Ministers have reversed their decision to mandate that the new football regulator take the government's foreign policy into account when evaluating club takeovers. This change comes in response to concerns raised by Uefa, which warned that such a requirement could result in favoritism towards certain countries' bids and could be seen as political interference in the sport. The football governance bill, which is set to be introduced on Thursday, will no longer include this controversial stipulation. The climbdown reflects a growing recognition of the need to maintain the integrity of football governance and avoid entangling the sport in political agendas.