Chris Roberts (chairman)

Chris Roberts is an English businessman, who served as chairman of Torquay United Football Club between October 2006 and February 2007.

Chris Roberts and three other directors set up Torquay United Holdings Ltd to buy shares in October 2006 from Torquay United Football Club owner Mike Bateson over a four-year deal. Bateston still "owned" the club by retaining a 51 per cent share. 34% of the club's shares were sold to the consortium.

His past career is heavily based in football having played in the Czech Republic when young, and performed various roles in the sport, such as being an advisor to FIFA and UEFA and being involved in the deal that brought Mark Viduka to Celtic. As a former FIFA Players Agent, Roberts worked closely with several clubs as he was experienced with the Overseas Labour Service and acquired many work permits for non-EEA Players.

In November 2006, Roberts introduced a new initiative whereby Torquay players would be disciplined and potentially dismissed if they dived and constantly brought the Club's reputation into disrepute, by repeatedly trying to fool referees by diving.

This did not prove very popular in the UK as the Players Union felt sidelined, but the idea gained a lot of support from the US Major League Soccer. UEFA also supported the move in principle. This may have sowed the seeds for UEFA's recent decision to hold players to account for diving, post match to the annoyance of Arsène Wenger, following Arsenal's game with Celtic in the Champions League in 2009.

On 27 November 2006 Roberts appointed his friend from the Czech Republic, Lubos Kubik, as manager and Bateson's son-in-law, Richard Hancox as his assistant. Former manager Ian Atkins was offered the post of Director of Football, but decided against staying with the new regime.

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