Tags request relegation from the Isthmian Premier Division.

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Hashtag United have requested relegation from the Isthmian Premier Division to play in the Isthmian North. This would pose many to ask the question, 'why would a club REQUEST relegation?'

According to the non-league football paper, there were wider issues in the game that played a major role. Some of these wider issues included budget. The budget of a club becoming a key factor in a voluntary relegation presents a problem in non-league football that the FA simply can no longer ignore.

As great as non-league football is, there is one drawback, which is uneven budgets that create an unequal playing field across non-league football clubs. Hashtag United began as a YouTube team where the owner, Spencer Owen, and his friends came together to just play some football. This emphasises their sheer determination and hard work to get to the point they are at in the non-league pyramid. Now they are having to offer themselves for relegation due to finances as an award? A real shame.

When discussing the recent fallout with the non-league football paper, Hashtag United owner Spencer Owen stated how 'For most, a club's fortunes come down to the depth of the owner's pockets.'

How ridiculous is it that one of the main attractions of non-league football is those underdog stories that Hashtag United have epitomised, yet now are staring down the barrel at relegation due to unsustainable finances across the board in non-league?

It must also be considered from the opposing point of view that perhaps Hashtag United's voluntary relegation shows responsibility in terms of regulating themselves financially as a club rather than going bust.

Ultimately though, this is down to the Football Association to introduce fair rulings so that sustainability is prioritised. Perhaps salary caps for players or reviews on clubs' financial models just to name a few suggestions. Non-league football has come on leaps and bounds. Let's not find a way to halt that.

Will the Tags be back? Will it be a revolution or a retreat?