"When considering English football's finances, we should never forget the fundamental strengths that make football our national game. Football is the most popular participation sport for both men and women.

"More than 7 million adults and 5 million children regularly play the sport. It is this passion which underpins English football. The annual value contribution of football to the Treasury via tax is over £630 million and the value of volunteers to the football economy is more than £500 million.

"The All Party Parliamentary Football Group's report is the product of considerable work, drawing evidence from a range of sources, and we will take time to consider how we can best carry the debate forward.

"The key to ensuring the long-term health of the game, at every level, is to invest in football's grassroots. English football leads Europe in this respect - The FA invests over £50 million in grassroots football annually - and runs a number of programmes aimed at improving the grassroots - and together with The FA Premier League, we distribute more than any other European country. By contrast, the investment in sport by central government is among the lowest in Europe.

"Our own research has shown the need for £2 billion of investment in grassroots facilities just to meet the public’s current demand to play the game. That is the single most important financial issue facing the game in this country today.

"We welcome the recommendation from the All Party Football Group that the Government should look at providing greater financial support to the grassroots and that they recognise the need for a step-change in such funding."