson clearly could not guess what Ethan meant.
"Work permits!" Ethan said with a smile.
Ferguson frowned. He was a smart man, and he immediately understood Ethan's point.
"According to FA regulations, clubs can only select outstanding young talents within a certain radius, which already restricts youth recruitment. On top of that, work permits in English football are stricter than in other fields. Players must have appeared in more than 75% of their national team's senior international matches over the past two years, and their country must be ranked within the top 70 of the FIFA rankings."
"Sir, don't you think this will further limit the development of English teams?"
Ferguson was naturally familiar with work permits. He nodded as he listened, but he still did not quite understand what Ethan was getting at.
"If we strictly follow the Home Office's requirements for issuing work permits, which young prodigy would even be eligible to come to the Premier League? If they have to be loaned out for several years after joining a club just to obtain a second nationality before they can play for their own team, do you think that would still be attractive to the players?"
Like the introduction of a winter break in the Premier League, work permits had always been heavily criticized. However, since work permits were issued by the British Home Office, English clubs could do nothing about it.
But according to Ethan's recent understanding, obtaining a work permit in England now required strict compliance with Home Office regulations. The application had to be submitted to the FA for review before it could take effect.
Ethan's ambition was not that great. He did not think he could change such a rigid and stubborn national system. He only hoped that by tipping off Ferguson, the Special Talent Clause could be introduced earlier.
"After being a fan for decades and watching Manchester United all my life, now that it's my turn to run a club, I finally understand how difficult it is!" Ethan spoke with mixed emotions. Those who had never experienced it personally would not understand.
"However, I know very well that competition in football will only become fiercer. Serie A, La Liga, the Bundesliga, Ligue 1, and even leagues in countries like the Netherlands and Portugal are becoming more prosperous. The competition for young players is also becoming more intense."
"If work permits continue to impose such restrictions, what choice do Premier League teams have besides spending huge sums of money on established stars?"
Spending heavily to bring in stars would inevitably increase the operating costs of English clubs and weaken their competitiveness. Ferguson could not fail to see such a simple and obvious point.
Sure enough, after thinking for a moment, Ferguson smiled again. Unlike his previous kind smile, his eyes now flashed with shrewdness, as if he had seen through Ethan's intentions.
"It seems you've found a way for small clubs to survive!"
Ethan was stunned, then immediately realized that Ferguson had misunderstood him. Ferguson thought he wanted to survive by buying, developing, and selling stars. Ethan gave a bitter smile in his heart. What he really wanted was to unearth future stars.
But it was a fortunate misunderstanding. This way, Ferguson would not suspect Ethan of having other motives.
"What's your solution? Work permits are issued by the Home Office. They can't be abolished just by saying a few words to the FA."
"Of course. I never thought about abolishing work permits. I was just thinking whether we could learn from some foreign regulations, such as creating a specific clause for talented players that allows these geniuses to enter the Premier League. As for whether they are truly geniuses, that could be left to the FA to decide for the time being!"
Hearing this, Ferguson first looked delighted, but he quickly turned to Ethan. "It seems you've been prepared for this for a long time!"
"Of course, but I'm just a small figure. Sir, you are highly respected in domestic football. If you speak up, people will naturally respond. And if such a clause is really introduced, a giant like Manchester United would benefit far more than a small club like ours, wouldn't they?"
Ferguson stared at Ethan. His expression was unreadable.
The old knight's eyes were extremely sharp, as if they could see straight through Ethan's heart.
However, Ethan was not worried that Ferguson would oppose it. After all, once such a clause was introduced, the benefits for Manchester United would also be significant.
If Ethan did not have the advantage of foresight, such a clause would have had a negligible effect on New Manchester United, as they simply did not have the capacity to attract foreign players.
Having said what he wanted to say, Ethan did not know whether Ferguson had agreed or refused. Afraid that he would be seen through if he stayed too long, he quickly found an excuse to slip away. Before leaving, however, he did chat briefly with Sir Bobby Charlton.
The old knight had a good impression of Ethan and even gave him a phone number.
Even after escaping Ferguson's grasp, Ethan still felt as if those eyes were staring at him from behind. A lingering sense of fear remained in his heart.
Not everyone could withstand Old Fergie's gaze. Big names like Beckham and hot-tempered players like Keane had all been kept in line by him, which was enough to show how extraordinary those eyes were.
Taking advantage of this rare opportunity, Ethan joined the circle of the Mayor of Manchester and members of the House of Commons.
After entering this circle, Ethan, who had just been a loyal football fan, immediately transformed into a polite and successful businessman. While talking to the Mayor of Manchester and the MPs, he intentionally and unintentionally mentioned that several internet companies in which he held significant shares, such as eBay, were looking to expand into the UK.
This internet company had been making waves recently, and its online auction business was growing rapidly. Since Manchester was currently focused on developing service industries such as finance and the internet, they were naturally very interested in Ethan's suggestion.
Ethan, of course, was not talking nonsense. Everything he said was true. These companies were indeed interested in expanding into the UK. As for whether they would go to London, Manchester, or somewhere else, that would require the people from Manchester to go to the US for negotiations.
But those were matters for later. This interaction left a good impression on Manchester's leaders. After all, he was now a well-known young billionaire from the US, polite, refined, and well-mannered, almost like an aristocrat.
During the casual conversation, Ethan naturally did not forget his purpose for mingling with these political elites. He subtly mentioned his reasons for founding New Manchester United, his determination to run the club, and his desire to acquire the City of Manchester Stadium and the surrounding land to develop the club.
The city leaders immediately promised Ethan that they would re-evaluate the acquisition proposal after returning. If New Manchester United truly had the financial capacity to acquire the stadium and the land, they would try to persuade the council members to approve the acquisition.
New Manchester United had been fighting for this acquisition for a long time, and Walsh had dealt with the city government on numerous occasions. Although the city leaders' support did not guarantee approval, it at least significantly increased the possibility.
Furthermore, with New Manchester United now competing in the National League, the club's strong operating status, and the backing of a wealthy owner like Ethan, it should be enough to convince doubters that New Manchester United was capable of running a stadium.
However, Ethan had also calculated the timing. Even if they secured the City of Manchester Stadium now, the renovations, modifications, and the fact that he wanted to build a North Stand meant that moving into the new stadium in the short term was unrealistic.
Because of this, Walsh had previously signed a lease agreement with Bury FC. New Manchester United's home matches for the new season would be held in Bury.
Although the distance was a bit greater, the stadium was larger and the facilities were better. Combined with winning the double last season, it was believed that New Manchester United's attendance this season would still be quite good.
The only regret was that Bury's stadium could hold more than ten thousand people, so it was clearly impossible for New Manchester United to continue last year's record of selling out every home game.
Leaving the circle of political elites, Ethan scanned the room and found that, besides the Beckhams, the most eye-catching person at the banquet was the rising Hollywood star Eva. She happened to see Ethan as well, apologized to the people around her, and walked toward him.
The moment of truth would come eventually. Some things had to be faced sooner or later.
Ethan could only brace himself and go to meet her!
(To be continued.)