Business Advantages of Supporter Community ... - Supporters Direct

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anger about supposed secrecy in the football club board. Now, afterfive years in charge, levels of supporter trust are much higher.Brentford also run an initiative called ‘One Brentford’ which gets allthe different parts of the club together – the Community Sports Trust,the Learning Zone, the Football Club, Bees United and BrentfordIndependent Association of Supporters – with the aim of gettingall parties to see themselves as ‘one family’, where previously theyviewed each other with suspicion.AFC Telford United – Public AccountabilityAlthough it is an acknowledged added burden to workloads, AFCTelford United publishes its accounts on an annual basis to supportersand these are made available on the club’s website, with a detailedbreakdown published in the local press. Carter says that:‘It’s about having a sense of duty and part of that is about runningtransparent processes for whatever it is, be that recruiting a manager, acommercial manager etc. You need to have stakeholder involvement, which isbeneficial because it gives an outside eye on potential candidates and it createsa transparent process. That’s just part of being a community owned footballclub, because essentially I have to stand up and justify any decisions to theowners. I wouldn’t want that to change and would be very uncomfortableif there was ever any suggestion that it may change. I think it’s refreshingbecause in football, how often are people appointed on a wink and ahandshake over a pint in the pub, because people know the owner or director?Community ownership gives us that edge in terms of transparency.’FC United – Beyond AccountingFor Andy Walsh, at FC United, transparency is an integral part ofwhat it means to be a community club and it involves much morethan providing financial details.‘The first community that any club should look to is the supporters and itsmembers. Then there are other communities to consider, such as the communityin which the club resides, the immediate neighbours; and then it’s looking outand seeing what the club can do in wider society and how the club can benefitthat. FC United’s experience is that if you go out and engage with widersociety, that will have a much greater benefit to the club in terms of the healthof the club, the sustainability of the club and also attracting new support, and42 Supporters Direct Briefing Paper No.4
goodwill within the wider community. Without that, FC United wouldn’t bewhere they are with the council, with other agencies, with sponsors etc.’He says that members know board members and staff are aroundand available on match day; that the manager and players areaccessible; that they’re all part of the same club. This makes the club‘permeable’ and provides a level of integration between supportersand board which, even at non league level often involves an artificialseparation.‘All too often, even in non league football, those that have the privilege of beinginvolved at the heart of the club, forget that it is a club and see themselves asdifferent. Things need to be run in a business-like manner, but at the heart ofany sports club is the idea that everybody is in it together and that’s why theyare called clubs.’FC United hold an Annual GeneralMembers know that board members meeting and a formal Generaland staff are around and available Meeting each year which includeon match day; that the manager and a ‘warts and all’ discussion ofplayers are accessible; that they’re finances. However, since theyall part of the same club.have been developing plans fortheir own ground, they have heldat least one other members’ meeting per year to keep fans updatedwhich attracts over 300 members. In addition the club has runseveral surveys of fans and involves them in the ground developmentconsultation process.Business Advantages of Supporter Community Ownership 43
Page 2 and 3: About Supporters DirectSupporters D
Page 4 and 5: IntroductionThis paper is the fourt
Page 6: Community Benefit SocietiesThrougho
Page 10 and 11: 1 Strategic PartnershipsKey Questio
Page 12 and 13: The council took over the freehold
Page 14 and 15: the stability of the football club
Page 16 and 17: Erik Samuelson, AFCW’s Chief Exec
Page 18 and 19: supporters’ trusts.AFC Wimbledon
Page 20 and 21: the club crest and manufacturer whi
Page 22 and 23: Supporter community owned clubs hav
Page 24: 5 ResilienceKey Question:Does commu
Page 27 and 28: 6 Co-operative ‘Added Value’Key
Page 29 and 30: community club can be an advantage
Page 31 and 32: at a “normal” football club, yo
Page 33 and 34: Exeter City - Valuing Supporter Vol
Page 35 and 36: FC United of Manchester do not curr
Page 37 and 38: the area of donations. Many clubs w
Page 39 and 40: with specific skills - in areas suc
Page 41: costs and the additional ‘buy in
Page 45 and 46: Category Average Score of Average S
Page 47 and 48: ● 73% of respondents from support
Page 49 and 50: community ownership, the community
Page 51 and 52: The Supporters Direct Briefing Pape

Business Advantages of Supporter Community ... - Supporters Direct

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