Q&A: Football League chief

David Burns, chief executive of the Football League answered your questions in a live BBC Sport Online forum.

real 56k Click here to watch David Burns.

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Here we go again, the Nationwide League returns and fans are gearing up for the thrills and spills of another season.

As is David Burns, the chief executive of the Football League, who answered your questions and comments on all things football.

real 56k Click here to watch David Burns.

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Stuart, UK

If the football league allow Wimbledon football club to relocate over 70 miles from their home town, will this not be a green light to any chairman to pick and choose where they wish to call "home" just because there seems to be lucrative fan base?

This is an application by Wimbledon to move to Milton Keynes. At this stage in the game, this is a matter that we have to investigate and my job is to make sure we're looking at the interests of the Football League. Then we look at the interests of the member clubs, the club that's making the application and the supporters.

That means there has to be a great deal of investigation before any decision is made, and we will conduct a very thorough enquiry. I have already requested detailed information from Wimbledon and spoken to the chairman of the Wimbledon Independent Supporters Association, Chris Stuart, and asked their views. I have also written to the leader of Merton Borough Council, which is Wimbledon's natural home, asking as to what they're doing to keep Wimbledon there.

So there's a lot of work to be done before any decisions are taken, and for the time being we are keeping an open mind. It is fair to say that this has never happened before, which is not to say it won't happen in the future, but if it is to happen it might be considered a precedent. So, if the Football League exercises a discretion, then it has to do so in full knowledge that it may happen again.

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Damian Woodward, UK

Can you please clarify the 'special circumstances' under which the 25 mile radius rule can be set aside?

I don't know where this 25 mile radius rule comes from. The rules of the Football League say that the board of the Football League will accept applications from football clubs to ground-share or to move, but traditionally they will not permit the clubs to do that if it means moving away from the area to which they are traditionally associated. What we've got with Wimbledon is a club who moved from where their home base was, almost ten years ago. What is stopping them moving back there? That is one of the things we will have to look into.

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B. Cowan, Scotland

Do you see Celtic and Rangers playing a part in English Football in the near future?

We are constantly looking into how we can grow and increase the value of the Football League, in terms of increasing its customer base and so increasing revenue. On the back of Celtic and Rangers being rebuffed by the Premier League, we thought, "what opportunities might they have with the Football League?"

So a possible inclusion in the Worthington Cup is something we will look at very, very carefully. But there are some major political issues that have to be overcome and you would have to look at the structure of the competition generally. But as a customer of football, yes, it's something that would create interest in the competition, thus deriving more customers and more revenue, which gets redistributed back to the Football League clubs.

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Matthew Campbell, York

I understand the League is keen to gain another promotion place for clubs from Division One to enter the Premiership. Does this mean another Conference place will appear, or will Division Three continue to restrict access for a number of very good non-League clubs?

It's a hobby-horse of mine and something we should seriously look at, that is the issue of increasing promotion and demotion throughout the leagues. It increases customer interest. People flock to games where promotion and relegation are at stake, therefore increasing revenues, and if you get increased promotion between Division One and the Premiership, you get increased access to the wealth in the Premiership and you get redistribution of wealth based on success, not hand-outs.

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Brian James, England

With an increasing number of Football League clubs struggling financially, isn't it about time the League implemented a regionalised structure with more local games and less travel to benefit clubs?

I don't accept that Football League clubs are struggling financially. They have never had as much centrally driven income as they will have as we enter this next season. A first Division club next year will get central income from the League of about £3m, against £750,000 last year.

What any business does when they get a pay raise is go and spend it. On some occasions, clubs may spend a little bit more than they have, or they miscalculate, and from time to time we'll get financial problems, as we did last season with Hull City and Chesterfield.

As regards regionalisation, I don't think that the general public are looking for it, nor do I think that the Football League clubs are looking for it. I think the beauty of what we've got in this country is a national League. I think it's a retrograde step to start thinking about regionalising second and third Division clubs.

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Adrian, UK

Are you concerned that the gap between the Premiership and the Nationwide League is widening, and if so, what can you do to narrow it?

The gap is a financial one. The finances of the Premiership clubs and the rewards of getting there are significantly ahead of the rewards for being in the Football League. Over the last few years there hasn't been that same sort of gap on the plying side. Clubs like Sunderland and Newcastle have pretty much become established in the Premiership. Last season we had Ipswich and Charlton doing well, and I fully expect the three promoted clubs this year to do well. Unlike some pundits, I don't expect them to make an immediate return to Division one.

I think that Birmingham's success in the Worthington Cup last year proves that the gap isn't that big, as well as Tranmere's win over Leeds, when they came from 2-0 down against a full strength team to win 3-2. You can't beat nights like that.